It is an intriguing title, appropriate but also a little misleading in that it doesn’t only address annoying things in Win98, but provides a complete bible of Hints, Tips, Tweaks, Remedies and "How-To"s. It does not list a bunch of complaints about the operating system. If you have a problem with hardware, it will surely be found here with a fix. Computer not functioning to your satisfaction? Hundreds of symptoms and detailed instructions for correcting the problems are provided.

A detailed index makes it easy to find the topic and the subject material is written in plain English, not techno-babble, you do not need a computer expert to interpret the language. Admittedly, I wouldn’t want to perform some of the changes and tweaks which are above the capabilities of a lot of us, but I don’t doubt that they could be accomplished without causing a problem. One chapter is devoted to customizing the interface, the desktop and Explorer, another to the Registry, (catch me trying to do anything there), another to maximizing performance.

One of the most important chapters, to me, is Troubleshooting. In it lie the solutions to most of the problems that plague us all, configuration, error messages, data recovery. An excellent section on backup and recovery from crashes covers the basic needs and suggestions. Another on drivers explains their function, how to install, and why. Chapters on Networking and the Web may be beyond our needs, but certainly in this day of the Internet, any help we can get in understanding the basics is ideal.

David Karp, the author, created a website in which he posted the many problems and solutions associated with Win95. It became extremely popular and the release of Win98 provided the need for the new site. O’Reilly & Associates published the Annoyance books for Win95 and Win98, and produced the software CD "O’Reilly Utilities - Quick Solutions for Windows 98 Annoyances". The software contains automation of some of the problems and fixes included in the book as well as many other customizations and tweaks. A demo CD of Quick Solutions is included with the book. List price of book is $25, Utilities CD $40 (25% off with book purchase).

This book definitely belongs in your personal library.