If you prefer a more streamlined alternative to the bloat and complexity of Microsoft "sport-utility" programs, Apple Works 6 is the stealth office suite. Hugely popular in classrooms, colleges, and small offices, it’s got word processing, graphics, database, web design, spreadsheet, and slide-show functions in a single, beautifully integrated application.Every year, Apple Works arrives in the hands of four million Apple i Mac and i Book buyers. There it sits on the hard drive, a masterpiece of smooth integration and clever interface design, accompanied by templates, art libraries, and fonts–and no printed instructions.Apple Works 6: The Missing Manual is the book that should have been in the box.It covers:What’s new. The authors place special emphasis on easing the transition into the new Apple Works 6 interface, its Internet hooks, the Starting Points window, and the new Presentation module.Part by part coverage. The early chapters delve very deeply into the six core Apple Works modules, including 85 pages on the word processor alone.Power tools. Much of Apple Works’s power comes from its macros, templates, assistants, customizable Button bar, and web-based clip-art libraries.Document exchange. Apple Works 6 can no longer export Word and Excel files. But this book covers exchanging documents with other programs, versions, and platforms–and includes a 25% discount coupon for Mac Link Plus, which restores the file-conversion feature.Troubleshooting. Because this book isn’t an Apple publication, the authors freely acknowledge the program’s weaknesses–and offer workarounds. Witty and jargon-free, Apple Works 6:The Missing Manual treats Apple Works as the serious productivity tool it is. With over 250 illustrations, a 2, 000-entry index, and a menu-by-menu explanation of every command, Apple Works 6: The Missing Manual is as smoothly put together as Apple Works itself.