'Help' book for Adobe Premiere Elements 7

[harleymama50]

:rolleyes:Have heard about The Muvipix.com Guide to Adobe Premiere Elements 7: The tools, and how to use them, to create great videos on your personal computer (http://www.amazon.com/Muvipix-com-Guide-Adobe-Premiere-Elements/dp/0615248993/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1230483729&sr=8-2). Is it a lot better than the software manual that comes with Adobe Premiere Elements 7? Should it be purchased? What are the differences in the two?

Thanks for the help!

Kathy

[ATR]

Kathy,

The only software manual that came with my purchased Photoshop Elements 7/Premiere Elements 7 bundle is not the end all in documentation, more like an intro.

In this new version of Premiere Elements 7, when you hit the program's Help button, you do not get the usual Help files. Instead you are taken to an Adobe web site where you can click on "Adobe Premiere Elements Online Help". That brings up the Premiere Elements 7 PDF which is far more comprehensive. You can read it at that location or download the PDF to your computer hard drive. Check out that PDF. The Help button of Photoshop Elements 7 should bring up the Photoshop Elements 7 Help PDF.

As for Steve Grisetti's book on Premiere Elements 7 tools...I have not read the book, but it has gotten good reviews for the tools aspect. When it comes to the presentation in that book of general concepts for newcomers, I am not sure. I have seen notices at Adobe about a Premiere Elements 7: Missing Manual book due out any day. Until now I have heard only of the Photoshop Elements: Missing Manual books by Barbara Brundage which have been excellent. If the Premiere Elements 7: Missing Manual book is in the same quality league as the Photoshop Elements series, it should be a winner. I have no idea who is authoring that book. "Missing Manual" in the title suggests to me that O'Reilly is the publisher.

Adobe seems to be coming out with a new version of software around Thanksgiving of each year. Principles remain essentially the same, but interface and feature locations can be different. I would suggest you check out the free resources before you invest in books. Then make your own decision on what works in your best interest in navigating the Adobe learning curves.

Please know that you can post your questions here when and if you hit a block, and we will tell you what worked for me.

ATR

[harleymama50]

Thanks for your comments. I have been trying to use the adobe on-line help pages without a lot of success, going back and forth between them and the software (right now I'm using the trial version but have purchased the full version and I'll have it soon). I'll keep working on it--it will take a lot of patience. The manual that comes with the software (I'm getting the full version soon) doesn't sound like it's very good in teaching a beginner how to use the software.