•By John Nemerovski • These first annual Book Bytes Awards are given to books reviewed in 1997 and through the October issue of 1998. We heartily congratulate all the winners and urge them to continue to produce outstanding books for the readers of My Mac Magazine and the international Macintosh community. Bravo! AWARDS FOR SPECIFIC BOOKS   BEST BEGINNER/INTERMEDIATE MACINTOSH BOOK: The Little Mac Book, Fifth Edition by Robin Williams ISBN 0-201-69673-8 (Peachpit Press) and Beyond the Little Mac Book (which she co-authored with Steve Broback) (Peachpit Press) Robin hits a home run every time at bat.   BEST INTERMEDIATE/ADVANCED MACINTOSH BOOK: Macworld Mac OS8 Bible by Lon Poole ISBN 0-7645-4036-X (IDG Books Worldwide) If you are serious about the Mac platform, Lon Poole will consistently satisfy you.   BEST MACINTOSH APPLICATION BOOK: Macworld Office 98 Bible by Bob LeVitus, Deborah Shadovitz, Edward Jones, and Derek Sutton ISBN 0-7645-4041-6 (IDG Books Worldwide). A workhorse of a book for the ultimate workhorse software.   BEST GENERAL DESIGN TOPIC BOOK: Step-By-Step Electronic Design Techniques Edited by Talitha Harper and Sara Booth ISBN 0-201-69672-X (Peachpit Press). This book blends beautiful design with real-world projects for artists and designers.   BEST WEB DESIGN TOPIC BOOK: Elements of Web Design 2nd Edition by Darcy DiNucci with Maria Giudice and Lynne Stiles ISBN 0-201-69698-3 (Peachpit Press). T hey make it look so easy.   BEST BROWSER BOOK: The Big Guide to Netscape Communicator 4 by Brad Harris and Bill Vernon ISBN 1-57521-301-X (Sams Publishing). It is big, and altogether thorough.   BEST WEB DIRECTORY: World Wide Web Internet Directory Seventh Edition ISBN 1-56205-881-9 (New Riders Publishing). When you need to look something up, this is the place.   AWARDS FOR SERIES OF BOOKS MOST VISUALLY ENGAGING BOOKS: The maranGraphics series, by a long lead. Example: Teach Yourself the Internet and World Wide Web VISUALLY ISBN 0-7645-6020-4 (IDG Books Worldwide). BEST SERIES FOR ARTISTS: The Wow! series, edited by Linnea Dayton These books are simply the greatest. “Wow!” is correct. Example. The Photoshop 4 Wow! Book by Linnea Dayton and Jack Davis ISBN 0-201-68856-5 (Peachpit Press) plus other outstanding titles in the Wow! series. BEST SERIES UNDER $30: The Visual Quickstart Guide series from Peachpit Press. With every title under $20 U.S., these books are exceptional value for money. Example: HTML 4 for the World Wide Web by Elizabeth Castro ISBN 0-201-69696-7 (Peachpit Press). BEST SERIES OVER $30: The Bible series from IDG Worldwide. Book after book, these Bibles add knowledge and weight to any bookshelf. Example: Quicken 98 Bible by Kathy Ivens, Thomas E. Barich, and Stephen I. Bush ISBN 0-7645-3211-1 (IDG Books Worldwide).   AWARDS FOR SPECIFIC AUTHORS   MOST VERSATILE AUTHOR: Maria Langer who cranks out books on an extensive range of subjects, and who shows no signs of diminishing her pace of production. Example: Database Publishing with FileMaker Pro on the Web ISBN 0-201-69665-7 (Peachpit Press).   MOST FOCUSED AUTHOR: Steven A. Schwartz whose IDG Macworld Bibles on ClarisWorks and FileMaker Pro provide daily support for millions of Mac users. Example: Macworld ClarisWorks Office Bible ISBN 0-7645-4016-5 (IDG Books Worldwide)   BEST AUTHOR FOR A RAINY EVENING: Adam Engst who is so darn busy with his weekly TidBITS newsletter that he has little time for authoring more books. His writing is consistently accurate and lively. Example: Internet Starter Kit for Macintosh, Fourth Edition ISBN 1-56830-294-0 (Hayden/Macmillan).   BEST AUTHOR FOR WEB WIT AND WISDOM: Harley Hahn author of the best selling Harley Hahn’s Internet & Web Yellow Pages, 1998 Edition ISBN 0-07-882387-0 (Osborne/McGraw-Hill).   BEST WEBMASTER/AUTHOR: Ted Landau the host of MacFixIt and the author of Sad Macs, Bombs, and Other Disasters, and What to Do About Them, Third Edition ISBN 0-201-68810-7 (Peachpit Press). How could we survive without MacFixIt and this book?     PUBLISHER OF THE YEAR: Peachpit Press whose commitment to outstanding Macintosh books has made 1997 and 1998 great years for computer book buyers and readers worldwide. Special recognition goes to Gary-Paul Prince, Peachpit’s Senior Publicist. Example: The Macintosh Bible, Sixth Edition Edited by Jeremy Judson ISBN 0-201-88696-7 (Peachpit Press).   AUTHOR OF THE YEAR: David Pogue who writes and co-authors some of the finest Macintosh and computing books on the planet. Example: Palm Pilot, the Ultimate Guide by David Pogue ISBN 1-56592-420-7 (O’Reilly & Associates).   Websites mentioned:   My Mac Magazine ® 1998 My Mac Productions. All Rights Reserved.