The Shelly Cashman Series® offers the fi nest textbooks in computer education. We are proud of the fact that our series of Microsoft Offi ce 4.3, Microsoft Offi ce 95, Microsoft Offi ce 97, Microsoft Offi ce 2000, Microsoft Offi ce XP, Microsoft Offi ce 2003, and Microsoft Offi ce 2007 textbooks have been the most widely used books in education. With each new edition of our Offi ce books, we have made signifi cant improvements based on the software and comments made by instructors and students.

Microsoft Offi ce 2007 contains more changes in the user interface and feature set than all other previous versions combined. Recognizing that the new features and functionality of Microsoft Offi ce 2007 would impact the way that students are taught skills, the Shelly Cashman Series development team carefully reviewed our pedagogy and analyzed its effectiveness in teaching today’s Offi ce student. An extensive customer survey produced results confi rming what the series is best known for: its step-by-step, screen-by-screen instructions, its project-oriented approach, and the quality of its content.

We learned, though, that students entering computer courses today are different than students taking these classes just a few years ago. Students today read less, but need to retain more. They need not only to be able to perform skills, but to retain those skills and know how to apply them to different settings. Today’s students need to be continually engaged and challenged to retain what they’re learning.

As a result, we’ve renewed our commitment to focusing on the user and how they learn best. This commitment is refl ected in every change we’ve made to our Offi ce 2007 books.