About the Author Alison Barrows has taken the long route to .For Dummies writing, most recently thinking she would have a career in economics. But over the years, an irresistible magnetic force, personified by friends who are .For Dummies authors, has pulled her into the world of computers and technical writing. Alison has been a serious computer user since high school (although she was too young to play with vacuum tubes, when they were the thing) and continued to use them at college. In college, thanks to some of the aforementioned friends, she worked at a software company, and after graduation went to the World Bank as a software guru. Her first foray into technical writing was at the World Bank, where she wrote training material for a two-day course which she then taught once a month. More recently, she has co-authored Dummies 101: WordPerfect 6.

1 For Windows and Dummies 101: WordPerfect 7 For Windows 95 and authored Dummies 101: Lotus 1-2-3 97 For Windows 95. Alison has a master's degree in Public Policy from the Kennedy School at Harvard University and a B.A. from Wellesley College. In real life, she loves to sing, watch Star Trek (the newer versions), cook, and dabble in yoga, rock climbing, and Ultimate Frisbee. She currently lives in Gardner, Massachusetts, with her fiance, Matt, and juggles writing computer books with planning a fast-approaching wedding.