Boat design & construction -- The economics of vessel ownership & picking the right boat -- Basic maintenance -- Engines -- Running gear: props, shafts, and struts -- Electronics -- Weather, wind, and tides -- Rules of the road, lights, day shapes, the buoy system & basic seamanship -- Safety -- Brokers, surveys and surveyors, loans & clubs -- Resources -- The greening of the boating industry -- Industry voices: what you can learn -- Gizmos, thingamabobs, and other stuff you might want -- Some final thoughts.