Rating: 
Summary: Life in the easy lane with web standards
Review: It would be an understatement to call this book and eye opener for me. Jeffrey Zeldman makes a compelling case for adopting web standards and gives plenty of immediately useful examples of how this can benefit anyone.I don't know how the adoption of standards by the major browser providers passed me by, I just wish I had read the book sooner. I'll be using many of his ideas and I expect to see pages that are easier to modify and maintain, with less strain on our servers. I also find the authors frequent comments on his blog very informative and/or thought provoking. I highly recommend the book for anyone involved in site design or development (for public consumption or for intranets).
Rating:
Summary: Book Changed My Life
Review: For the record, I seldom give any book 5 stars period. However, this book is very well organized, witty, and is simply a well written piece of work. Be warned, if you are looking for a dry boring tech book to get you to sleep, this book won't do it, because you'll be laughing from every page. Jokes aside, underlying the creative and humorous words, there is a very serious message about how web standards saves time, money, energy, grief, and makes web sites more accessible to a bigger audience as well as those with impairments. In this book, there are practical methodologies on how to migrate into web standards using many of the little know techniques like two style sheets (one for bad browsers, one for good browsers), how to trick IE5/6 into really doing correct CSS-P, and more fun stuff. Additionally, there are many examples and references to many other excellent resources out there on the net that can help you successfully use web standards in an inspiring non-constrictive way. Admittingly though, there are a few subtle mistakes, and some of the latest and bleeding edge techniques aren't in the book, but these I discovered through the many good links Zeldman sprinkles throughout the book for us to explore. In conclusion, this book is a must have, even if you aren't interested in web standards. It's a fun read.
Rating:
Summary: The how, why, and history of web standards.
Review: I devoured Jeffrey Zeldman's "Designing With Web Standards" from cover to cover. "Designing With Web Standards" unlocks the power of building with standards and presents the long list of benefits that standards will bring to any web site. Packed with practical information, this book catapults web developers from theory to nuts and bolts page construction. It's written in a highly accessible style (not unlike the XHTML described within) and packed with real web site examples. My web development skills have grown immensely after reading this book. It's also just plain ol' fun to read.
Rating: 
Summary: torn between reading and practising?
Review: This second little gem from Mr Zeldman, has helped push my understanding of CSS even further, as a result yet another redesign of my site ...the first half of the book is best read if you are wondering about issues such as CSS and XHTML, and why or how to use them. The second half has nifty little examples of a real site to download and practice on. I as yet have to finish the book, I am too busy tinkering with the sites I make! One of my favourite reasons for reading Mr Zeldman is his writing style, easy to read and a bit of a giggle along the way, this book is no exception again.
Rating:
Summary: Correct Web Design
Review: One thing I really admire is when someone learns something correctly. And by correctly I mean that they lay a thorough foundation by taking the time necessary to learn the key concepts and the ramifications of applying those concepts. This is not "learning" as most of us are accustomed to. In today's quick fix world, much learning has been reduced to "ten-minute" books designed to teach "all you need to know". Zeldman, in "Designing with web Standards" has provided web designers (and others) with an excellent resource for learning web design in a way that is arguably the most "correct" way. At least if we want to take advantage of the tremendous benefit of standards and come as close as possible to future compatibility, Zeldman's way is the correct way. By reminding us that non standards-based web design methods are a train wreck in progress (he says 99% of web sites are obsolete), he lays the foundation for the numerous benefits of standards-based design that he will extol throughout the book. The meat of the book impressively walks a thin line between surveying the concepts and exploring details of XHTML, CSS, DOCTYPES, browsers, DOM, and accessibility basics. Along the way the reader gets a couple of very good tutorials in implementing these concepts. The chapters are packed with sound thinking, inspiring ideas, simple techniques and terribly funny humor. The subject is timely and important. This is an excellent book. If you want to learn to correct web design, start here.
Rating:
Summary: A flawed diamond
Review: While this book is clearly a treasure-trove of information, its editorial view is a bit inconsistent. In parts of the book Zeldman seems to understand that prior to CSS sites were coded in a variety of ways to achieve certain designs across as many browsers as possible, but in others he resorts to name-calling when referring to said techniques. It's a bit insulting to hear him talk about "child-like" designers writing "junk" code. If one's aim is to teach and educate, it's probably best not to slap your students in the face for not knowing what you know. Oddly, Zeldman seems to be very understanding about "old school" techniques at certain times. It's the occasional insult that I found a bit jarring, and that knocked one star from what would have been a five-star review.
Rating: 
Summary: Nice theories BUT . . .
Review: As a CIW Master Site Designer who genuinely cares about usability, accessibility, and design consistency, I had high expectations when I purchased this book. Alas, after reading this from cover to cover, I found it to be less than satisfactory. While the author's points on usability and accessibility are useful and on the mark, some of his CSS-based design theories sound nicer in print than they look in practice. This is not entirely the author's fault; the real culprits, as we know it, are the browser manufacturers, as their insistence on "market differentiation" thwarts any efforts of the designer to develop a usable, accessible, and attractive Web site - and to do so in a time- and cost-effective manner. However, the author seems to want to be the standard-bearer for a set of "standards" that do not - and, under current conditions, cannot - exist. This makes the book come across at times as contradictory and confusing - and diminishes the credibility of otherwise sound principles. I think the author - and his readers - would have been better served if he would use the term "best practices" rather than the misleading "standards." Furthermore, the author's dismissal of those who say these methods take more time (and money) is more than a bit unfair, considering that this man runs his own company, and does not have to answer to non-technical bosses who want their Web content "yesterday." He's simply not living in the real world in this regard. In sum, the book has some value - but some of the "standard" design ideas are simply dreams at this point - and will continue to be so until the browser companies are forced by US regulation to get in line. Finally, though this may sound picky, I think it's relevant - I really have a problem with a man who claims to be a seasoned veteran of the Web trade, yet who still incorrectly uses the term "website" instead of "Web site . . . " Buy the book - but buy it used; it's not worth the full price.
Rating:
Summary: Simply outstanding
Review: Zeldman is to be congratulated on this writing. The book approaches the topic of designing with web standards in a very practical manner. I recomment this book to developers, managers and site designers. This book does not teach you CSS, but rather it teaches you how to use CSSm XHTML, ECMA script and DOM to develop web sites according to standards. I must say that Zeldman, among other good writing traits, has a pretty good sense of humor.
Rating:
Summary: Congrats to Zeldman
Review: This is absolutely one of the best books I have ever read on the subject of web design. Well-deserved accolades go to Zeldman and the rest of the publishing team that assembled this gem. In this book the author comments that a different book by another author is "among the most compellingly written web design books ever: witty, opinionated, and truthful." Jeffrey Zeldman: are you sure you were describing that other book and not your own? To the few other reviewers looking for tons of "quick-fix" code samples, the reason Jeffrey Zeldman does not provide (very many of) such things in this book (although there are quite a few code-samples in my opinion) is because there is no such thing in this complex, ever-changing quagmire of Web Standards. He tells it like it is - providing concise, entertaining, and applicable "ammunition" for debunking widely held incorrect opinions about browser inconsistencies, accessibility, and a multitude of other issues. Simultaneously, he bestows upon the reader his own core knowledge and common-sense approach to designing standards-compliant web sites. This means that the reader comes away from this book with the ability to immediately apply this knowledge to their own work, without falling back on "cut and paste" fixes that they don't necessarily even comprehend. This is not one of those books that walks the reader through tutorials and then leaves her wondering how to apply any of the tactics employed in the tutorials to her own work. I could keep singing this book's praises for quite a few paragraphs, but if you are a professional web designer, or just aspiring to be one, you will be much better off reading this book than perusing additional compliments towards it. Absolutely, buy this book.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent!
Review: This is a very good book! I learned a lot!
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