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Summary: great book
Review: this is a great book, it taught me everything i needed to know. i use it now for a reference book for quickly looking up something i forgot. you should get this book if you want to learn HTML.
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Summary: It's Absolutely One Of The Best HTML Guides!
Review: There are millions of Websites up and running on the Internet today. Although they vary significantly in their content, design, and use of technology, they all have one thing in common - they are dependent upon programming languages such as HTML to communicate with viewers. It's the HTML "coding" that presents text, graphics, photographs, sounds, video, and other programming options. A good understanding of HTML is necessary to produce an operational and effective online presence. Elizabeth Castro has written HTML for the World Wide Web to provide Website designers of all skill levels with the latest ground-breaking HTML, XHTML, and Style Sheet tags. She presents a variety of sample scripts and illustrations to assist designers to create dynamic Websites. Whether the designer uses a commercially available HTML editor or works from scratch, this book will provide new and exciting programming options that can be put to immediate use! The book is written in a clean, concise, and straightforward manner, cutting through the mountains of writing that weigh down most other books. After providing some brief Website design tips, Castro moves to the heart of the book, programming tags. Available programming tags are clearly presented and discussed, and accompanied by sample scripts and illustrations of their actual use on the same page. No need for page flipping here to see what each tag can accomplish. Are you interested in putting some exciting programming features to work? Elizabeth Castro suggests that beginners read through the entire book and follow strict HTML guidelines when at all possible. Although her book is intended to be a strict HTML resource tool, it can also serve as a Website design guide that will offer quick design solutions to meet the growing demands of online publishing for a variety of users. Castro recommends that Websites be designed simply, fast-loading, and accessible to those using a variety of browsers, platforms, and monitor settings. According to Castro universality is key. Her pet peeves are overpowering backgrounds and unwanted, unsolicited, self-loading obnoxious sounds! A convenient fold-out color chart at the back of the book identifies a selection of available Website colors. Other charts include listings of tags, special characters, and helpful Web development tools. This is a top-rated book. Keep it within easy reach of your computer while designing Websites. It's extremely easy to read and thumb through to find the tag scripting and other information you need when you need it. Feel free to highlight text on pages, to fold the corners, and to insert bookmarks. Have it on hand. It's absolutely one of the best HTML guides available. Highly recommended!
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Summary: Excellent Tutorial and reference
Review: This is great for both beginners learning HTML and experts with a need for a quick reference. Money well spent.
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Summary: Great book for starters
Review: I am new to HTML. I was planning to take classes in HTML. But after buying this book, I did not think it necessary to take the class. The book is written in such a way that I felt that the instructor was right there in front of me. Very easy to follow, step by step instructions and guide.
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Summary: You have to start with XHTML before using other languages!
Review: Here is the story of my life:- Once I get an assignment, I have one month to figure out how to design the application. With plethora of web languages and tools out there, getting overwhelmed is an understatement. No wonder there are so many spaghetti codes out there when it comes to web programming. Also, another dilemma arrives; if you need to design a JSP application, where do you start? Do you learn Java first and start writing the java servlets first, followed by the JSP tags? Or do you learn html/xhtml first, or XML etc? I honestly think there are no right or wrong answers. It depends on the individual. If you already know java, more power to you. Hence, learning how to write java servlets would be a breeze. Or if you already know VB, you would cut 1/2 of the time understanding VBScript. The truth is; web programming is so difficult to comprehend. You just don't know where to start. However, Henry Ford once said, "Nothing is too difficult if you break them into smaller pieces." Therefore, when it's too complicated, stick with the obvious(the basic) - XHTML! After 6 years of writing client-server applications, I finally have a chance to write my first web application. This book taught me how to write XHTML syntax in one week! My mind was beleagured with questions before I read this book. Upon finished reading this book, I began to understand how to approach the application. It came with intuition! To reiterate, this book will give you the solid foundation before you dip your feet into the web environment and start using the other languages, i.e. asp, jsp, xml etc. XHTML or HTML is compulsory. There are no shortcut...
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Summary: I must be thick headed....
Review: Not only thick headed but I must be the only one. The hundreds of 5 star ratings out there convinced me to buy this book. Wow, is it a pain to use. The progression in this book is not logical and the examples don't build on each other. You have to do a lot of downloading from the author's web site to keep up with the examples. If you don't expect to do a fair amount of troubleshooting from one example to the next. I'm a hands on learner and this is not the book for me. Im only on page 241 now and plan to struggle through the rest of it.
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Summary: Outstanding intro to HTML
Review: This has to be one of the best introductory books to HTML out there. It serves not only as a good, step by step intro to using most of the tags in the HTML 4 spec, it also has become a great reference book -- when I forget how to use a particular tag or accomplish something in HTML, I can easily go to the book, find the two-page spread that discusses and illustrates(!) the use of that tag, and I'm off and running again. I am a software developer, but do mostly the "back-end" work, only occasionally needing to do something in HTML. So, this became a great way for me to learn HTML and is a frequent desktop companion when I do have to do an HTML project. To top it all off, it's compact and very affordable!
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Summary: Easy to Read
Review: I have read a variety of books on HTML and web publishing, and they have generally fallen into one of two extremes. Some of the books were overly technical, dealing with the minutiae of syntax and neglecting practical application of the concepts. Other books were overly practical, suggesting solutions to design problems that were not entirely compliant with the details, and were not all that sound syntactically. Castro's book isn't too technical or too practical; she strides confidently down a nearly perfect balance between detail and application. And the resultant text is easy to read and understandable. Highly recommended.
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Summary: Excellent!
Review: This is the best book I've seen for learning HTML, period. I love all the programming books by PeachPit Press, and this author especially. If you want to learn HTML, this is THE book to learn with.
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Summary: Great manual
Review: If you are longing to build your own web page or pages this is the book to buy. It is easy to understand and will have you accomplishing what you invision. Informative and flows well.
Beverly J Scott author of Righteous Revenge
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