Rating: 
Summary: Create a useful site as innovative as the web itself
Review: Jackob Nielsen has put together the most logical and useful book on creating usable websites with the kind of information people want. And, when you think of it, what's more important?You can design a web site, sure, but making it something folks learn from and want to come back to is something else. So is making it easy to use and chocking it full of the kind of information visitors want to see. His emphasis is on the business site, but the principles apply to everyone. If your web site is just for play, and you don't care about usability, this book isn't for you. In the introduction, "Why web usability," Nielsen points out that there are two approaches to web site design: one of artistic expression and the other of problem solving for the customer (meaning web site visitor). He promises a systematic approach to designing a site that encompasses both. He accomplishes his goal beautifully. For each principle he gives, he provides a background of statistical support. This is not a book about how to construct a web site as much as it's about how to make that site attractive and easy to use. As he says, you'll have to go elsewhere to learn HTML and how to design and put your site on the web but you should read this first to learn what your customers or audience want and how to make your site useful as well as appealing. Common errors in web design include: Treating the web like a business brochure, managing a site as if it were a traditional corporate project, structuring the site to mirror the company, creating gorgeous pages that look great to insiders but don't necessarily appeal to customers, writing that's linear, and not linking to relevant sites that would be helpful to your customers. "The Web is a new medium and requires a new approach, as explained in this book," he writes. This is an intelligent book. It's not hard reading but on the other hand, it's not written for children. It's full of new vision and great advice. It's definitely not the only book you should have on web design, but it should be in your collection.
Rating: 
Summary: Not so hot anymore.
Review: Well, several years ago it was hip. Now it's not. Things in the web development business have changed and even Mr. Nielsen knows it. Those of you, who have recently read IT stories know, that he's now consulting Macromedia about Flash... Web design has finally ticked into its mature age and fanatic readings like the green thing above are no longer fashionable.
Rating:
Summary: A Must-Read
Review: If you are interested in web design, this book is a must-read. I do not agree with everything the author says. He tends to emphasize more the technical than the artistic aspect of web design. This is ok if art breaks functionality rules, but Nielsen seems to exaggerate on a couple of occasions. All in all, however, a book worth reading.
Rating: 
Summary: You got to agree Nielsen is (mostly) right.
Review: What many Nielsen detractors tend to mistake is that he isn't directing his guns against experimental, "artsy" websites, but rather against websites that are supposed to offer a service of value to their customers (we're talking for-profit sites here, which resumes most of the sites we developers are paid for anyway) and end up confusing them into a mishmash of confusing navigation and disorganized structures. Being a designer, I love the experimental design scene, but that is something I don't want to see when I am trying to access my deposit info at the online bank. Simplicity and at-the-second understandability in order to get to the site's goals is what this book is all about. Some pointers, like Nielsen's suggestions for SunWeb icons, are pretty lame and corny, as well as some of his suggestions to indicate user placement (a sweeping broom?) but that doesn't mean you have to take all that Nielsen says as "the" way to do things. Most of the book suggestions, though, make perfect sense, and will continue to do so for years to come. It can be pretty, but is it useful? Sites can be pretty AND useful, the challenge is to know where to establish the balance, and this book can be a great helper on this respect.
Rating: 
Summary: The True Nielsen Ratings
Review: Jakob Nielsen explains Web Usability like someone who invented the term. Oh wait, he DID invent it! The man who invented web usability has produced what should be the Owners Manual for every Web Designer. If you're not following his rules, you're not going to succeed in Web Design. Period. If you are interested in becoming a proficient web designer. Buy this book and learn from it before you ever sit down to design another site. Else, you will be left behind by those that do.
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Summary: Check out the authors work first
Review: Check out the authors site "alertbox" before buying this book.
Does this look like something you'd like to emulate for your site?
Not me....
If you think plain, boring, unformatted text really makes the Internet a better place then sure, go for it.
Rating:
Summary: A must read for people coming from print
Review: Hello,
If you design for print the web is going to be a great shock to you. Jackob breaks it to you easily with great examples. This is also the perfect book for an IT manager wondering what to focus on in a web strategy.
Phil
Rating:
Summary: Great book
Review: I took a good look at this book and I was amazed at the need stuff it had. No, this is not a book teaching how to code (html, php asp, ect). I recommend it hand on to everyone. easy to read, and best of all very good for novies to pros alike. The author goes on ecplaining the good and the bad of the web. How to improve your design usability ect. A must have!
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Summary: My favorite for web design
Review: In my work with designing web designs, I rate this book as the best. If I had to keep only one book on web design, this would be it. This is a classic in every sense of the word.
Rating:
Summary: Simple, blunt and extremely well researched. Buy it!
Review: For beginners and "experts" alike, this book x-rays all the important issues in the subject with valuable insights, commentaries and vivid examples of the must, and must-nots of web design. It was an eye-opener and my team and I will be working with this tome on a daily basis to meet the challenges he presents for a well-crafted user experience.
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