Rating: 
Summary: Great book for Web Designers
Review: I found this book very helpful in determining the best way to design web pages. It provided 'real life' examples of things that were done right as well as lessons to be learned by web sites that had done things wrong. The book was very easy to read and very applicable to the business world. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who want to design a website that keeps the user in mind!!
Rating: 
Summary: Shallow on specifics
Review: A bookful of screenshots does not research make. Sure, this book is full of common senses suggestions for usability, but it sorely lacks detailed references to establish credibility. A statement like "most people prefer searches" doesn't carry much weight without as much as a footnote to the actual research. This useful payload of this book could have easily been conveyed in 50 pages. While I wouldn't recommend this read, Web newbies might pick up an idea or two. Anyone with any sense of Web design should spend their reading time elsewhere.
Rating:
Summary: Packed with valuable information
Review: This is a must read book for all concerned. Mostly, the book is well organized: on one page with text explanations, including HTML code hints mostly, and the other side with the example website. Although, if I have one slight argument about books today in general, it's that the writing style should be more "highlight arranged"; To borrow from the book's cover: readers want to quickly access the pertinent information they need. Time-wise, this book would be cost-effective with half the words at the same price, but more useful if organized as an indexed reference; for example, similar to the excellent book "A Writer's Reference", by Diana Hacker. It's not an easy book to master on first read; it covers a lot of ground, so I'll have to re-read. I wouldn't skip this book by any means, but I agree with some reviewers: to get more than just one expert's perspective, different perspectives if possible; For example, the O'Reilly book "Web Design In A Nutshell."
Rating:
Summary: This is a highly effective book with solid information
Review: In reading over the reviews it is easy to find people who are quite hostile to what Nielsen has to say and it's easy to understand why--he insults and threatens their very approach to web design. Nielsen's message is really quite simple: web sites should be constructed for the end user, not to demonstrate the skills and ego of the designer. Unless you are designing a site that is intended simply to demonstrate the breadth of your abilities, designing is not about fun--it's about taking information and making it as accessible as possible for your end users. It can be fun, but your own enjoyment shouldn't be the purpose. In Designing Web Usability Nielsen does an effective job of demonstrating ways in which you can help your users to move through your site efficiently and accurately. Individual sections may seem seem somewhat self-evident, but taken as a whole these sections add up to an impressive amount of information. Of particular interest are chapters 4: Site Design, and a section in chapter 3 on writing for the web. In the section on site design he discusses issues such as using navigational cues to orient the reader to where they are, where they've been, and where they can go, and different types of organizational schemes. As a technical communicator I found the section on writing for the web particularly relevant. Put simply--most people do not like to read online. You have a second or two to grab their attention and only a bit longer to hold them there if they are intrigued. Relevant information needs to be placed front and center and should be foregrounded through the effective use of headings, bulleted lists, etc. This section does a good job explaining how to do so. None of this is to say that Nielsen is without fault. I do believe that there are times when his rules should be broken. He seems to assume that conveyance of information is the only purpose of the web and, obviously there are many other reasons people surf. Nevertheless, if your site has the purpose of communicating information of some form, this book should be read and absorbed.
Rating: 
Summary: Truly a must read for anyone interested in usability
Review: The folks giving this book bad reviews have got it all wrong. The web is the success that it is because of the ease with which it communicates information. The web is not a success because of the graphic designers who share their designs (both horrible and terrific). You will only know how great a book this is when you compare your own web behaviour to the kinds of responses discussed in this book. The simple truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Does it seem like Mr. Nielsen takes simplicity too far (useit.com)? Sure, sometimes. But his message is no less true and valuable. This is truly the only book you will need on web usability.
Rating:
Summary: Designing Web Usability : The Practice of Simplicity
Review: This guy has no imagination. If you are a WEB DESIGNER Jakob Nielson is the ANTICHRIST. If you read this book YOU have no imagination. I have a picture of Jakob on my wall. I throw darts at it. If I ever see this guy in public I would spit in his face.
Rating:
Summary: The Jakob Nielsen Drinking Game
Review: 1. Go to any web or internet related conference. 2. Sneak in lots to drink. 3. Sneak in lots of friends. 4. Attend the obligatory "User-Centered Web Design" keynote session featuring Web Usability Guru(tm) Jakob Nielsen. 5. Follow these rules: Every time he says "micropayment", take one drink. Every time his reasoning relies on having solved "the bandwidth problem", take one drink. Every time he uses a made-up word like "linkrot" to sound more like Tufte, take one drink. Every time he forgets that design can be fun, take one drink. Every time he excuses his own refusal to observe the rules he dictates to everyone else on the grounds that he "knows his audience", take one drink. If he mentions scrolling, take one drink. If he mentions that users don't scroll, take one drink. If he mentions link colors, drink: once for "blue" once for "purple" three for "red", which nobody who's used a browser since 1993 thinks of as a followed link color, anyway. It's the "active link" color, dammit. If he mentions the Macintosh desktop metaphor, have a pretzel. Every time he quotes statistics from an unrelated study to prove a point about Web usability, take one drink. If he actually uses a relevant study, finish bottle. If Nielsen admits he got his design skills from watching Jerry Pournelle work on his "web page", clutch heart and die.
Rating:
Summary: Essential
Review: This book provides essential information for anyone considering putting a page on the Web, from Web designers to business managers. Nielsen argues that the primary concern for Web design must be usability. He then explains how to make Websites more usable, and what to avoid when making a Website. The core of the book is the first four chapters, on usability, page design, content design, and site design. Following this core, Nielsen gives detailed analysis of the special requirements for intranet design, accessibility, international design, and the future. The prose is extremely clear and readable, and numerous images are included as examples. This book is a must for anyone interested in creating Webpages.
Rating:
Summary: A Book for people with OPEN minds!
Review: This is a controversial subject but he states in the book that web designers know that they need to keep downloads fairly short BUT they ignore it constantly. He also isn't saying just to have text based pages, just limit the # of graphics and the sizes. LESS IS MORE!! You would think these people who want to be so creative and artsy with these huge graphics on web pages would've learned that in ART 101. The best design is simple. The most popular sites DO have more visitors. Many of his ideas on splash pages, Flash are very important. It's sad that web designers who make pages on a fast machine and view them on a T1 line are ignorant to the fact that most people view their sites on 28/56K modems. The people who will NOT benefit from this book are people with closed minds. The one gripe abou this book are the captions on some pages aren't on the same pages as the pictures they are describing...very annoying.
Rating: 
Summary: Everyone's a Critic, Especially Nielsen
Review: If you don't mind a book thta does nothing but criticize a technology and art that are evolving, then this is the book for you. No matter what the project, Mr. Nielsen can always do it better. I think he should correct the usability problems on his own Web site, before being declared king of Web usability. This book is way over-rated.
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