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Summary: wonderful book
Review: Amazing book , very good projects which helps peolple who wants to develop web page like a professional and it provides detail step by step instructions to follow in a very easy way. I think
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Summary: A must have Dreamweaver 4 companion!!
Review: Resisting all temptation to simply rip the CD from its plastic prison I instead sat down and read the introduction to Dreamweaver 4 Magic.Having already had some exposure to the Author Al Sparber and his work, my expectations were high. I hadn't even finished the introduction and it was plain to see this was someone who not only enjoyed what they did but also was very proud of what they had produced and had pulled together a team that felt the same way. If you are looking for a book that offers advanced and intermediate level then this is the one for you. The projects aren't going to be over the heads of a beginner either. The way the projects are laid out and the step-by-step instructions and screen shots make it easy to check you are on the right track as you progress through the projects. It is hard to convey in brief the quality, attention to detail and thoroughness that has been put into this book. There are 12 projects in the book, each covering a different design and navigation feature. From the start, each project lays out good work practices for you to follow and rather than just spoon feeding you, the information leads the reader intuitively through each process. The text explains the reason why each step done a certain way then encourages you to go on and make modifications to the project so they reflect your own style. The projects themselves are supported with a library of the images and style sheets required to create them. These are provided on the CD supplied with the text. Incorporated into the projects are some great new behaviours making it possible to incorporate complex java scripting and Dynamic HTML (DHTML) into pages without the need to understand the java code or DHTML. These behaviors are included on the CD that accompanies the book. This book would have to get a 10 out of 10 from me. It will serve as a very valuable learning tool and a must have for any one that wants to design dynamic web sites with Macromedia Dreamweaver.
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Summary: five star book - five star food
Review: This book is really_really nice! Some sort of a Dreamweaver Cooking Book, no fast food - this is french food, claret and taste. Al Sparber give us some lessons in (sometimes) advanced Dreamweaver using, and he does it extremely smart and sympatic. The provided solutions are so well done and yet wrapped into intelligent step by step courses. Every now and then Sparber also share some smart hints on how to work fast with DW. You will also find some useful information and work arounds for Netsc(r)ape problems... that sure will make web publishing easier. If you are new to DW then buy this book too... just to get a feeling of what can be done! If you know DW well you've probably already purchased it. That the book is very nice to look at and hold in your hands is just one more reason to buy it. This is my #1 DW Book.
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Summary: magic
Review: having been aware of Al Sparbers contributions to the Dreamweaver community for some time what a pleasnt suprise to discover this book, and it more than lived up to expectations, in fact reading the credentials of the co-authors and technical editors greatly increased my expectations. fortunately the end result is a very fine collaboration. filled with real world techniques which can be quickly adopted by any competant dreamweaver user. i would reccomend to any existing dreamweaver user as a source of inspiration or indeed as a good reference for tackling those various dhtml pop-outs style collapsible menus ect, have in fact already used as a reference on one of my own projects... keep up the good work.
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Summary: Learn through Example
Review: If you have anything to do with building web sites, you MUST have this book. Period.
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Summary: Immensely useful
Review: From the moment I picked up Dreamweaver 4 Magic and began to flick through the pages, I new this was going to be a book I'd find immensely useful. Al Sparber and friends take us through some of the more popular dynamic interface effects found on the Web today, as well as a number of cutting edge techniques we'll be finding on the Web tomorrow. Each chapter takes you through a technique step-by-step, and is supported with screen captures when necessary. I was pleased to see that the book wasn't either picture or word biased, but rather struck an excellent balance between detailed explanations and supporting visual material. Dreamweaver 4 Magic even comes with a CD-ROM containing some custom Dreamweaver extensions, designed to support the tutorials in the book. Highly recommended.
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Summary: Menus and Navigation Bars
Review: Dreamweaver 4 Magic AUTHOR: Al Sparber PUBLISHER: New Riders REVIEWED BY: Barbara Rhoades BOOK REVIEW: Dreamweaver 4 Magic focuses mainly on Menus and Interfaces with seven of the twelve chapters being on navigation or menus of one kind or another. The other five chapters cover CSS DHMTL, Motion, Rollovers and templates and library objects. A CD-ROM is included to help work through the information with a 4-page Table of Contents and a 7-page index to help look up specific items. The print is on the small side but the graphics are in color. The information is laid out in an easy-to-follow format. This book is not one I would pick as my first choice for a Dreamweaver reference but it certain would be useful if you needed navigation help in your webs. If the authors expand on the five chapters without the menus and navigation, Dreamweaver 4 Magic would become a magical book to have in your library.
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Summary: WOW!
Review: This book's title says it all because it truely is MAGIC. I am new to html and dreamweaver, and was struggling with the program. This book is not like all the others, it doesn't show what this button or that command does. Instead it walks you through some real life design ideas by working you through 12 projects. Each project introduces you to some very exciting leading edge things that will make your sites stand out from all the others. In the process of showing you how, the authors share shortcuts on setting up a site that I was doing the hard way. They don't spell it out with "Tip - do this", they just show you the most efficient way to build the project and in the process you say "Wow, I didn't know I could do that!" This is one incredibly well done book - the best I have seen in all my years with computers. I haven't been able to put it down since I got it.
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Summary: a must have, period.
Review: this books is great! besides teaching you how to do lots of cool effects (which it definitely does), the book shows you how to do the cool effects *while* maintaining cross-browser compatability and backward compatibility to version 4 browsers and keep your bandwith down. the tutorials are step-by-step, soucre files and finished project examples are on the cd, along with all the dreamweaver extensions so you can get the same effects yourself without doing the javasscripting work. the book seems to be primarily geared towards experienced dreamweaver users, but newbies to dw won't have too many problems as the instructions are clear and detailed. if you like the project seven stuff, you'll love this book.
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Summary: This is not just a book...
Review: Having heard of Studio VII's work, I was eager to get a copy of this book. Well, to be more acccurate, I made a flying tackle for the UPS man before he even got out of his truck. And I wasn't disappointed...despite knowing of their work, I simply didn't expect the book to be this good. Aside from the book's rich production quality--lots of white space, easy-to-read screen captures, informative sidebar "watch-out's"--the content is simply stupendous, the writing precise, economical, and witty. Each complex task is approached in a linear fashion with, as Bill Murray says, "baby steps." At no point does the book "hurry" the reader through a given process. Moreover, not only does the book tell users what to do, but it also points out, just as importantly, what to avoid. And here's the kicker: where else can you get this information? Nowhere else. No other book that I've ever seen. As the authors patiently escort the reader through the processes of constructing a vast array of cutting-edge digital structures, Al Sparber and Gerry Jacobsen use--or, more accurately, twist, bend, and manipulate--Dreamweaver as effortlessly as if it were an erector set. Appearances notwithstanding, Dreamweaver 4 Magic is not a book...it's a tour de force software kit.
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