CSS Pocket Reference

Rating:
Summary: Another keeper to add to my programming book shelf...
Review: (note: this review is for the 2ND edition of the book...)

I just found a new book that I'll get to wear out really quickly. It's the CSS Pocket Reference (2nd edition) by Eric A. Meyer (O'Reilly). As with all O'Reilly Pocket References, it's just the core information formatted so you can find it quickly for reference.

Chapter Breakout: Adding Styles to HTML and XHTML; Rule Structure; Style Precedence; Element Classification; Element Display Roles; Basic Visual Layout; Floating Rules; Positioning Rules; Table Layout; Values; Selectors; Pseudo-Classes and Pseudo-Elements; Property Reference; Tables; Paged Media; Dropped From CSS2.1; Visual Styles; Paged Media; Aural Styles; Index

For all the Amazon reviewers complaining about this book not being up-to-date... You need to get the 2nd edition. It's got the latest on what you need.

Now, this is not a training manual or something you're going to be able to use to pick up CSS. Rather, like all Pocket Guides, it's the distilled essence of the reference material that you need on a daily basis. Rather than dig through a large book looking for stuff, you can use the pocket guide to get the answer quickly. I'm at the stage in my CSS learning where I understand what I can and can't do, but I don't always know the exact syntax or options available to me in a particular parameter. I've grown quite fond of the larger CSS book from Meyer and O'Reilly, and in fact I've memorized certain page numbers that I continually go back to. This pocket reference will replace much of the wear and tear on that book, and allow me to save it for when I need explanations on concepts.

Another keeper to add to my programming bookshelf...


Rating:
Summary: Perfect Companion
Review: A mistake so often made is judging a pocket reference guide in the same way you would judge a full size text. Pocket guides should only provide a quick reference for a technology you already know, and not be looked at as a learning tool. This reference is a boil-down of selected sections from the author's larger definitive title on Cascading Style Sheets, and there is no question that the information provided within is as informative and exact as is covered in the larger book; the light-weight pocket guide is much easier to carry when you need to verify something with CSS.

The guide is designed well, with a structured table of contents which breaks the styles up into logical groups, and even an index for those quick find needs. Each style entry provides the information needed without wasting space on the cautions and extras that a larger text typically provides.

If you already own "Cascading Style Sheets: The Definitive Guide, 2nd Edition" (ISBN: 0596005253) that this pocket guide companions, this is a good addition to the set. If not, obtain both as there are no better references.

Rating:
Summary: Not comprehensive, but Damn Good
Review: An excellent guide to CSS-1 that's starting to show its age. Browsers covered go as far as IE5.5 and NN6.0, but it can almost be taken for granted that newer variations do a better job.

For what it is, this book is invaluable. Support charts tell you what works and what doesn't, example code is enough to fill in questions about syntax, and the book is designed to make each CSS property easy to find with a quick flipping through the pages.

Meyer knows his CSS. Make sure you have this book on your desk.

Rating:
Summary: No CSS2 information makes for waning usefulness
Review: As a web developer, I've been involved with doing more coding work using CSS in my pages as browsers such as Mozilla have come on the scene. So far, I've relied on Danny Goodman's book "Dynamic HTML", also published by O'Reilly. It has a chapter on CSS, and its coverage, while covering all attributes in CSS1 and CSS2, was a bit lacking in some details. (It was published in 1998.) Dynamic HTML is also a 1000+ page Bible of sorts, and felt unwieldy to refer to often. I wanted something lighter and more up-to-date.

Thus, I bought this book, not realizing that it only covers CSS1... surprising since it was published less than a year ago, nearly three years AFTER Goodman's book was published. Dynamic HTML already has excellent treatment of CSS1, and I was really more after a guide on the exciting features to be found in CSS2. I promptly returned the book.

I'd still only give the guide 4 out of 5 stars if it had the CSS2 attributes. Half of the book is devoted to tables showing the support for each attribute in about 10 different browsers; excuse me, but are there _that_ many users of Opera that we need to know the differences between Opera 4 and 5, on the Windows and Mac platforms? It's a bit too overwhelming, using up space which would have been better used on more examples and tricks.

Rating:
Summary: 2nd Edition just released
Review: For those fretting about the lack of CSS2 support in this book, fear not! The second edition was just released, and covers through CSS 2.1

I have the older edition, and can't wait to get my hands on the new one. Very handy if you're working on a website but not actually online at the time. (If I'm online I just "Google it" and generally get it faster that _any_ paper book could!)

This book is truly a reference for people who already know CSS -- it is not great for teaching you if you're not already familiar. But for what it is, it is very nicely done.

Rating:
Summary: This book has not been released yet
Review: How can poeple have reviewed this book when it hasn't been released yet? I think they have been confusing this new 2nd edition with the first edition, which even the author Eric Meyer admits 'has taken some flak for being obsolete; this new edition should address those concerns'.

This new edition is promised to include 'all of the CSS2 and CSS2.1 properties and values, information and algorithms covering the box model, table layout, font selection, and more. It's almost 130 pages, and that's without a single page of it taken up by support charts'.

Also, this is a REFERENCE book not a TUTORIAL. Not the best place for a beginner to learn CSS.

For those in the know, Meyer is kinda God when it comes to CSS. I can't wait to get my hands on a copy of this, and I'm quite happy to pay little attention to the mis-informed reviews I've read here.

Rating:
Summary: Great Quick Reference
Review: I've refered to this little gem many times while designing web pages in XHTML 1.0 Transitional and Strict. It has been great in exploring alternative ways of formatting the display of data using boxes and float instead of tables. Though tables are ofcourse still a good way to go.

Rating:
Summary: Helpful quick reference
Review: If you're looking for quick information in a size that's easy to carry around, purchase this book. It's an excellent addition to the O'Reilly Pocket Reference series.

When I'm trying to remember the format for a particular style or how well it's supported by the various browser versions, I don't want to have to dig through a large reference manual. Instead, I reach for this book, quickly look up the style (listed alphabetically), get the information I'm looking for, and continue working. This is the reference I carry between work and home.

The book starts with a condensed description of how CSS1 works and how to use it. The majority of the reference describes the CSS1 properties, pseudo-elements, and pseudo-classes. Each entry includes the allowed values, a description, a few examples, and browser support for both Windows and Mac browsers. Additional notes describe any browser-specific issues. A browser support summary chart completes the book.

Even if you have Eric Meyer's Cascading Style Sheets, The Definitive Guide, you will still find his CSS Pocket Reference a useful addition to your bookshelf.

Rating:
Summary: Fast and Easy
Review: The fast food for web developers, A MUST HAVE!! This is yet another indespensible book in the Pocket Reference series. As with all of the other Pocket books this is best for people who have basic knowledge with subject matter (in this case Style sheets). However, if you are not familiar with the subject matter, the publisher of this series puts out the Definative Guide series as well which works hand in hand with the Pocket sized version. I have the HTML, XML, JavaScript and CSS pocket references, which always sit close by when I'm at work.

Rating:
Summary: There must be something better out there
Review: The first O'Reilly Pocket Reference I owned was the HTML Pocket Reference, and it's excellent. I figured since I'm starting to use CSS more & more it would be nice to have a quick handy guide, and I figured since the HTML reference was so good, why not go for the CSS reference.

I do not like it at all. At risk of repeating other problems already noted I'll give my biggest gripes. There is almost no mention of CSS2. Although browser support is not very extensive yet, the standard has been defined, so why not include it?

Compatibility charts do not have any mention of Internet Explorer 6. Granted, the book may have been published before it's release, but I have not been able to find one with a print date newer than May, 2001. Two years is a long time in the world of web design.

The properties for various selectors are not organized in a way that maked them easy to find. I'm not saying that I know a better way to organize them, but unless you already know the name of the property you're looking for you have to flip through the book guessing at it until you find what you're looking for.

If you're in the market for a cheap pocket CSS reference, stay away from this one. There has to be something better.

I will, however, recommend a full-fledged CSS book from O'Reilly: CSS- The Definitive Guide.