Rating: 
Summary: Good Discussion of Design Architecture, not Technology
Review: Clay Andres gives a good presentation of designing professional web sites, but does not delve into specific technologies. The book is very design-centric (and MAC-centric) in showing effective design architectures. Many of the other reviewers here were looking for a discourse on technology architecture and this was a waste of time for them. If you are lokking for basics, this is a good book, if you want cutting edge technologies, look elsewhere.
Rating: 
Summary: Not about Architecture, but glad I got it anyways
Review: I've been reading all the rants about this book, and I only kind of disagree. It's certainly not about "Architecture" of web sites, as the name would have you believe. I bought it for its intended (but mis-named) purpose: I wanted to learn about UI and navigational considerations. It's an excellent book for that. It discusses solutions to different types of web site goals and how the site designers approached these challenges. One particularly useful example was Andres' evaluation of the (pre-redesign) Salon.com site. Andres considers each navigational element on the site (the home page's article layout, the bar navigation along the top, the related article information on the sides, and the base navigation along the bottom) and explains the reasoning behind each choice. Another example that specifically helped me in the design of my own website was the Braun/Gilette example. Andres discussed the virtues of having each sub-brand be in a page-style all its own.Web UI books are difficult to write well, largely because the information is so timely and becomes outdated so quickly. The book has fantastic, full-color screenshots of each page in discussion so that, even if the page is no longer live on the web, it's still available for discussion. It's probably the most valuable UI book on my shelves (and there are a lot). People who didn't like it had purchased it under the false pretense that it was an Architecture book. Well, it's *absolutely* not that. It's a Web UI Design book, and a really good one.
Rating:
Summary: Not about Architecture, but glad I got it anyways
Review: I've been reading all the rants about this book, and I only kind of disagree. It's certainly not about "Architecture" of web sites, as the name would have you believe. I bought it for its intended (but mis-named) purpose: I wanted to learn about UI and navigational considerations. It's an excellent book for that. It discusses solutions to different types of web site goals and how the site designers approached these challenges. One particularly useful example was Andres' evaluation of the (pre-redesign) Salon.com site. Andres considers each navigational element on the site (the home page's article layout, the bar navigation along the top, the related article information on the sides, and the base navigation along the bottom) and explains the reasoning behind each choice. Another example that specifically helped me in the design of my own website was the Braun/Gilette example. Andres discussed the virtues of having each sub-brand be in a page-style all its own. Web UI books are difficult to write well, largely because the information is so timely and becomes outdated so quickly. The book has fantastic, full-color screenshots of each page in discussion so that, even if the page is no longer live on the web, it's still available for discussion. It's probably the most valuable UI book on my shelves (and there are a lot). People who didn't like it had purchased it under the false pretense that it was an Architecture book. Well, it's *absolutely* not that. It's a Web UI Design book, and a really good one.
Rating:
Summary: Not about Architecture, but glad I got it anyways
Review: I've been reading all the rants about this book, and I only kind of disagree. It's certainly not about "Architecture" of web sites, as the name would have you believe. I bought it for its intended (but mis-named) purpose: I wanted to learn about UI and navigational considerations. It's an excellent book for that. It discusses solutions to different types of web site goals and how the site designers approached these challenges. One particularly useful example was Andres' evaluation of the (pre-redesign) Salon.com site. Andres considers each navigational element on the site (the home page's article layout, the bar navigation along the top, the related article information on the sides, and the base navigation along the bottom) and explains the reasoning behind each choice. Another example that specifically helped me in the design of my own website was the Braun/Gilette example. Andres discussed the virtues of having each sub-brand be in a page-style all its own. Web UI books are difficult to write well, largely because the information is so timely and becomes outdated so quickly. The book has fantastic, full-color screenshots of each page in discussion so that, even if the page is no longer live on the web, it's still available for discussion. It's probably the most valuable UI book on my shelves (and there are a lot). People who didn't like it had purchased it under the false pretense that it was an Architecture book. Well, it's *absolutely* not that. It's a Web UI Design book, and a really good one.
Rating: 
Summary: Pretty but Useless
Review: If you're a web professional looking for a book to help you architect your own complex website, you'll probably want to keep looking. "Great Web Architecture" is much too lofty a title for this pretty, but nearly useless, coffee-table level web page design book. I might recommend it to a design beginner, or to a corporate exec who must get a quick, abbreviated summary of big-picture site layout approaches -- for a meeting the same afternoon. But IDG rates the "Reader Level" on the back cover as "Intermediate to Advanced." That, it certainly is not. There are beautiful illustrations on every page -- mostly printed versions of existing websites the author considers worthy of notice. But there's precious little real information here, with complex topics generally covered in a paragraph or two at the level of design cliches like, "SUBSTANCE OVER STYLE" -- a motto the book itself doesn't follow. "Architecture" is misnomer in the title -- unless you consider a trivial distinction between text-loaded news sites and graphics-loaded fashion sites an "architectural" decision -- which it can be, but only at a rudimentary level. Want to learn the architectural implications of ecommerce? Don't miss the half-page blurbet-interview on the subject, called "Ecommerce is Serious Business." Painfully "duh". The book's subtitle is equally misleading: "Top Web architects reveal proven techniques for smart and effective sites". While the several short interviews are perhaps the most informative part of the book, if you believe the subtitle after you read it, I've got a bridge in New York to sell you.
Rating: 
Summary: Should Be a Part of Every Web Designer's Library
Review: Real world solutions to the challenges every Web designer faces when developing an efficient, user-friendly navigation system. Great color illustrations support the text, plus excellent insight into the thought processes that should be a part of the site development process. This book has a lot to offer the new, as well as seasoned, Web professional not just from an organizational/navigation standpoint, but also in the development of graphical themes and color schemes that add visual interest and identity. The only downside I found is a number of the sites used as examples in the book have already changed, so it's difficult to go on-line and study some of the sample sites in-depth. But, then again, change is the nature of the Web.
Rating:
Summary: Should Be a Part of Every Web Designer's Library
Review: Real world solutions to the challenges every Web designer faces when developing an efficient, user-friendly navigation system. Great color illustrations support the text, plus excellent insight into the thought processes that should be a part of the site development process. This book has a lot to offer the new, as well as seasoned, Web professional not just from an organizational/navigation standpoint, but also in the development of graphical themes and color schemes that add visual interest and identity. The only downside I found is a number of the sites used as examples in the book have already changed, so it's difficult to go on-line and study some of the sample sites in-depth. But, then again, change is the nature of the Web.
Rating:
Summary: The pictures can stimulate some creativity
Review: Since any designer wants to keep on top of what's going on in the industry, I thought it good to take a look at this book. I've gone from cover to cover a few times, but not to read it. After beginning I quickly realized the information is pretty basic and can pretty much be found by speaking with other's in the industry. However, I did like some of the screenshots of various sites considered "great architecture." Often times, I flip through the book to generate a few ideas when putting together suggested views for sites in development. In all, not much new information, but may be worth it if you're just starting out and just need to know or need information reinforced.
Rating:
Summary: All Flash...Little Substance
Review: This book contains lots of great pictures of web sites that have been completely re-designed since the writing of the book. Voila. If this is what you're looking for, then you'll be pleased with this book. However, if you're looking for more than that, look elsewhere. This book is a real disappiontment. It seems that many of the more "flashy" designs described by Andres have given way to more usable designs that actually make sense to real people using / desiging sites today. While that book states that author has web design experience - it doesn't seem like he shares much of that with us. For example, the author will generally state that a particular site uses flash or uses animated gif's but give's little detail about how animated gif's could be best used in site design and site architecture. The author spends most of his time criticizing sites and pointing out what he likes and doesn't like, which is fine. However, the author's tone is arrogant and self-absorbed. Additionally, the author ends chapters abrubptly, failing to guide the reader to the point that he might have been trying to make in that particular chapter. The only decent chapter in the book quite frankly is the chapter on hierarchical site organization (chapter one) and it's all downhill from there. This is one of the worst books I've ever read on the subject of web design.
Rating:
Summary: Pretty -- Pretty Useless
Review: This book is nothing more than a few nice pictures of web sites w/ a disscussion of the "theory" behind their sites. I returned this book. I have tons of reference type books w/ differing levels of usefulness and this is the 1st book I have ever returned. I only gave it a 1 because there was no zero.
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