Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great book for designers eager to get on the web., 22 Aug 1999
By A Customer
... The book is geared primarily at designers (graphic designers / user interface designers) who are trying to get into the web space. I think from this perspective it is excellent, giving a nice balance between important factors for web sites such as site navigation, design, technology, marketing etc. This book is essentially an overview of the entire web media and does drill into too much detail in any particular area. This means that it doesn't get too boring, and as it says on the cover "An Introduction to the tools, technologies, and possibilites of designing for the web." In this case I think you can judge the book by the cover. The book is laid out beautifully, almost in a "webbed" style which is refreshing. The illustrations are excellent and useful - not just put in for the sake of it. The book gives a lot of links to sites allowing the reader to follow up investigation of particular areas. As an Internet Technical Consultant coming from a programming / UI designing background, I can understand why some of the reviewers gave it a poor review - it doesn't go into the technical nitty-gritties - but then again, there are lots of books out there on those subjects if you want. This is a good overview book, illustrating a useful chronology of the technologies involved on the web, and how to go about designing web-sites from scratch. The reason I'm dropping one star is that it probably should have included some more "insider" tips on how to get your web site up and running technically - e.g. mention advantages / disadvantages of using NT/IIS versus UNIX based solutions for example (possibly briefly discussing scalability / reliability / pricing issues etc.), and also included stuff on how to attract hits to your site such as Search Engine Optimisation, etc. (although it did mention link / banner bartering etc.) Although these are largely technical issues outside the scope of the book, they should at least have been briefly addressed with links to further information. Perhaps this will come in the third edition. Personally I found their "insider" tips (from site designers) to be interesting but probably not substantial enough - there were quotes from these guys - but not enough meaty reasons behind the statements. Again, most of these were from key web-designers from the USA - more diversity (of role types - site administrators / programmers etc. and geographically) would have been interesting - such as Nua in Europe. (I think the book "Secrets of Successful web sites" by David Siegel is probably better for that.) To sum up, the book is primarily for designers of conventional media to help them understand what the web is about - for that it is excellent - buy it. Techies can benefit a lot too (if you're new to WWW technologies.) as a general overview to web design and the technologies and tools involved.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This Book Is An Essential Investment!, 29 Mar 1999
By A Customer
There is a lot of competition these days for talented Web developers. A casual glance at the classified section of any major city newspaper or online job bank will list a number of related job openings. Many of these positions require a good understanding of Website design to effectively convey client product and services information. While many schools and workshops offer various levels of Website design instruction, good books on the subject are still essential investments everyone should make. Elements of Web Design by Darcy Dinucci, Maria Giudice and Lynne Stiles offers an excellent introduction to the art and science of this very sought after skill. The book offers an excellent overview of the entire process of designing Websites. Readers will pick up on goal setting, mapping out and incorporating information, effective interface design, content creation, scripting and programming, testing, publishing, and publicizing. Readers are also taught the basics of Website interactivity, HTML programming, layout design, typography, Web graphics, and multimedia. As readers thumb through this book they will grasp the importance of each one of these topics and understand how they work together to convey over all Website content. Excellent HTML and Web browser reference charts at the back of the book lists all the latest tags and compatibility issues for Web browsers currently in use today. This book does not offer quick solutions in the form of ready-to-use scripts, graphic images, sounds, and tips offered in most books. What this book does offer is sound Website design theory and concepts that when learned and properly applied can be used to launch a promising and successful career. The book is well-illustrated, easy to follow along, and offers the best in the way of practical instruction. The authors have done well! Readers will get started in the right direction with this book. It will open up the world of creative Website design for both fun and profit. It is must reading for all aspiring Web developers and highly recommended for classroom use!
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A great digital design handbook, 25 Feb 1999
By A Customer
The reason why there are conflicting reveiws of this book is that it is more about graphic design than coding. If you are looking for HTML advice, check out HTML for dummies or something like that. This book is about design and layout. It deals with theoreticals. You have to do the coding, what it is showing you is the different design aspects that people have used in websites. I think this book is fab, especially for the web author who has approached HTML from the technical side, and wants to start looking at his/her website's design. Both asthetics and user-friendliness are discussed, making it a very well-rounded book. You could get your ideas and examples of good websites directly off the net, but if you don't mind paying for a very nice book then you will not be disappointed.
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