Head First HTML with CSS & XHTML by Eric Freeman, Elisabeth Freeman Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Head First HTML with CSS & XHTML
Book Review: Great for the beginner with a short attention span
Summary: 5 Stars
HTML is not that hardest subject to wrap your head around, but it can be kinda of tedious and boring sometimes. I found this beginner book on HTML and CSS to be a real page-turner for me.
The Head First book design makes every page a different experience from the last one which helped keep my interest in what was to come in the future pages/chapters.
I like how they have you imagine you are a rookie web designer doing work for clients. And I like how the book repeats the concepts over and over in different ways to keep them into your brain.
Book Review: Don't be fooled, this is an in-depth book
Summary: 5 Stars
I know this Head First series looks silly, but the content is very in-depth, up to date and accurate. And the format of the book makes some of the harder technical pills much easier to swallow.
If learning HTML and CSS is in your future then I highly recommend this book to get you there.
Book Review: "THE" book for diving into HTML
Summary: 5 Stars
I have (and love) the Head First Design Patterns book by the same authors. It was easily the most enjoyable and useful book I'd read on Design Patterns, so when I saw this one I had high expectations. I was curious how the style that worked so well for the more techie Design Patterns topic would work as a more mainstream Mom and Pop web page development manual. I wasn't disappointed.
It is just as fun, irreverent and educational as I expected. The visual layout and writing style are as easy on the eyes as they are instructionally humorous. I thought doing the book in full color was a nice touch as well, which I think will appeal to the more casual HTML student.
As noted in other reviews, this isn't a reference book or for the experts. I agree it's more for the beginner through intermediate and maybe advanced users. I don't really want to use the term "textbook", because it can have a less-than-desirable connotation. But, it is, by far, the coolest textbook you'll ever read on HTML.
Grab this book, have some fun, and learn some HTML.
Book Review: Wish I could give this 6 stars...
Summary: 5 Stars
Head First HTML with CSS and XHTML is totally unlike any other HTML book I've ever read -- or owned. Most are basic references -- "if you want this, do this" type books. Very dry and dull, not something you're going to sit and read in one setting. Not helpful to someone who is not technologically inclined who wants to learn how to "do a website."
This book is written to teach. It's written so that you remember what you read, using techniques that teachers are being taught to use in the classroom. And it's one that I would actually use in the classroom if I were still teaching Computer Applications.
The first thing you notice about the book is that it's colorful. Normally, the only color in an HTML book is the chart of colors and their hex codes (which, ironically, this book doesn't have). Even the acknowledgements include color pictures of the people they are thanking. And everything in the book is worth reading through -- including the acknowledgements and the table of contents. There's a healthy use of humor throughout that makes it worth actually reading through, rather than just using as a reference.
And that's the point. The authors are quick to say that if you're looking for another HTML reference book, to keep looking. This is a book for people who want to learn.
I wasn't sure how much I'd really learn from this book -- after all, I'd just read and reviewed Creating Web Sites: The Missing Manual. But while that book gave me a good basis for understanding CSS, this book has expanded my understanding considerably. I've got a CSS reference book that has been seldom used; I think I'll be dusting it off soon, because I know enough to be able to use it now.
If you've ever had a family member who wanted you to design a website for them, buy them Head First HTML with CSS and XHTML. If you've ever asked a family member to design you a web site, buy this book. If you've ever bought an HTML book and ended up using it to level your desk, or for kindling on a cold winter day, buy this book. This is the book you've been waiting for. This is the learning system you've been waiting for.
Book Review: Great starter book for beginners and moderately experienced
Summary: 5 Stars
Our department has been making good use of the Head First series of books while we move out of our legacy applications and replace them with Java and Java related technologies. Many of the legacy app's are being replaced with JSP based web applications where CSS is used to present the common corporate look. We again turned to Head First to brush up on our HTML skills and learn what CSS is all about.
What an awesome book! It is both engaging and educating at the same time. The authors cover tons of information in a way that makes this dry subject something to look forward to and not to dread. Any college or tech school that offers an introductory course into this subject should consider using this book as a primary source for teaching.
I had previously though I was fairly fluent in HTML but I found a few things in the first 7 chapters I did not fully know. Even though this section was mostly review, I did not mind going through the exercise. Then once I got into the application of CSS concepts, Wow! Why had I shied away from CSS for so long?
I agree with the previous reviews...A book for the experts? No. A great reference book? Not great but OK. A book to get you going and get you 80% into the world of web page creation? Absolutely. Head First folks, keep up the great work!