Customer Reviews

Dreamweaver 4 Weekend Crash Course

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I gave this book 5 stars in spite of the typographical and CD errors because this is the best teaching book I've seen. Corrected CD files are available at the author's web site and the typographical errors, although regrettable, are not huge stumbling blocks.

The surface problems do not hide this book's well-planned and well-written core. I teach Dreamweaver classes and was looking for a book to use for a new 5-day class. The Macromedia Authorized book still had not exited the publisher and we had sign-ups for our new class. I finally found this book and my company bought copies for all the students. The first session of the new class ended last Friday and the students were extremely happy with what they had learned.

The fact that I was able to use a book advertised as a 15-hour weekend course for five 6-hour sessions shows that there is more here than can practically be covered in one weekend. But it's also due to the fact that more average computer users are starting to use DW and they need a slower pace to absorb the material. This book is perfect for that profile as well as web professionals looking to learn a new program.

A huge amount of information is covered through orderly step-by-step exercises. The author conveys a feeling of excitement at all the cool things that DW can do. I really like the personal, conversational style written by someone who uses the program professionally. She also makes the reader step into the HTML code, which I also believe is necessary to use any web-related program successfully.

For some reason, web authors seem to shy away from giving specific instructions on how to use CGI scripts. But this author dives in and tells us exactly what we must do to use a popular mail script, telling us where to go to download it, what changes to make in the script, and what to do with the form we've created in DW. She also gives step-by-step instructions on embedding sound/music. This is simpler in DW than one might imagine and the author takes away the mystery with a few short paragraphs.

Finally, even though I thought I knew DW well, using this book taught me some new tricks. I hope this author continues to produce a book with each new DW version.

I was extremely frustrated with this book when I sat down to use it, inserted the CD-ROM, and, after some time, realized that very important files were missing (including an index page that other pages supposedly linked to). Not only that, there was nothing indicating any kind of support on the publisher's web site! I can understand publishers being in a hurry to get these books out to the public in a timely manner, but when the whole point is having a CD to work with, this kind of sloppiness is unforgivable. I will even admit that if I'd had a place to vent to the publisher I might not be writing this review here.

When I first started working with this book I had the same experience as these other readers and was quite annoyed. However, I emailed Hungry Minds and they said the problem was being corrected in a reprint and they immediately (same afternoon) sent me the missing files. Although there's really no excuse for their error, the new files filled in the blanks and it was smooth sailing from then on. I ultimately was quite satisfied: The author's writing is clear, friendly and informative, and within a few days (I did weeknights instead of the weekend), I had created a fairly complex site with Dreamweaver. (My friends are impressed.)The nicest surprise, however, was that after had written Hungry Minds about the problem, the author herself emailed me with her apologies! She said she was going to post the files on her site at wpeck.com and that they'd be on the HM site. Considering all that, I'd recommend this book.

Not a bad book by any means, but definitely a misleading book. There really is no way this book can be completed in 15 hours. I have workable knowledge of Dreamweaver (learned by muddling through it on my own) but was looking to bring my DW knowledge up a couple of notches. Given that I wasn't a beginner, it still took me about 30 hours to work though the book. The content that escaped the editors very much works against the reader. Yes, you can download the correct files from the web site, but the book misprints can still cause a lot of confusion. Incorrect file names and file types can easily leave the student scratching their head for quite a while. On the flip side, I've got to admit that the author does a nice job of ordering the lessons. She likes to have the reader become familiar with a certain method, and only then will introduce a different way to accomplish the same thing. This system really helps the learning process. I also really liked the way she lead the reader through a full arsenal of hands-on exercises and then had the reader pull all those skills together and create a mini-site--this time without the full step-by-step instructions included the first time. So, clean up the wording errors and rename the book "Dreamweaver 4 One Week Course" and you've just about got yourself a 5-star book.

There are errors on the CD but by contacting the publisher I found the corrections at the author's site (wpeck.com). The format is great and it is just packed with tips and extra information. I have other Dreamweaver and Web design books, many of them that were over twice the price of this one. There is information in every chapter that I have never seen before. Excellent book.

There is a lot of useful information in this book. It is obvious that Ms. Peck knows what she is talking about, has used Dreamweaver and is speaking from experience. Unfortunately, there are many errors in the tutorial exercises that are presented in the book. This makes them very frustrating to do and defeats their purpose. In addition, there needs to be more realistic projects/examples to demonstrate the concepts nd principles. Because of the many errors, I would not buy a book from her again.

I hate wasting money but this book was the biggest ... I bought it based on a review, obviously by a web designer who didn't have to work their way through it. I'm a technical writer so I like detail. As a writer of manuals one should always have an independent body who knows nothing about the subject in question test a publication for mistakes and correct them before release. Ms Peck obviously did not do this. The book is full of mistakes which as a beginner is frustrating because it leads one to believe they are in the wrong because one expects the book to be correct. After 3 weeks of trying to get through it I gave up and bought Macromedia's authorized version. Another irritating point to consider is customer support. I've emailed her website on a number of occasions never once receiving a reply to my questions. She's also not consistent in her terminology which leaves you wondering what the hell she's refering to. This is a crash course only in the sense that the user crashes and gives up. The 15 hour deal is more like 150 hrs with some dreamweaver knowledge. I'll have gotten my money back if I can steer one person away from purchasing it.

Supplier delivered Dreamweaver 4 Weekend Crash Course quickly. The book arrived in excellent condition, with the disc intact, as promised. I would purchase from this vendor again. Color me a satisfied customer...

New to DW, I made it thru this book over a period of about four weeks or so, working between other responsibilities. The writing style is conversational throughout and the lesson progression is logical in terms of tasks and building concepts. The typographical errors didn't really throw me off. At some points the conversational approach seems to have misled me, and I had to read, reread...and some places had to complete sessions twice for things to work properly. Some of this may have been my own fault, but I think the steps could be more technically detailed in some ways. Overall, the book is comprehensive in covering the basics and the not-so-basics. Having gone through the end of the book now, I give it 4 stars because it lived up to it's title...I am comfortable enough with DW program and am moving with it on to Fireworks, CSS, and putting it all together.

Even though the author of this book evidently has a good grasp of the concepts she attempts to teach, I unfortunately have to agree with other reviewers that for a even an experienced user, there is no way one could get through this book in 15 hours. Beginners will be completely frustrated by the NUMEROUS and really unnacceptable errors in both the text and sample files on the CD. I too, spent a couple weeks trying work my way through the book, checking the author's web site, e-mailing her, getting no response, and finally returning the book in frustration. I'm a writer also, with a much better-than-average grasp of computer software, and this author/publisher commits the unforgiveable sin of not having a novice proofread the text to check for errors and omissions. Unless one already has a fairly extensive knowledge of the concepts presented, there is no way he will get more than half the way through this text before giving up in frustration. A shame, considering that the author has a good overall concept and intentions. I cannot recommend this book - there are MUCH better texts out there that have been properly checked for accuracy. Don't waste your money or time on this.