HTML & XML for Beginners (Cpg-Undefined) [Paperback]

Michael Morrison (Author)

Book Description

Series: Cpg-Undefined | Publication Date: July 27, 2001

HTML and XML for Beginners provides Web coding beginners with a concise guide to the world of Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), and previews even more powerful alternatives such as Extensible Markup Language (XML). Rich in examples, the book walks the Web beginner through basic HTML techniques such as creating and publishing Web pages, formatting text, adding graphics, and creating hyperlinks. It shows how to use tables to organize content, forms to gather input from site visitors, image maps to support point-and-click navigation, and styles, properties, and multimedia to add visual and sonic interest. It clearly demonstrates how to spice up Web pages with interactive elements by using Dynamic HTML (DHTML). The book ends with an extensive discussion of the most important new language on the Web, XML, and its relevance for data exchange. The book also explores XML variants such as Vector Markup Language (VML), the standard for creating, storing, and exchanging vector drawings on the Internet, and XHTML the merger of XML and HTML. All in all, this title provides the fastest way to get started coding a Web page.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Michael Morrison is a writer, developer, toy inventor, and author of a variety of books covering topics such as Java, Web scripting, game development, and mobile devices. Some of Michael's notable writing projects include JavaScript Bible, 6th Edition (Wiley, 2006),Teach Yourself HTML and CSS in 24 Hours, 7th Edition (Sams Publishing, 2005), Beginning Mobile Phone Game Programming (Sams Publishing, 2004) and Java Unleashed (Sams Publishing, 1997). Michael is the intructor of several Web-based courses, including DigitalThink's Introduction to Java 2 series, JavaBeans for Programmers series, and Win32 Programming series (www.digitalthink.com).

In addition to his primary profession as a writer and technical consultant, Michael is the founder of Stalefish Labs (www.stalefishlabs.com), an entertainment company specializing in games, toys, and interactive media. When not glued to his computer, skateboarding, playing hockey, or watching movies with his wife, Masheed, Michael enjoys hanging out by his koi pond.

Product Details

• Paperback: 358 pages
• Publisher: Microsoft Press (July 27, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0735611890
• ISBN-13: 978-0735611894
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,152,696 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Michael Morrison is a writer, developer, toy inventor, and author of a variety of computer technology books and interactive web-based courses. In addition to his primary profession as a writer and freelance nerd for hire, Michael is the creative lead at Stalefish Labs (http://www.stalefishlabs.com), an entertainment company he co-founded with his wife, Masheed. The first commercial debut for Stalefish Labs is a traditional social/trivia game called Tall Tales: The Game of Legends and Creative One-Upmanship. When not glued to his computer, playing hockey, skateboarding, or watching movies with his wife, Michael enjoys hanging out by his koi pond while he daydreams about new Web creations. You can visit Michael on the Web and discuss this book at http://www.michaelmorrison.com/.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great place to start., August 8, 2001

By 

Michael J Woznicki "Michael J Woznicki" (Holland, MA USA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: HTML & XML for Beginners (Cpg-Undefined) (Paperback)

If you happen to want to get into the world of web design you need to know HTML, however if you want to progress further you also need to know XML. So if you don't know either you can spend serious money on several starter books or try this one and save time, money and your sanity.

What I learned from this book was a great deal of information I had never seen before. The author simple approach, yet abundance of information make this a first rate job. The author takes you on a web journey in a step by step layout without overcomplicating any one topic.

Starting off with the HTML essentials like formatting, images, hyperlinks, maps, tables, forms and multimedia you then move on to other topics like CSS, DHTML and special effects to spice up the average web page.

XML, XSL and XHTML round out the end of the book with style, allowing the reader to be able to use the information as you follow along. Although eh book should have been in color, this will detract little from the overall value of the book.

There are plenty of screen shots and the step by step instruction make learning at your pace easy. One thing that does need to be added is a cd-rom with practice files rather allowing for time to work with the areas.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book is exactly what a beginner needs!!, September 22, 2003

By 

Taob (the farthest planet from the bright center of the universe.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: HTML & XML for Beginners (Cpg-Undefined) (Paperback)

I must admit that when I decided to embark upon my adventures in web programming I was overwhelmed by the shear number of books on the topic of HTML & XML. However, I was pleasantly surprised by the style and approach of this book. Michael Morrison covers HTML, DHTML, XHTML, XML and CSS. But the book isn't limited to simply programming language, it also emphasizes the importance of style, content, appearance and special effects.

The author covers material in manageable portions, then displays the code, again in manageable portions, and follows up with easy to understand explanations that review the topic. This brilliant cycle is repeated through out the pages of each chapter. What is significant is that he puts all the code snippets from the chapter together at the end to show the reader what the end result is. And the reader can even follow along with a text editor to see his/her own work! The code is clean, the examples are easy to understand and the author is consistent. Bravo!

On the other hand, there were one or two topics that left me wanting for more information but I was readily able to facilitate my hunger by browsing the web. All in all, this book was a huge help and I recommend it supremely.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Well explained, quickly assimilated, November 8, 2003

By 

Steven Cain (Temporal Quantum Pocket) - See all my reviews

This review is from: HTML & XML for Beginners (Cpg-Undefined) (Paperback)

After designing a seven page read-only web site with Netscape Composer (which generates HTML source code) I found that potential Web hosts tended to become twitchy at the prospect of Composer's "inelegant code". Their concern is that not only would the code not be XHTML compliant (the standard for the future that is being implemented now), but that some of the code simply would not run on some browsers.

Swoon... I needed a quick fix book that would explain enough about XML and XHTML for me to go in and manually convert the Composer-generated HTML code for XHTML compliance. I also needed to be able to use a checking tool to verify that the altered/upgraded code would pass the test.

Thank goodness for Michael's book. My first bonus was discovering that Netscape 7.1 actually generates HTML 4.1 code, which is basically current. My second bonus was finding that Michael has a very readable style and gets to the point quickly. To be honest, I just speed scanned the vast majority of the book and used it as a reference guide while I dove in almost immediately to perform the XHTML conversion.

The way MM explains things, the conversion was a very simple process, and the icing on the cake is that he explains how to use the WC3 Validator online free checking service, which allows you to safely and simply upload your source code for a given web page, and have it checked in real time. One cute bonus from the Validator site is that when your code passes the test, you can download an icon indicating that your code for that page is XHTML 1.0 Transitional compliant.

I'm sure there are many good books out there of a similar nature, but for me, this book by Michael Morrison works for people who just want to get in there quickly and do it. Like many busy men and women, I don't have time to read War and Peace, and MM appears to understand that need for speed and clarity.

Finally, while there is some breezy humor and a very friendly feel to the book, it does not descend into the infantile 2 cent jokes and puns that some books have been known to contain.

Excellent.