Customer Reviews

HTML: The Complete Reference

5 star:		(39)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

There are still some folks around like myself who prefer to design Websites and pages using raw HTML "coding." Windows Notepad is still my top HTML editor of choice. However, whether folks prefer to "code their own" or use standard HTML editing programs, there are clear advantages of becoming familiar with the basics of HTML programming that will pay dividends in the long run. Not all HTML editors are created equal and sometimes inside knowledge is helpful in the Web development process.

HTML: The Complete Reference is a huge 2 1/4 - inch book packed with helpful and important HTML Web design information. Here readers will take in a broad scope of Website programming features that will improve, freshen up, and add functionality to any Website. Learn how to use fonts, colors, backgrounds, frames, tables, layers, style sheets, client-side programming, plug-ins, audio and video clips, and more. Plenty of scripting examples are provided to permit immediate results in the Website design process.

This reference book includes all the latest tags, Web browser and programming compatibility considerations, and background information needed to produce outstanding Websites. The book reads better as a reference guide than a novel. However, one can learn quite a bit by simply thumbing through it on a casual basis. A particular Web design feature could leap out from a page and arouse interest that could lead to a great design idea!

This book recommended for experienced programmers only, who are well acquainted with the in's and out's of Web design concepts. It's a great reference book to have on hand when a programming matter arises or when some changes must take place to liven things up!

When I decided I wanted to learn all I could about HTML I went looking for a good book on the subject. I never buy the first thing I see and I spent many hours researching for the best I could find. My search narrowed down to just a few and this book won the toss. I am truly impressed at what I found here. I purchased several books on related topics (javascript and such) and after reading all of them, this book was, by far, the easiest to use. Mr. Powell's writing style allowed me to retain more than I expected I would. I immediately put into use many of these tags to take my website from average to very efficient (and cool if I do say so myself). The reference section allows me to quickly find more about the tag I am trying to use. Don't let the enormous size of this book intimidate you. It reads easy and a great deal of the book is reference relating back to what you learned earlier.

If you are using a WYSISYG editor to make your website and want to get past those limitations. This IS the book you want. If you don't buy this book RIGHT NOW, you will someday wish you had. Do it while it's fresh in your head.

When learning a new subject, I sometimes find it helpful to begin with a Visual Quickstart or Sam's Teach Yourself, then an intermediate text (if needed), and finally an O'Reilly Nutshell or Wrox Professional to deepen understanding and use as a reference.

Powell's Complete Reference on HTML performs the task of all three levels.

The first 212 pages, "Web Basics," save beginners the need for an "HTML for Dummies." The next 475 pages provide a well-organized presentation of HTML mechanics including presentation, layout, cascading style sheets, client/server side programming, DHTML, XML, and web hosting. Throughout this material, sample code is presented and explained to illustrate the concepts presented. Finally, 430 pages of appendices provide reference level detail that will remain valuable indefinitely.

The later chapters (programming, DHTML, XML) are overview in nature. (ASP is discussed in five pages.) This is appropriate, for each of these subjects requires a text of their own. The overviews are valuable as they present these subjects in the context of HTML and how they can work together. They also give the reader a basic platform from which to study in greater detail.

Certainly worth mentioning also are the numerous tips and valuable remarks sprinkled throughout the book. In my case there were several one-line statements worth the purchase price.

This book is a well-written and thorough text that a beginner can use to learn HTML and an advanced web developer can use as a reference or to polish up. I can't compare this with others books on the subject. It hasn't been necessary to read any.

and I have been quite satisfied.

Although I don't think a "Complete" reference book on programming, especially HTML, can exist, this is as complete and updated as it gets.

Being a professional and advanced programmer I might be tempted to claim this as the best book there is, but for beginners I suggest they start with a book which is more of a "tutorial" than a "reference". A smaller book that puts more emphasis on "teaching" the basic concepts than providing an extensive reference resource. But after that I strongly suggest they get this book.

Remember, no single programming book can ever be a good reference while being a good tutorial. And we need both.

"HTML: The Complete Reference, Second Edition", by Thomas A. Powell

Our NST/Engineers company reviewers found this over 1000 page compendium to be an ideal training text and desktop reference for a wide spectrum of web page designers. Individuals working to improve company intranet and extranet communications will be well-served by the examples given of code and scripting followed by what you can expect to see. Professionals seeking guidance in advanced HTML, DHTML, XML, and related internet savvy can expect to increase their understanding of these cutting-edge technologies.

We found excellent coverage of the pitfalls of page preparation without knowledge of the differences between popular browser capabilities. The browser versions expected to be in common use for the next few years of Internet Explorer, Netscape Navigator, WebTV, and a few others, and how to allow for their different interpreting capabilities , is covered throughout the book.

Hundreds of pages of appendixes explain what you can and can't do with HTML elements and style sheets. The function, power, and use of Java Script in its several variations are explained with examples. Author Thomas A. Powell, an expert Web consultant and Internet applications teacher at University of California at San Diego, explains the centrality of HTML while predicting changes that XML and other methods may bring in the future. He cites lots of free online Web sites, at all levels, to augment material in the book.

We found the writing style, loaded with useful examples and stabs of humor, to be an easy read. This is a body of knowledge that must be understood at higher than an entry level by industrial, academic, and small business practitioners alike who see the need for an effective Web presence.

I bought this book based on the Amazon Reviews and after using it I must disagree with the weight of on-line opinion. Not that it is a bad book. It just isn't what the reviews led me to expect. My main disappointment is the poor structure and organization. It has a thrown-together feel, more like a collection of separate and poorly integrated sections than a single well-organized book.

Some examples: Even after marking the page edges it is still difficult to find what I want quickly. The text sections are only average and not at all comprehensive. To learn HTML or CSS, you'd be better off getting a book (or books) that is not trying to be everything at once. And the reference sections are also a disappointment. The main headers do not stand out from the repeated subheadings so one becomes lost easily. There is not enough detail on differences between the major browsers. The CSS "reference" is a mess. It is broken into subsections which disrupt the alphabetical order and is sorely lacking in the kind of detail that is critical to successful style-sheet implementation.

As I said, it's not a bad book. It's just not good enough. For total newbies, Castro's QuickStart Guide is far superior. On CSS, try O'Reilly's "definitive" guide. Not sure what to recommend as an HTML reference. I'm going to try Goodman's "Dynamic HTML."

This is ABSOLUTELY the Best HTML book. I got this book at the same time I got my first job as a web developer. My main job was to layout HTML pages for companies including GE and Sherwin Williams. I found this book indispensable. This book is great for a beginner and a superb reference for an HTML guru. The tutorials are great and the appendixes are wonderful. Although, the only HTML book you will need; you will need other books to cover topics such as CSS, JavaScript, and XML. The book gives you only a brief introduction to these branches of web development. If you use or want to use HTML buy this book!

This book is simply great! If you build sites for a living you probably struggle with books that trivialize HTML and present its syntax willy-nilly. This book is the ONLY book I've ever seen that actually seems to be written by someone who builds sites professionally and wants to know all the markup. It explains logical and physical tagging styles well and does a really good job showing how to hook HTML with other technologies without trying to teach CGI, CSS, etc. at the same time. The only thing I wish is that this guy would write a JavaScript or DHTML book. I'd buy that right away.

This is a great book but I didn't think it was as good as the previous edition.

Firstly I found a few too many errors that would trip up beginners to HTML/CSS. I checked the errata section of the website but not a single error in the book was listed there (at the time of writing this). I can't believe they are unaware of them, especially as this book has been out for several months now.

Secondly the author keeps plugging his other book, so much so that he includes an entire chapter from that book here. Although it may of had some relevance I don't think it should of been added, as in my opinion it was clearly intended as a promotion of his other publication. I certainly don't object to being made aware of an authors publications, for instance in a list at the end of the book, but not like this.

On the plus side this book does cover HTML exceptionally well, all the expected stuff like frames, tables, layers, forms, links, media types etc are explored. XHTML is also covered but don't expect much, the differences are only in the rules of writing the language, which are explained. Note that there isn't a chapter dedicated to XHTML but you are made aware of the differences between HTML mark-up and XHTML mark-up when necessary.

Like previous editions this book does cover a lot of theory, e.g. logical versus physical mark-up, protocols, mime types, parsed html etc.

There is also a chapter dedicated to CSS1 and CSS2 which is pretty complete. The CSS2 section includes coverage on the various new pseudo elements and selectors introduced in CSS2. There is also a reference section covering CSS1 and CSS2 at the back of the book, and it includes proprietary properties for Internet Explorer.

SSI is also covered in this book. There are also very basic introductions to XML, JavaScript, server side technologies and DHTML. These are more about what they can do as opposed to teaching you them.

The reference section has been organised alphabetically this time, so it is much easier to use than previous editions. They include coverage of XHTML, additions to WebTV, JavaScript event handlers and the usual HTML stuff. There are also reference sections for colour codes and character entities.

Finally this is the first Complete Reference book I have purchased that didn't fall apart, so there is no need to buy a binder this time around.

In all of my web work, this book is indispensible. Nine times out of ten I open the book to the HTML tag section. Every tag you can think of is thoroughly documented, listing information on how each attribute is used, which browsers they work in, and any special issues. Every single time I have had problems with a tag, I have been able to open the book and find the answers I need. The tag section alone is worth the price of the book.