Customer Reviews

HTML 4 for Dummies, Fourth Edition

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(13)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(18)

 

 

As the title says, this book is for people with very little knowledge of HTML - but knowledge of how to use a computer at an intermediate level. It covers most basic HTML tags, up to and including tables and a limited amount of framesets, as well as providing a large reference section aimed at the beginning HTML coder, becoming a decent reference manual even after the Tutorial section is finished.

It's not the be-all and end-all of coding references, but it's perfect for someone that is comfortable with a computer, and wants to being creating simple web pages. This can take an individual with little knowledge and give them enough information to where they can understand the more complex online references and puzzle out the rest, or to a level where they can successfully invest their time in learning more about CSS, JavaScript, and DHTML to move to more complex sites.

I am currently taking an introductory class called "Build your Own Website." This book is required reading. When I went to my local bookstore to get "Html4 for Dummies with CD ROM," the sales associate did everything in her power to dissuade me from buying it. Now, 2 weeks into the course (and the book) I understand why.

There is too much text in this book: long, verbose explanations that make learning a chore. It is no fun to read, and is often confusing. Unless you are in the same situation as I (your professor demands that you use this, and only this, text) don't waste your money. Elizabeth Castro has written a much better book on this subject.

This book could have been about 200 pages shorter if they left out the redundant info on content and style of content. I would call this book "Keep it simple silly" as they must mention the KISS theory about 400 times. While I did get a better understanding of HTML after reading it. I was surely not prepared to make much of a web page when I was done digesting these 400 pages. I suggest picking it up at the library as I did and then getting a HTML reference book. Heck you can just go to WebMonkey or some other tutorial web site and learn just as much but quicker. It served it's usefullness but I would never buy it or reference back to it after reading it.

I hate to say that this whole leave-a-review thing on Amazon[.com] is a total waste of time, but I have a high suspicion that many of the people leaving "wisdom" have ulterior motives. I.e., the competition tries to make the product look bad, and, by the same token, the book's publisher submits a fantastic review.

I can't understand how people have given this book a bad rating. I'm a smart guy, went to Princeton, honors math and physics there, but haven't done computers in 15 years. Actually started with Dreamweaver for Dummies then realized I needed to learn HTML. Unlike other books, I was able to read through the entire book, chapter by chapter. The rambling non-code-related text was very helpful in understanding the background for much of the text...something one would get in one-on-one lessions. The background info also broke up the technical secitons to make them bareable The book was a breeze to go through. I know HTML now, at least the basics, and using Dreamweaver to do sites makes a whole lot more sense now, too.

As an aside, I had tried several other books on Dreamweaver and was totally unable to get started...until I got Dreamweaver for Dummies. The other books are perhaps a little better as references, but Dummies is by far the best at teaching the basics.

When I was told I would have to revamp our Company's Web page I was completely illiterate when it came to HTML. With this book as my ONLY reference I was able to create a great looking and functional web page complete with image maps, mouse-overs, frames, and tables. I also gained a basic understanding of animation and simple java-script. I would definitely recomend this book to anyone interested in getting started in HTML.

This book is great for beginners who are only interested in perhaps creating a web page (rather than a web site) about themselves. Furthermore, it does not go into enough detail on some topics. For example, it teaches how to create forms on one's web site, but does not go into enough detail on CGI and the programming behind it, making the section on forms practically useless unless you also buy their book "CGI for Dummies." It does, however, cover the basics of text formatting and adding images to one's page, but it does not go into enough detail as to how to add sounds, video, and other media such as Shockwave or Flash. However, it covers frames and the FRAMESET and FRAME tags very well, but again, there is not one mention of inline frames (the IFRAME tag). If you are looking for a basic HTML guide, this is what you need, but be careful not to get confused by the miscellaneous stuff they don't explain enough. I recommend this book to those perhaps making a personal web page.

I purchased this book mostly for learning advanced HTML features such as tables and frames but at the same time I learned a couple new nifty tags. They spend a little too much time talking about the web in general as if that you're reading an Internet for Dummies book rather than an HTML for Dummies book. But don't worry, that quickly changes over to a discussion of how important HTML really is to the web and what role it plays. Everything is organized nicely and is very simple. The humor was a bit dry compared to some other dummies books I've read but overall, it's a wonderful reference material worth spending 20 bucks on.

(FYI, I'm new to html, and have only about 1 year's experience with computers.)

Instead of just listing tags and showing what they do, "HTML 4 For Dummies" goes into long-winded discussions on how things work -- discussions that amount to nothing more than filler, which the reader must sort through in order to find the information he needs.

Let's say you have a problem with a link in your website. (Like I did.) You look in the table of contents in your copy of "HTML 4 For Dummies" and surprise, surprise, there's nothing on links.

Instead, you have to look in the idex, where you'll find the word "link" referenced several times -- all the way from page 10 to page 337. Which page to look at?

I don't know.

It looks to me that the only way to use this book is to read it cover-to-cover, before trying to use any of the information inside. Of course, that'll take you a couple of weeks, and by the time you've completed it, you'll have forgotten much of what you've read.

(Not to mention the fact that most of what you've read is irrelevant to you.)

Me, I've given up, after making it only to Chapter 4. While people with more experience might find the book easy to get through, I did not. The book goes from overly easy to tremendously difficult in just a few pages.

It comes with a disc. I don't understand how to use it, or what it's supposed to show me other than the Lanwright website.

I found (and continue to find) the book to be a waste of $25.

There's stuff on the internet on how to build websites that I found much more useful. Since that stuff is free, and this book is not, I suggest staying away from it.

This book is a book that can be described as "good." I will let you decide whether that is good or not. This book provides people with little knowledge of HTML a basic reference. It is usually off topic(talking about the web in general, not just HTML) and usually that would be good but they talk about the web so much that the subject of HTML is not fully covered.

Another bad point is that these people really do think that you are stupid. After reading about HTML off the internet I knew more than book teaches you. I went out and bought HTMLGoodies and learned much more, much easier. Another bad thing is that the authors think that they are funny(and they're not!) They write things and then the put a joke, usually in parentheses with an exclamation point after it.(haha!)<-- Just like that

Overall this book does not cover the topic fully and doesn't ever stay to the point. Dummies books have grown so popular that the authors begin to think that they are legends and anything that they write we will eat up. This is not the case and if they could see it from a normal person's perspective then they could realize that they are not fit to be authors.

I would not recommend this book to anyone because better books are out there. Try HTMLGoodies :)

This book was a very good HTML guide for most aspect of creating a site. Some areas, however, they did not explain very clearly. In the Frames section, for instance, they did not have a very good example, and it was very difficult to suceed in this area without checking other HTML books. The Forms section was great, except they didn't show you anything much about how to recieve forms. This book was humorous, and quite informative. A definite buy for any beginner in the world of HTML coding, IF you ignore some of the weak areas.