Customer Reviews

Web Developer.com Guide to Dynamic HTML

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It's not easy to recall the single worst computer-related book one has ever encountered, but this has got to be it. This is essentially a 40 page booklet that has been padded to 200+ pages by the repetition of the same body of program code as often as 6-7 times (each a couple of new lines added each time to justify the repetition). If you really want to learn DHTML, you should go in for Dan Goodman's reference (O'Reilly books) or Scott Isaac's book "Inside Dynamic HTML", which, though MS Internet Explorer-specific, is packed with solid meat, as opposed to Holzner's book, which is nine courses of straight, watery, gravy.

I was severely disappointed by syntax errors in the examples. Example page 252 attempts to show the use of the style tag and the correct syntax. I attempted the book example <style> h1 {font-size = 52 pt} </style> It did not work until I checked another book and found I needed to change the '=' sign to a ':'...don't buy this. I wish I could get a refund.

The reason for me buying this book was that it was the first one that I happened to see in the book store that I was in at the time and, as it turns out, the only one available in the store (which happens to be one of the larger book stores in my area) on DHTML.

I was looking forward to developing a good understanding of DHTML but unfortunatly this book only took me half way. Prehaps knowing something about DHTML worked against me but to be able to work through 300 pages in 3 hours is most unusual.

For starters the book tries to cover both Netscape's and Microsoft's versions of DHTML which it admits vary greatly in the manner of their implementation (Microsoft's being far more comprehensive). Secondly all the examples are built up bit by bit and a full listing of each example is again included once the example has been worked through. In my opinion this leads to each example being duplicated at least three times and wastes a lot of space. Another issue one should note is that the examples are by no means "rocket science" stuff. They show you just enough on how to use a new element and that's all. Often important elements (such as inner and outer HTML) are glossed over in a sentence where they really deserve a lot more attention.

If you want an introductory text to DHTML then this is your book although you'll still have to spend a lot more time, after going throught the book, on your own in order to fully master DHTML. If you want a definitive guide to DHTML then don't buy this book.

As a starter book I would recommend it, but I think that a little more explanation would be useful. A disk with the books examples would have been nice so that the reader could see where his syntax has gone wrong (as mine did frequently). I appreciate that this would increase cost. This should not have been a problem as examples are supposed to be on the web site. It would have been useful if the book had given the URL. The book appears to have been written quickly, indeed the copyright notice is dated 1998 and I bought the book in November 1997 (perhaps we could photocopy & sell it before the New Year!!!) Overall the book does gives some useful tips to the beginner and would also be useful for those a little more advanced.