63 of 65 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Another industry standard from Elizabeth Castro, November 5, 2000
This review is from: XML for the World Wide Web (Paperback)
With over 60 new books on XML set for release in the year 2000, it seems like another XML book would not be that big of a deal.
Well, that might be true if it were an XML book from anyone other than Elizabeth Castro and Peachpit Press.
Castro, the author of two other bestsellers, HTML for the World Wide Web and Perl and CGI for the World Wide Web has the rare gift of being able to take extremely complex subjects and render them into understandable terms for just about anyone. In her newest book, XML for the World Wide Web, Castro scores a direct hit in being able to convey the ins and outs of XML and all of its aspects in a way that makes it unique, usable and useful.
Castro tackles Schemas, DTDs, Namespaces, XPath, Xlink, Xpointer, XSLT, CSS used with XML and just about everything else being discussed, implemented, debated, planned or argued in the constantly changing world of XML. That's not unusual for an XML book. However, Castro actually pulls it off extremely well, resulting in a very very very good book for those about to immerse themselves in the complexities of XML. That is unusual. Many XML purists will point to Simon St. Laurent's "XML:A Primer" and Benoit Marchal's "XML by Example" as being definitive "first XML books." I would agree, to a point. I have both of those and they are indeed excellent 5-star books but I honestly think that Castro's book will be more digestible to more people not well-versed in XML.
Critics, if any, might argue that XML for the World Wide Web is too basic or doesn't cover this topic in extreme detail that way or this way. That's not the point of this book. If you are already working in XML, you'll probably have a shelf full of advanced Wrox or Que or O'Reilly books on XML anyway that are very detailed. No, this book is truly for those just starting out who want to or need to actually learn XML and how to use it. And in that capacity, it succeeds on a grand scale.
Castro's HTML for the World Wide Web, now in its 4th edition, has become an industry standard. It can be found in every bookstore across the US and in many many college classrooms. Her Perl & CGI book accomplished the same thing for its target audience. I think that it can be said that XML for the World Wide Web will achieve the same lofty status, becoming the third jewel in Castro's triple crown.
I have no gripes at all with this book. But, I do have one suggestion that doesn't detract from the excellence of this work. In XML for the World Wide Web, Castro devotes Appendix A to XHTML. My only suggestion would be that perhaps she should instead consider making the 5th Edition of her HTML book an XHTML book, since HTML 4.01 was superseded by XHTML 1.0 almost a year ago. But again, that's only a suggestion.
In conclusion: XML for the World Wide Web...great price, great book, future standard!
I recommend it highly to those in the early stages of their XML careers.
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42 of 43 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great Beginner's Guide to XML, February 15, 2001
This review is from: XML for the World Wide Web (Paperback)
Although I'm not personally an XML beginner, so perhaps my perspective is a bit skewed, I recently had to come up with a full-day tutorial on XML, for Microsoft Office developers, all XML beginners. In preparing the various topics, I came across this book (actually, I had read Ms. Castro's HTML 4 book and liked it, as well), and found it to be at a perfect level for my students. I based my basic XML, namespaces, and XSD sessions of the day on the corresponding chapters in this book, and found the descriptions of "how" and "why" to be very useful, complete, and lucid. I recommended the book to the students, and they, too, found it useful. I heartily recommend this book for people trying to get the basics of XML down pat. It's not a book for experienced developers, or people who already "get" these topics, but that wasn't its point. If you're trying to get up and running with XML, I haven't found any other book that makes it so simple.
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25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Clear, concise, cheap!, November 6, 2000
This review is from: XML for the World Wide Web (Paperback)
Elizabeth Castro's Book is written in a very clear and precise style. She doesn't attempt to explain absolutely everything about XML - it shows you how to write and then put XML into web pages, which she covers very thoroughly; if you want any more detailed info such as ASP and XML, the DOM etc. go buy those thick tomes that deal with those topics specifically.
This book was perfect for my needs. I have been reading snippets all over the web about XML for months now but nowhere had enough detail - this book takes you through how to set out your information and then put it up.
Even though this is an area of "shifting sands" in terms of finalised standards she is bang up to date.
There is no doubt that XML is going to be the NBT (Next Big Thing) - get in there at ground level and read this book.
If you want an excellent introductory yet very practical primer this is ideal.
Leon Cych
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