Head First HTML with CSS & XHTML
by Elisabeth Freeman, Elisabeth Robson, Eric T Freeman
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Book Reviews of Head First HTML with CSS & XHTML
Book Review: The best way to really learn the subjects
Summary: 4 Stars
There are tons of positive reviews already written about this book, so I just thought I'd share a little about how I'm getting through the tutorials. First off, I think it helps to work through the book on a daily basis, rather than doing a few chapters and coming back to it weeks later. The concepts will be easier to follow complete the lessons one after another, and on a regular basis.
Next, sometimes it helps to read and underline several pages and then go to the computer to do the lessons. Some lessons are very easy to complete, but it's important that you try to understand as much as possible the code language itself. The authors do a very good job explaining why the markups work the way they do.
If you get stuck during a lesson, carefully check your typos, and make sure you have copied the lines of code as they are presented in the book. Even leaving out a semicolon in a line of HTML or CSS code can mess things up.
If you find that you really are stuck, visit the book's Lab site and download the solution for exercises in each chapter. Compare the solution to your own work. If you still can't find figure the problem, use the solution and move on. Chapter 8 and 10 gave me lots of problems. I went on the Lab site to look for answers. There's a discussion forum on the Lab site, but there doesn't seem to be a lot of traffic on it. But leave your questions there anyway, and they might be answered.
If you're very computer literate, you might also try a more advanced text editor than the one's they suggest in the book. I downloaded a copy of TextMate to help me complete the last three chapters of the book. TextMate has a steep learning curve, but it in the long run it can save you time when writing code manually.
Finally, I would suggest applying what you learn by creating a mini-website or group of pages. By doing this, you can review the lessons and apply them.
For those thinking about taking a college course in this subject, I would work through this book first. In fact, I bet it presents nearly everything you would learn in a introductory college course of HTML and CSS. The advantage of using this book is that you can learn at your own pace and not waste time in a classroom.
Book Review: Best book for learning HTML and CSS
Summary: 5 Stars
The "Head First" series by O'Reilly does it again. This book manages to take the conceptually easy yet complicated task of learning HTML, XHTML, and CSS and breaks it down so that anyone can figure out what is going on and what needs to be done in web page design using these technologies. Plus, if you learned HTML several years ago and you would like to update your skills to current technology, this is a great choice for a textbook.
The book starts out with the basics of HTML -text, webpage form via HTML, putting your webpage on the Internet and linking to other web resources, and adding images and thumbnails. Next the author tackles XHTML, starting by answering the questions What is XHTML? and Why would I want to use XHTML? The author composes three simple steps to take you from strict HTML to XHTML:
1. Change your DOCTYPE to XHTML 1.0 Strict.
2. Add the xmins, lang, and xml:lang attributes to your <html> element.
3. All empty tags should end in "/>" not ">".
Next, CSS is introduced, along with the properties that can be controlled via CSS. When you read the CSS chapters you'll find yourself asking "Why don't other books just SAY this plainly like THIS book does?". Eventually, the author has you doing advanced layout and control using all the tools available to you without you ever noticing that you've been "studying". The book concludes with lessons on interactivity and tables. I think it is most interesting that the author saves the subject of tables for the end of the book versus other texts that usually introduce them early on. This is because the author is using the more advanced lessons on CSS to help make the subject of tabular data less confusing. The book's final chapter is entitled "The Top Ten Topics We Didn't Cover", thus acknowledging that this is not an advanced book on webpage design. Each chapter has a "There Are No Dumb Questions" section that answers common questions that may be a source of confusion to the reader.
Since this book is designed to be a textbook and not a reference, you might find it handy to have a copy of O'Reilly's "HTML & XHTML: The Definitive Guide" as a reference since it lists virtually all of the HTML tags and their properties.
Book Review: Excellent! Teaches Needed Knowledge
Summary: 5 Stars
This is the best XHTML\CSS book I have every read! It covers everything a beginner needs for a solid foundation in XHTML and CSS (even though they don't go to deep into CSS what they have is a great start), including topics that other HTML books don't mention but need to (such as the box model). I wish this was the first XHTML book I ever read, it would have saved me a lot of research time.
Head First HTML covers the box model, which is a MUST know if you are ever to really understand how to layout a website. The book successfully explains how CSS positioning works, which I always found a difficult topic to get...not anymore. The book does a good job introducing DTDs and why you need that piece of coding in each web page.
My favorite part of the book is their coverage of XHTML forms. The book explains basically how the forms you create interacts with the server side script that needs to do something with the forms data. This section on forms also does a great job at explaining the difference between POST and GET and when you would want to use each one. And of course gives great examples and explanations of each form element.
Other topics covered include Tables, Lists (including how to create a list using pictures instead of numbers or letters), a full chapter about images, and a section about the few topics they did not cover like the Objects tag, and other topics.
Everything is explained in plain English and made easy to understand. I know some reviewers of Head First books have had their intelligence insulted because the books come across as childish to them. I know that when I learn something new I like it from as basic of an explanation as possible with lots of visuals and telling me how each part works, and it's a fun read. After all we didn't start learning English by writing books, we learned the alphabet first. I love their approach and already have five of their books related to web development and programming. I have learned to rely on Head First books as a first book for first learning any web development/programming topic. They give me a good start to a great foundation of the subject, then I go off and buy more advanced books.
Book Review: Wish I could give this 6 stars...
Summary: 5 Stars
Head First HTML with CSS and XHTML is totally unlike any other HTML book I've ever read -- or owned. Most are basic references -- "if you want this, do this" type books. Very dry and dull, not something you're going to sit and read in one setting. Not helpful to someone who is not technologically inclined who wants to learn how to "do a website."
This book is written to teach. It's written so that you remember what you read, using techniques that teachers are being taught to use in the classroom. And it's one that I would actually use in the classroom if I were still teaching Computer Applications.
The first thing you notice about the book is that it's colorful. Normally, the only color in an HTML book is the chart of colors and their hex codes (which, ironically, this book doesn't have). Even the acknowledgements include color pictures of the people they are thanking. And everything in the book is worth reading through -- including the acknowledgements and the table of contents. There's a healthy use of humor throughout that makes it worth actually reading through, rather than just using as a reference.
And that's the point. The authors are quick to say that if you're looking for another HTML reference book, to keep looking. This is a book for people who want to learn.
I wasn't sure how much I'd really learn from this book -- after all, I'd just read and reviewed Creating Web Sites: The Missing Manual. But while that book gave me a good basis for understanding CSS, this book has expanded my understanding considerably. I've got a CSS reference book that has been seldom used; I think I'll be dusting it off soon, because I know enough to be able to use it now.
If you've ever had a family member who wanted you to design a website for them, buy them Head First HTML with CSS and XHTML. If you've ever asked a family member to design you a web site, buy this book. If you've ever bought an HTML book and ended up using it to level your desk, or for kindling on a cold winter day, buy this book. This is the book you've been waiting for. This is the learning system you've been waiting for.
Book Review: Great introduction to XHTML & CSS
Summary: 5 Stars
In my day job I'm an engineer but I have very little web development or programming experience. As a result of reading this book (and others, mentioned below) I'm now a do-it-yourself web developer for my home businesses, scuba instruction and home studio recording, and this book got me addicted to the Head First series of books. I've since purchased and read Head First PHP & MySQL.
This book quickly got me up and running with a modern look and feel for my website, which previously looked like something a college kid from 1997 created (because I last used HTML as a college kid in 1997). Although intimidating at 650 pages, I quickly devoured every word and exercise in this very well-written guide filled with great hands-on applications and a memorable approach.
As noted in the title of this review, it is a great INTRO getting your feet wet with a lot of useful skills, and as far as HTML goes it was all I really needed, but it gave me just enough exposure to CSS to make me hungry for more. After completing the Head First PHP & MySQL I learned a few useful tips with PHP for code reusability, but ultimately bought another guide on CSS - CSS Mastery: Advanced Web Standards Solutions, Second Edition by Andy Budd - EXCELLENT follow-up to this book IMHO!!
With the foundation I got from this book and CSS Mastery I feel very comfortable with my XHTML and CSS skills, in fact I've already encountered and resolved a browser-specific bug as a result of the skills I've learned. For building a strong foundation in XHTML and CSS I very highly recommend this book, and if you want to take it further then follow up with CSS Mastery for more advanced CSS skills.
If you intend to move on to PHP and MySQL, continuing on with the Head First series was a good move for me, but I already know I will want more knowledge on both PHP and MySQL. (By the way, I've provided a review for all three of these books on Amazon)