Web Design in a Nutshell - Softcover

Niederst, Jennifer

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0596001967 ISBN 13: 9780596001964

Publisher: O'Reilly & Associates, 2001

Synopsis

Web Design in a Nutshell, 2nd Edition contains the nitty-gritty on everything you need to know to design web pages. It's the good stuff, without the fluff, written and organized so that answers can be found quickly. This completely revised and expanded 2nd edition is chock-full of information about the wide range of front-end technologies and techniques from which web designers and authors must draw.

Web Design in a Nutshell, 2nd Edition is an excellent reference for HTML 4.01 tags (including tables, frames, forms, color, and cascading style sheets) with special attention given to browser support, platform idiosyncrasies, and standards. You'll also find lots of updated information on using graphics, multimedia, audio and video, and advanced technologies such Dynamic HTML, Javascript, and XML, as well as new chapters on XHTML, WML, and SMIL. This book is an indispensable tool for web designers and authors of all levels.

Web Design in a Nutshell, 2nd Edition includes:

• Discussions of the web environment including monitors and browsers, printing from the Web, accessibility, and internationalization
• A complete reference to HTML and Server Side Includes, including up-to-date browser support (Netscape 6, IE 6.0, and Opera 5) for every tag and attribute
• Updated chapters on creating GIF, animated GIF, JPEG, and PNG graphics, including designing with the Web Palette
• Information on multimedia and interactivity, including audio, video, Flash 5 and Shockwave, and a new chapter on SMIL
• A revised tutorial and reference on Cascading Style Sheets
• Appendixes detailing HTML tags, attributes, deprecated tags, proprietary tags, CSS compatibility and support, and character entities

About this title

Review

In 1998, Jennifer Niederst wrote the first edition of this very successful book after she found herself spending way too much time chasing down the solutions to HTML problems. From hexadecimal color specs to mouseover scripts, the answers are all out there, but finding the exact one you need can soak up a whole day. "I wrote Web Design in a Nutshell because it was the book I needed--one place to find quick answers to my questions."

With all that's changed in the meantime, an overhaul is welcome. This is the rare book for designers that is almost completely nonvisual. It doesn't show what's hip in navigational bars or what the coolest colors are. Rather, it gives readers the kind of know-how that can make a difference between someone who just whips up pretty pages with WYSIWYG applications like Dreamweaver and someone who can make those pages cross-platform, cross-browser, fast loading, and accessible to all.

The clear organization makes it easy to locate any specific topic. There are six sections. "The Web Environment" discusses the realities of browser compatibility, display-resolution problems, a useful bit of Unix, and tips for print designers looking to move into Web design. "Authoring" shows how to write accurate and up-to-date HTML, cascading style sheets, and Server Side Includes (like putting the current date and time on your homepage).

"Graphics" brings together all you need to know to make effective use of images (GIFs, JPEGS, PNGs, and animated GIFs). "Multimedia and Interactivity" helps with adding audio, video, or Flash to your site (including some succinct tips on optimization and publish settings). And "Advanced Technologies" covers JavaScript, DHTML, XML, XHTML, and WAP and WML. And there are six useful look-up tables in the appendix, which include HTML 4.0 tags, deprecated tags, attributes, and CSS support across browsers. Web Design in a Nutshell could easily have been titled The Web Designer's Companion--it's mighty handy to have around. --Angelynn Grant

About the Author

Jennifer Niederst Robbins has 14 years of web design experience, as both a designer and a teacher, having designed the first commercial web site, O Reilly s Global Network Navigator (GNN), in 1993.

Edition details

• Publisher: O'Reilly & Associates
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0596001967
• ISBN 13: 9780596001964
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 618