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Web Pages That Suck: Learn Good Design by Looking at Bad Design
Publisher:
Sybex
Authors: Vincent Flanders & Michael Willis
ISBN: 078212187X
Publication Date: March, 1998
Retail Price: $39.00
I receive many books to be reviewed here on WebDeveloper.com. Most of these books are not cheap to purchase, so before I can honorably recommend that you spend your hard-earned money on them I have to know that they can and will make a difference in your development process. With that said, run, do not walk, to the nearest bookstore (or click on the link above) and purchase this book. It's that good.
If you've never visited the WebPagesThatSuck.com Web site, you may not know about Vincent Flanders. Vincent is a slightly offbeat character (I base this opinion only on the picture of him in his Elvis costume) that tears apart the Web sites that make you cringe.
After ripping through many such sites, Flanders has turned his popular site into a book, with the help of graphic designer Michael Willis. Together, the two of them show you what not to do, and, conversely, what to do on your site to make it more appealing and informative. Flanders has a refreshing style that is both entertaining and informative. Not only will you learn a lot from this book, you'll find that it is an uplifting change from all those boring tutorial-style books.
The book is illustrated with many pictures of the sites discussed. The two authors show you why each page is flawed, and what could be done to improve it. Topics which are discussed include:
- Design and Navigation
- Content
- Graphics
- Text
- Frames and Links
- New Technology
- Maintainance
- Search Engines
The CD which is included with the book includes many Web development utilities, including HomeSite 3, GIF Builder, GIFMation, Coffee Cup Stylesheet Maker++, HTML Rename!, Web Razor and more, along with all the "sucky" sites that appear in the book.
If you're a professional Web developer, or just want your pages to appear as if you are, then you need to read this book. It can go right on the shelf next to your copy of Creating Killer Web Sites and HTML: The Definitive Guide. For a glimpse of what's in the book, visit the companion Web site, or download this sample chapter in Microsoft Word format, or PDF format: PDF Chapter1 part 1 and PDF Chapter1 part 2.
Selections include:
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