Web Sites That Work

If you're passionate about Web design and want to do it right the first time out, then read Roger's book Web Sites That Work. This is the kind of advice that companies such as MSN and CondeNast pay big bucks for!The book is well-designed itself and almost comes off as a photo essay in parts with plenty of pictures of our hero, Roger Black, studying the Web and transforming pages into online art forms. In this book, you'll learn valuable tips about what to do andNOT to do with your Web site. Roger also speaks extensivelyon the principles of online navigation, personalization,transaction, teamwork, and the future of the Net.Aside from the stellar pointers, the book has plenty of candidRoger action shots to make any fan jump for joy.

When I first read this book, I loved it. However, as I began to learn more about usability and accessibility on the web, I changed my mind. In fact, this book suggested doing a lot of things that I now refuse to do [ e.g. to use graphics instead of text for pixel-perfect layout and typography, etc. ]. "Web Sites that Work" seems to whisper sweet nothings into the ears of print designers that are new to the web, at the same time misleading them about fundamental concepts.If you're looking for a designer's book about web design, I'd steer clear of this book, perhaps reading Jeffrey Veen's "The Art and Science of Web Design" instead. I recommend Veen's book because it takes more of a middle ground between foundations of print and web design. It covers both the importance of usability and of liquid design on the web.If you're looking for a down-to-earth book about the web, do not interpret this book as the definitive word. Its content is interesting from a typographical and color theory perspective, but you will need to absorb all suggestions therein with a grain of salt.

This book is bashed a lot here without good reason. Black espouses not *his* principles, but timeless, universal principles of good design--and good design is good design, whether it's online or off. No, Black isn't God, and so what if he thinks he is? His ideas are sound, period. And to those who think the book is "shallow" or lacks "content," you're missing the boat. You want detail? Go read a Que Publishing 600-pager! You want content? This book has plenty! To quote Black: "I think Hotwired is one of the best things on the web, but they suffer from an out-of-date, hacker-centric attitude." Right on!!

If your are looking for a technical reference on HTML, O'Reilly, Sams.net and Que all have good ones. If you want a beginner's guide, Laura LeMay has written a number of excellent volumes. If you want a manual expert tricks and tips, Lynda Weinman and, better still, David Siegal, have written excellent books. For a treatise on applying the fundamentals of good design to Web Pages, this is your book. This is as close to Tschichold's "Form of the Book" for the Web as I've seen (though Siegel's "Creating Killer Web Sites" is a close second). The book is truly beautiful, and it inspired me to no end. It got me excited about online design again. Considering I'm part of the I-wear-black-and-listen-to-Ministry-'cause-I-hate-stuff crowd, getting me excited about anything takes some doing. If you are a Web Developer who cares about aesthetically pleasing Web Sites that don't short-change on functionality, this book is a must-read

Well, I for one am so happy I read this book. It seems that everyone is just rushing onto the Web throwing piles of cash at this monster without stepping back to look at what it is we are doing. Roger Black has given me a better understanding of what to do and how to do it. The best thing is that he doesn't take the stance of a holier-than-thou Guru on High. His advice smacks of common sense and yet is still quite sophisticated. Bonus: this book is as pleasing to the eye as to the mind