Here i will detail some guides which i am now using to build my first site.
Both are aimed as support for the beginner level web designer.
Hopefully, sometime in the future i will get to a more advanced level, and i can
note any further guides i feel are of use. If you know of any useful guides, and
would like to add a review here, you are welcome to contact me.
Teach Yourself Visually Frontpage 2002, Maran, R., Hungry Minds.
Personally, i find there is nothing worse than a book without any colour or
pictures. When i saw this book, i knew it would be for me. The guide is in full
colour, and perfectly clear to use. The author Ruth Maran assumes the reader
knows nothing at all, and begins right at the absolute basics.
The opening chapters deal with inserting text, images, and linking pages
together. With these basic skills mastered, the user is guided in using forms,
making framed pages, and adding web page effects - such as hit counters and
marquees. The book concludes with advice on managing your first web site, and
provides advice on selecting a web host and uploading your web pages.
Yes, the book only covers the basics of web site design, however it will keep the beginner occupied for many months. Overall, if you have just one book to support your first web site, then make it this one.
How to Do Everything with FrontPage 2002, Plotkin, D., Osborne.
This book is aimed towards the beginner level web designer. Starting off,
Plotkin gives a thorough background in building web pages, in particular he
gives a great deal of attention to the graphical elements of web design.
More advanced topics are covered in some depth in the latter haft of the book.
Tasks include using Java Applets, ActiveX controls, and managing a web site with
tasks and reports. A final section on database integration will be useful to
those looking to collect large amounts of visitor data. For the beginner, these
more advanced tools such as applets are unlikely to be used, however it is
useful that the beginner can become introduced to them.
Illustrations are clear and very detailed, although you will not find a single colour picture in this book -the only real let down i can note. For the beginner, i highly recommend this as a more in-depth aid to Ruth Marans book mentioned earlier. 'How to do everything' will provide you with the knowledge necessary to create, maintain, and manage your first web site.
