Refactoring HTML: Improving the Design of Existing Web Applications Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Are you looking to buy Refactoring HTML: Improving the Design of Existing Web Applications? Here is the right place to find the great deals. we can offer discounts of up to 90% on Refactoring HTML: Improving the Design of Existing Web Applications. Check out the link below:

>> Click Here to See Compare Prices and Get the Best Offers

Refactoring HTML: Improving the Design of Existing Web Applications ReviewFirst the good:
It is an _excellent_ tutorial on modern xHTML for those that have used HTML from its tag-soup beginnings. He methodically gives examples on why we, as web programmers, need to utilize a particular technology (CSS, Accessibility, etc). For example, he doesn't just say "Use CSS" because its the new way of doing things. He gives no-nonsense specific examples in bandwidth savings, alternate devices, etc.
His writing style is easy to read for computer geeks: a signature trait of any Martin Fowler signature series book.
He also provides a series of regular expressions that you can use to search through your HTML code to find problem areas and does a good introduction to the program "tidy". Since I am definitely _NOT_ a Regex geek, these are highly appreciated.
And finally, he shows usage of some xHTML tags and attributes of which I was not aware: such as proper usage of and tags.
Onto the downsides:
Originally I purchased this book thinking that I would be able to use it to get some tools under my belt to better transform the lousy auto-generated HTML that most graphics tools export and update them to decent, modern xHTML. However, the author is definitely NOT a "graphics design guy." And because of that, I know that several of the solutions he provided in his CSS sections would NOT fly with the designers where I work.
If I had seen his website, I probably would have realized that he was an XML expert instead of a design expert and wouldn't have gotten my hopes up. So far, I've found that websites like "A list apart" are much better for working with CSS-based design.
So for those looking to refactor your HTML code from ancient "Tag Soup" to modern sleek xHTML, this is a great book. If you're looking for how to best refactor from table-designs to table-less while maintaining a similar Look and Feel that you've been given by your designers, I find this book highly lacking.
Refactoring HTML: Improving the Design of Existing Web Applications OverviewLike any other software system, Web sites gradually accumulate "cruft" over time. They slow down. Links break. Security and compatibility problems mysteriously appear. New features don't integrate seamlessly. Things just don't work as well. In an ideal world, you'd rebuild from scratch. But you can't: there's no time or money for that. Fortunately, there's a solution: You can refactor your Web code using easy, proven techniques, tools, and recipes adapted from the world of software development. In Refactoring HTML, Elliotte Rusty Harold explains how to use refactoring to improve virtually any Web site or application. Writing for programmers and non-programmers alike, Harold shows how to refactor for better reliability, performance, usability, security, accessibility, compatibility, and even search engine placement. Step by step, he shows how to migrate obsolete code to today's stable Web standards, including XHTML, CSS, and REST—and eliminate chronic problems like presentation-based markup, stateful applications, and "tag soup." The book's extensive catalog of detailed refactorings and practical "recipes for success" are organized to help you find specific solutions fast, and get maximum benefit for minimum effort. Using this book, you can quickly improve site performance now—and make your site far easier to enhance, maintain, and scale for years to come.Topics covered include• Recognizing the "smells" of Web code that should be refactored• Transforming old HTML into well-formed, valid XHTML, one step at a time• Modernizing existing layouts with CSS• Updating old Web applications: replacing POST with GET, replacing old contact forms, and refactoring JavaScript• Systematically refactoring content and links• Restructuring sites without changing the URLs your users rely uponThis book will be an indispensable resource for Web designers, developers, project managers, and anyone who maintains or updates existing sites. It will be especially helpful to Web professionals who learned HTML years ago, and want to refresh their knowledge with today's standards-compliant best practices. This book will be an indispensable resource for Web designers, developers, project managers, and anyone who maintains or updates existing sites. It will be especially helpful to Web professionals who learned HTML years ago, and want to refresh their knowledge with today's standards-compliant best practices.

Want to learn more information about Refactoring HTML: Improving the Design of Existing Web Applications?

>> Click Here to See All Customer Reviews & Ratings Now

Read More...

A Pattern Approach to Interaction Design Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Are you looking to buy A Pattern Approach to Interaction Design? Here is the right place to find the great deals. we can offer discounts of up to 90% on A Pattern Approach to Interaction Design. Check out the link below:

>> Click Here to See Compare Prices and Get the Best Offers

A Pattern Approach to Interaction Design ReviewThis is a deeply disappointing book, typical of a field in which approbation by academic peers seems to be much more important than delivering real help to those designing real user interfaces.
I had hoped for a book dominated by a collection of patterns describing how users interact with technology, particularly computers. Instead the first 3/8 of the book is given over to an almost blow by blow account of each contribution to the development of patterns, their application to IT and finally to HCI. There is actually one important message, that patterns can aid communication not only between IT professionals, but also between professionals and users, as a way of describing both the problem domain and the proposed solution. However, this was almost buried in a detailed discussion of pattern format, which is much less important.
I very nearly gave up reading at this point, which would have been a pity, since the central chapter of the book contains some interesting patterns, albeit of limited practical use. The "How to Play the Blues" pattern language is an entertaining demonstration of how to use patterns to describe a problem domain, while the patterns for interactive exhibits are a good set of HCI patterns, although focusing on the interaction of regular users with business computer software would be of more general practical use. I also really liked the pattern layout, relying on typography and styles rather than headings to standardise the structure, which definitely enhanced readability.
Unfortunately the book does not sustain the interest, and after a single chapter on patterns returns to a strange and lengthy self-review, to the extent of reprinting the review comments the author received on a draft version. This is ridiculous.
The book's malaise seems to be symptomatic of the whole discipline. The referenced web sites and books are not much better, with all but a few noble exceptions concentrating on academic discussions about patterns, rather than building a real pattern collection.
I am convinced that patterns can be really useful in the area of human-computer interaction and user interface design, just as they have been in many other areas of IT. I also think the arguments about style and format will be won by the author of the first good book that concentrates on building a comprehensive and readable set of useful real-world HCI patterns. This isn't it.A Pattern Approach to Interaction Design OverviewA much-needed guide on how to apply patterns in user interface designWhile the subject of design patterns for software development has been covered extensively, little has been written about the power of the pattern format in interface design. A Pattern Approach to Interactive Design remedies this situation, providing for the first time an introduction to the concepts and application of patterns in user interface design. The author shows interface designers how to structure and capture user interface design knowledge from their projects and learn to understand each other's design principles and solutions. Key features of this book include a comprehensive pattern language for the interface design of interactive exhibits as well as a thorough introduction to original pattern work and its application in software development. The book also offers invaluable practical guidance for interface designers, project managers, and researchers working in HCI, as well as for designers of interactive systems.

Want to learn more information about A Pattern Approach to Interaction Design?

>> Click Here to See All Customer Reviews & Ratings Now

Read More...