Dojo: The Definitive Guide Review

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Dojo: The Definitive Guide ReviewI'm up against a deadline for a web application. The going is slow when you
have to hand-carve the HTML, JavaScript, CSS and PHP. Dojo saves you at least
two-thirds of the work, so I'm very grateful for it. But it takes some getting
used to, and the on-line documentation is, well, succinct.
Russell's book came along just in time. It's a lifesaver.
The Introduction alone is worth the price. I found out about
some invaluable Web development debugging tools that I'd never seen before.
Russell provides a clear, concise explanation of some very important JavaScript
notions: Closures, Context, and Anonymous Functions. And all of this before
we even get to the toolkit!
The book makes the Dojo easy to use and easy to understand. There's a wealth
of coding examples, as well as complete lists of objects, methods, and so forth.
Dojo: The Definitive Guide Overview
Of all the Ajax-specific frameworks that have popped up in recent years, one clearly stands out as the industrial strength solution. Dojo is not just another JavaScript toolkit -- it's the JavaScript toolkit -- and Dojo: The Definitive Guide demonstrates how to tame Dojo's extensive library of utilities so that you can build rich and responsive web applications like never before. Dojo founder Alex Russell gives a foreword that explains the "why" of Dojo and of this book. Dojo provides an end-to-end solution for development in the browser, including everything from the core JavaScript library and turnkey widgets to build tools and a testing framework. Its vibrant open source community keeps adding to Dojo's arsenal, and this book provides an ideal companion to Dojo's official documentation.Dojo: the Definitive Guide gives you the most thorough overview of this toolkit available, showing you everything from how to create complex layouts and form controls closely resembling those found in the most advanced desktop applications with stock widgets, to advanced JavaScript idioms to AJAX and advanced communication transports. With this definitive reference you get:

Get a concise introduction to Dojo that's good for all 1.x versions
Well-explained examples, with scores of tested code samples, that let you see Dojo in action
A comprehensive reference to Dojo's standard JavaScript library (including fundamental utilities in Base, Dojo's tiny but powerful kernel) that you'll wonder how you ever lived without
An extensive look at additional Core features, such as animations, drag-and-drop, back-button handling, animations like wipe and slide, and more
Exhaustive coverage of out-of-the-box Dijits (Dojo widgets) as well as definitive coverage on how to create your own, either from scratch or building on existing ones
An itemized inventory of DojoX subprojects, the build tools, and the DOH, Dojo's unit-testing framework that you can use with Dojo -- or anywhere else

If you're a DHTML-toting web developer, you need to read this book -- whether you're a one-person operation or part of an organization employing scores of developers. Dojo packs the standard JavaScript library you've always wanted, and Dojo: The Definitive Guide helps you transform your ideas into working applications quickly by leveraging design concepts you already know.


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WordPress and Flash 10x Cookbook Review

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WordPress and Flash 10x Cookbook ReviewI am a designer and write some Actionscript but would not consider myself a programmer. Most of my work is in content publishing, and I was very pleased with the non-technical descriptions of very complex technical processes. The section on the new keyframing in Flash 10 cleared up the topic for me, and I have been able to apply some of the settings I read about. If you are a content publisher who uses WordPress and you really like the look of flash content, I would definitely reccomend this book.WordPress and Flash 10x Cookbook OverviewThis book consists of a series of easy-to-follow recipes. Each recipe stands on its own, so you can open the book to any recipe and complete it without going through the previous recipes. You can work through the book from start to end or just choose the recipes most applicable to your needs and situation. The book presents recipes of varying difficulty levels so that there is something for everyone from a beginner to an advanced WordPress user. Detailed screenshots, code examples, and links to additional resources supplement the concise instructions.If you are a Wordpress user interested in creating multimedia-rich websites and blogs using Flash then this book is perfect for you. This book caters for site administrators and web developers, who have experience using Flash aand Wordpress.

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Web Standards Solutions: The Markup and Style Handbook Review

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Web Standards Solutions: The Markup and Style Handbook ReviewI've mentioned in the past that books on web standards and markup tend to irritate me due to their "I'm an expert and my opinion is always right" attitude. But never one to give up, I had the chance to review Web Standards Solutions - The Markup and Style Handbook by Dan Cederhold (Apress). Much like the book Designing With Web Standards by Jeffrey Zeldman, this is a refreshing change and extremely practical. I really like it!

The chapter breakdown: Lists; Headings; Tables Are Evil?; Quotations; Forms; , , and Other Phrase Elements; Anchors; More Lists; Minimizing Markup; Applying CSS; Print Styles; CSS Layouts; Styling Text; Image Replacement; Styling ; Next Steps; Index

The chapters follow a common format... A topic is introduced, and three or four different methods are shown on how to accomplish the task (like lists). Each method is explored for pros and cons, with the goal of finding a solution that puts emphasis on semantic meaning and clean markup. This is followed by an "extra credit" section that pushes past the basic topic and starts to show some more unique ways to use CSS for appealing page images.

For one, the tone is conversational in nature. You're not being lectured to or scolded for not adhering to perfect and exact standards (or opinions). The book is also not a reference manual as such. It's a practical guide on how to use CSS to get the job done and give yourself a solid design that will work for multiple types of browsers. Throw in a little humor along the way, and this book becomes one which you find yourself picking up repeatedly.

The sign of a good book for me is one where I'm using the book either before or during my review. Based on a project I'm currently coding, I've already started to memorize certain page numbers I keep going back to. This book will definitely secure a spot on the bookshelf at work, and will be closely guarded to make sure it doesn't disappear.Web Standards Solutions: The Markup and Style Handbook OverviewThis is a refresh of Web Standards Solutions, which has sold over 15,000 copies to date. The original book was published in 2004, and sales are slowing as it's becoming a little long in the tooth. This new edition updates the salient information while adding new content to bring it back into the public eye.

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Handcrafted CSS: More Bulletproof Web Design, Video Edition (includes Handcrafted CSS book and Handcrafted CSS: Bulletproof Essentials DVD) Review

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Handcrafted CSS: More Bulletproof Web Design, Video Edition (includes Handcrafted CSS book and Handcrafted CSS: Bulletproof Essentials DVD) ReviewAn excellent addition to Cederholm's previous titles, "Handcrafted CSS" offers more solutions for forward-thinking web craft. If you are new to Web Design or CSS this is not the place to start. It is intended for experienced presentation coders who have a solid foundation in web standards. This title is bundled with a companion DVD. Both the book and DVD are also sold separately.
About the DVD:
The video is about an hour long and provides a pleasant overview of the material covered in the book. Topics include workflow practices, graceful browser degradation (Bulletproofing) and notably; progressive enhancement using CSS3 properties. If you've attended one of the author's speaking engagements within the last few years the material may be familiar. Mr. Cederholm presents the concepts in a thoughtful and entertaining manner. There is not a lot of information contained in this DVD but the ideas are clear and the advice is sound. If you are looking for deep instruction I would not recommend the DVD as a stand alone purchase. It's a nice companion to the book.
The book explores the above topics in greater detail. Offering thoughtful techniques and methods for achieving common and interesting designs. Mr. Cerholm encourages coders - by example - to optimize presentation for best and worst case scenarios. He also emphasizes that designs don't have to look the same in every browser. Not only is this OK, but accepting this notion will open up creative possibilities for elegant, forward-thinking solutions. It's worth noting that the chapter contributed by Ethan Marcotte about fluid grids is thought-provoking and useful as well. Other topics include Font Embedding and an introduction to JQuery.
This is not an encyclopedic resource of CSS solutions. More a collection of ideas intended to encourage thoughtful problem solving for a fluid design medium. Like "Bulletproof" this is a quick read. The material is presented in a logical and simple manner. If you seek to inspire your CSS technique to a higher level of "Craftsmanship" you will enjoy this book. Recommended for serious Web Presentation Designers.Handcrafted CSS: More Bulletproof Web Design, Video Edition (includes Handcrafted CSS book and Handcrafted CSS: Bulletproof Essentials DVD) OverviewThere's a real connection between craftsmanship and Web design. That's the theme running through Handcrafted CSS: More Bulletproof Web Design, by bestselling author Dan Cederholm, with a chapter contributed by renowned Web designer and developer Ethan Marcotte. This book explores CSS3 that works in today's browsers, and you'll be convinced that now's the time to start experimenting with it. Whether you're a Web designer, project manager, or a graphic designer wanting to learn more about the fluidity that's required when designing for the Web, you'll discover the tools to create the most flexible, reliable, and bulletproof Web designs. And you'll finally be able to persuade your clients to adopt innovative and effective techniques that make everyone's life easier while improving the end user's experience. This book's seven chapters deconstruct various aspects of a case-study Web site for the Tugboat Coffee Company, focusing on aspects that make it bulletproof and demonstrate progressive enrichment techniques over more traditional labor-intensive methods. Subjects covered in this book include:
building for unanticipated future use

progressively enriching designs using CSS3 properties

using RGBA color for transparency with an alpha channel

modular float management

crafting flexible frameworks

fluid layouts using grid-based design principles

craftsmanship details on typography, jQuery, and shifting backgrounds
The video included with this special edition features author Dan Cederholm as he illustrates 10 essential Web design guidelines. Enhancing the content in this book, the Handcrafted CSS: Bulletproof Essentials DVD will arm you with a checklist to make your next project a flexible, adaptable, and wellcrafted design.

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Pro Drupal Development Review

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Pro Drupal Development ReviewIf you are looking for a "this is how up install and run Drupal, these are the modules that are available" look elsewhere (the Drupal site, for instance) - this book is about writing Drupal modules how Drupal works internally.
But, if you are an aspiring Drupal module writer or just want to better understand how Drupal works internally or want to be able to tinker with existing modules you CANNOT go wrong with this book. It is very detailed, is incredibly well laid out and written. The examples are spot on. Very easy to understand and teaches you an incredible amount. I'm reading it cover to cover. I am about half way through and I couldn't be happier. It has answered pretty much every question I had about developing Drupal modules and extending existing functionality. I found some of the tutorials on the Drupal web site lacking in detail, this book IS the detail I was looking for. It covers Drupal 5.0.Pro Drupal Development Overview
Drupal is one of the most popular content management systems in use today. With it, you can create a variety of community-driven sites, including blogs, forums, wiki-style sites, and much more. Pro Drupal Development was written to arm you with knowledge to customize your Drupal installation however you see fit. The book assumes that you already possess the knowledge to install and bring a standard installation online. Then authors John VanDyk and Matt Westgate delve into Drupal internals, showing you how to truly take advantage of its powerful architecture.

Youll learn how to create your own modules, develop your own themes, and produce your own filters. You'll learn the inner workings of each key part of Drupal, including user management, sessions, the node system, caching, and the various APIs available to you. Of course, your Drupal-powered site isnt effective until you can efficiently serve pages to your visitors. As such, the authors have included the information you need to optimize your Drupal installation to perform well under high-load situations. Also featured is information on Drupal security and best practices, as well as integration of Ajax and the internationalization of your Drupal web site. Simply put, if you are working with Drupal at all, then you need this book.

This book is written by Drupal core developers.
Drupal architecture and behavior are mapped out visually.
Common pitfalls are identified and addressed.
Chapters provide regular discussion and reference to why things work they way they do, not just how.
Features a foreword by Dries Buytaert, Drupal founder.


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CSS Pocket Reference: Visual Presentation for the Web (Pocket Reference (O'Reilly)) Review

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CSS Pocket Reference: Visual Presentation for the Web (Pocket Reference (O'Reilly)) ReviewI've been using this reference for about a year now, and my conclusion is that it's better than nothing, but leaves a lot to be desired. I can usually find what I'm looking for, but often find myself giving up and just searching Google.
One big problem (as with most books today) is a weak index. It seems the index is computer generated by simply culling the text, and the end-result is that unless you already know what you're looking for, then you can't find it. Example: let's say you can't remember the CSS instruction for underlining text. So you look in the index for "underline" and there's nothing remotely close to it. Next, you might look under "font," particularly if you remember that other font formatting instructions start with "font-". Likewise, nothing there.
Another example of a problem I've seen is just some very poorly written text. After reading it 5-6 times, I still struggle to figure out what's being said. That's just bad writing. The author has gotten lost in the complexity of the subject, and hasn't put the effort into explaining it for the reader in a clear and concise manner.CSS Pocket Reference: Visual Presentation for the Web (Pocket Reference (O'Reilly)) Overview
They say that good things come in small packages, and it's certainly true for this edition of CSS Pocket Reference. Completely revised and updated to reflect the latest Cascading Style Sheet specifications in CSS 2.1, this indispensable little book covers the most essential information that web designers and developers need to implement CSS effectively across all browsers. Inside, you'll find:

A short introduction to the key concepts of CSS
A complete alphabetical reference to all CSS 2.1 selectors and properties
A chart displaying detailed information about CSS support for every style element and its cross-browser compatibility
This reference neatly condenses the details of its top-selling companion volume, Cascading Style Sheets: The Definitive Guide into one easy-to-use cheat-sheet that delivers all the CSS details you need to complete the task at hand. Whenever you're stuck and need an answer quickly -- or if you just want to be sure you're applying CSS correctly -- this edition of the CSS Pocket Reference is the book you'll want by your keyboard or, conveniently, in your back pocket.

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CSS: The Definitive Guide Review

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CSS: The Definitive Guide Review§
When Eric wrote the first edition of this book way back at the turn of the millenium, he proposed to "explain CSS in all its warts and glory." For CSS enthusiasts at the time, that was an advance -- every other author and Web lecturer fixated on the warts!
Six years have changed a lot. CSS, as a tool of modern Web professionals, has moved way beyond its former role as window-dressing for HTML. HTML (and XML) work in partnership with CSS to produce the most logical and yet most flexible page structure that defines current Web document standards.
The book has just about all you need as both a reference and basic how-to. Eric concentrates on the CSS properties and techniques that have real support among browsers. This increases the practical value of the book. Discussion of CSS selectors has been expanded to reflect the growing support for more powerful (and complex!) selector syntax. Most pages have multiple illustrations to clarify text. The book has updated information related to Firefox and IE7.
One disappointment was the sparse coverage of print media styles. Admittedly, browser support of print styling is itself disappointing but a lot of printing is done from the browser and there are still lots of things we can do, as Eric shows in some of his other writings.
Eric's ongoing experience with key real-life Web issues and design knowledge binds the material together and makes this a superior book.
§CSS: The Definitive Guide OverviewCSS: The Definitive Guide, 3rd Edition, provides you with a comprehensive guide to CSS implementation, along with a thorough review of all aspects of CSS 2.1. Updated to cover Internet Explorer 7, Microsoft's vastly improved browser, this new edition includes content on positioning, lists and generated content, table layout, user interface, paged media, and more.
Simply put, Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) is a way to separate a document's structure from its presentation. The benefits of this can be quite profound: CSS allows a much richer document appearance than HTML and also saves time--you can create or change the appearance of an entire document in just one place; and its compact file size makes web pages load quickly.

Author Eric Meyer tackles the subject with passion, exploring in detail each individual CSS property and how it interacts with other properties. You'll not only learn how to avoid common mistakes in interpretation, you also will benefit from the depth and breadth of his experience and his clear and honest style. This is the complete sourcebook on CSS.

The 3rd edition contains:

Updates to reflect changes in the latest draft version of CSS 2.1
Browser notes updated to reflect changes between IE6 and IE7
Advanced selectors supported in IE7 and other major browsers included
A new round of technical edits by a fresh set of editors
Clarifications and corrected errata, including updated URLs of referenced online resources


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Build Your Own Wicked Wordpress Themes Review

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Build Your Own Wicked Wordpress Themes ReviewI received the book Friday afternoon (8/20/2010) and finished reading it Sunday (8/22/2010), and my head is still spinning ... but in a good way. I am about three weeks new to WordPress, and I have to say that it's overwhelming trying to learn about everything that makes it what it is. I had been reading through the codex ([...]), which is a tremendous resource by the WordPress folks, but it has been difficult for me to tie it all together. This book is a great primer to theme building with WordPress and will help you to understand the main components that make up the WordPress software, and it does so in a pleasant and organized way. I dabble in web design, but my profession is that of web development and programming, and I'm pleased to say that this book, while aimed at web designers, will encourage the curiosity of developers alike.
I had some reservations about the book having four authors, as the flow of a tech book doesn't always work when there are too many "experts" coming to the table. I'm pleased to say that the book flows quite well, and the language and format with which the authors use to explain theme building is mostly consistent and cohesive. The only problem I had was in chapter 7: Theme Options, as it felt like the author of this chapter was jumping around a bit and not quite as organized and detailed with some of the explanations, and perhaps rushing a bit. Otherwise, I now feel much more confident in WordPress and theme building from not only a 10,000 foot view, but a 1,000 foot view as well. As with anything tech, you have to "pop the hood", and get your hands dirty, and I now feel like I can thanks to this book.
The book is broken into 8 chapters ... interestingly, each chapter fundamentally builds upon the last, but you could easily make a quick pass through the book to get familiarized with WordPress and themes, and then use it as a high-level reference thereafter (and using the codex will probably make much more sense after moving through this book). The chapters are:
1. Introducing WordPress
2. Planning Your Theme
3. Theme Design 101
4. Theme Frameworks
5. Advanced Theme Construction
6. Widgets
7. Theme Options
8. Selling Your Theme
I bought this book with two ideas in mind: learn about the "guts" of WordPress from a high level, and understand what goes into a WordPress theme to eventually make and sell them, and the book moves you forward in the right direction. This book, IMO, does a very good job of covering a great deal of ground in a short amount of time. I have only started to work on converting my business website to WordPress, but this book, and the information in it, has given me the confidence to play and experiment, and really go after the inner workings of the Thematic framework.
Thanks to SitePoint for a great book on the topic!Build Your Own Wicked Wordpress Themes Overview
Wicked WordPress Themes is a step-by-step guide to creating beautiful themes for the world's most popular CMS, WordPress. By following the book's advice, readers can produce designs that are aesthetically stunning, consistent, and for-purpose -whether it's for their own use, or to drive a high price on the theme marketplace. All facets of theme design are covered: from design, coding, and deployment, to ensuring readers' designs are ready-to-go as soon as they're installed. Wicked WordPress Themes teaches readers how to leverage theme design frameworks to dramatically shorten development time, enabling them to enter the theme market faster.


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The Essential Guide to Dreamweaver CS4 with CSS, Ajax, and PHP (Essentials) Review

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The Essential Guide to Dreamweaver CS4 with CSS, Ajax, and PHP (Essentials) ReviewI purchased three books to help me learn Dreamweaver:
Dreamsweaver CS4 for Dummies
Dreamweaver CS4: The Missing Manual
The Essential Guide to Dreamweaver CS4 with CSS, Ajax and PHP (this book)
I started with Dreamweaver CS4 for Dummies, which I found to be a pretty good book. I was able to read it cover to cover (though it's not necessary to do so to get started). In addition to a good basic overview, it had a couple of very helpful tips in a chapter called "10 Resources You Might Need."
As my design became more detailed, I felt the need for a book that went into more depth and bought the other two books listed above. I like both books, but find I rely on The Missing Manual the most. Its writing is clear and easy to follow. The numerous tutorials give step-by-step instructions for a beginner on how to accomplish various tasks, with more advanced details included in the text.
I like The Essential Guide as well, but since I'm not using PHP, I find that there are areas where the advice they give simply doesn't work for me. For example, when I wanted to learn more about using templates, The Essential Guide gave only a very basic explanation, then went into far more detail about using PHP "includes" instead. While I agree that the PHP "includes" are probably the better choice, it's not one that is available to me since I don't have a PHP testing server (and don't want to go through the complexity of setting one up on my home computer). If you are using PHP, then this is definitely the book to get.
All in all, if I had to recommend one book to get started, it would be For Dummies, particularly if your needs are very simple and/or you're completely new to web site design. For those who want to move beyond the basics, I like The Missing Manual the best. This book could also be used by beginners as long as you're not put off by its length -- with over 1,000 pages, it's not one you'll be able to read cover to cover. I think The Essential Guide is best suited for those who want to create very complex designs, especially those that use PHP. It, too, is very clearly written, but more intimidating to a beginner. If you're a computer professional or experienced web site designer who really wants to exploit the power of Dreamweaver, this is the book to get.The Essential Guide to Dreamweaver CS4 with CSS, Ajax, and PHP (Essentials) OverviewThe Essential Guide to Dreamweaver is a new and updated edition of David Powers' previous book (the number 2 bestselling Dreamweaver book on Amazon), and covers all of the new features in the same style that was so successful in the previous edition. It features real world examples throughout, presented in an accessible, friendly tutorial style.

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JavaScript and Ajax for the Web: Visual QuickStart Guide (7th Edition) Review

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JavaScript and Ajax for the Web: Visual QuickStart Guide (7th Edition) ReviewThe audience for this book is beginning/novice web developers with a knowledge of HTML but not of JavaScript. The book begins with an introduction to basic JavaScript language features and then proceeds to work through a number of examples according to category (images, frames, browser windows, forms, regular expressions and strings, user events, and cookies). After, there are two chapters on AJAX fundamentals.
The book does not claim to be an in-depth resource. The general purpose of the QuickStart series of books is to provide an overview of the main concepts and practices in use by web developers today. It is meant to be a STARTING POINT to introduce novices to technologies, not as an in-depth reference. The authors of this and other QuickStart books point this out continually, yet still get bad reviews from people who have not taken the time to read about the purposes of various series from technical publishers. This is unfortunate for the public as well as unfair to the authors.
A previous reviewer mentioned what he took to be atrocious coverage of Ajax. The book contains two chapters exclusively covering Ajax. The first covers the fundamental techniques used to take advantage of this combination of technologies. The second chapter explores some of the popular Ajax toolkits currently available. This is consistent with the purpose of the book. Some readers may be interested in heading down the development path, yet others may be more interested in design and in using pre-existing tools. This book caters to both and has no intention of deceiving either reader.
The following quote is a good example of this. It is an excerpt from the title page of Chapter 16, which follows the introductory chapter (basic XMLHttpRequest usage, etc.) and precedes the Ajax toolkit chapter:
"[Writing] Ajax applications can be difficult. They often require a great deal of knowledge of working with the DOM, CSS, JavaScript, and server resources. Since this is a book for beginning scripters, we've shown you how to do some easy things with Ajax, so you can see that learning Ajax techniques is well within your reach. But many books have been written that are completely devoted to showing intermediate-to-advanced scripters how to create Ajax applications, and our Ajax chapters are no substitute for that kind of in-depth exploration."
As for the dual-column formatting that some reviewers disliked, it is consistent with the formatting of the entire QuickStart series, as well as the QuickPro series of the same publisher. The format is nice for tackling specific techniques in a concise amount of space. It is not as abstractly engaging as conventional technical books, but it is not meant to be. The format is excellent for explaining techniques (especial design techniques) as well as for conveying a sense of quick forward momentum.
I've only recently started reading books from Peachpit Press. I like these books because they get me up to speed quickly, and act as a comprehensive starting point, allowing me to understand "where I need to go from here."
This book is excellent as a broad introduction with lots of real-world examples. If you're a novice web developer with a decent grasp of HTML wishing for a comprehensive introduction to JavaScript and practical JavaScript techniques, this is the book for you.
However, if you're well-grounded and are looking for more in-depth coverage of JavaScript and Ajax techniques, "Professional JavaScript for Web Developers" (Nicholas Zakas / Wrox Press) and "Professional Ajax" (Zakas, et. al. / Wrox Press) are excellent in-depth resources geared toward real-world professional development, and both are among the best peer-reviewed titles in existence on these subjects.JavaScript and Ajax for the Web: Visual QuickStart Guide (7th Edition) OverviewThis task-based, visual reference guide has been fully revised. It uses step-by-step instructions and plenty of screenshots to give beginning and intermediate Web designers what they need to know to learn JavaScript. Readers can start from the beginning to get a tour of the programming language, or look up specific tasks to learn just what they need to know. In this updated seventh edition, readers will find new information on Ajax design and modern coding techniques.

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Simply JavaScript Review

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Simply JavaScript ReviewSimply Javascript by Kevin Yank and Cameron Adams lives up to the subtitle of Everything you need to learn Javascript from scratch. Javascript is a tricky subject to tackle. The Internet is full of Javascript snippets and code samples everywhere you look. Often times these code samples are less than satisfactory when you are addressing accessibility within your website. Many of the code samples contain outdated and proprietary code samples, making it a task to work out kinks and debug. The good news with this book is that they stick to a standard. All code used in this book uses object literal notation. Sticking to a coding style and format helps make this book an incredible read. Throughout this book you will learn the underpinnings of Javascript and how you can achieve different tasks.
Learning Javascript from scratch can be a daunting task. After all, there are several libraries and free scripts that you can essentially download and plugin to your website. But what happens when things go wrong? What happens when you need to modify the script to fit your needs? Having a solid foundation and understanding of Javascript will help you as you begin to develop for your own needs. This book gently walks you through the steps you need to take to achieve that solid foundation.Chapter 1 starts off with a brief primer of unobtrusive Javascript and it's role in the three layers of the web. HTML is your content. CSS is your presentation. Javascript is your behavior. These three aspects need to be separate from one another and also co-exist at the same time. Gone are the days of inline event handlers and functions. Using the power of the DOM you can rest assured your HTML will be pure and your applications will work flawlessly without Javascript enabled.
Chapter 2 spends some time setting up the foundation for beginners. This chapter walks you through statements, comments, variables and different variable types, conditions and loops, functions, and objects. Whew, that was a mouthful. This is where the standard of coding is introduced that will be used throughout the rest of the book. Things such as code indenting and formatting are touched on as well. This allows you to write clean code that is readable by you and other developers who may be working with your code. As stated earlier, all code uses object literal notation, and therefore this is explained in this chapter. A few examples are given and we are off to building some handy tools.

Chapter 3 gives you the necessary road map. This chapter is devoted to traversing the Document Object Model. A few helper classes are shown here that will allow us to retrieve elements by class name, add class names to an element, remove class names from an element, and check for the existence of class names within in an element. These will be used extensively throughout the book and are placed in their Core object. In addition to being able to traverse by class names, there is also the list of standard elements such as getElementById and getElementsByTagName. With these powerful tools at our finger tips we can now begin altering our pages as deemed necessary. The example given here is one of striping table rows. For those who don't do this on the server side, this simple task allows you to stripe your rows via the DOM.
Sure it's cool to add stripes to a table, but how can we do more? Chapter 4 is all about Events and the power they add to interacting with the DOM. The brief history lesson in this chapter helps us understand the different interpretations of different browsers and how we can use object detection to abstract these tasks into the Core object. Event Listeners and Event Handlers are both discussed in great detail. We move on to two working examples: Rich tooltips and Accordion. Rich tooltips are used to extract information from our title attribute and then apply them to a more stylish hover tooltip effect. Accordion allows us to save space on our pages by gradually showing the content as it is requested by either a click or keyboard event.
Chapter 5 gets us moving even more. This chapter is devoted to Animation and is probably one of the more complex chapters of the book. We are introduced to two methods, setTimeout and setInterval. Working mainly with setTimeout we are able to achieve our animation effects. This chapter looks at the principles of animation and an example of path-based motion with a soccer ball. We then use our new-found knowledge to extend our tooltip to show after a specified time, and our accordion is given a nice slide effect. We simply extend the code from our previous chapter to make these things happen. This is a good example of the benefits of working with objects and decoupling inside of your Javascript.
Chapter 6 gives use a few more tools to work with Forms. Forms are never easy to manipulate. Whether it be the style or the behavior. The beginning of the chapter starts with smaller scripts and examples of manipulating forms. This is done by specifying dependent fields and only showing them when necessary, and creating cascading menus from a select and it's optgroup. We then move on to some more advanced features for validation and creating a custom slider. These have been presented before in other areas, so nothing is really new in this area. However, this is all a part of understanding the bigger picture and the possibilities. It is about getting the creative juices flowing.
Chapter 7 discusses the inevitable testing for errors and debugging your application. We walk through the different types of erros: syntax, runtime, and logic. With each of these code samples are given with errors. We then use the tools of the browsers to make sense of their often cryptic error messages. In order to debug Javascript there is an invaluable tool in Firebug, a plugin for the popular Firefox web browser.
More interaction is still left as chapter 8 moves us to AJAX. Some very strong disclaimers are made as to when and where to use the right tool for the right job. Caution is also given in regards to assistive devices such as screen readers. With the warnings out of the way, we move to a some practical examples. The first is a small weather widget and the second is an extension to form validation.
The book finishes off by looking too the future of Javascript. Discussions of Rich Internet Applications and their place inside of the web help to stimulate your mind as you think about the possibilities. Not only about building applications on the web, but also using Javascript for such things as Dashboard Widgets and even browser development. In the hands of responsible developers, the future looks exciting for Javascript.
The Appendix is a very important part to this book, and I like its placement. The appendix goes through the Core methods used throughout the entire book. But why wait until the end of the book? Had this chapter shown up earlier it would have caused more confusion than necessary, and more explanation that necessary. As a reader you have the option to read this appendix first, but I felt it was well placed and covered thoroughly at the end of the book. By this point in the book you will have gained enough knowledge to dive in, whereas the beginning might have left you asking all the wrong questions.
If you have been developing Javascript for any amount of time, then you are most likely aware of the array of libraries available to us. These include Prototype, Scriptaculous, jQuery, Dojo, MooTools, and YUI to name a few. Each chapter of this book ends with a discussion of the libraries and how they can be used to help achieve the different tasks. Some libraries can achieve some tasks, while others still take a little work. The authors give a fair coverage to the libraries but do not dwell on them as the end-all-be-all of Javascript. If anything, the author's stress that you understand your Javascript at the core and know why you are doing what you are doing. This book sticks to unobtrusive principles and doesn't take shortcuts. The authors strive to make sure the code is of high quality and compatible cross-browser, but they never take the easy way out. Things such as innerHTML are put away in favor of building the DOM on the fly. This adds to the overall excellent quality of this book. The excellent code coupled with beautiful illustrations make this book easy to take small chunks at a time.Simply JavaScript Overview
Everything you need to learn JavaScript from Scratch!

Packed with numerous examples, Simply JavaScript is a step-by-step introduction to programming in JavaScript the right way. Learn how easy it is to use JavaScript to solve real-world problems, build smarter forms, track user events (such as mouse clicks and key strokes), and design eye-catching animations. Then move into more powerful techniques using the DOM and Ajax.
Learn JavaScript's built-in functions, methods, and properties. Easily integrate JavaScript in your web site. Use JavaScript to validate form entries and interact with your users. Understand how to respond to user events. Create animations that bring your web site to life. Start programming using the DOM and Ajax.
Unlike other JavaScript books, modern best practices such as progressive enhancement, accessibility and unobtrusive scripting are used from the very beginning. All the code in the book is also cross-browser compatible and downloadable for free, so you can get started instantly!


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Styling Web Pages with CSS: Visual QuickProject Guide Review

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Styling Web Pages with CSS: Visual QuickProject Guide ReviewUPDATE: I originally gave this book 3 stars, but I am downgrading my review to a luke warm 3 stars. The reason is that in Chapter 8, there are several errors and omissions that basically doesn't let the user actually create the page that is shown. For instance, they leave out an integral selector "navbar ul" from the book. Without it, the page navbar looks like it is broken. Going to the source files (see below) showed me what I was missing, but for all the people that aren't aware that the source files exist, they might be lost. It appears that the book wasn't carefully proof read prior to publication. Actually it doesn't appear that the authors didn't have someone go thru the book as if they were learning CSS for the first time. If they did, this would have stood out as something that needed some fixing.
Another nit pick, in the same chapter, the reader is presented with the "old CSS" #navbar, but it actually should have been #sidebar.
>>>>>>>>>>>
I share many of the same thoughts as the other reviewers. I found it very frustrating that the source wasn't included as a download. If you go to the Peach Pit site, you can download the images, but not source files, wtf?
So I wound up googling Alpaca Repo and there is actually a site devoted to the fictional site in the book. Delving deeper, I see that the site is registered to none other than Dori Smith, the author.
For all who buy the book, you can visit the site at [...]. Replace DOT with an actual "."
UPDATE : Looks like Amazon stripped the URL from my review. If you have the book, go to page 15 and the URL is found in the screenshot of the web browser.
You would think the authors and or the publisher would read these comments and give an update.
Hope this helps.
Cheers,
Carlos F.
Holly Springs, NCStyling Web Pages with CSS: Visual QuickProject Guide OverviewSometimes it's hard to get started with a new technology. That's where this book excels. It's not going to show Web designers everything there is to know about CSS but rather will provide a solid introduction from which to build their CSS knowledge. The beginning of the book starts with the basics -- rules, selectors, classes, IDs, the cascade, internal and external style sheets, Divs, boxes, floats, padding, margins -- everything is covered. Next comes styling elements, working with images, menus and navigation, and moving styles from internal to external style sheets. Rounding out this project-based guide is working with browsers, both old and new, and debugging CSS. Succinct and to the point, it's the perfect book for designers without a lot of time who need to understand and start using CSS.

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WordPress 2.8 Themes Cookbook Review

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WordPress 2.8 Themes Cookbook ReviewThis book goes into details about manipulating templates and how to modify/manipulate the various components that can appear on pages but it does not cover very much about theme development. It is not a book for people who do not have a good grasp of PHP and terms used (such as "wordpress performs a query fetching pages based on parameters passed to the function").
For example, Chapter 2: Creating navigation talks about how to list all the pages, categories, tags in a blog and creating menus but there is nothing about styling these items once they are added to a page, or how to make those items appear on only certain pages within a site. I was hoping to find information about modifying or creating pages within a theme and discussion about how to adjust the layout of the site.
Cookbook is a good descriptor for the book. Everything is in the format: If you want this ... do this.
If I did not already have a good idea where to find files in the wordpress folders I would have been struggling to figure out where and how to manipulate the files the authors talk about. This book may end up being a reference that I refer to occasionally for some snippet of code, but it is not something I will refer to when building a new theme for a client.
WordPress 2.8 Themes Cookbook OverviewEach recipe comprises step-by-step instructions followed by the analysis of what was done in each task and other useful information. The book is designed so that you can read it chapter by chapter, or you can look at the list of recipes and refer to them in no particular order. There are plenty of useful screenshots to make learning easier for you. This book is for WordPress developers who want to create powerful themes for their blogs and web sites to impress and influence visitors. This book expects working knowledge of the WordPress platform. Knowledge of HTML and CSS would also be useful.

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Adobe Dreamweaver CS5 with PHP: Training from the Source Review

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Adobe Dreamweaver CS5 with PHP: Training from the Source ReviewI just had my first pass at this book and must say Thank you to David Powers for a job well done! First of, he did not repeat verbatim his book on CS4 as some lazy authors would have, but instead teaches the new advantages of CS5 while giving you great lessons on zend frame work, cms and so on. The examples used are very practical and can be applied directly to your work unlike some books I have read where the examples are only of the authors imagination and you would be pressed to find a way to apply them. He puts to practice his experience with the forums he moderates and shares that experience with you. It would have taken me at least 2 years to get all the experience shared in this book. I can't believe I even offer solutions to questions in forums now, why? because I have read this book and the tips are great. Thanks for sharing your knowledge David. This book though is for intermediate users. Beginners should please buy his CS4 book first and then see this book as a continuation of that. Top it off with his CSS book and maybe his php solutions book if you want to be interested in php and then you can call yourself a web designer that knows his stuff. Intermediate users of Dreamweaver would find this book very valuable. I never knew the new features in CS5 until I used this book and boy was I glad I upgraded. Do you want to style wordpress CMS in dreamweaver, then get this book. Do you want to get interested in the Zend framework and jQuery framework, then this book is for you. Finally if you want great tips on how to use DW, then add this to his CS4 book. If this book was $200 it would still be a good buy, because just the server behaviors that you can create alone with the examples from the book is a great time saver.
If Mr Powers happen to read this review, my only request is that he should please come out with something in the line of questions and solutions in building web sites, so we can benefit from his experience with the questions and answers he always come across in the forums. Anyway, this would do for now.
Thank you
Kelly.Adobe Dreamweaver CS5 with PHP: Training from the Source OverviewThis Adobe-approved, project-based guide from one of the world's most popular web design authors, David Powers, will teach readers how to progress from designing static websites to building dynamic websites in Adobe Dreamweaver CS5. Using step-by-step instructions with projects that build on the knowledge acquired in each lesson, readers will learn about the new PHP features in Dreamweaver CS5, including the ability to work in Live View with WordPress, as well as extended support for PHP code hints, syntax checking, and dynamically related files. Readers will learn how to upload images and send email with attachments using the Zend Framework. In contrast to existing books on the Zend Framework, this book will show web designers and developers with little or no programming experience how to use selected modules to integrate dynamic features into existing sites. There is a strong emphasis on following security best practices. Readers will also learn progressive enhancement techniques for updating pages seamlessly with PHP and Ajax.

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Using Google App Engine Review

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Using Google App Engine ReviewI've been programming for 33 years, so in theory I shouldn't like a book that wastes pages explaining what HTTP and HTML are. Nor should I thrill to the first section in the Python chapter, which is called "What is Programming?"
How come I like this book so much then?
It is a self-contained 240-page book on programming. A smart motivated person with no experience could sit down and build a functional cloud app. If you had a friend who wanted to see what the life of a computer nerd was like, this is a great book. Is it as useful as the Google App Engine online docs? Not for an experienced programmer, but for the novice it is nice not to have to refer to a dozen interlocking books and Web sites in order to get "hello world" working.
The world needs more computer programming books like this.Using Google App Engine Overview
Build exciting, scalable web applications quickly and confidently using Google App Engine and this book, even if you have little or no experience in programming or web development. App Engine is perhaps the most appealing web technology to appear in the last year, providing an easy-to-use application framework with basic web tools. While Google's own tutorial assumes significant experience, Using Google App Engine will help anyone get started with this platform. By the end of this book, you'll know how to build complete, interactive applications and deploy them to the cloud using the same servers that power Google applications. With this book, you will:



Get an overview of the technologies necessary to use Google App Engine
Learn how to use Python, HTML, Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), HTTP, and DataStore, App Engine's database
Grasp the technical aspects necessary to create sophisticated, dynamic web applications
Understand what's required to deploy your applications

Using Google App Engine is also an excellent resource for experienced programmers who want to acquire working knowledge of web technologies. Building web applications used to be for experts only, but with Google App Engine-and this book-anyone can create a dynamic web presence.


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HTML & XHTML DeMYSTiFieD Review

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HTML & XHTML DeMYSTiFieD ReviewIf you've been writing HTML for years, using tags such as , and many others, you know your techniques need updating. This is THE BOOK. The title sounds like it's for beginners, but it's really for people who are comfortable with HTML, but are struggling with the migration to newer standards and using CSS to replace many outmoded tags. I've been writing HTML for 15 years and felt pretty comfortable, although I confess that most of what I learned was in the late 90s, techniques that managed to serve me the next decade. However, the slow emergence of HTML5 and CSS were becoming a challenge for me to learn as I knew the old ways were going away. I read HTML5 books and CSS books and combination books, yet the fundamentals that would let me start to move forward were lacking.
Then, hoping that a newer book might open windows on HTML and CSS, I bought this book - and I found myself devouring the pages on the first day. Techniques I never understood became clear; features of which I never knew became obvious. This book is a keeper. No one book can include everything and I won't pretend this one does. However, this book will launch your HTML/CSS skills quickly and increase your confidence in using new techniques.
Topics may appear elementary, but these topics introduce use of CSS with HTML from the beginning and that is the key to discovering how to do what you always thought you knew how to do. For example, there is a chapter on forms. Now, I know how to create an HTML form, but this chapter made it clear there were better ways. Earlier, I implied the book isn't for beginners - and it isn't, but a person who has written a few web pages with just HTML will still learn a lot.
I could go on and on, but I paused from reading the book to write this review, so I'm now heading back into the book as I rewrite some old web pages with better techniques. Enjoy!!HTML & XHTML DeMYSTiFieD Overview
Hard stuff made easy! Your practical, self-paced guide to HTML and XHTML
HTML and XHTML Demystified is a hands-on tutorial that gives you thorough guidance on required Web design techniques and technologies. The book also functions as a useful supplement for textbooks and classroom activities by focusing on the essentials and the most useful tags and properties, while avoiding unnecessary details.
Learn to create Web pages, add graphics and links, create tables and frames, integrate forms, and more. Each chapter features valid HTML that follows all of the rules set by the W3C and incorporates the latest standards for HTML5. Web designers need to write pages that are accessible to all users, so each chapter is coded to address the accessibility requirements from the Americans with Disabilities Act and to allow the use of non-English characters.
HTML and XHTML Demystified
Covers HTML, XHTML, HTML5, and CSS
Develops two stand-alone examples per chapter: one created by the author; the other for you to practice
Helps you recognize and resolve common HTML errors
Includes end-of-chapter quizzes and a final exam to reinforce learning

Step-by-step coverage: HTML and The Web; Your First Web Pages; Inserting Graphics; Creating Hyperlinks; Using Lists; Building Tables; Gathering Data with Forms; Page Layout; Scripting; DHTML; Effectively Using Multimedia; Using Frames; Creating a Web Site

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Professional DotNetNuke Module Programming (Wrox Programmer to Programmer) Review

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Professional DotNetNuke Module Programming (Wrox Programmer to Programmer) ReviewI'd say the other reviewers are harsh bordering on unfair. I found the book very useful in picking up the fundamentals of DNN module development. It provided a good number of topics on which to search for more information; topics I would not have known existed (with any ease) without first reading this book.
I am no newbie to .NET development (10 years in the trade) but like many others out there, new to DNN. I needed something more than the documentation provided by DNN, which is patchy at best and useless at worst, and this book provided it.
I believe DNN is growing as an application and the literature support it will no doubt improve. Criticisms I would make of this book are as follows. At around 300 pages, there is scope to add more detail ... come on Mitchell, it's clear you know more, put it down on paper. Second, there a few careless errata (my favorite are VB files given a .cs extension) but on the other hand, this is by no means uncommon in Wrox books; I've read a few, I know.
So if you're interested in knowing more than the sdk documentation can tell you (and not just interested in showing off what you know already, other reviewers!) then this is pretty much your only option in book form. Buy it, search the forums and blogs, and you will be doing ok.
Professional DotNetNuke Module Programming (Wrox Programmer to Programmer) OverviewThis book was written to provide insight into the development techniques needed (and the options available) to work within the DotNetNuke framework. Emphasis is placed on the available methods to extend the framework, as well as the situations and rules governing when each respective extension model should be used. Along with this emphasis on selecting the right extension method, the book stresses the importance of leveraging the framework in as many areas as possible, and ultimately using the framework to the advantage of the developer, rather than merely working with it.
One current weakness of the DotNetNuke framework is developer documentation. The framework provides developers with numerous amazing methods to extend the framework and build truly robust applications, but as of this writing, minimal API documentation exists, and overall development topics are scattered all over the Internet. Many community members have helped to supplement this lack of developer content by writing blog articles and technical tutorials to help teach the individual concepts, but because there is no central repository, it can be tedious and difficult to find just what you need.
This book helps truly identify and document some excellent new features that are supported starting with DotNetNuke 5.0. The inclusion of jQuery exposes developers to a great JavaScript library that will enable interactive and animated interfaces to be created easily. The new Module Packaging system (discussed in detail in Appendix D) provides module developers and skin designers with many much-needed options when it comes to deploying applications. This book was written to expose this information, and to function as a key resource for the development community.
This book assumes that the reader has a working knowledge of standard ASP.NET development techniques and terminologies. Samples in the book are provided in both C# and Visual Basic (VB) to enable readers with diverse backgrounds to fully understand the concepts presented. Users do not need to have a comprehensive understanding of DotNetNuke prior to using this book because the early chapters discuss the configuration of both DotNetNuke and the development environment, and careful consideration has been taken to ensure that DotNetNuke-specific terminology is explained as the book progresses.
Readers already familiar with DotNetNuke 4.x development will find this book valuable because it introduces many of the new features of the latest software version, although some of the beginning chapters for these readers will be redundant because the overall concepts of environment configuration and basic interface elements have not changed from 4.x to 5.x. Differences between versions 4.x and 5.x are pointed out as appropriate.
As the title implies, this book primarily covers development techniques within the DotNetNuke 5.x platform. The chapters point out similarities and differences between the 4.x and 5.x platforms, enabling readers to apply some newer concepts to the older technology. Although this book primarily focuses on the concept of module development, it discusses other extension models as well, such as skin objects and authentication providers. Also covered in this book are recommended practices for successful integration with the framework.
This book begins with an introduction to development within DotNetNuke. The discussions walk you through DotNetNuke setup, terminology, development environment setup, and options for .NET project setup.
The book then presents a scenario-based model to introduce basic concepts of module development. This is accomplished by building a simple guestbook module that demonstrates how individual portions interact with one another. The discussion lays the foundation for the most basic elements of development within DotNetNuke. Later in the book, you learn about the more advanced module programming concepts, such as optional interfaces and DotNetNuke user controls. This discussion additionally introduces other extension methods, such as authentication providers and skin objects, as well as best practices.
In short, the main content of the book creates a working model that guides you through the most common development scenarios; at the same time, it provides the detail needed to tightly integrate custom code with the framework.
The appendixes provide supplemental information to what is contained in the chapters. This is material that, while not critical to an understanding of the individual chapters, is nonetheless important. The appendixes include items such as community resources and general DotNetNuke configuration items, as well as a detailed look at the new module manifest and a few key integration API points that are not well documented overall.

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WordPress Plugin Development (Beginner's Guide) Review

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WordPress Plugin Development (Beginner's Guide) ReviewThis book talks about the why and how of WordPress plugin development with heavy emphasis on the "how". The book's tagline "Learn by doing: less theory, more results" describes the book quite well. There is an introductory chapter that talks about the many benefits of learning WordPress plugin development. After that, the book immediately jumps right into showing you how to develop a series of 6 increasingly challenging WordPress plugins from scratch. It then finishes up by talking about plugin localization, promotion, and support tips.
Even though this book is a "Beginner's Guide," there are a lot things in there that many advanced WordPress plugin developers can benefit from. I don't consider myself a beginner in WordPress plugin development (see my WordPress plugins), and I have definitely learned quite a bit of things after reading this book.
[...]WordPress Plugin Development (Beginner's Guide) OverviewBuild powerful, interactive plug-ins for your blog and to share online
Everything you need to create and distribute your own plug-ins following WordPress coding standards
Walk through the development of six complete, feature-rich, real-world plug-ins that are being used by thousands of WP users
Written by Vladimir Prelovac, WordPress expert and developer of WordPress plug-ins such as Smart YouTube and Plugin Central
Part of Packt's Beginners Guide series: expect step-by-step instructions with an emphasis on experimentation and tweaking code

In Detail
If you can write WordPress plug-ins, you can make WordPress do just about anything. From making the site easier to administer, to adding the odd tweak or new feature, to completely changing the way your blog works, plug-ins are the method WordPress offers to customize and extend its functionality. This book will show you how to build all sorts of WordPress plug-ins: admin plug-ins, Widgets, plug-ins that alter your post output, present custom "views" of your blog, and more.
WordPress Plug-in Development (Beginner's Guide) focuses on teaching you all aspects of modern WordPress development. The book uses real and published WordPress plug-ins and follows their creation from the idea to the finishing touches, in a series of carefully picked, easy-to-follow tutorials. You will discover how to use the WordPress API in all typical situations, from displaying output on the site in the beginning to turning WordPress into a CMS in the last chapter. In Chapters 2 to 7 you will develop six concrete plug-ins and conquer all aspects of WordPress development.
Each new chapter and each new plug-in introduces different features of WordPress and how to put them to good use, allowing you to gradually advance your knowledge. This book is written as a guide to take your WordPress skills from the very beginning to the level where you are able to completely understand how WordPress works and how you can use it to your advantage.
What you will learn from this book?

Get to know the WordPress code base, WordPress's plug-in architecture, and the plug-in application programming interface (API) and learn how to hack it
Master the WordPress database and the API - access and manipulate data, handle user roles and permissions, posts, and so on
Hook into the rest of WordPress using actions and filters
Change the way your WordPress backend looks by customizing menus, submenus, and the plug-in admin panel
Integrate AJAX and jQuery into your plug-ins to dynamically generate content
Hook directly to WordPress edit pages and use AJAX to generate fast searches
Integrate your plug-in with WordPress panels and the tinyMCE editor
Access and work with third-party APIs like Flickr
Implement localization support for users of other languages
Maintain and manage your plug-in using SVN and publish it to the WordPress Plugin Repository
Handle security issues and make your plug-ins safer to use
We cover the development of six plug-ins from start to finish:
Digg-this: Adds a Digg This button to each post.
Live Blogroll: Adds a recent posts popup for each blog in your blogroll.
The Wall widget: Displays comments on the sidebar without reloading the page.
Snazzy Archives: Presents your site archives in a unique visual way.
Insights: Access your articles and Flickr images from within the WordPress edit page.
Post Types: Provides pre-defined post templates to quickly add a photo or a link to your blog.
Approach
This is a Packt Beginners Guide, which means it focuses on practical examples and has a fast-paced but friendly approach, with the opportunity to learn by experiment and play. Each chapter builds a practical plug-in from the ground up using step-by-step instructions. Individual sections show you how to code some functionality into your plug-in and follow up with a discussion of concepts.
Who this book is written for?
This book is for programmers working with WordPress, who want to develop custom plug-ins and to hack the code base. You need to be familiar with the basics of WordPress and PHP programming and believe that code is poetry; this book will handle the rest.


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How to Design and Write Web Pages Today (Writing Today) Review

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How to Design and Write Web Pages Today (Writing Today) ReviewI consider myself a beginner and this book really helped me get me up and running on designing web sites. Each section is to the point and doesn't assume too much, which is perfect for me. The chapters about HTML and CSS were invaluable. It could have used a chapter on designing web graphics, so I just use GRSites for that which a lot a people seem to swear by. I found going thru the book for hours, and learning new things in an enjoyable and organized way, the author definitely writes well. Great stuff!How to Design and Write Web Pages Today (Writing Today) Overview
Writing and designing for the Web are essential to anyone looking to advance his or her personal, academic, or professional Internet presence. How to Design and Write Web Pages Today offers an approach for building sites that reach your intended audience, using methods that enable a site to be updated and improved over time.



An introduction to standards-based Web design, this book treats creating a website from the point of view of the writer, focusing on writing concerns and how they fit with the technological challenges of the Web. Readers will learn about the reasons for writing on the Web; the challenges of writing there; and the solid, but flexible construction of individual pages. The focus is on building websites that can grow, including sites built around the popular, open-source WordPress blogging system. Rich with examples, the book demonstrates that Web writing and design can be fast and fun-and accomplished without expensive software or sophisticated programming skills.


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HTML, XHTML, and CSS All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies Review

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HTML, XHTML, and CSS All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies ReviewIt is difficult to find one book that takes you from nothing to standards-compliant web sites. It's even more difficult to find books that don't recommend paying insane amounts of money for programs like Dreamweaver. The author provides lots of alternative choices to the big name software and uses this software throughout his examples. I am very grateful that I picked up this book and think that I could probably actually start a web design business after reading it. A million thank-yous to the authors!HTML, XHTML, and CSS All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies OverviewWant to build a killer Web site? Want to make it easy to keep your site up to date? You'll need to know how CSS, HTML, and XHTML work together. HTML, XHTML, and CSS All-In-One Desk Reference For Dummies makes that easy too! These eight minibooks get you started, explain standards, and help you connect all the dots to create sites with pizzazz.
This handy, one-stop guide catches you up on XHTML basics and CSS fundamentals. You'll learn how to work with Positionable CSS to create floating elements, margins, and multi-column layouts, and you'll get up to speed on client-side programming with JavaScript. You'll also get the low-down on server side programming with PHP, creating a database with MySQL, and using Ajax on both client and server sides. You'll find out how to:
Use templates and validators
Manage information with lists and tables
Turn lists of links into button bars
Add style color and borders
Create variables for data
Add motion with basic DOM animation
Work with arrays
Add Flash functionality with AFLAX
Build and manage a multipage site
Choose and run your own server

You don't need expensive or complicated software or a super-powerful computer to build a Web site that does all sorts of amazing things. All you need is a text editor and the clear, step-by-step guidance you'll find in HTML, XHTML, and CSS All-In-One Desk Reference For Dummies.

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