{"id":154,"date":"2008-06-18T18:35:00","date_gmt":"2008-06-18T23:35:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cssnewbie.com\/?p=154"},"modified":"2022-07-27T13:02:21","modified_gmt":"2022-07-27T13:02:21","slug":"5-web-books-that-inspired-me","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cssdeck.com\/blog\/5-web-books-that-inspired-me\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Web Design Books That Have Inspired Me"},"content":{"rendered":"

I learned web development the good old-fashioned way: through peering at the source code of those who came before me and testing out new ideas through trial and error. But that isn\u2019t to say I haven\u2019t ever picked up a book on web design in my decade-plus of web work (good gracious, has it been that long already?). In fact, I\u2019ve read quite a few web-related books in my time, and many of them have inspired me to look at my job in entirely new ways. Plus it was a great help when I found more design books for beginners<\/a> that were quite beneficial in understanding the design world. And in spirit of sharing, here are five of the books that have most inspired me (click the images to get your own copy!).<\/p>\n

Designing With Web Standards<\/em> \u2013 Jeffrey Zeldman<\/h3>\n

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Jeffrey Zeldman\u2019s webzine A List Apart<\/em><\/a> was one of the first places where I ever began to grasp the fundamentals of (and the fundamental need for) web standards. Thus, when I heard that Zeldman was going to be coming out with a book on the subject, I could barely wait to get hold of a copy. In fact, I\u2019m currently on my second copy of the book, as I wore out my first copy while working on my Master\u2019s thesis. The book is a treasure trove of information on how to design websites the right way \u2013 with standards in mind. Designing With Web Standards<\/em><\/a> is in its second edition now, and while I\u2019ve only ever read the first edition, I\u2019m more than willing to recommend you pick up a copy.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t Make Me Think<\/em> \u2013 Steve Krug<\/h3>\n

Web usability needn\u2019t be a scary or complicated topic \u2013 just pick up a copy of Steve Krug\u2019s Don\u2019t Make Me Think<\/em><\/a> for all the evidence you\u2019ll ever need. If you\u2019re one of those designers who still thinks that usability is a great<\/em> idea \u2013 for those companies that have seven-figure design budgets, that is \u2013 then this book can be a real eye-opener. Web usability doesn\u2019t require a million-dollar lab or a fancy-dancy study. It just requires an understanding of how people really<\/em> use the web. And Krug will set you down that path of understanding. My copy is riddled with bookmarks and notes in the margin \u2013 a sign that it has earned its place on my bookshelf.<\/p>\n

Information Architecture: Blueprints for the Web<\/em> \u2013 Christina Wodtke<\/h3>\n

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Before I picked up a copy of Christina Wodtke\u2019s book, my web design process looked a little like this: Concept –> Development –> Redevelopment –> Re-redevelopment. Then I saw a copy of Information Architecture<\/em><\/a> in my college\u2019s new media lab, skimmed a few chapters, and liked it enough to pick up a copy of my own. Wodtke\u2019s book was the first real look I got at the process<\/em> of developing a website the right way \u2013 the idea of sitting down and planning out what the customer needed, what the users wanted, and how I would negotiate the path between the two. This is a great read if you\u2019re just starting out on your own.<\/p>\n

Bulletproof Web Design<\/em> \u2013 Dan Cederholm<\/h3>\n

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Dan Cederholm\u2019s Bulletproof Web Design<\/em><\/a> is a must-have for any modern web designer. In it Cederholm proves, chapter by chapter, that having a site built using web standards doesn\u2019t mean you have to give up on your site behaving itself properly. His techniques allow you to develop websites that look just as good in IE as they do in Firefox \u2013 and in the cases where some functionality simply doesn\u2019t translate from one to the other, how to ensure your website degrades nicely. I have no fewer than eighteen bookmarks stuck throughout this book, and turn to them often when I\u2019m trying to remember precisely how to pull of certain techniques.<\/p>\n

The Zen of CSS Design<\/em> \u2013 Dave Shea and Molly E. Holzschlag<\/h3>\n

Is there really any better resource on the web for learning to push the CSS envelope than the CSS Zen Garden?<\/a> Well, the book version of the Garden<\/a> takes those fantastic visual examples and breaks them down, discusses their various techniques, and explains how some of the fancier footwork was accomplished. This book has been a great resource for me over the last couple of years, seeing as how I\u2019m much more of a developer than a designer. Sometimes it helps to be able to analyze the work of others to understand how I might apply such techniques to my own work.<\/p>\n

Those of you with an astute eye might have noticed that all five of these books have something in common \u2013 they were all published by New Riders.<\/a> As far as I\u2019m concerned New Riders is the<\/em> go-to publisher when I\u2019m looking for a new web design book. Their topics are interesting, their writers entertaining, and their quality is always top-notch. And if anyone from New Riders happens to read this, keep me in mind, eh? :)<\/p>\n

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I learned web development the good old-fashioned way: through peering at the source code of others. But that isn\u2019t to say I haven\u2019t ever picked up a book on web design in my decade-plus of web work. In fact, I\u2019ve read quite a few web-related books in my time, and many of them have inspired me to look at my job in entirely new ways. And in spirit of sharing, here are five of the books that have most inspired me. […]<\/p>\n

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