BKPRHTML.RVW   970402

"Practical HTML", Roy Tennant, 1996, 1-882208-19-6, U$54.00
%A   Roy Tennant rtennant@library.berkeley.edu
%C   2137 Oregon St., Berkeley, CA   94705
%D   1996
%G   1-882208-19-6
%I   Library Solutions Institute and Press
%O   U$54.00 510-841-2933 510-841-2636 fax: 510-841-2926
%O   charlotte@library-solutions.com http://www.library-solutions.com
%P   106
%T   "Practical HTML: A Self-Paced Tutorial"

The first reading in the preface asks, "Why Another Book About HTML?" 
The book does not provide a good answer.  The HTML (HyperText Markup
Language) tutorial is acceptable, as a basic introduction, but nothing
to write home about.  The content is reasonably accurate, but there is
a signal lack of example code for given elements.  (There are samples
of code for entire pages, but this does not really explain the
difference between using an "alt" tag and not using it.)

The general format of the book has illustrations of overheads on the
top of the page and explanations below.  In some cases, detailing
specific tags, this works, but many times it is simply a wasted half-
page.  While Tennant insists he is only including the most useful
tags, the sixteen pages devoted to tables and image maps are of
questionable value for a large number of net users.  The pages
dedicated to forms are of no value, since there is no discussion of
CGI (Common Gateway Interface) applications to back up the form
submissions.

The author's rather arrogant comments regarding other HTML guides and
his lack of a bibliography suggest that he isn't aware of such
excellent works as "Teach Yourself Web Publishing with HTML" (cf.
BKWPHTML.RVW) and "HTML: The Definitive Guide" (cf. BKHTMLDG.RVW).  At
least, that is the most charitable construction to put on things.

copyright Robert M. Slade, 1997   BKPRHTML.RVW   970402