Plain English?
I'm almost certain I speak both English and technical English. I definitely speak HTML and I can parse XML.
So why is it that I stopped and re-read two full pages trying to determine what they were trying to say? And came away knowing merely that I had been correct on my first pass; no actual useful definition of the terms was given in those pages.
Also, Plain English structure puts the Tutorial first rather than last...
Good thing to have on your shelf - could be better
First of all, this is a book for people who know their stuff and need to be able to go an extra mile without spending an hour wading through deteriorating Web. Even tutorial part is for people who know and understand a lot and that is how it should be for a book which is already too heavy.Things that could be better - information on case sensitivity of Xpath functions and patterns, marking up which stylesheet elelments are in CSS1, which in CSS2 and which in neither, more complete table of Unicode character references (to include full ASCII for example including interpunction), 8-bit Character set tables and mapping to Unicode, font, leading, and even margins could be a level smaller to make book thinner, lighter and more dense for everyday use, the "Releted Properties,Objects etc." could go to a small print to both not eat up the space and be faster to spot when needed.
XML In Obfuscated English (with errors)
If you are an XML guru, then a high-density syntax reference may be all you need. You will note that those who have given positive reviews were all reasonably accomplished in XML and happy for the reference material. However, as someone that had never even seen any XML, I found the tutorial incomprehensible. The author seems to have a terrible grasp of English, uses it sloppily, and makes errors to boot. As even those that gave a positive review seem to agree, if you want a book to learn XML give this book a wide berth.
XML In Obfuscated English (with errors)
If you are an XML guru, then a high-density syntax reference may be all you need. You will note that those who have given positive reviews were all reasonably accomplished in XML and happy for the reference material. However, as someone that had never even seen any XML, I found the tutorial incomprehensible. The author seems to have a terrible grasp of English, uses it sloppily, and makes errors to boot. As even those that gave a positive review seem to agree, if you want a book to learn XML give this book a wide berth.
Excellent book - unrivalled value for money
I have to agree with Annette Truong (below) on this one, it's a great book. After going thru every XML book in Borders I finally settled on this one as the most comprehensive and UP-TO-DATE reference I could find. (There is so much xml stuff out there that is just out of date!) ... Make no mistake, this is not an xml wet-nursing book. This is for people who are familiar with (although not necessarily accomplished in) xml. It packs a lot of punch into each page and although it is primarily a reference it has plenty of examples and tutorials.
(13 reviews)