Look Mom! I Built My Own Web Site

This book is excellent for kids or anyone wanting to build simple Web sites first time!
I am over 50 first-timer on building Web sites with HTML.
First, I was working with Hebrew version of the book and got bogged down with its too technical style and poor quality illustrations. I checked on the author's name and remembered that I bought the English copy last year.

Volia! I found the English copy. The book cheered me up with its colorful, clean and clear style with so many excellent illustrations and examples. So easy, I was able to finish building a simple Web site in 3 nights in Part I. Part II on Web hosting is a great and clear help for beginners.

It would be nice if a brief glossary on HTML tags and safe Web colors chart to be added as appendixes. A brief explaination on XHTML rules in beginning would be helpful. Also, colors of link tag should be explained too.

My 6 year old son, Shai is starting to build his personal Web site with the help of this book and his Dad.

Yes, I do heartly recommend this book to any kids or anyone wanting to build simple Web sites first time in short time. Many thanks to Zohar (the author)!

This book may be well written for younger folk entering the world of web design, but that's still no excuse for teaching the bad old ways of building web pages. There should be no place for font tags and table-layout in any modern webdesign book. And no mention of CSS defies belief. It is vitally important that new entrants in the world of web design - regardless of how young or old they are - are taught the correct way to build websites, ie. the application and philosophy of semantic HTML and Web Standards.

I would definitely recommend all people learning to build websites for the first time to buy Ian Lloyd's Build Your Own Website The Right Way Using HTML & CSS instead.

"This book instructs teenagers and non-professional computer users on how to build a personal Web site for FREE, combining step-by-step simple instructions with practical and entertaining examples."

The style of this book was much more technical than I thought it would be, but is helpful for listing steps you have to take to get a web page completed if you are "not" using a program like FrontPage or paying for a site. You still have to pay for a domain name and upload the website.

"Usually, a Web site that is hosted on a Web hosting server for payment is more secure than a Web site hosted on a free server." ~ pg. 149

Many ISPs include a few free web pages with their service. That was how I first published a website so I know it can be done. This book will teach you about making hyperlinks, choosing subjects for your site and adding images to a site.

While the title and the picture on the cover indicate this is a book for young children, this book will be most useful for teens and adults. The main chapters include:

How to Begin Building a Personal Web site
Writing your first Web page
Playing with text
Add a Link
Add an Image
Playing with Color
Using a Table
Using a Table for page layout
Creating a Menu and Finish Building your Web Site
Stages of Building Your Own Web Site
Web site Hosting
Choosing a Web Hosting Server for your Web Pages
Promote Your Web site

You may also want to read: Keeping Your Kids Safe on the Internet by Simon Johnson.

~The Rebecca Review

I should know...I am not computer savvy. I find it amazing that without spending money on expensive software that requires its own expertise, I am able to build my very own webpage! This book takes you step by step to designing a fully functioning personal web site in a very short period of time using the resources you already have on your computer. Spending just an hour or two a day, it took me less than a week to go through all the steps in the book and I now have a fully functioning model from which I can begin building my own web page. I never thought it would be so simple.

The book also has a web site to assist you. The web site allows you to copy and paste text and images to more quickly develop the sample site. PERHAPS THE GREATEST FEATURE for me was the ability to ask a question on-line when I ran into a glitch in my sample program. After checking and re-checking my work and not discovering my error, I would have quit in frustration, but for the ability to get assistance on-line. That more than anything else sets the book apart from other resources.

This book is ideal for anyone wanting to learn basic html and/or to design a personal web site. You can do it with this books assistance. Best wishes.

***** This is an EXCELLENT guide for beginners! I had my niece come over for a weekend to try it out. Following the step-by-step directions, we created a simple, free web site. Nothing fancy, but plain either. This book begins the creating of a site OFF the internet. In simple words and terms the first few chapters get the "newbie" (for lack of a better term) used to the computer, its files/folders, and inner workings. My niece is around ten-years-old and had only a few problems. I believe that kids around third grade could successfully use this guide. But if you are an adult who is new to computers, this book is perfect for you as well.

The newbie will learn to create a folder on the hard drive at first. Do not worry, there are clear illustrations throughout the book to show you EXACTLY what should be on your monitor. (Added tip for newbies: Put a Notepad short cut on your desk top for easy access.)

Next you will learn about open and closed "tabs". You must understand this part. One error and the page will not work or look correctly. Again, the book CLEARLY shows what you should see. From here on, things get easier. If you do not understand something, go back. If everything is clear to you, then the rest will be a cinch. By now you are in chapter three or four. You will learn about formatting, viewing sources, adding images, links, color and different font types. Next comes cells, tables, how to embed an HTML page within another HTML page. Illustrations show you the way through it all.

From here the book will explain things that you should NOT publish on your web site for all the world to view. This is followed by how to register with free web hosting sites. (Added tip for newbies: Consider using Geocities for your first site. It is easy, free, and gives a good amount of space.) All-in-all, we found this book to be very easy to understand and follow. I highly recommend it for all beginners. *****

Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.