Dreamweaver MX 2004: The Complete Reference, Second Edition...

Features

• Cover Type: Paperback with 992 pages
• Published by: McGraw-Hill Osborne Media
• Edition: 2nd Edition December 30, 2003
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 0072229438
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-0072229431
• Book Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.3 x 2 inches
• Weighs: 3.5 pounds

Reader Reviews
This book is entitled "Dreamweaver MX 2004: The Complete Reference", but a more accurate title would be "Making web sites with Dreamweaver MX 2004 and a bunch of other tools: The Incomplete Reference". The situation is that the authors do not focus exclusively on Dreamweaver MX 2004. They include lots and lots of information about many other things, but they don't go into anything in the depth necessary. Most of the things they cover can be considered an appetizer or introduction, but if you are going to use that particular tool then you will need to buy a book that really covers that tool. For example, there's a chapter about PHP that is 42 pages. This is just enough information to allow you to become dangerous, i.e., you could end up making your web server vulnerable to hackers. The authors tell you how to install the CGI version of PHP but not the module-interface version that has fewer security issues, and they don't discuss the various security problems inherent in PHP in any depth. Only 5 of these 42 pages have anything to do with Dreamweaver. My advice: If you're going to use PHP then get a book about PHP. Similarly, there is a two-page discussion of how to install Microsoft IIS 4.0! There are whole books describing how to install and run IIS! It would be much better if the authors simply said, "If you need to install IIS then consult the Microsoft documentation or get a book on this subject." Of course, IIS 4.0 is now obsolete, but that's not the point. The point is that the authors try to cover much too much and end up with a few random facts and no in-depth coverage of anything. A later part of the book discusses the WebDAV protocol briefly (one page), but the authors don't mention that Dreamweaver cannot use WebDAV with IIS, even though Microsoft claims that IIS does support WebDAV. Part V of the book consists of 8 chapters (200 pages) and is called "Adding Database Features to your Site". There are chapters on database design and on the SQL language. Once again, this is a good introduction to the subject, but what does it have to do with Dreamweaver? Occasionally one gets the impression that information has been added to this book simply to increase the page count in the hopes that potential buyers go for the book with the most pages. For example, there are three pages about the history of the Internet! Despite all of the above negative stuff I did find this book to be a good introduction to the many things it discusses. If the authors had given the book a more accurate title, for example, "A Comprehensive Introduction to Building Web Sites, Featuring Dreamweaver MX 2004", then I would have given it four stars. But I thought I was buying a book about Dreamweaver MX 2004, and as such this book is disappointing. Rennie Petersen Comment | | (Report this)