Hotwired Style: Principles for Building Smart Web Sites
Borrow from me
Like it or not,
HotWired
, the Web presence of
Wired
magazine, is one of the most distinctive and interesting sites on the Web. The site's outlandish color combinations and adherence to the latest and greatest in Web technology are the perfect counterpart to its editorial identity. In
HotWired Style: Principles for Building Smart Web Sites
, head Webmonkey Jeffrey Veen shares some of the design philosophies and techniques he and the other
HotWired
designers employ to achieve these singular results. It is not a prerequisite that you agree with all of
HotWired
's style choices to learn something useful from this guide.
HotWired Style
offers sound advice on topics such as interface design and metaphors, effective hypertext, and appropriate multimedia. Unlike some Web design books, which emphasize style, this one has plenty of useable examples and some exceptional "How We Did It" sections that provide insight into
HotWired
's cutting-edge techniques. This isn't a tutorial, so beginners will want to supplement
HotWired Style
with a book (or, as Veen suggests, an online resource) on HTML and Web design.