I’ve never really been one to enjoy reading, at least analogue texts, but I just couldn’t resist the temptation to add a couple of Design Books to my underpopulated bookshelf. A couple of days ago I received a nice little package from Amazon.com, enclosed was the classic usability bible Don’t Make Me Think by Steve Krug, and Bulletproof Web Design by Dan Cederholm.
Both books are useful, if not at least interesting in their own right, however I simply can’t help but feel dissatisfied after reading (glancing) through each. Perhaps its just that I’m a practical learner, I require visual and interactive stimulation in order to get the ‘ole brain sparked up. Or perhaps I simply don’t have the patience required to sit down and read the things. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t have any issues with scholarship, I have do have a thirst for knowledge, but I doubt that traditional books will ever be able to quench this.
Trial and error, self teaching and internet browsing has taught me everything I know about the art and practice of Web Design… much more than studying any long-winded text ever could. I just don’t know…
I’m self-taught like you probably. But I really enjoy reading about design nowadays. Bulletproof Web Design is a great reference book. But I don’t really learn anything big from the books.
I don’t read a book and then design a site. I design a site, find a css problem, trial & error and if that doesn’t work then I got to Bulletproof Web Design for some tips.
I can relate to what you’re saying, I’ve learned by “getting my hands dirty” not typing markup and CSS directly from a book.
But I absolutely love reading, lately I’ve found myself drawn to books about typography, information design and design theory and commentary.
A book that seems to bring the hard side (actual coding) and soft side (design theory, inspirations, etc.) together well is Andy Clarke’s Transcending CSS. I say seems because I don’t own it and haven’t read all of it, I’ve only perused it several times while at the bookstore.
A good resource for reading list candidates is Greg Storey’s “The Things Designers Want”. I filled out my Christmas list from this little gem!
Hope that helps… Oh yeah, cool site by the way!
Have to say I found ‘Don’t Make Me Think’ really useful. The chapter on user testing, for example, is great and well worth reading. Trial and error and self-teaching can teach you a lot, but a book like this is a short cut to a lot of useful knowledge. It has some good techniques to get ourselves out of our ‘expert web user’ perspectives and into the mindsets of the ‘average user’, something that can be tricky, however experienced we are. Besides, this is a great book to recommend to clients.
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