Rating: 
Summary: Only Joking
Review: Hey, I really think this book is worth 500 stars, but who'd bother to pick this review out from the rest if it was headed with 5 (boring) stars just like all the rest. I have nothing to add to all the nice things that have already been said, so here is some fawning hero-worship instead: This is a great book, a Magnificent book, A STUPENDOUS book. Buy it, read it ... lots of times ... meditate on it, and be grateful that there are people like Philip Greenspun in the world to light the way for the rest of us.
Rating: 
Summary: Reading his book is the next best thing to taking his class!
Review: To have the priviledge to sit in on one of Philip Greenspun's classes, you have to be either 1. an MIT student or 2. an expert developer employed by the Oracle Corporation. This spring, Philip is teaching what he wrote in Philip and Alex's Guide to Web Publishing in the first-ever MIT computer science class about web-based communities. For the 30 of us who fit in category #1 *and* were fortunate enough to get into Philip Greenspun's wildly over-subscribed class this semester, the general concensus is that Philip's lectures are so interesting it's impossible to fall asleep during one of them--despite MIT students being notoriously sleep-deprived. The class runs in a similar spirit as his book: very hands-on, very practical/informative, and very funny. For the rest of the world that does not fit into the 2 categories above but is nonetheless interested in the topic, the next best thing to attending Philip's lectures is buying his book! What I like most about Philip and Alex's Guide to Web Publishing is that it displays, 100% untarnished, the same witty charisma that one finds while talking to Philip Greenspun in person. If you would like to know more about Philip and what he does at MIT, read an interview with him at: http://www-tech.mit.edu/V119/N13/a_greenspun.13f.html
Rating:
Summary: Greenspun is the Web's Thoreau, this is his WALDEN!
Review: Just as Henry David Thoreau's book WALDEN caused a profound change in my thinking about life, so has Philip Greenspun's book caused a change in my thinking about the what, how, and why of a website. Thoreau challenged the status quo with statements like:"It is never too late to give up our prejudices. No way of thinking or doing, however ancient, can be trusted without proof. What everybody echoes or in silence passes by as true to-day may turn out to be falsehood to-morrow, mere smoke of opinion, which some had trusted for a cloud that would sprinkle fertilizing rain on their fields. What old people say you cannot do, you try and find that you can. Old deeds for old people, and new deeds for new." Greenspun shows us a new way to think about how websites should work, look, and SERVE people. He challenges his readers to dump their antiquated ideas of what a website is all about. He critiques the prejudice for graphics-laden and content-poor websites. Best of all, he passionately demonstrates in his mad, funny, brilliantly opinionated diatribe that a better way exists, and you can follow the path he has blazed! As a professional website designer for big clients (names changed to protect me) I have been backed into too many corners by clients who demanded glitzy art better suited to a print ad, and animated gifs that would choke a horse, when what they needed was a good dose of usability, reliability, and interactivity! Greenspun throws some darts at designers, and I say any designer who can't understand the advantages of RDBMS-backed interfaces should go back to egg tempera. Some designers might complain his websites are "too plain, too white" but anybody that gets hung up in that is just not seeing where the real action is. His personal sites typically have the functional minimalist beauty of a Gustav Stickley chair combined with the speed of Carroll Shelby's 1964 Cobra 427 race car. One of the most remarkable things about this book is how well it integrates with Greenspun's online universe: www.Arsdigita.com, www.photo.net, etc. This nexus of material, both online and in the book forms an amazingly fun and entertaining how-to manual that enables you to test Greenspun's ideas from the simple (like great photos + plain html makes for a good interface) to the complex (you, too, can install a free copy of Oracle 8 on your Linux PC!) Now, when I think about creating a website for a client, I can see great ways to incorporate Greenspunism, even if my client won't let me do it. So if nothing else, Greenspun has given me hope, and that's a beautiful thing.
Rating:
Summary: Can be Appreciated on Many Levels
Review: An extraordinary vision of web publishing, a wonderful coffee table book of photography, and, since it's printed on quality heavyweight stock, a darn good paper weight.
Rating:
Summary: The Best of the Best!
Review: This book is for you if you desire to build an interactive online community that shares ideas and helps others on either the web or in an intranet. Before reading this book I was at the mercy of the design and how to use this software package type of books. Now, after finishing Philip's book, I am rethinking the concept of intranet applications and will be bringing a sense of community to my network. Philip's style of writing is both infomative and entertaining. His wit and competence come shining through from the first page to the last. My intranet is currently full of static pages with a few Perl flat file DB's (CGI) thrown in for good measure. But through the use of Philip's book I'll be using the tools available to me to leverage my static site into a corporate community that will serve the needs of my users and provide valuable feedback to me for enriching my intranet site. As an added bonus Philip has generously populated this edition with his personal photographs that make this book a joy not only for the information presented, but the rest of my family who enjoy flipping through it also. Now how many other computer books can claim a readership of 3 to 45 year olds. Buy this book now, this is one you'll use for years to come.
Rating:
Summary: A Witty and Wise Book
Review: This book comprises a fine collection of several hundred original, highly pleasing, photographs. As a bonus, and unusual in a coffee-table tome, the images are interspersed with a generous amount of witty, and wise, text on the subject of Web publishing. The book is also accompanied by the best CD-ROM you're never likely to see.
Rating:
Summary: Essential
Review: Buy this book even though I exaggerated in my earlier review (it only has a little under 300 photos, not "four or five hundred"). It's all you need to know about building Websites, and would be worth the price just for its (fill in the blank: technical utility, beautiful photographs, excellent writing, sly humor). Reading it on the Web is not as good -- the photos in the book are much higher resolution (and printed on the highest-quality glossy paper so the contrast and luminance is as good as print gets), and it is great to have everything in one portable package. An ideal gift for a friend or yourself.
Rating:
Summary: Essential reading for webmasters of all levels.
Review: If you're wondering what's wrong with your Killer Website, read this book. If you're not wondering, you should be. Forget those other books and read this one.
Rating:
Summary: Most informative, insightful book I have ever read
Review: This is by far the best book I have read in the past 10 years. Although, it is full of usefull technical facts and suggestions it is still written in such a way that I did not get bogged down in the technical details. The book is humorous yet informative. In fact, a group I am in used the suggestions from the book to help build a database backed web site that is dedicated to helping match up pets in animal shelters with people who want to adopt them (http://arfdigita.org). I highly reccommend this book both to people who want to learn a lot about web development and to people who just want a good, entertaining read.
Rating:
Summary: Hangin' with Philip.
Review: I've stayed in touch with Philip electronically for the past 4 years. First, we were on the AOLServer mailing list together, then he told me my code sucked, then we became friends. Since then, we've worked on a project together (wimpy.arsdigita.com), and I've called him at all hours of the night. But it wasn't until last week that I actually met Philip Greenspun in person. I stopped by ArsDigita LLC while on a trip to Boston, and was immediately struck by the fact that Philip was much taller than I ever imagined him to be. And I can attest visually that Alex does indeed follow Philip everywhere. What struck me the most, though, was that every one of the ArsDigita partners that I met were there because Philip had had a significant impact on their view of the new world. They were there because Philip has this kind of magic about him... one that comes from a quiet intelligence and a burning passion for what he does. As a partner at USWeb/CKS, I spend thousands of dollars on recruiters, trying to find the kind of people that Philip simply attracts. If his company ever goes public, I'll be the first on the block to buy some stock. The Book is a testament to the nature of Philip Greenspun. It is irreverent, witty, completely confident of its suggestions, supremely laudating about the past and grudgingly optimsitic about the future. It is what every consultant, e-commerce manager and programmer for the Web should read from cover to cover. The Book is also the closest you may ever get to Philip Greenspun. Speaking from experience... I urge you to grab the chance.
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