Bibliography of Books on Web Design and Related Subjects

I understand Web design as a sub-field of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI). There are many book on HCI or its various sub-fields. There are lots of books about Web design, from one standpoint or another. And there are small libraries of books on specialized aspects of interface design such as color or typography.

Here are some of my favorites. To save repetition, I will say here: very few of these books are textbooks. None is a textbook for a course on Web site design.

Background Reading

Norman, Donald, The Design of Everyday Things, Doubleday/Currency, New York, 1988, 257 pp. Not specific to HCI or even to computers, but a superb consciousness-raiser about the problems of using technology. Good background reading for teachers. Will suggest many classroom demonstrations.

Raskin, Jef, The Humane Interface: New Directions for Designing Interactive Systems, Addison-Wesley, Reading, MA, 2000, 233 pp. More great background reading. The tone is set by an opening motto: "We are oppressed by our electronic servants. this book is dedicated to our liberation." Always provocative, often challenges current accepted wisdom.

Human-Computer Interaction and Related

Faulkner, Christine, The Essence of Human-Computer Interaction, Pearson Education/Prentice Hall, Harlow England, 1998, 196 pp. Compact introduction to the field. A candidate text for an HCI course.

Hackos, JoAnn T., and Janice C. Redish, User and Task Analysis for Interface Design, Wiley, New York, 1998, 488 pp. Good treatment of this key aspect of HCI.

Mandel, Theo, The Elements of User Interface Design, Wiley, New York, 1997, 440 pp. A standard.

Preece, Jenny, and Yvonne Rogers, Helen Sharp, David Benyon, Simon Holland, and Tom Carey, Human-Computer Interaction, Pearson Education/Addison Wesley, Harlow England, 1994, 775 pp. Another  standard.

Shneiderman, Ben, Designing the User Interface: Strategies for Effective Human-Computer Interaction, 3rd ed., Addison Wesley Longman, 1998, 639 pp. A standard since the first edition came out in 1987, by a pioneer in the field. 

Books on Aspects of Web Design

Flanders, Vincent, and Michael Willis, Web Pages That Suck: Learning Good Design by Looking at Bad Design, Sybex, Alameda, CA, 1996, 266 pp. Includes CD. Provocative and potentially misleading title, but see the subtitle, which is accurate. Presents a lot of good design ideas by showing both bad and good  examples.

Fleming, Jennifer, Web Navigation: Designing the User Experience, O'Reilly, Sebastopol, CA, 1998, 153 pp. Includes CD. Solid fundamentals; practical advice; lots of examples.

Johnson, Jeff, GUI Bloopers: Don'ts and Do's for Software Developers and Web Designers, Morgan Kaufman, San Francisco, 2000, 559 pp. See comments above on Flanders.

Nielson, Jakob, Designing Web Usability: The Practice of Simplicity, New Riders, Indianapolis, 2000, 419 pp. Profusely illustrated standard by one of the acknowledged leaders in the field of Web usability. (If you can't find the subtitle, look on the back cover.)

Pearrow, Mark, Web Site Usability Handbook, Charles River Media, Rockland, MA, 2000, 350 pp. Includes CD. What the title says it is, plus considerable background on HCI in general.

Rosenfeld, Louis, and Peter Morville, Information Architecture for the World Wide Web, O'Reilly, Sebastopol, CA, 1998. 202 pp. Combines elements of HCI with a theoretical foundation for understanding Web navigation. With examples.

Rubin, Jeffrey, Handbook of Usability Testing: How to Plan, Design, and Conduct Effective Tests, Wiley, New York, 1994, 330 pp. Effective presentation of this aspect of interface design.

Spool, Jared M., and Tara Scanlon, Will Schroeder, Carolyn Snyder, and Terri DeAngelo, Web Site Usability: A Designer's Guide, Academic Press/Harcourt, San Diego, 1999, 157 pp. A recognized usability expert and his coworkers present the subject with many examples.

Williams, Robin, and John Tollett, The Non-Designer's Web Book: An Easy Guide to Creating, Designing, and Posting Your Own Web Site, Peachpit Press, Berkeley, 1998, 288 pp. Just what the title and subtitle claim, starting with the real basics. Entertainingly written. See also Williams' book The Non-Designer's Design Book, Peachpit Press, 1994, 144 pp. Straightforward exposition of the basics of design, all illustrated with understandable real-life applications.