Though Mastering Macromedia Dreamweaver 3 should have new users with some basic understanding of Web design up and running simple Web sites by its end, they will have to be prepared to work on occasion to get the best out of the book. Although it's about as straightforward as it can be, it's probably not the best introduction to the program for complete novices or professional Web designers, since it's likely to overwhelm the former, while the latter might find much of it superfluous. For everyone else, it gives a good grounding in Dreamweaver 3 and covers everything from frames and tables to cascading style sheets, JavaScript and graphics, even sneaking in a brief tour of colour theory along the way.

A point to note is that one third of the book is dedicated to Macromedia's Web graphics software Fireworks. Since some designers might already have or prefer another graphics package, they should consider whether they want to pay out for a book that's at best only two-thirds relevant. Also, sensitive Mac users should take heed that although Mastering Macromedia Dreamweaver3 covers both Mac and Windows platforms, all the screen shots are from Windows.