Getting ready to learn html5

Question

I'm a desktop application developer, and I plan learning html5, but as it's not released, there are (almost) no published books and not too much infomation for beginners on the web... I feel I should start with html4 and the current web development skills.

I think I should start with html4, css, and javascript... but there are so many technologies related that I get lost :D So, what current technologies will be still used when html5 is released? I mean, what about "jquery" and "ajax"? I know they are javascript under the hood, but will they still make sense in the future?

What would you recommend me considering that I have just a little bit of html knowlegde, almost null CSS and completely null in javascript?

Answer 1

Dive Into HTML5 is solid, but it isn't really targeted at total beginners. You might want to check out Designing with Web Standards for getting a grasp on the basics of HTML/CSS. For the JavaScript side of things, I'd recommend JavaScript: The Good Parts. Also keep an eye out for Secrets of the JavaScript Ninja, which is due this summer.

Answer 2

If you're already familiar with HTML4, v5 is not terribly different, mostly it adds new elements and attributes, and removes some.

For essential coverage of web standards, I suggest Jeffrey Zeldman's Designing with Web Standards (v3). It's largely theory and background, with little code. I recommend it. There is a sister book by John Allsop, Developing with Web Standards, which I have not (yet) read, but it is supposedly the implementation half of the topic the two books cover.

There is a book in the making by Jeremy Keith, HTML5 for Web Designers, on the new A Book Apart site (backed by the people of An Event Apart, including Jeffrey Zeldman). Jeffrey writes about the new book on his site, and provides links to other related coverage, including Jeremy Keith's take on it.