rainborick - 4:11 pm on Oct 23, 2012 (gmt 0)

I see questions like yours quite often in forums, and my reaction is always the same: It doesn't really matter. The key is to simply get started with whatever you find convenient. Most people will recommend the book they used to learn about the subject because its rarely necessary to try a second beginner's book on HTML. Like so many computer skills, learning HTML is an evolutionary process. Once you have a grasp of the basic foundation, the rest is just adding layers of knowledge for specific tasks or functions.

You can find basic HTML tutorials online, of course. If you can deal with switching back and forth between windows, an online tutorial is fine. I go back to the days of punch cards and paper tape, so my preference is always for a real book. Local libraries always have a few choices, and it isn't terribly important how long ago the book was written. You can pick up the changes that have occurred easily enough. If its less than four or five years old, you'll be pretty much up to date. So have at it. Good luck!