Book Description

Tech journalist Pamela Pfiffner explores the rich history behind the modern publishing revolution, as seen through the lens of one of its most important players. In the past 20 years, Adobe Systems has become synonymous with great design tools, and the company's impact on how we work in publishing, graphic arts, and on the Web is unmatched. Join Pfiffner on a colorful journey from the roots of the desktop publishing revolution through the rise of the Web and interactive design. Along the way, you'll witness the birth and evolution of PostScript, the explosion of the Photoshop market, the realization of the paperless office, and other events that have shaped the way we communicate.

Inside the Publishing Revolution is not one of those dull historical tomes you know and loathe from high school. Pfiffner packs its pages with lively, insightful interviews with world-class designers and illustrators, as well as personal insights and recollections from John Warnock, Chuck Geschke, Jonathan Seybold, and other publishing luminaries. Richly illustrated and beautifully designed, the book features galleries of historically significant work by leading artists and rare photographs from the Adobe archives. For added perspective, Pfiffner walks you through an illustrated timeline of the publishing revolution. As with history, the final chapter of the Adobe story remains to be written, so the book ends with an eye toward the future: an exclusiveoverview of the company's vision of publishing in the next decade.

Reviews (5)

A pleasure
A pleasure to read, both for the inspiration coming from reading about people being very successful being idealistic, and from learning about the history of the Desktop Publishing revolution.

"Book of the Year" AWARD for 2002
We at the Designer's Bookshelf have just awarded this book "THE BOOK OF THE YEAR" award for 2002. These awards are given by the editors and staff at the Design Bookshelf, DT&G Magazine, and the Graphic Design network as top choices for all those involved in the design, publishing and visual arts fields.

More, more, more!
The only real flaw in this book is I want more. Adobe's story is fascinating, and I could probably read a detailed history of each product without being bored. (And I would have loved to have found out why Adobe never made an Illustrator 5 or 6 for the PC).

Not the usual corporate history.
I got the book in the morning and started reading right away, skipped lunch and finished. Short read you might say... not at all; the text and the images are excellent and the book reads like a novel (reason why I skipped lunch). What a story!

It answered many questions that came up in my 10+ years of experience as a graphic design professional. Why Adobe this and how Adobe that.

The great thing about the book that it made me re-live my experiences; the advent of the mac and the LaserWriter, early releases of the software (it is quite touching to see pictures of the first, say, Illustrator), the successes and the failure the company went through. Those of us (graphic designers) who have pasted photostated type on the blue outline grid by hand will relate.

The book is about what and how things happened to allow us (graphic designers) to work the way we do today; it is, however, also about how Adobe changed the publishing world and global communication altogether.

Thumbs up on this one. Thank you Pamela Pfiffner for a great piece of research and writing. Thank you Adobe for the perseverance in bringing it all together towards the age of Network Publishing.

Belongs in every designer's library!
Anyone who uses a computer to design graphics, create printed documents, edit Web graphics, make movies and animations, or just type a letter should read this book.

While most people recognize the contributions Apple and Microsoft made to computers, few realize how much Adobe was right in there with those other companies.

This book tells that story--and does so with humor, behind-the-scenes gossip, and inside information. What were the "Font wars" of 1989? What were Adobe's original plans for Photoshop? What was the original purpose for the Acrobat PDF format?

Even better the quotes from industry greats. What did Steve Jobs think the first time he saw PostScript added to a printer? How did designers such as Roger Black and Louis Fishauf feel about products such as Illustrator and Photoshop?

The book is filled with tons of candid photos of those early days. You'll gasp as you see the much-younger versions of today's famous speakers and industry giants. My favorite is the extremely young Steve Jobs (in a tie and jacket!) at the debut of the PostScript LaserWriter.

The author must have been given quite a bit of leeway with the writing because she also describes those times Adobe didn't get it exactly right. What were the mistakes Adobe made in their first Web page-creation program? What was the problem with the original distribution of Acrobat Reader? And who was the only person at Adobe who could easily use the original Illustrator Pen tool?

And in an age of trade paperbacks, this book is a physical joy--a beautifully bound embossed-hardcover book with a varnish-coated dust jacket. The inside pages are exquisitely designed, with full-color photos throughout the book.

This is the sort of book you pick up and read, then pick up again, then again, then again. There's always one more little tidbit to laugh or smile over. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Excellent book. A must have for any school or studio...
This book covers all the primary points of commercial art and reproduction in a clear, comprehendable manner and has lots of illustrative photos to boot. A must have for any designer.

This book explains the complexities of commercial printing.
This book explains the complex world of color printing and the designer's relationship to the printer in a well-organized, well-illustrated, easy-to-read style. You will find everything from trapping to common paper folds, printed examples of good halftones and bad, how to make sure things go right, but also how to compromise when things go wrong. I have made it required reading for my desktop design staff of 4. In short, this is an excellent introductory book. I strongly recommend it for both classroom teaching and less experienced designers. This few hours of reading could replace years of experience. ... Read more

Book Description

More than a hundred currently available filmset typefaces are presented here in large-format, double-page specimen settings, in various sizings and spacings. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

History by the man who made it
This essay on typography is actually an essay on far more. It goes well with William Morris and the Arts and Crafts movement, in its nostalgia for the 'humane' individual craftsman over the commerce and industry. Gill comes back, again and again, to question the proper places of mass production and handwork with respect to each other. He was an idealistic, but still realized that industry was here to stay - it could not (and still can not) simply be wished away. The real goal is "an industrialism ... [with] many noble and admirable features."

Gill uses typography and printing as the vehicle for his social thoughts, and offers a good bit of advice on typography throughout. He discusses letter forms as ethetic, practical, and historical objects - especially interesting from a man who made so much typographic history himself.

I never did quite work my way through all of his social arguments, however. He seems to hold "engineers" as the opponents of art and perhaps creativity. I known that many engineers then and now lack training in esthetics and visual presentation. Anyone who's seen the Brooklyn Bridge or Eiffel Tower knows, however, that engineering is also a creative act. Gill ridiculed the practice of one worker designing a font, a second preparing it for transfer to metal, another cutting the master tools for each letter, and so on. I have to agree, the assembly line mentality is not suited to all tasks, especially when each product is as unique as a letter form. Still, among all arts, printing is perhaps the one most typified by team effort and division of labor. It would be a very rare individual who could create a text worth reading, create the font in which it is presented, set the type and run the press, and carry out all the other tasks needed to create a bound book. The question is not whether parts of a job should be handed to different specialists, but which jobs should be subdivided - a question I never saw answered.

This is a wonderful work by a man whose livelihood, art, and spiritual life all worked closely together. I recommend it to anyone who works in the arts, not just those with an interest in type.

brilliant
I noticed few reviews for this book, so it had to be said. At once a historical view of typography as well as universal ideals still applicable to modern design. Eric Gill was a genius, and his timeless typefaces were the only window I knew him through before I read this book. This is the sort of book that you finish and then go look for more books like it; my favorite kind.

Typography and Other Apparently Related Issues
This multi-faceted book is a gem. It was written in a period when Industrialism was increasingly establishing itself over Craftsmanship. Gill starts by analyzing the clash between these two worlds, then goes on to situate typography in this melee. Most of the book concerns Gill's views on correct typography, some of which seem quirky. Gill is unique: his forward style and searing insight are inspiring and refreshing, even after six decades. The last section of the book is Gill's proposal to convert written English into phonetic writing, avoiding spelling/pronunciation inconsistencies and increasing efficiency. It makes great sense - typical Gill ... Read more

Book Description

The Typography Workbook is the second in Rockport?s popular Workbook series, practical and inspirational workbooks that cover all the fundamental areas of the graphic design business. This book presents an abundance of information on type?the cornerstone of graphic design?succinctly and to the point, so that designers can get the information they need quickly and easily.

Whereas many other books on type are either very technical or showcase oriented, this book offers the reader ideas and inspiration through hundreds of real-life projects with well-crafted type usage that have succeeded, as well as complete and hardworking content including choosing fonts, sizes, and colors; incorporating text and illustrations; avoiding common mistakes in text usage; teaching rules to live (and work) by, and pointing out hints on when to break them. ... Read more

Book Description

Packed with inspiration, Maximum Page Design gives graphic designers a look at the latest and greatest designs for everything from annual reports and brochures to self-promotion pieces and CD inserts. It's an indispensable resource with:

-Head-turning artwork that's paired with practical ideas and techniques-Insight into how each project's designer overcame real-world problems -A wide range of samples and styles to appeal to every designer

There are more than 150 examples of fabulous design to satisfy readers' hunger for this popular topic! ... Read more

Book Description

Rockport Publishers? The Best of Brochure Design volumes have consistently inspired designs with the field?s most innovative and creative work. Now this special book goes a step further, culling the best of the best into one stunning showcase.

This volume features winning brochures from a wide range of countries and clients, including corporate brochures and annual reports, product and service pieces, and brochures for organizations ranging from education and health care to arts and entertainment.

Large, visually compelling photos bring the reader up-close and personal to the best examples of brochure design that he or she is likely to see. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Awwwww...
This book's content ranges from fair design to absolutely abominable. I'm eighteen and I run circles around most of the designers featured in this book... that's not a good sign. The best design in this book is actually the cover, which can be very decieving... most of the content is flatly uncreative, with all the dullness of a dentist's waiting room. It is, however a good example of what not to do in brochure design: noted mistakes include sloppy collaging (not intentionally sloppy), terrible visual appeal, and the work of designers who went filter-happy in Photoshop (the Emboss filter, no less.) Please avoid this book. Amateurs might enjoy it, but for God's sake, don't emulate the work in it. I realize how arrogant this review may be, but it's hard not to feel that way when your own work puts thiers to shame. ... Read more

Book Description

Modern Typography, 2nd Edition is a completely updated and revised edition of Robin Kinross's classic survey of European and North American typography since 1700, first published in 1992. In addition to numerous new illustrations and revised text, Modern Typography has been re-scaled to a new, convenient pocket format. Kinross's overview breaks ground by focusing on the history of typography as an intricate web of social, technical, and material processes, rather than a parade of typeface styles. Eye magazine calls Modern Typography the book that tells "how modern typography got to be the way it is." Together, Kinross's clear, concise writing combined with his extensive knowledge of the history of typography create a gold standard for how design history ought to be written. ... Read more

Book Description

The ABC's of Bauhaus traces the origins and impact of the Bauhaus in relation to design, graphic design, and typography. The book, designed by the authors, invokes the Bauhaus ideal of synthesizing editorial concept, typography, and format. The essays address such issues as modernist design theory in relation to the nineteenth-century kindergarden movement and Bauhaus graphic design in relation to the idea of a universal "language" of vision. Additional essays address psychoanalysis, fractal geometry, and Weimar culture. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

BAUHAUS FUNDAMENTALS
This thin volume is a wonderful collection of essays on the typography, design and graphic design of this school that can be considered the heralding in of moderism.

The layout of the book, sparse and clean, was designed by the editors, Joanne Savio and Mike Mills in a manner that adheres to Bauhaus design principles. Well illustrated throughout with examples of the works of Bauhaus artists, the book is a pleasure to look as well as to read. ... Read more

Book Description

This matchless volume is the first to record the milestones of graphic design, from its beginnings as a viable art and craft to its most sophisticated, present-day accomplishments.Two-page spreads are devoted to each year of the century, from 1900 to 2000. Complete with numerous illustrations, this is an ideal desk reference, providing answers to endless historical questions such as when a style or technology was invented, when a designer was born or died, when an influential work was created, when a movement began, and when a school was founded. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Time is of the Essence
Heller is, as we all know by now, the preeminent graphic design writer of our times. This work displays the history of graphic design in simple, bulleted lists arranged by category in a chronoligcal arrangement that is as elegant as it is simple: each year gets its own spread (though earlier , sparses, years are two-to-a-spread), with reproductions of work from the year and stats on important developments in design, illustration, photo, and more, as well as the people who are responsible for such work.

Not a book to be read all at once, but to be enjoyed sporadically, leafed through, glanced through before bed... a must-have for the design history enthusiast. ... Read more

Book Description

Amazon.com

Jan Tschichold's design breakthroughs in typography were two fold. He was the first typographer to apply the aesthetics, in his day, of the Bauhaus to ordinary, day-to-day printing. Secondly, his great flexibility of vision allowed him to relinquish those design principles of asymmetry and articulate a wider vision after his exile from Nazi Germany. The Bauhaus had a tendency, after all, to use type as an element of abstract art, and Tschichold would never be swayed from his conviction that typographical design must serve communication. He would incorporate the dash and elegance of Bauhaus form, but never sacrifice legibility for flair. Function, in his case, would always follow form. His aesthetic, however, was indelible. With his early training in lettering and calligraphy, Tschichold "... became the first to offer a coherent philosophy of design by which all typographic problems ... could be tackled in ways that were rational, suited to modern production techniques, and aesthetically satisfying."

Jan Tschichold: A Life in Typography offers both the design student and the experienced designer such enlightened summaries, placing the typographer's vision firmly in the rich cultural context of his times.In his concise biography Ruari McLean, the world's leading Tschichold scholar, offers an interpretation of the significant design innovations, with analyses of Tschichold's writings, theories and manifestos. A substantial as well as a handsome volume, enriched with annotated illustrations of Tschichold's work, and including the now famous series of film posters for Munich's Phoebus-Palast Cinema, Jan Tschichold is as satisfying to the eye as any of Tschichold's clean, lean designs. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

It's great....but...
First the good. "Life in Typography" is a beautifully illustrated paperback containing gorgeous, intriguing scans of pages and illustrations from the work of typographer/illustrator Jan Tschichold. Fortunately, a number of reprints in the book are reprinted actual size, to give the viewer a distinctly real vantage point into what the originals actually looked like. So unless you've got the cash to buy out-of-print books, this is by far the most sane route. And it's not too expensive either.

But the only problem I had with the book is that I wanted to learn more about the artist himself. Tschichold's bold, at times abbrasive tone comes out in his pen sketched notes on a number of reprints and in-house drafts, leading the reader to believe he was probably one obnoxious, colorful, temperamental character. Instead, "A Life in Typography" sheds little light on the 'life' of Tschichold, and focuses instead on images with little explanation.

Were there no interviews with Tschichold that could have been reprinted? A larger window into his persona would have really helped understand his persistance and drive for typographic perfection.

But of everything reprinted in the book, quite possibly the most stirring, worthy part is a four page reprint of "Composition Rules" written by Tschichold and distributed to employees of the Penguin Book company. It's forceful, blunt, and essential reading for anyone involved in typesetting. He explains in detail how to treat capitals, italics, paragraph indents and punctuation marks. His thoughts and opinions about typography leap off the page.

So if you need a quick reference of his work, or are someone who just discovered the name Tschichold, this is a must have for your design library. ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Superb reference book - a must purchase
I teach university level Graphic Design and Typography and brought my copy into class, like I do many books, hoping to inspire my students. If anyone has ever taught young college students, inspiration doesn't always come as we expect. Most of the time they give a half willing glance with little comment. However, when I brought this book into class, showed them the contents, and then noted the price, their interests immediately grew. It is an extremely large book and full of examples or overviews of everyone throughout history who has made contributions into design and type. It is not meant to be an exhaustive book on the subject and there were some designers and artists which possibly needed or deserved more exposure. However, it sparked enough interest in my students that before the class was over I had five students signing their name for me to order them a copy.

Once those interested received their copies, I heard them speaking among themselves and one particular young man, who seldom has anything positive to say, said to his friend. "It's an awesome book dude. You should come over sometime and look at it."

I recommend this book for anyone needing a little inspiration. It touches the tip of the ice berg, but sometimes that is all it takes!

This Book Amazes Me
As a professor of Visual Communication, I recommend this book to all of my design students and collegues for several reasons:

a) it is an excellent reference for finding information on typographers, influential institutions and design movements.

b) it is hard to find a page in this book that doesn't ask to be looked at closer-the entire book is in full color, with examples of posters, magazines, parchments... anything with type that is influential. The examples chosen are excellent and well placed. Many books only have black and white examples with just a few in color. It is hard to visually understand a design without its full dressing. This book shows works in their original glory.

c) the price is very modest for what you get in return.

You will wear out this book-buy two!

Great Reference
This book, for the price, is a must-have for any graphic designer's library. It's great to skim through for inspiration or to look up individual designers' biographies.

This Book Is A Delightful Tour of Typographic Styles
Buy this book. Beautifully designed pages. A Treasure Trove of Visual reference. Students will love it: a gold mine of ideas. An exceptional "Buy". Seven pounds of sheer inspiration. If I could I'd give it 10 stars.

Monumental but off target (maybe)
Warning: Handling this book can cause bodily injury. Consult a doctor if you have previously had joint or muscle problems. Part of the size and weight of this book is due to the English/German/French translation, which triples the text area. This is a custom typical of Continental European art&design publications, whose readership usually knows no other language than their native one (note--I'm from Italy and I speak from experience). Personally, I would have preferred a book 30% smaller and lighter, with more actual information inside. Oh, and about the content: the "Who's Who" section, which represents the bulk of the book, does not mention D. B. Updike or Francis Meynell! Here we have a problem of defining the field. If you are interested in graphics design, this book is definitely for you. If you care about TYPOGRAPHY, defined as the art of designing and manufacturing printed pages, well, go read something else. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

The Quick Brown Fox is Done Jumping
Carter's laid out the fonts by category:
Comic book, retro, calligraphic, block letter, roughish, display, pseudo cultural, grunge, script, technological, illustrated and kids stuff, type-label-stencil, ornamental, others sans, other serif. The organization is clean.

Instead of using the boring text sample that litters the letters sampled in font catalogs, "The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog," Carter gifts us with vignettes. The font Scotty Normal is shown with the sample, "Would I have been a PGA Champion?" This could be read as a stream-of-conscious novel if it weren't a font book. With each sample, he lists the name and which type house sells it. The sources for the fonts are listed at the end, including several listings for free fonts.

It is indispensable for a new designer, or a student of typography. For me, as someone who uses typography as a secondary part of my job, I found it a strong tool for familiarizing myself with font families. I'd say a seasoned might not find it as useful, as much of this kind of information can be found elsewhere.

Anthony Trendl

Good for browsing fonts, less so for identifying fonts.
This is a book of font samples. You won't find any information on making your own fonts or installing and using them on a computer. This book won't outline font history or anatomy. It won't tell you how to design with fonts. It's simply page after page of sentences or sentence snippets, each rendered in a different typeface. Each font's name and manufacturer is listed below each sample.

The book is great if you're a would-be font designer and are looking for inspiration. It's great if you're looking for a font to add pizzazz or personality to a graphic or flyer. It's also great for the casual typeface fan who simply enjoys looking at typefaces.

I agree with the author's statement in the book's introduction that he wanted a font book that "didn't have one mind-numbing sentence repeated time after time" throughout the book. While pangrams such as "The quick brown fox..." are standard and useful in that they (by definition) show every letter in the alphabet, it can become tedious to see the same words again and again. Having the fonts set in different sentences also adds interest to the look of the pages, and benefits those who wish to see how a font looks in a different combination of letters.

There are a few of problems with the book:
1. Fonts are listed by general category and then alphabetically by name. This makes it difficult and time-consuming to search for just one font if you don't know its name and have only a limited idea of what it looks like.

2. There just isn't enough sample text to truly get a good taste the font. The sentences and snippets probably average 8 words long and consist of a dozen different letters, which, in my opinion, is not enough to truly get a sense of the typeface.

Identifying fonts using this book will inevitably prove difficult. Each passage is unique and does not use every letter in the alphabet. So if you are relying in the distinct gap between the strokes of the letter G in a font to help you ID it, you may be out of luck if the sample text doesn't have words with G.

Ideally, font samples should display every letter twice (in capitals and lowercase forms), numbers, and punctuation characters. Granted, it's not realistic to expect that a book covering 5,000 fonts would be able to accomodate such thorough samples.

Of course, these are only problems if you're relying on the book to ID fonts for you. And in this book's defense, these weak points are common to a lot of font books.

On the whole, I found this book a welcome change from other font books that seem to think themselves pieces of art and are bent on showing me how modern and cool typography can be. If you just want a really big font book that will show you nothing but ton of samples, this is the book for you.

Hard to find fonts.
This book is creatively written, but has been really no use to me in finding specific fonts. I wish the book were laid out with the same sentence "The Quick Fox Jumped Over the Lazy Brown Dog" instead of a bunch of free-flowing sentences. I'm not able to find fonts in this book because I can't pinpoint a single letter. ... Read more

Book Description

Exquisite graphic design artifacts make up this unusual collection culled from the pages of type and typography books spanning four vintage decades.Dating from 1900 to 1940, most of the rare type specimens, layouts, marks, and decorations from the period have never been reprinted before, and will serve as inspiration and resource for practicing design professionals, students, and teachers of graphic design. The rich quality of the black-and-white reproductions will allow designers to scan and use the designs in their own work. ... Read more

Book Description

You don't have to master sophisticated, professional desktop publishing programs like PageMaker or QuarkXPress to get sophisticated, professional results. With Microsoft's Publisher 97 software and hands-on, practical guidance from Microsoft Publisher 97 For Dummies you can get started right away creating your own newsletters, brochures, calendars, resumes, stationery, and other documents. In Microsoft Publisher 97 For Dummies, desktop publishing experts Barrie Sosinsky, Christopher J. Benz, and Jim McCarter share their own secrets for designing attractive layouts, adding clip art without cheesing up your document, and, most importantly, preparing your document so that your service bureau or printer can output it without hassles or extra costs. ... Read more

Book Description

Typography 24 is the latest edition of the well-established graphic design annual of the Type Directors Club (TDC.) Devoted exclusively to typography, this book presents the 240 winning designs selected by the TDC from over 2,000 entries worldwide. Models of excellence and innovation, they encompass a variety of categories -- books, magazines, corporate identities, logotypes, stationery, annual reports, video & web graphics, and posters. This year's volume also features the 15 winners of the TDC's fifth annual typeface design competition, with each winning entry displayed in full color, accompanied by complete information about the designer, client, and type design.