Reviews (1)

Concrete help for a power use of TeX
The book provides concrete help for a power use of TeX because, along with a systematic description of the TeX primitives it contains little, useful pieces of code I was looking from long years for. Maybe a little bit expensive ;-) ... Read more

Reviews (7)

The essential guide to classical book design
there is little to say other than the fact that this book is essential reading for all current and aspiring book designers. Tschichold's views seem limiting at first, but his knowledge is based on years of careful research into the basis of our written culture. many will choose to deviate from his instruction in small or great ways, but to practice the craft of book typography (or typography in general) without this information would be unwise.

A must read for any designer.
This collection of 23 essays on book design and typography should be read at least once by all typographers and students of design. Written over a period spanning 42 years, these essays cover many aspects of typography from paper color to tight typesetting to page proportions. A few of the ideas presented in the essays may indeed be outdated now (due mainly to the economic freedoms in modern digital design), but they are few and are still important from an historical persective. Folloowing the rules of design presented here will help ensure a well designed book that does not detract from the contents in any way and best serves to allow that content to speak for itself. Even if you want to always break the rules of design, isn't it better to understand why and how those rules came to be? Of interesting note is that Jan himself was in his youth a radical rulebreaker in his designs, but he learned when it was best to work inside and outside the rules to present the best effect, his design legacy shows how effective he was, and how influencial he remains to this day.

Interesting - but horribly old fashioned!
The views are a little old fashioned for me. Mr Tschichold is very much of the old school. He expounds many "rules" of book design, but most of these are his personal taste, and are presented in a high-handed, dictatorial, and condescending tone. There is no room whatsoever for creativity in book design in his view, instead all books must follow his design.

Useful for reminding us of some of the core principles of typography and book design, but if all publishers agreed with the author's views, the book world would be a very boring place. I would like to see a debate between Jan Tschichold and David Carson!!

A masterly exposition of typographic excellence
For those who work in design, or those who just love books, Tschichold's work is a must-have. It'll cause you to re-evaluate your own work - and it will also let you look at the books your reads with a new appreciation. The book itself is well-designed, too... as one might expect!

Changed the way I look at books.
I'll never look at a book or booklet again without judging it against the conventions set forth by Mr. Tschichold. Book size, type style, readability, binding, paper, text block placement, aesthetics and a dozen other minor details will not escape the scrutiny of my newfound expertise. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

An invaluable tool
There's a reason why Carl Dair's book has been continuously in print since it was first published in the '50s. It's one of the best introductions to the idea of contrast in design: contrast of size, contrast of weight, contrast of position, and so on. And it's visually inspiring itself, despite being a small, square, one- and two-color volume. Recent printings have unpleasantly tight bindings, but it's still a classic, and one of the best available tools for typographic design.

Nice introduction to type use
For some reason Canada seems to produce spectacular typographic writers. I'd never read this book before, but encountering it for CDN5.00 a few years back, I figured I may as well pick it up. Good decision. It's a very well-written book indeed. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Highly Recommended
Moen's writing, classes and lectures have been incredibly helpful to me throughout the years. His books are a comprehensive guide to layout and design and I recommend them to all of my colleagues.

It's comprehensive
I found this book useful, and I have been a designer for five years. I didn't have to use the first few chapters because it covers the basics, but I found many useful chapters in the book, especially those on typography, color and redesign. I have also used some of the material in designing sections.

Blah blah blah. . . .
Well, having met and been fortunate enough to drop one of Daryl Moen's classes in the past, I can safely say that this book cements his status as a classic example of "those who 'teach' because they can't 'do'."(Oh, sorry, was that sentence a bit too "cluttered"?)

Recommended
Moen's work is very readable, written in a very clear and precise style.Moen addresses most of the trends in modern newspaper layout and design, emphasizing visual journalism as a team effort. It is an excellentintroduction to newspaper layout and design, one I will recommend tostudents and fellow instructors.Coupled with his workbook, Layout andDesign should provide newspaper teams the theory and practical advice bywhich to build solid publications that tell the "story" the bestway possible, whether that be through text, photos or"infographics." ... Read more

Book Description

This unique reference-more than 10 years in the making-chronicles the history of type in America through the typefaces and biographies of 62 of the most influential type designers. With coverage of 334 typefaces, complete with samples from both obscure and known publications, this eye-popping reference reveals the contribution America has made to the world of type by Linn Boyd Benton, Morris Fuller Benton, Washington Ludlow, and other legendary designers. An invaluable addition to the bookshelf of every graphic designer, art director, or anyone else who works with type! ... Read more

Book Description

There has not been a book of this scope about graphic design and graphic design issues, as they apply to today's newspapers, for over a decade. Through in-depth, highly visual essays on the graphic evolution of some the world's most famous newspapers, this carefully complied survey examines how both technology and design have radically reshaped the look of the news over the last 15 years and continues to do so. ... Read more

Book Description

The Newspaper Designer's Handbook is a step by step guide to every aspect of newspaper design, from basic page layout to complex infographics. A lavishly illustrated tutorial for journalism students and professionals alike, The Newspaper Designer's Handbook is loaded with examples, advice, design ideas, and exercises that teach students how to manipulate the basic elements of design (photos, headlines, and text); create charts, maps, and diagrams; design attractive photo spreads; add effective, appealing sidebars to complex stories; create lively, engaging feature page designs; work with color; and redesign a newspaper. ... Read more

Reviews (24)

This is a great book that's fun to read
After several years as a reporter, I switch to teaching journalism. My duties included advising the student newspaper. It was obvious the students needed help with the design, but I didn't know a thing about the subject.

A friend in the business recommended this book. I bought it and used the exercises in the editing class. The students loved it and their enthusiasm showed in their assignments. This year, the book is a required text.

If you don't know anything about newspaper design, buy this book. The spiral binding means you can lay it on the desk next to your computer, and refer to it while you work.

Plus Harrower's wacky sense of humor makes the concepts easy to learn and remember.

It's great even for an experienced news designer
I'd had plenty of credible newspaper design experience before I bought this book. Problem is, the other page designers didn't. This book clearly explains and demonstrates all the things I've been trying to explain for months! It sums it all up nicely. Mr. Harrower could have gone more in depth into logo and flag design, however. The page and story design sections are impeccable, but I'd have liked to see him get more into the hardcore details of more creative graphic design.

Great for college journalism design class
I'm a college student and taking a class on editorial practices. Our instructor gave us these books to use because the school bookstore didn't get the ones he wanted in.

Almost all of the text has some graphic explanation. There wasn't a lot to read, which is great for a college student. The graphic examples make it very clear what the author is trying to tell you.

Another great thing about this book is that it is very easy to understand. All of the newspaper terms used have clear definitions, along with a diagram. It is in the first chapter, and a photocopy makes a great cheat-sheet when you are working on a layout of your own.

entertaining and factual
I love this book. I teach high school journalism and I use it all of the time as a resource for page designers. The chapters have a fun, lively voice and the examples are effective.

My students love Harrower, too. When I tell them to look something up in the Harrower book, no one complains.

I've even bought this book as a gift for graduating seniors!

Good text for students
I use this book to teach page design to my high school journalism and yearbook students. Middle school students could also benefit from this book. However, it is not limited to 6-12 education. Any person who needs to know about layout would be well served by this book.
Furthermore, the resources available on the CD-ROM are outstanding. Chapter quizzes, self tests, photo cropping examples, crossword puzzles, and more really make this book stand out. The disc also links to the McGraw-Hill website which offers even more content to supplement the book.
Overall, a terrific resource for journalists, designers, teachers, and students. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

An excellent design manual
There are many books on typography and design. This is one of the better, if not the best, that I have read. It is readable as well as informative and comprehensive. Each topic is presented on a two-page spread with visual examples. A good book for the beginner and a good reference for those with more experience who are looking for a competent addition to their library. ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (1)

Great Book on Typography Art Movements and Literature
This is a great book that talks about Typography in the early avant-garde age; Futurism, Dada, Cubism. It discusses the relationship between visual art, typography and poetry. It's a great reference on experimental typography. ... Read more

Book Description

Attractive sourcebook of copyright-free, immediately usable typefaces recalls old-fashioned print styles found on posters and broadsides. Includes eerie Monster Outline, Raindrops and Wilcox Initials; the glamorous Diamond Inlay, Startime, Golden Era and much more. Varied sizes; mostly tall, fat and bold shapes.
... Read more

Book Description

The Joy of TeX is the user-friendly guide to AMSTeX, a softwarepackage based on the computer typesetting language TeX.

AMSTeX was designed to simplify typesetting of mathematicalquantities, equations, and displays, and to format the outputaccording to any of various preset style specifications. Thissecond edition of Joy reflects the changes introduced on Version2.0 of the AMSTeX macro package.

The first two parts of the manual, "Starters" and "Main Courses",teach the reader how to typeset the kind of text and mathematicsone ordinarily encounters. "Sauces and Pickles", the thirdsection, treats more exotic problems and includes a 60-pagedictionary of special TeXniques. The manual also includesdescriptions of conventions of mathematical typography to helpthe novice technical typist. Appendices list handy summaries offrequently used and more esoteric symbols.

This manual is useful for technical typists as well as scientistswho prepare their own manuscripts. For the novice, exercisessprinkled generously throughout each chapter encourage thereader to sit down at a terminal and learn throughexperimentation. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Terrific Source for Learning AMS-TeX
Spivak's appealing and original book makes learning TeX much more fun than it really should be! If you are already familiar with some flavor of TeX, this is a great book for becoming proficient with AMS-TeX quickly. If not, then there is enough introductory material to make you familiar with the basics of TeX typesetting first. To me AMS-TeX is preferrable to LaTeX (commands are more suggestive and easier to use) and this book is the best AMS-TeX handbook available. ... Read more

Book Description

Computer technology has revolutionized the work of graphic designers and production professionals. To keep pace with those far-reaching changes, Production for Graphic Designers, Alan Pipes's classic text on print production enters the computer age. Completely revised and redesigned, this new edition covers the most up-to-date technological advances in graphic and print production, fully explaining all the standard prepress and printing processes including detailed coverage of computer direct-to-plate offset and small-run on-demand color xerography.

Production for Graphic Designers gives clearly written advice on preparing artwork for printers, examines the creative potential of typography in a digital environment, and provides comprehensive coverage of illustrations, layout and proofing - in both computerized and conventional settings. The author cuts through the technical jargon of downloading, HTML, search engines, and websites to show the exciting opportunities that going on-line offers designers. The author also gives practical advice on common problems by using "hot tips and cool tricks" boxes, as well as showcasing the work of the top pioneers in six different fields of graphic design with six "Design Trailblazer" spreads. This complete guide to computer age print production, Production for Graphic Designers is an essential purchase for graphic designers of all levels of expertise, users of direct-to-plate software, and anyone changing from old to new technology. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

An excellent resource for Graphics students.
This is the SECOND year I will be ordering this title for my Graphic Art Production students. I hope Mr. Pipes plans to keep this publication up to date with another edition. What I like about this book is manifold: the author's clear, intelligent and succinct language tops my list. My students and I both found his prose not just informative, but interesting. The information covers all the basic concerns of a designer involved in production for print and the internet (it gives a well fleshed-out overview of all our areas of study at least). The section on Typography is also quite thorough and far less ponderous than other commonly used Type texts. All the chapters lay down a perfect bridge to a full lecture. Students come to class comprehending the basics, thus adding to their ability to build on that knowledge. The bios throughout the book are of great interest and focus on contemorary designers of note. The attractive layout supports the notion of Grahic Design, not too common these days. I have viewed many texts in the related areas of Graphic Design and find this book to be a perfect example of what a text should be. Bravo Mr Pipes, and thank-you! I will be watching to see what you publish next.

Only four stars as this was written in '97.
I have used this as a text for a graphic art production class and have found it to be excellent in terms of its explanations. The diagrams are clear, the text concise, the content easily comprehended by my students. I really like the 'Design Trailblazers'...it maintains the heart of good design throughout the often clinical aspects of production. A nice representative selection as well...the students could relate. I await the next edition. ... Read more

Book Description

Originally published in two volumes, The Printing Press as an Agent of Change is now issued in a paperback edition containing both volumes. The work is a full-scale historical treatment of the advent of printing and its importance as an agent of change. Professor Eisenstein begins by examining the general implications of the shift from script to print, and goes on to examine its part in three of the major movements of early modern times - the Renaissance, the Reformation, and the rise of modern science. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Mind-blowing, but a tough slog for lay readers
This was a great book! It gave me a real appreciation for how foreign the medieval way of thought is from current -- because of the printing press. If you've read Walter Ong's _Orality and Literacy_, this is similarly mind-blowing.

I will caution, however, that this is a very academic book. She spends a fair amount of time refuting people who disagreed with her. It is also designed for historians. I'm no dummy, but some stuff went over my head. (If you know the following phrases and people, you'll be fine: Plutarch, incunabula, Tridentine, Rabelais, Marlowe, the _Digest_, Cujas.)

I gave it five stars because it was definitely worth slogging through, but I wish I had gotten the abridged version instead.

A superb introduction to the effect the printing press has h
We have come to forget that the introduction of the printing press by Gutenberg mattered, or we have come to assume that it directly led to the Protestant Reformation. Eisenstein wondered how true that was, and what other changes the press wrought in European society in the couple of hundred years after the press was introduced. Start with the concept of authorship--once books could be reproduced in quantity, authorship mattered. Then consider the question of alphabetization and indexing. Then think of what happens when travel writers describe native dress--people start believing the books and variations become more extreme to meet the printed word. That's just the beginning. Eisenstein's book is not just an incredible work, well written, about the effect on our culture of the printing press. It is also the sort of book that makes one realize how unimaginable and vast the influence of any invention can have on a society. This book is critical for media studies, history, printing, typography, just to better understand our own society, or for the pleasure of a good, thorough, read. ... Read more

Book Description

Twentieth-Century Type surveys the significant issues that have shaped the history and evolution of typography and graphic design, showing how current typographic trends are part of a continuously changing movement that can be plotted through the decades. Generously illustrated with over three hundred examples-more than two hundred of which are in color-the book charts significant topics including the arrival of mass-production; the birth of the art director; the appearance of the grid (and its subsequent rejection); the coming of non-print media; and the launch of the Macintosh computer and its ushering in of a new generation of designers enfranchised by digital technology. This revised edition of a fundamental work brings the story up to date with new text and images covering type on screen and, in particular, type for the internet. Combining an assessment of the culture of experimentation in contemporary typographic design alongside a clear presentation of the field's historical context, the book is an informed and accessible source for all students of design and for designers needing an expert overview of typography. ... Read more

Reviews (10)

An emotional expirience
This is not a regular book, you dont read it, you have to experience it emotionally, if you dont have the patience to do so, dont bother. But if you do, you are about to travel through a whole new media. never seen anything like it!

Dynamic experience
This document speaks and shouts volumes.

I don't believe that this book will be for everyone, but the designer who is more of an artist, who attempts at perceiving and articulating the world in personal, informative ways.. this is for you.

Ok.. the book is a little dated now, but if you want to be inspired to get back to your roots of cutting and pasting, this book will inspire.

This is all about taking the environment we live in, and creating dynamic visual experiences that intensify and define that space.. it's really quite brilliant where this came from.. and where they have gone (tomato) speaks volumes about the power of this approach to design.

Interested in skyscrapers...?
If you're interested in this book because you want to expand your skyscraper library, just leave this book wherever you find it. It's a sketch book, and I don't find the sketches interesting, insightfull or exciting in any way.

A wonderfull experiment
My first impresion of this book was very very bad. I thought to myself that there is no use for such a book and that it is an ugly, cheap looking and unattractive waste of paper and dollars. But after spending some time with this book and diving in to the layouts i realized that i was mistaken. There is indid something in this eperiment that is very interesting and good, and it has the distinct imprint of a personal work that to me is fascinating. good work!

Tomato did this??
After seeing the rave reviews on this book, I decided to order it. As a designer, I was extremely disappointed, there was not a shred of anything in this book that I found useful. If you're looking for ideas and inspiration, I wouldn't recommend this one, if you want coffee table clutter, go for it. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Great typeface ideas
I found this book in the College of Fine Arts at the University of New South Wales. It has lots of print media samples and lists the typefaces used. What to combine with what is always a question on my mind and thisbook answers that question or at least is a good starting point. ... Read more