Transcript Desktop Publishing - BMCC Dept. of Math & CS

Desktop Publishing
CS 121
Concepts of Computing II
Ron Wallace
Design Principles
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KISS
Know your audience
Consistency with variety
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Avoid templates
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destroyer of creativity and originality
Consider the work of others
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boring vs. chaos
get ideas ... don’t steal or plagiarize
Ask for advice
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proof by someone else & don’t explain
8 Things to Consider
(Before You Begin)
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1 - How much time?
get the job done on time
enhance later

time?
 money?

8 Things to Consider
(Before You Begin)
2
- Who is the audience?
age
serious vs. humorous
reading level
white-collar vs. blue-collar
education level
ethnic background
conservative vs. liberal
understanding of terminology
Two Real Life Examples:
- Gerber
- General Motors
8 Things to Consider
(Before You Begin)
3
- Why are they reading this?
Personal Interest
Need for Information
Required Reading
Casual Browsing
8 Things to Consider
(Before You Begin)
4
- How will they get this?
Direct Mail
Bulletin Board
Brochure Rack
Table or Counter
Person to Person
8 Things to Consider
(Before You Begin)
5
- What is our/their image?
fun vs. serious
young vs. mature
business vs. pleasure
contemporary vs. traditional
8 Things to Consider
(Before You Begin)
- Can I make the reader’s job
easier?
6
Color?
Important!
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Headline
organization
?
Type …
READABILITY
8 Things to Consider
(Before You Begin)
7
- Are there limitations?
Always !
budget
time
resources
medium (type of paper)
size
•dimensions of the
page
•number of pages
personal preferences
•developer’s
•client’s
8 Things to Consider
(Before You Begin)
8
- Is reader feedback desired?
contact information
•address
•phone
•email
•web site
coupons
forms
surveys
8 Things to Consider
(Before You Begin)
 Time
 Image
 Audience
 Ease
of Reading
 Reader Motivation
 Limitations
 Method of Delivery  Feedback
Planning Your Layout
 “Dummy”
mock-ups
 Several
 Focal
point
 Normal eye movement
 Optical VS geometric center
Think!
Type...
 Must
be legible and readable!
Legibility
= How easily a reader can
decipher the letters on the page.
 Readability = The document’s overall
appearance.
Fonts
 Dictionary Definition
“A complete set of type of one size and face.”
 Includes Three Characteristics
typeface (shape of letters)
style (attributes)
size (height)
Types of Typefaces

Serif = easy to read blocks of text
Blue

Sans serif = clean look
Blue

Mtn … Blue Mtn
Mtn
Novelty = special feeling/affect
Blue
Mtn
 Symbol
= non-alphanumeric
Appropriate Typeface?
Which of the following would be
better for a truck stop advertisement?
Good Food
Good Food
Good Prices
Good Prices
Good Services
Good Services
How Many Typefaces?
One gives consistent look.
 Two complementary typefaces is
common
 Three is the max!
 More makes the publication to
busy and confusing.

Style …
Adding Emphasis to Text
 Boldface
 Italics
 Underline
 CAPITAL LETTERS
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Reverse Type
 Spot Color
Size of Type
 Measured
in Points (72 pts = 1”)
 Includes:
highest
letter
lowest descender
space between lines
 most
programs add more to space the lines (leading)
Other Type Attributes
 baseline
x
height
 ascenders (like t and b)
 descenders (like y and g)
 pitch
 characters/inch
horizontally
 for monospaced fonts only
Type Sizes in a Publication
 body
(base size) = x points
dependent
 subheads
on audience and medium
= x + 2 points
 headlines = 2(x+2) + ? points
 captions = x-1 or x-2
Type: Other Considerations
Line spacing (leading)
 Contrast w/ background
 Margins (white space)
 Captions

 don’t
insult reader
 verify names
 list names left to right
 fit the graphic
Getting and Focusing
Readers’ Attention
White space
 Sidebars
 Pull quotes
 Boxes
 Rules

Page 1 of 3
Layout Mistakes
Poor column spacing
 Claustrophobic pages
 Whispering headlines
 Misaligned elements
 Improperly positioned headlines

Page 2 of 3
Layout Mistakes
Box-itis
 Rule-itis
 Too much copy
 Rotated type
 1/2” indents

 use
1 em space
 about equal to the point size
 about 2 spaces
NO
Page 3 of 3
Layout Mistakes
Excessive hyphenation
 Too many fonts & sizes
 Unnecessary special affects
 Double returns and spaces

 use

paragraph spacing
Hyphens for bullets
 Alt-8
(Win) or Opt-8 (Mac)
WP vs. DTP: Similarities
Create, edit, store, & print
documents / publications
 Character & paragraph formatting
 Graphics & other objects


inline & text wrap
WP vs. DTP: Differences
Document (WP) vs. page (DTP)
 Margins (WP) vs. guides (DTP)
 Paragraphs in margins/columns
(WP) vs. in text boxes (DTP)
 Single layered (WP) vs. multiple
layered objects (DTP)

DTP Basics in PageMaker
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New publication
Pasteboard
Rulers
Views
Master pages
Guides
Managing pages
Text boxes
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Text formatting
Linking text boxes
Spell check
Graphics
Control palette
Other features