Desktop Publishing

CS 121
Concepts of Computing II
Ron Wallace

Design Principles

KISS
Know your audience
Consistency with variety

Avoid templates

destroyer of creativity and originality

Consider the work of others

boring vs. chaos

get ideas ... dont steal or plagiarize

Ask for advice

proof by someone else & dont explain

8 Things to Consider
(Before You Begin)

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. bluecollar

education level
conservative vs.
liberal

ethnic background

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)
6 - Can I make the readers job

easier?
Important!

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lej.

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dir
ec

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Headline
organizati
on?

Color?
tte
nti
on

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
developers
clients

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 documents 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 Mtn Blue Mtn

Sans serif = clean look

Blue

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

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
Boldface

Adding Emphasis to Text

Italics
Underline
CAPITAL LETTERS

Reverse
Spot
Color Type

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 on audience and medium

subheads = 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
dont 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

New publication
Pasteboard
Rulers
Views
Master pages
Guides
Managing pages
Text boxes

Text formatting
Linking text boxes
Spell check
Graphics
Control palette
Other features