Software Essentials for Graphic Designers: Photoshop, Illustrator, Quark, Indesign, Quarkxpress, Dreamweaver, Flash, and Acrobat
by Mark Gatter
Book Summary Information
Author: Mark GatterEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2006-11-28
ISBN: 0300118007
Number of pages: 240
Publisher: Yale University Press
Book Reviews of Software Essentials for Graphic Designers: Photoshop, Illustrator, Quark, Indesign, Quarkxpress, Dreamweaver, Flash, and Acrobat
Book Review: More people should know about this book
Summary: 5 Stars
Many software manuals are poorly designed or written. Many attempt to cover every obscure function of a program, an approach that is outmoded with extensive online help resources. Worse yet, many teach through step-by-step execution of lifeless projects that may teach the software but also exemplify bad design.
This book takes a sane and refreshing approach: teach the essentials only, but teach them well and clearly. Being a book about design software, the fact that it is well-designed teaches by example (something which is utterly lacking in the design software manual marketplace.)
Gatter makes the sophisticated Adobe Creative Suite applications (and Quark Xpress) accessible to anyone, not just designers. Many designers use the same basic 20% of an application's functionality over and over. That is the focus of this book. Yes, it covers Photoshop and Illustrator and InDesign, etc in about 50 pages each and yes that is enough to get anyone comfortable with the applications. If you need to know more there are many advanced books out there.
This is not a dumbed-down instruction manual. It is a carefully focused one.
Good structure + good writing + good examples + good design + brevity = a great book.
General Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- Engineering
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Medicine
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in General Books
Collage Techniques: A Guide for Artists and Illustratorsby Gerald Brommer
Watson-Guptill; Published: 1994-08-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $15.86
Price in other shops:
The Business Side of Creativity: The Complete Guide for Running a Graphic Design or Communications Businessby Cameron S. Foote
W. W. Norton & Company; Published: 2002-06; Paperback; Book
Best price: $13.32
Price in other shops:
Barlowe's Infernoby Wayne Barlowe
Morpheus International; Published: 1998-12-08; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $25.22
Sagmeister: Made You Lookby Peter Hall
Thames & Hudson; Published: 2001-03-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $301.00
Barlowe's Guide to Extraterrestrialsby Wayne Douglas Barlowe, Beth Meacham, Ian Summers
San Val; Published: 1987-10; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $49.76
World of the Dark Crystalby Brian Froud, J. J. Llewelyn
Alfred A. Knopf; Published: 1982-10; Hardcover; Book
Price in other shops:
Sacred Mirrors: The Visionary Art of Alex Greyby Alex Grey
Inner Traditions; Published: 1990-09-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $21.33
Price in other shops:
The Book of Alternative Photographic Processesby Christopher James
Delmar Cengage Learning; Published: 2008-02-12; Paperback; Book
Best price: $65.95
Price in other shops:
Art of Modern Rock: The Poster Explosionby Paul Grushkin, Dennis King
Chronicle Books; Published: 2004-11-04; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $38.20
Price in other shops:
An Illustrated Life: Drawing Inspiration from the Private Sketchbooks of Artists, Illustrators and Designersby Danny Gregory
How; Published: 2008-12-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $12.70
Price in other shops:
Similar Books and other products
Design Essential Index (Kit)by Jim Krause
How; Published: 2007-12-15; Paperback; Book
Best price: $12.60
Price in other shops:
Non-Designer's Design Book, The (3rd Edition) (Non Designer's Design Book)by Robin Williams
Peachpit Press; Published: 2008-02-22; Paperback; Book
Best price: $19.99
Price in other shops:
Thinking with Type: A Critical Guide for Designers, Writers, Editors, & Students (Design Briefs)by Ellen Lupton
Princeton Architectural Press; Published: 2004-09-09; Paperback; Book
Best price: $13.84
Price in other shops:
Graphic Design Solutions, Third Editionby Robin Landa
Delmar Cengage Learning; Published: 2005-04-27; Paperback; Book
Best price: $60.85
Price in other shops:
InDesign CS3 for Macintosh and Windows (Visual QuickStart Guide)by Sandee Cohen
Peachpit Press; Published: 2007-10-18; Paperback; Book
Best price: $17.88
Price in other shops:
Typography Workbook: A Real-World Guide to Using Type in Graphic Designby Timothy Samara
Rockport Publishers; Published: 2006-11-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $15.68
Price in other shops:
Layout Workbook: A Real-World Guide to Building Pages in Graphic Designby Kristin Cullen
Rockport Publishers; Published: 2007-05-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $15.68
Price in other shops:
How To Be a Graphic Designer Without Losing Your Soulby Adrian Shaughnessy
Princeton Architectural Press; Published: 2005-09-22; Paperback; Book
Best price: $11.38
Price in other shops:
Architectural Graphicsby Francis D. K. Ching
Wiley; Published: 2002-06-20; Paperback; Book
Best price: $24.05
Price in other shops:
Design Elements: A Graphic Style Manualby Timothy Samara
Rockport Publishers; Published: 2007-04-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $18.55
Price in other shops: