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John McWade was out there on the bleeding edge of desktop publishing. (Along with Roger Parker, Dave Doty, Chuck Greene and some of the others.) He was the very first beta user of Aldus PageMaker, and founder of the first desktop publishing company, PageLab. Quite frankly, I'm amazed this book hasn't come along before now. McWade has been an industry pundit for years and years, and his Before & After magazine has been a favorite for thousands of graphic designers and publishers. I'm also amazed that the book isn't bigger. With all McWade's experience -- hundreds of monthly editions of his newsletter - he could probably fill a thousand pages.
McWade foocuses on clarity and simplicity. He maintains an obsessive insistence on approaching design not as mere decoration but as an essential form of communication.
If you're familiar with the newsletter Before & After you'll be thrilled with the book. If you're not familiar with it, boy are you in for a wonderful surprise!
McWade delivers a beautifully clear, cohesive, and elegant primer on page design. You'll learn by example how to design single-page and multi-page publications, brochures, and advertisements, applying the principles design professionals live by. You'll also learn how to choose the right font for your project, why one typeface works better than another, and lots more. Best of all, you'll discover how to think visually-transforming the images in your head into documents that communicate effectively on the page.
Combine solid design foundations with beautifully illustrated projects and you've got a winner.
If you're a designer, desktop publisher, or even business owner, writer or teacher -- do yourself a favor. Buy this book. You'll love it.
Before & After
by John McWade - List Price: $24.99, Price: $17.49 You Save: $7.50 (30%) Paperback: 195 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.39 x 9.08 x 6.96; Publisher: Peachpit Press; 1st edition (December 1, 2003)
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