BKDESIGN.RVW 950612 "The Non-Designer's Design Book", Robin Williams, 1994, 1-56609-159-4, U$14.95/C$20.95 %A Robin Williams %C 2414 6th St., Berkeley, CA 94710 %D 1994 %G 1-56609-159-4 %I Peachpit Press %O U$14.95/C$20.95 510-548-4393 fax: 510-548-5991 800-283-9444 416-447-5101 %O trish@peachpit.com gary@peachpit.com fax: 416-443-0948 markj@aw.com %P 144 %T "The Non-Designer's Design Book" With increasing access to evermore functional word processors and steadily more affordable laser printers has come proliferating attempts at desktop publishing. Books with that phrase in the title tend to show you some pedestrian, if not downright confusing, layout as a "before." Then, there is a flurry of menu choices and mouse clicks, followed by, "There, now. Isn't that better?" Well, of course, it is, but what were the choices that made it that way? Piles of church bulletins and club newsletters attest to the fact that not everyone has an eye for design. What Williams provides are rules. The book is divided roughly in half, looking first at design and then at typography. She introduces the concepts of contrast, repetition, alignment and proximity--and shows how and when these elements should be used. Got so many fonts that you don't have space on the hard disk for your documents? Wonderful--but do you know the structure of any of them? Which goes with what? As careful as Williams is, some of us old left-brainers never will get the "picture." But at least now, we have a fighting chance. copyright Robert M. Slade, 1995 BKDESIGN.RVW 950612 ====================== ROBERTS@decus.ca, RSlade@sfu.ca, Rob Slade at 1:153/733 RSlade@cyberstore.ca Frequent advice to Internet newcomers: State your business, avoid eye contact, leave quietly, and no one gets hurt. Author "Robert Slade's Guide to Computer Viruses" 0-387-94311-0/3-540-94311-0