PART I

Introducing InDesign

Or how to make your life easier

PART II

Design Principles

Or why your paper

is not the placemat
PART III

Workflow

Or why the computer

still needs a pencil to work

Designing for Publications

Layout Methods and Principles

thinking
within
the box

0:

Preliminary Activity
With the given front pages, follow the directions
below and take note of the details:

Ground Zero

1. Without reading the texts, encircle and number

the first five things that your eyes notice on every
page. Try to draw arrows following the movement
of your eyes.
2. According to the first step, establish the main
focal point on the page. Is it the same or is it
different from the banner story?
3. Among the papers, choose one which is appeals
most to you. Why does it catch your attention?
4. What is the predominant color in every page?
How is it used in the page?
4. Discern the major sections (groupings) in the
page. How are they separated from each other?
5. What are the main visuals of each page? What
is its appeal? Is it dramatic or informative? How
relevant is it as a message on its own, and in
relation to the tone of the whole page?
7. Observe the choice of fonts in the page that you
think is the most readable. How many fonts were
used in that page?

0:

Premise and Problems

The reader is not obligated

to read your content.
If it doesnt catch their attention within the first five seconds of looking
at it, they wont give the material a second look. Theyre not your captive
audience. Theyre a bunch of disinterested louts. Shame, shame, shame.

Content makes a difference.

A really, really small difference.
Yes, they will read it if they can relate to the content, but what if theyre not?
What if they dont know that they can relate to it? What if the world is ending
but its in fine print? The brain is the quivering jelly center of thoughts but
it is not a sensory organ, the troll.

Its your problem, not theirs.

The burden of proof is on the non-believer, you said?
Sorry, I wasnt listening. I was looking at some cute cat pictures.

I:

10

PART I

Introducing InDesign
Or how to make
your life easier

But, why InDesign?

Because its gray, its has a hundred buttons,
and its clunky?

Yes, but its integrative

and layout-specific.
Because I can do it on Microsoft Word?

Yes, but its not

software-compatible
and press-ready.
(And dont do that. Just, no.)

And because InDesign is built

with your new best friend in mind.

THE GRID

Your new best friend.

I:
PART I

InDesign Episodes

A New Hope.
The Curse of 100 Tools.
A Guide to the Swiss.
The Master.
Everything in its own Place.
Youre my Type.
Fancy That.
Interlude
The X-Listers.
Heigh Ho!

This page was designed with

THE GRID

Your new best friend.

11

I:

A New Hope

Creating a new document

12

I:

THE CURSE OF 100 TOOLS

13

14
I:

A Guide to the Swiss

A Guide to the Swiss

column

row

margin
flowline
gutter

I:

Noted in Red

The center
is dead.

White is better
than gray.

Listen to your eyes.

16

II:

PART II

Design Principles

Or why your paper

is not the placemat

17

II:

Visual Elements

image
text
graphics

space

18

II:

visual

19

content

hierarchy
Establish the dominant.
Roll the eyes in a good way.
Breaking up is understandable.

II:

compositional factors
color
rhythm
tension
quantity
orientation
graphic elements

20

II:

21

legibility + personality

typography
serif
sans
serif

The quick brown fox jumped over a lazy dog.

The quick brown fox jumped over a lazy dog.
The quick brown fox jumped over a lazy dog.
The quick brown fox jumped over a lazy dog.
The quick brown fox jumped over a lazy dog.
The quick brown fox jumped over a lazy dog.
The quick brown fox jumped over a lazy dog.
The quick brown fox jumped over a lazy dog.
The quick brown fox jumped over a lazy dog.
The quick brown fox jumped over a lazy dog.
The quick brown fox jumped over a lazy dog.
The quick brown fox jumped over a lazy dog.

II:

22

Noted in Red

Use two to three

fonts only per
publication.

Use fonts with

families for
variation.

No double spacing
and tabbing.

In columns, kern
limit is -20 to +20,
and base the
leading on the
font size (10/10).

Balance line
length with font
size. Try not to
exceed more than
75 characters/line.

Headlines only in
caps-small caps.
Dont scream.

Hyphenate when
justified. Dont
when aligned.

No underlines,
minimize use of
capitals, bold and
italics (always
within the family).
And no excessive
punctuations.
Please.
PLEASE???!!!!

Look for rivers, widows, orphans,

and grammatical errors especially in
headlines.

II:

23

Saving the day.

Preflight.
Package.
Export.
Backup.

Checklist
Are all images correctly
linked?
Are all images in CMYK or
Grayscale?
Are there no missing fonts?
Are the margins clean, or
bleeding, if needed?
Is the sectioning correct?
Is the page numbering
correct or even?

Is everything legible and

has hierarchy?