The technological revolution of the last ten years has radically changed document designers' materials, processes, and tools of the trade. In short, choices about everything from typography and color to planning and production have changed -- even multiplied. The first new text for the college market in ten years, Kimball and Hawkins' Document Design assumes from the start that students are working online to produce a fuller range of print and online documents, designed and delivered differently in a digital world. Through practical, accessible advice and examples, Kimball and Hawkins lay out the array of elements and choices that document designers need to consider, all in the context of a rhetorical framework that allows students to see the effects of those choices. The only text to integrate a range of theoretical perspectives, visual perception, visual culture, and visual rhetoric, Document Design teaches students to think more critically about their own design decisions and to keep usability in mind every step of the way. True to its message, this artfully designed text practices the principles it teaches and is sure to become a reference that students will keep.

Outcomes of the Information Design Conference, held in Jan. 2004 at the University of Tilburg.

For courses in Document Design, Information Design, Visual Communication, Visual Rhetoric, or Desktop Publishing. Moving beyond a how-to book, Visual Composing: Document Design for Print and Digital Media explores the best practices in document design and why these practices work. Chapters consider the five criteria that contribute to effective visual composing (clarity, unity, usability, tone and aesthetics) and how these elements balance to form visually attractive and usable documents. Numerous examples illustrate relevant principles and exercises allow students to both evaluate and design documents. Covering both print and digital media, it presents the research behind best practices and gives students a more sophisticated understanding of why certain design principles are recommended.

User interfaces and supporting documentation are both supposed to help people when using a complex device. But often, these forms of support seem to come from different worlds. User interface designers, document designers, and researchers in both interface and document design share many goals, but are also separated by many barriers. In this book, user interface designers and documents designers from Microsoft Corporation and from Apple Computer, plus researchers from several universities try to bridge the gap between interface design and document design. They discuss opportunities for closer cooperation, and for more integrated and effective help for users of modern technology.

Analysis and design methods for document exchanges that combine and interconnect business processes and services on the Internet.

The first book in the industry tailored specifically for the entertainment professional, Vectorworks for Entertainment Design covers the ins and outs of Vectorworks software for lighting, scenic, and sound design. With a detailed look at the design process, from idea to development, to the documentation necessary for execution, Vectorworks for Entertainment Design will encourage you to create your own process and workflow through exercises that build on one another. The text stresses the process of developing an idea, visualizing it, and evolving it for presentation, documentation, or drafting. The author focuses on both the technical how-to and the art of design, giving you the tools you need to learn and then use the application professionally. Fully illustrated with step-by-step instructions, it contains inspirational work from Broadway, major regional companies, and non-theatrical, entertainment design.

In Advanced Game Design, pioneering game designer and instructor Michael Sellers situates game design practices in a strong theoretical framework of systems thinking, enabling designers to think more deeply and clearly about their work, so they can produce better, more engaging games for any device or platform. Sellers offers a deep unifying framework in which practical game design best practices and proven systems thinking theory reinforce each other, helping game designers understand what they are trying to accomplish and the best ways to achieve it. Drawing on 20+ years of experience designing games, launching game studios, and teaching game design, Sellers explains: What games are, and how systems thinking can help you think about them more clearly How to systematically promote engagement, interactivity, and fun What you can learn from MDA and other game design frameworks How to create gameplay and core loops How to design the entire player experience, and how to build game mechanics that work together to create that experience How to capture your game’s “big idea” and Unique Selling Proposition How to establish high-level and background design and translate it into detailed design How to build, playtest, and iterate early prototypes How to build your game design career in a field that keeps changing at breakneck speed