Desktop Publishing Applications - Essay Example

Report Introduction Desktop publishing is the act of creating printable materials by using page layout software, such as Adobe Indesign and Windowspublisher. The main aim is to create appealing documents that can be printed and handed out to people as a form of education materials or purely for advertisement. Some of the most common uses for desktop publishing include creation of newsletters, brochures, magazines and periodicals and books. The planning and carrying out of desktop publishing is elaborate and it takes several steps to complete, which might overlap each other at one time or another. Aesthetic value and the choice of colors and images are of top importance when doing desktop publishing. Desktop Publishing Applications The application used was Adobe Indesign version 5.5. In order to edit some of the images, Adobe Photoshop had to be employed and it helped to put the images in the right shape and sizes. Page Creation The page size was A4 by default and the design was portrait. The choice of columns and rows was not really according to any convention but purely based on the text available and the other components like the images that had to be inserted. For the insertion of words in the page, text was imported from Microsoft Office Word and then had to be copied and pasted. All excess text was taken care of by text wrap either by default or in pop-up dialogue boxes. Dimensions Rather than breaking the pages down and planning everything anew, the existing dimension lines were optimally used, except when there were pages to be inserted and they were blank like before, and after the two-page spreads. Great caution was taken not to ruin the dynamic balance of the publication by ensuring that the text and pictures all fitted perfectly in the space provided. Rarely were the spaces outside the margins used and when text wrap did not work very well, some of the text had to be cut and pasted in the next text box. Choice of Colors The colors were chosen according to the organizations colors on the logo and in consideration that they had to go hand in hand with logos for harmony of the page display. Rather than confusing colors that are too contrasting, simple subdued hues were used and blended in to ensure that they are easy on the eye while being eye-catching at the same time. The shades of the color were chosen with great care to create a harmonious blend in which all the colors were just vaguely different from each other and so ensuring harmony while still making sure that the pages had a dynamic attractive quality and they were easy on the eyes. Text Fonts Liberal use of fonts was employed and no particular font was preferred to the rest. There was use of in-text quote texts to ensure that the main points that were being discussed were highlighted for the reader in order not to miss them. The text was well spaced in the pages to ensure it was readable rather than being cramped and tiring to look at. A standard size of font was used for the majority of the text except for the intext quotes that had to be bigger and had to be highlighted in a different color to make them noticeable and also to add to the aesthetic effect (Lake, 2008). Rulers It would be presumptuous to state that the rulers were liberally used because they were not. While striving to create a perfect production; care was also taken to produce something unique and not a bland publication just based on set rules and conditions. Where possible, the spaces and the lines were drawn using intuition and eye judgment to make an authentic production. The use of the preliminary black rule was largely not used because there was extensive use of preset templates and therefore the lines were just utilized as set by the templates. However, care was taken to ensure they fit into the profile being created and that they did not look mediocre in the pages. According to Cohen in the book titled Rules of Desktop Publishing, when drawing out rules one needs to be very keen. Simple math, the half of one point and the tenth of 0.5, and other problems alike must be quickly answered in the head in order to ensure optimum use of the availed rulers at the top of the pages. This will ensure that you do not draw rules which are too narrow or thin and that your publication will have a perfect balance. This is the most convenient way to ensure you have a perfect publication that will not let you down when you print. This is particularly essential when it comes to pamphlets and brochures (Cohen, 2012). Remember, when the lines get too thin, they disappear once the publication is printed and this is considered a backfired publication. One has to ensure that the publication lines are at least 0.05 wide and that they will come out clearly when they are printed. For online publishing that is not meant to be printed, this can be applied as well as because the thicker the line is the clearer it will be on the screen and even better when printed out. Straight Lines These are essential in desktop publishing and they were certainly followed to the letter. Good lines are drawn carefully in consideration of their location within the page. A lot of caution was exercised to create the lines so that they looked just so when the publication came out. This was not a problem with the pre-existing pages in the tem-plate but for the added pages that are usually blank, caution had to be taken to maintain a dynamic balance when doing the publication (Lake, 2008). The designing and modeling of the eight pages annual report was inspired by common newsletters whereby the publisher goes for the two page spread as ways of making the report have some continuity. The theme colors are in line with the organizations guidelines, as well as according to agreeability. Choice of Pictures The pictures are all full of people who are working together. Being that the theme is widening participation, the image of good communication and relations in accomplishing a task are well justified. The balloon creates an illusion of soaring high into the air. Being that the material is meant to encourage and to increase productivity and excellence, the illusion of flying high is well placed. The smiling faces are signs of happiness and satisfaction. Better than any flowers or other abstract images, the pictures of happy people are very drawing and will attract people to read the brochure or the newsletter. Most people use the faces of models or just people on the covers of their publications because they give a feeling of familiarity. Faces are drawing, especially if they have happy smiles in them. This aspect was grasped according to the quick and easy tips to transform the desktop publishing work you are doing to make it to convey a message. The best way to convey messages from your work is use of appropriate images and the right combination of colors, all of which were used to the maximum in this publication. All the images were used in accordance to the message and teach was inserted in relation to the messages being conveyed in that particular page. This was not very hard because the images were well chosen by the client. Images The images utilized were of high resolution. This is because they had to be so to avoid jaggies as they are called by Cohen in his book. These are rectangles that appear on top of the image if it has a very small resolution and does not fit in the space well enough. The images were predetermined by the client and so had to be very well utilized to create the kind of effect required. They were originating from a website and so there was no great trouble when applying them to the publication. This is because the resolution of website images is already low and so when one is using them they ca expect that they will fit perfectly into the publication. This is good as opposed to images from digital cameras that have to be extensively edited by using Photoshop in order to make any sense or to be used in any way. Scaling of images up and down was avoided at all costs because this could end up ruining the images. Getting the best images to fit the space was always a priority as opposed to changing the size of the space in order to fit the image in. This worked pretty well and a perfect design was created. Images were only scaled down if they could not be altered by doing so, for example with the logo that still remained the same even after scaling down. Sometimes one may experience problems with images from digital cameras. This is because they come in very large files and putting them into the publication may prove a bit of a problem. As such, one may consider editing the images using an application such as Adobe Photoshop. This will ensure that the images do not give you problems much later in the process of publishing because they might refuse to load or even completely backfire (Cohen, 2012). The Designing The process of publishing was accomplished using a variety of software. First of all, the text had to be processed and edited using Microsoft office word. It was then imported into the publisher and arranged in such a way that it was captivating and eye catching. In between the text, pictures are inserted. They not only act as page breakers but they also create an interest by reducing the monotony created by plain text. The pictures are well chosen to portray the context of what is being read and to act as further enhancing the message. The Layouts Great choice of layouts was exercised and this was after a considerable discussion with the instructors. All the comments of the reviews from the forum were taken into consideration tom produce a quality production that was above the average standards. In order to produce extraordinary work, a publisher should always seek second and third opinions all the while modifying his publication to perfection. This is because publications are really meant to be seen and looked at so if they are not perfectly made they might not convey the set message. As a principle, the last page in each publication was dedicated for the addresses. It also contained the company logo and the physical address of the company. This made the publication more authentic and real. All the work was done according to the directions of the clients and they were widely consulted to ensure the work was according to their mindset. Great care was taken to ensure they were satisfied with the publications regardless of who would be receiving them. The staff of the university was also of great help because they provided much needed guidance and critiqued the work well until it was done to perfection. Innovations Headings Because the publisher has column guides running form top to bottom, the only way to put headings was by inserting text boxes and creating the headings. As such the headings are not running in any uniform way rather they are randomly placed within the pages and the spontaneity brings out a very beautiful overall effect. This is also the same case with the pictures and the logos. When creating the pages, use of the two page spreads was very helpful because it helped create a sequence to the arrangement of the pages. For this application to take effect the documents had to be imported into the Microsoft Office publisher. After the completion, they were converted back to adobe indesign by the PUB2ID application which is used to convert Indesign to Microsoft publishers and vice versa. The combined use of adobe and Microsoft publisher was a revelation. Not only did it give a wider scope of options, it also made the work relatively easier to accomplish. Both these applications have their own good features but they also have limitations and combining them made these limitations to lessen. References Lake, S. (2008). Digital desktop publishing. Cohen, S. (2012). Best practices for desktop publishing. Read More