Magazine Layout, Typography and Graphic Design - Book Report/Review Example

There was a man at Los Angeles International Airport who was worried about missing a plane. He had no wrist watch and could not locate a clock, so he hurried up to a total stranger and said "'Scuse me could you give me the time please" The stranger smiled and said, "Sure." He set down the two large suitcases he was carrying and looked at the watch on his wrist. "It is exactly 5:09. The temperature outside is 73 degrees, and it is supposed to rain tonight. In London the sky is clear and the temperature is 38 degrees Celsius.

The barometer reading there is 29.14 and falling. And, let's see, in Singapore the sun is shining brightly. Oh, by the way, the moon should be full tonight here in Los Angeles, and-" You see, too much decorations can ruin the main purpose of an object. A watch is a watch is a watch. Its main purpose is to tell time and nothing more. Extra paraphernalia is supposed to enhance the specifications of the watch, not to overshadow nor understate its actual applications. Add on qualities should reinforce the usefulness of the watch as it is.

The drawback of the watch, that is, its energy source contained in rather large boxes was hidden by the fact that aside from its main task to tell time; it could also serve as a barometer, thermometer, a weather forecaster, etc. By incorporating such extra peripherals the downside of having such large batteries was overlooked, though such inconvenience was due actually to the embellishments themselves. If the watch has been designed simply, there could have been no large suitcases of power supply.

But then, the interest of the man could not have been aroused and he could not have been misled to believe that its all there is to be in the said watch. He could not have been tricked to pay more than what it seems. In this matter, simple design has its advantage over trimmings which makes an object ostentatiously decorated far more than it really is. Besides, having been decked out, the most important aspects were left unnoticed to the point of dangerous misleading of essential parts which are the ones which matter most.

This ambiguous aspect of information is also true with the printed media. Cluttered with graphics and decorations, the print could provide information relayed with different messages depending on the reader or the circumstance in which the printed material was published. For the same reason, Jan