Customer Reviews

Adobe Creative Suite 4 Design Premium All-in-One For Dummies

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I have no trouble buying a book for Dummies when it come to my lack of skills with the Adobe design programs and am happy to take any help I can get. And while this all-in-one book covers all of the programs from InDesign CS4 to Photoshop CS4 to Dreamweaver CS4 to Flash CS4, it is at least somewhat helpful in navigating the programs. Unfortunately, I run into the same problem in this text as I have with others available online- a lack of adequate information to tell me if this is an appropriate guide to one who is new to the Adobe programs. They all tout themselves as the perfect tool for beginners, but the reverse is usually true. Either that or I am an unredeemable dummy.

I find that if I read carefully through the chapters of each program I am interested in, I can understand the basic nature of that program. But when I want to do specific tasks, I can not get that information. For example, when I wanted to draw a line across the top of a page, I had to use the right terminology- a "line" is a "stroke". But I had no way to know that until informed by a friend who uses an earlier version of InDesign. Now I want to isolate various objects in a picture to add to a new document and hope I have found the proper page and program to do that with my Dummy book.

Chapter headings and index appear to address most issues, but the finer points of design are unavailable to me without the appropriate terminology and how various applications are applied. I have an extensive design background with a twenty-year old vocabulary and these programs are written in a new language. I have the most trouble navigating from one task to another, applying tools in the proper manner, going from Index to chapter in hopes of solutions. Sometimes I find them, sometimes I don't. At least this book helps me navigate the logic behind the programs if not the nuances. I welcome any information about helpful texts for beginners from those conversant with these programs, especially InDesign CS4. Luan Gaines/2009.

This book has done wonders for me so far...I had to purchase the Creative Suite Software for a college course I am taking, and this book has turned out to be a better learning companion than my classroom materials!

Pros: Good reference book. Has a lot of information in it that helped me learn a few things about the program.

Cons: Needs a disk shipped with it that provides the same info as they use in they're lessons. With out any information given from them its a little hard to fallow along and figure out how to do it the way they do it.

Over all: Good for people who know a bit about how to use the programs all ready or how to wright/type code for web designing or know a bit about how to draw for illustrator. In my honest opinion, I think it would be a lot better if it was like the Head First Labs books where they provide practice material, instead of just presuming u have all the materials needed to do their exercises. Again this is just my honest opinion on it.

The book is a large index of how to's whne you go to look things up...but it still assumes a base of Adobe product knowledge that Dummies like me just don't have. In the end one just has to get cracking with the software on trial and error.

Well prior to buying this book and the Digital Classroom equivalent I had spent a month following online user tutorials on youtube for free. I picked up the respective books hoping they would reveal many of the more comprehensive features and stronger integration between the CS4 programs. This assumption was wrong, perhaps because I'm already familiar with many of the programs or because the user videos where so good but I soon realized that these books felt more like a concentration for information I'd already found at some point. I use both books more as references than as reads for tutorials and what not. They both lack the comprehensive tricks you need to make a truelly great website and other content so That also saddened me. For example this book doesn't show you how to build a custom gallery from scratch for a website so that you display images in a truely classy fashion, nor does it mention iframe and how to use it. The integration of fireworks and dreamweaver also felt over looked and under explained. If you are a novice and I mean a novice with no love for sifting through youtube tutorials and what not then I do recommend this book to you. But with my experience and a little know how I had surpassed the content of these books before they were ever delivered to me. I will echo other peoples thoughts in saying there is more information in this book that the digital classroom, but it isn't structured for a fluid tutorial or anything.

I wanted more information on IN-design and was disapointed in the content. It has a lot of information on CS4 but does assume that you already know alot. It is not a book for beginners.

CS4 Design Premium for Dummies is VERY helpful in guiding you along in learning each of the programs in the suite. I totally recommend this book!

I love these books. They cover all you need to get started with just about anything. This one is thick and covers a lot of material.