Fireworks MX Zero to Hero [Illustrated] [Paperback]

Joyce J. Evans (Author), Charles E. Brown (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 2002

Fireworks MX: From Zero To Hero is intended for the majority of readers who don't need to be told when to jump, or ask how high. If you’re new to Fireworks MX, this book will provide you with a fast learning curve to get you swiftly up to speed, and progressing towards the creativity you want to achieve; and if you already have some familiarity with any version of Fireworks, it'll provide many, many exercises and case studies that will extend your knowledge of techniques, tips, and tricks. In addition, the book serves as a handy reference to a reader of any level.

Structured in 3 distinctive sections, the aim of this book is to provide as much knowledge and as many skills and techniques as can be fitted into 450 pages.

Section One: Fireworks MX Primer. This section will get you familiar with the major tools and functionality of Fireworks MX, by example, and simple-to-understand explanation, and in fewer than 200 pages.

Section Two: Projects. Here you’re introduced to case studies and examples that will give you practical, hands-on experience and provide exposure to the more complex tools in Fireworks MX - learning by experience. As well as practicing your new found skills, this is also the place where you’ll learn many tips and tricks of the trade.

Section Three: Real-World. In this section we look at Fireworks MX as it’s used in the real world of professional design – not just as a standalone application, but as part of the formation of the designers creative toolbox.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Joyce J. Evans, with experience in teaching, tutorial development, and website design gleaned in over 10 years of experience, is one of the most recognizable names in web graphics educational material. Joyce has published principally on Fireworks, and also on Dreamweaver, and on web design.

Charles E Brown transferred his creative skills from music - he has a doctorate in music and studied with Igor Stravinsky - to computers in 1981. Charles does web designs for major corporations, is a busy trainer conducting nearly 100 workshops per year, and is a frequent speaker at conferences.

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Friends of Ed; illustrated edition edition (October 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1904344062
• ISBN-13: 978-1904344063
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 7.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,760,772 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #76 in Books > Computers & Technology > Graphic Design > Web Design > Fireworks

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fireworks MX - From Zero to 5 Stars!..., December 1, 2002

By 

Nicholas Brudnicki (Toronto, Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fireworks MX Zero to Hero (Paperback)

If you are new to Fireworks or a seasoned veteran, this book is a must have. It starts you off slowly with an introduction to web graphics in general and then introduces you to the Fireworks MX interface. Then you get to work with the tools of the trade and create some simple content to help reinforce the points you learned. See the tools in action!!

The book is very well paced, moving you along very quickly. I am an intermediate user and found out so many things that I never knew. Then on to the "Hero" section of the book where you work with vectors to create a simple tabbed folder, making decorative ornaments and my favourite chapter - "Spectacular Text Effects". 3D text, metal text, filling text with an image are just a few of the great text effects highlighted. From here you move on to colour enhancements andretouching photos. And then you also get to create some interface - with metallic buttons and pop up menus, hotspots, disjointed rollovers and much more. Simply amazing tutorials!!

The final 2 chapters cover the "Super Hero" status with topics including using extensions with Fireworks MX, automation tools, creating your own extensions, and finally integrating Fireworks MX with Dreamweaver MX. This was a real eye opener for me. Some great information here for a productive work flow using these two programs.

The techniques taught in this book are simple yet remarkably stunning!! Lots of really worthwhile tips covering all aspects of web images using Fireworks. There is a colour section in the book with samples of some of the projects built along the way. All of the excercise files can be downloaded from the Friends of Ed website. All in all, a terrific book full of great tips, techniques and excercises. Joyce's writing style is a joy to read and follow. A great addition to anyone's reference book arsenal!!

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Doing some web designing? This will keep your work shining!, November 4, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Fireworks MX Zero to Hero (Paperback)

This book is about a program, Fireworks MX, that assists in web design. It is incredibly comprehensive and stays on topic to give maximum help. In creating a site myself, this book brought to my attention many tactics I was totally unaware of. It helped make what would have been an ordinary site, into an outstanding project. I highly reccommend this book if you want to learn to take web design to a whole new level. This book can glorify a project of your's, that might otherwise have been overlooked. It's easy to follow and is interesting in it's step by step process.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fireworks to light up your web sites, November 14, 2002

By 

David Powers (London, United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fireworks MX Zero to Hero (Paperback)

As the title suggests, this is mainly aimed at newcomers to Fireworks MX, but even as someone who has used this graphics program since v3, I found the "Zero" section taught me a lot about functions I never knew were there. The "Hero" section (written by veteran tutorial writer Joyce Evans) then puts everything to work with some simple, but stunning techniques. In contrast to Fireworks MX Magic (New Riders), which Joyce also contributed a couple of chapters to, the emphasis here is not on big, set-piece projects, but on techniques you are likely to use over and over again - creating highlights, metallic buttons, tabbed menu buttons, enhancing and retouching photographs.
Why only 4 stars? The book's in black and white, with only a small section in colour, which really doesn't do justice to the contents. Still, it's very reasonably priced, and good value for money.