Customer Reviews

InDesign Type: Professional Typography with Adobe InDesign CS2

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I give this book five stars because:

1. Specific Focus
As a writer, editor, and reader of many graphic arts technology books I have to admit I'm weary of most of the monolithic, 1,000+ page volumes that try to cover everything under the sun. These books are important to the industry as they serve as important reference resources, but most folks don't sit down and actually read those books. On the other hand, lots of designers can spend a few afternoons reading a small and focused book like this.

2. Not Just About Software
This book is definitely about setting type with InDesign, but it's much more than a software book. I'd say this book is mostly about typography and the remainder is how to achieve that with software. It's a lot of why with a bit of how instead of a lot of how with a bit of why.

3. History and Craft
It's helpful for a designer to be historically versed in their craft, especially when it comes to typography. It's not a history book, but Nigel does a good job of explaining the context, purpose, techniques of good type. Good type is a true craft that is simultaneously readable, beautiful, and invisible.

I am a recent graduate from a design school, and I am constantly reading design books and books on how to navigate through software applications. I've read several InDesign books on how to use the entire program, however if you are looking to really learn how to control type rather than have a program control you and what you do with your type, buy this book. It is 262 pages of just handling pure typography, from formatting with paragraph and character styles to all the different techniques on how to cope with troublesome type that your typography teachers never told you about (this includes nonbreaking spaces, discretionary hyphens, several ways to hang puctuation, breaking columns and pages, how to make your drop caps look delicious, kerning, leading, tracking, traditional typography rules and when to break them, rules in paragraph formatting and how to make them look great, and so much more I can't begin to elaborate on). I really enjoy design, but most of all I love typography and I strongly feel that this book will be of great value to anyone who wants to improve on how they set type regardless if you are a student or a professional. Again it is definitely worth it's price and is an amazing book for any designer.

I bought this book thinking that it would be a simple guide to the typographical controls within InDesign CS2. It IS that, certainly enough, but it surprised me no end by being one of the best books I have (and I have a LOT) on thinking with type, using type correctly, and how to be a better designer through type usage. Even if you DON'T have InDesign, there is a tremendous amount of knowledge to be assimilated here on the finer points of good typography. An excellent resource, worth twice its price.

One of the greatest educational and instructional books I've read since Indesign One on One. This book literally teaches you the good, the bad, and the ugly of typography using Indesign.
Subjects include:
-Basics
-Character Basics
-Leading, Kerning, Tracking
-Special Characters
-Opentype
-Justification
-Paragraphs
-Drop Caps
-Hyphens
-Tables
-Styles
-Layout
& -Effects
Nigel uses great humor but not too much to get some points accross and does a great job of relating certain topics to realiy, making them very easy to understand. If you are studying or want to learn more about typography, this is a wonderful book that you will not put down. Its a quick read and very informative. Highly Recommended

I found this book to be an excellent resource for anyone using text in InDesign CS2. The layout was clear and the content very informative. To connect the examples to the text was confusing at times, and because the numbering was incorrect in some places, I found myself second-guessing when I was not 100% clear about what was going on.

I really like this book. It is almost impossible to find a book on typography that actually teaches the practicalities of using InDesign to produce functional typography. This is a very good book and an excellent read. The content still works well for CS3 and CS4.

I use it in all my typography coursework.

I bought this book because I am curious to learn about typography and what InDesign can do. This book is a tremendous help; each page is a revelation. The explanations are clear yet brief. Each is followed by examples that reinforce what was just explained. The most invaluable insight is that the book is a methodical coverage of what to look for and how to make decisions. To me, this is invaluable. There are many books that describe how to use the menus. My gap was on how to know what settings to change and why. As a modern typography book, it also shows some screen shots from InDesign to relate the principles to their application. Highly recommended.

This is a very helpful book!!! I am using it for my Typography 1 class in college and it is making my projects so much easier because of the helpful hints and shortcuts...it is one of the best resources that I have or could ask for!

I bought it, I like it, I use it, it's worth it. Have read it cover to cover twice. But since this is a book about typography, I can't resist pointing out errors in that vein.

1. There is no example C with figure 7.9, page 92.
2. There is a double-hyphen on page 157 in violation of a guideline on page 158.
3. A spell check would have caught the "areis" on page 212.
4. The hyphenation break on "conservation" violates the very guideline being stated on page 157.

There are other typos, but let me move on. Biggest weakness: the book stops abruptly on p. 262. How about finishing with a wrap-up chapter of some kind? This could include summary-level checklists. Even so, I would still buy it again.

This is just what I was looking for, background, clear explainations, and detailed instruction. I would look forward to any future publications by this author.