Customer Reviews

The Practical Guide to Information Design

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We've given this book the "EDITOR'S CHOICE" award in DTG Magazine and [...] because of its importance to designers and visual communicators.

As graphic design made the transition into information design, and culture evolved from the information age into the knowledge age there have been only a few books that rise to the status of milestones. The Practical Guide to Information Design is one of those milestone books that anyone in the visual communications field is obligated to read, learn and understand.

In this book, Ronnie guides the designer through the analytical processes necessary to dissect large quantities of information into logical "gulps", and then organize it so readers can clearly utilize the information towards the intended goals. Her writing combines strength with sensitivity, with references and supporting matter all along the way.

Fred Showker, Editor/Publisher, DTG Magazine

This is a great comprehensive introduction to a wide variety of related topics in information design. The in-depth analysis of examples, good and bad, will appeal to those with more ID experience, but the book seems to target an undergraduate audience without much ID experience. It's a good introduction to terms and concepts, and the author's tone is quite friendly, though, for my money, a bit too chatty, but beginners might find this comforting.

I would like to have seen a few more academic examples, such as slide design, but perhaps that just reflects my bias and not the needs of the average reader. Some of the analysis of examples, such as one of a community pool schedule, seem a bit belabored, as if they are the author's pet peeve projects. Again, this may provide benefit for users who can hang in there, and, at any rate, demonstrate the range of ID project examples.

I was especially pleased to read, in the author's discussion of usability, a refutation of Tufte's alleged dismissive attitude toward that word if not that concern in ID.

This is a great book for students. I purchased this text for a 400-level design class. Although it seems to repeat a lot of things you learn in your early type and design classes, its a great refresher, or good for those who slept thru design 101. The color examples are all helpful and the oranization of the book itself is good. For better insigth into information graphics, I would highly reccomend Edward Tufte's books.

Love this textbook! Very informative. Presented in clear and concise manner. Easy to follow and understand.