At Biblioso, art and design are functions of the desktop publishing process. Artists and designers maximize the effectiveness and attractiveness of the content. Artists create professional graphics, illustrations, and other graphical elements such as corporate logos, charts, diagrams, or photos in electronic format, Designers arrange the various elements of the content, including text and text formatting, white spaces, borders, boxes, shadows, artwork, and screenshots, so that the information is presented in print and electronically in an intuitive, consistent, and easily understandable way. Designers can focus on a specific area, such as corporate design (logos, brochures, and product packaging), publication design (books and magazines), and website design.
Art and design can significantly enhance the effectiveness of conveying information. In his book, Information Visualization: Perception for Design (Elsevier Science & Technology Books) the author Colin Ware suggests that illustrations are a better choice than text for showing structural relationships and for providing detail and appearance while text is a better choice for explaining abstract concepts, procedural information, and program logic. Because readers remember graphical information generally better than textual information, images can be used to improve retention.
Among other things, you can use the following graphical elements to increase the effectiveness and attractiveness of information:
- Photos Increase effectiveness of reports or documentation about events, individuals or groups of people, because photos provide realism and authenticity.
- Illustrations Increase effectiveness of factual information, because illustrations induce thoughts, can describe complex scenarios, and open up opportunities for interpretation.
- Screenshots Increase effectiveness of procedural information in computer manuals because screenshots depict user interface elements in a particular processing or configuration stage.
- Charts Increase effectiveness of business reports because charts translate numbers into images.
- Diagrams Increase effectiveness of organizational concepts and procedural information because diagrams highlight sequences and relationships.
- Maps Increase effectiveness of corporate brochures that show the location of offices or factory buildings because maps describe locations in simplified form.
In a typical documentation project, the author creates the first draft of the artwork using an application of his or her choice. A graphics artist then turns these first drafts into professional artwork using image-editing and image-rendering software such as Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Discreet 3D Studio, and Alias Maya. Finally, authors, editors, and proofreaders review the finished artwork to ensure its correctness.
| In addition to creating professional artwork in individual projects, Biblioso enables you to create global artwork libraries. Reusing artwork with or without modification or in combination with other artwork in all documentation from your organization lowers desktop publishing costs, saves time, and establishes a uniform corporate design for your organization. |
|---|
