jwminer at accessvt.com wrote: > Doc wrote: >> It has nothing to do with bias. It has to do with you ignoring the >> word >> "unwary". You aren't an unwary user. Neither (now) am I. > > Anyone who is using software as complex as Scribus to do as > skill-intensive a job as designing publications must get "wary" > pretty fast. Contrary to widespread belief, you can't do a good job > of laying out pages by simply picking up a piece of software and > plowing ahead. The software is just a tool to be used by the > designer. If the designer has no clue about how to lay out pages, > the software can't make up for that. > > I've been distressed that in the recent discussions on this list > when one user or another asking how to get started, the focus seemed > entirely on using the software. Some mention of the need to learn > *something* about principles of design and how to set proper type > should have been in there.
Maybe I'm a crap designer, but I got started in 1996 by getting pissed that MS word fell over with lots of pictures, and did more stupid things with layout than I have time to describe. I moved to Pagemaker. Everybody was pleased with the result, and I found my life far less frustrating. Nobody taught me to lay out a page, but I knew what I wanted. Pagemaker had its limitations too, so did InDesign, so dies Scribus, but this is where I'm most content. > Sure, when your back is against the wall > of a deadline for your first effort, you may need to fudge it. But > if it's a continuing job, face the fact that you need to put > considerable time and effort into learning how to use type and how > to design attractive and effective pages. Hmmm... This sounds like an expert who feels threatened by the unwashed masses finding out how to switch the computer on. > Software is part of the learning curve, too, of course. That > includes getting acquainted with PDF requirements. LOOK AROUND! Go > through every menu, every dialog box, every option. > > It's called "paying your dues." Well yes - exploring everything thoroughly and gaining experience will always empower you a lot. I suppose my point is that DTP isn't magic though, and doesn't have to be taught to get very useful results. As an environmentalist I use DTP, not because I've been taught to produce layouts according to magic methodologies, but because it addresses the limitations of the smartarse, ill designed and badly documented layout engines found in Word, OO etc. Cheers, J/. -- John Beardmore, MSc EDM (Open), B.A. Chem (Oxon), CMIOSH, AIEMA, MEI Managing Director, T4 Sustainability Limited. http://www.T4sLtd.co.uk/ Energy Audit, Carbon Management, Design Advice, Sustainable Energy Consultancy and Installation, Carbon Trust Standard Registered Assessor Phone: 0845 4561332 Mobile: 07785 563116 Skype: t4sustainability
