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From This is True for 14 August 2005 Suggestions for further reading:
 By: Frank MittelbachMichel GoossensJohannes BraamsDavid CarlisleChris Rowley List Price: $64.99 Amazon Price: $53.40  By: George Grätzer List Price: $49.95 Amazon Price: $41.30 Editorial Review: "Gratzer’s book is a solution." -European Mathematical Society Newsletter
For close to two decades, Math into Latex has been the standard introduction and complete reference for writing articles and books containing mathematical formulas. In this fourth edition, the reader is provided with important updates on articles and books. An important new topic is discussed: transparencies (computer projections). Key features of More Math into Latex, 4th edition: - Installation instructions for PC and Mac users - An example-based, visual approach and a gentle introduction with the Short Course - A detailed exposition of multiline math formulas with a Visual Guide - A unified approach to Tex, Latex, and the AMS enhancements - A quick introduction to creating presentations with computer projections From earlier reviews of Math into Latex: "There are several Latex guides, but this on wins hands down for the elegance of its approach and breadth of coverage." -Amazon.com Best of 2000, Editor’s choice "A novice reader will be able to learn the most essential features of Latex sufficient to begin typesetting papers within a few hours of time…An experienced Tex user, on the other hand, will find a systematic and detailed discussion of Latex features." -Report on Mathematical Physics "A very helpful and useful tool for al scientists and engineers." -Review of Astronomical Tools  By: Robin WilliamsJohn Tollett List Price: $44.99 Amazon Price: $29.69 Editorial Review: If you just stumbled into design, maybe via a hobby that grew into a career, and you want to improve your work without having to enroll in a degree program, this book can bridge some of the gaps in your acumen. Not really a primer on basic facts, Design Workshop is more like a guide to style. The first chapter quizzes readers on mostly technical, basic details of design (like dpi), all of which can be found in Williams's previous publications (for example, The Non-Designer's Design Book). Readers will be dismayed, possibly annoyed, that the quiz answers are not provided. Even if not knowing the answers means that you need remedial help, it feels like a bit of a tease. The next chapters show how to use stock images, or your own images, to increase the visual impact of your piece (basically through an increase in contrast). The best part of this section, and the book as a whole, is the "before-and-after" approach in the examples; they're like a series of makeovers. The captions effectively describe what was changed in the image, and how it improved the design. The book applies a similar set of makeovers to various types of design projects: logos, forms, newsletters, tables of contents, etc. In the final section, seven designers, including coauthor Tollett, break down the process that they went through on a job of their own. Self-taught graphic designers probably would make the best audience for this book, but designers who are of their own "school of thought" might find fault with some of the tenets that are put forth. Graphic design by nature is a subjective enterprise--at the mercy of "styles." What you get in this book is more of a "desktop-publisher style" (many of the drawings are clip art, for example). There's a lack of sophistication in the design of the book, as well as in the illustrations of posters, letterheads, advertisements, and other applications that are used as examples. On the other hand, this same open, naive look gives the book an inviting appeal, and makes it perhaps a bit less daunting than style guides, such as Robert Bringhurst's The Elements of Typographic Style, that are intended for die-hard professionals. --Angelynn Grant Topics covered: Style advice for design projects, including: Logos Business cards and letterhead Invoices and forms Advertising Billboards Web sites Tables of contents and indices Newsletters and brochures Flyers Learn design theory and practical know-how from the award-winning author/design team, Robin Williams and John Tollett! Robin Williams introduced design and typographic principles to legions of readers with her best-selling Non-Designer's book series. Now she and designer/co-author John Tollett take you to the next level of creative design with practical advice and lessons in composition, visual impact, and design challenges.  By: James Felici List Price: $50.00 Amazon Price: $31.50 Editorial Review: [Testimonials] "Clear and elegant...There's no better or more useful introduction to the whole craft of typography." "All you've always wanted to know about type and typography but never dared to ask. Jim Felici brings together a vast amount of knowledge in this book. Must-have!" This book is about how type should look and how to make it look that way; in other words, how to set type like a professional. It releases the craft knowledge that used to reside almost exclusively in the heads of people working in type shops. The shops are gone, the technologies have changed, but the goal remains the same. This book explains in very practical terms how to use today's computerized tools to achieve that secret of good design: well-set type. Beautifully designed and richly illustrated, The Complete Manual of Typography is an essential reference for anyone who works with type. Designers, print production professionals, and corporate communications managers can go straight to the index to find focused answers to specific questions, while educators and students can read it as a textbook from cover to cover. You'll find: History, basic concepts, and anatomy of good typography, concisely presented and indexed for quick reference by busy professionals. Straight-ahead instructions for how to manage fonts, handle corrupted or missing fonts, and find the characters you need.Clear, useful explanations of what makes good type good (and bad type bad) .Detailed guidance on controlling the fundamentals of type, including measure, point size, leading, kerning, and hyphenation and justification.Practical advice on how to fix and avoid composition problems such as loose lines, bad rags, widows and orphans.Hard-to-find rules for managing indents and alignments, skews, wraps, expert-set characters, and tables.Scores of workarounds that show how to wring good type out of uncooperative word-processing and layout programs.  By: Leslie Lamport List Price: $49.99 Amazon Price: $41.90 Editorial Review: Fast becoming the lingua franca of the scientific world, LaTeX is a software system for typesetting technical documents on almost any kind of computer. LaTeX marries the power of TeX with ease of use. The release of LaTeX $2_{\epsilon }$, the new standard version, brings a wider variety of features to the user. This manual, written by the original architect of LaTeX, is the definitive user's guide to LaTeX $2_{\epsilon }$. New users will benefit from the clear, concise, and practical explanations that earned the original LaTeX documentation worldwide praise. Experienced users will want to learn about the new features and capabilities of LaTeX $2_{\epsilon }$. An appendix is included that describes the changes in the new version. This book is published by Addison-Wesley. |
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A documentary film maker, in 1978 Weiss, who was born in Poland, learned that the New York Times was shutting down its "hot type" -- molten lead -- Linotype typesetting machines in favor of phototypesetting. His resulting 1980 film, "Farewell, Etaoin Shrdlu", documented the typesetting and production of the Times' issue dated July 2, 1978 -- the last set in hot type, a process invented in 1886. Each final newspaper-size page plate weighed 40 pounds. "Etaoin shrdlu" refers to the Linotype's keyboard layout; if a lino operator messed up during typesetting, he'd "wipe" the first two columns of keys, outputting "etaoin shrdlu", which signaled to the layout people that the type was bad and needed to be replaced. Hurried compositors would sometimes miss it, though, resulting in the typo -- and the phrase -- being printed in the paper (see example, above right). Weiss, who was also once a proofreader at the Times, died August 11 at his California home. His age is uncertain; he was about 92.