I have to admit... winning a book from my Kansas City Adobe User's Group meeting is not everyone's idea of a great night out. But for me, this little journey into the printed world has turned into one of my favorite "at arm's length" reference.
Jenifer Tidwell's 'Designing Interfaces' puts a new realm of web design into focus that I found to be, otherwise, a maze of indiscernible buttons and clicks. So you know where this endorsements leads, find the book here:
http://oreilly.com/catalog/9780596008031/index.html and get ready for a good read.
As a graphic designer, I am fine-arts orientated and took up the web and ColdFusion programming as a way to make my own studio (www.marcdorsett.com) truly marketable to more of the masses. Jenifer's obvious experience unfolds on every page, making an interface design more understandable and reachable to people like me - people who knew what to do but needed better ways to do it.
The book has a wide scope of matter but still gives a generous supply of examples, both written and visual, to make the point clear and simple. When it comes to interfaces, the bookstore is littered with 'web design' but very little in interface reference. Ms. Tidwell doesn't just provide a book, she writes and explains as though she has a thousand competitors in the field and she is going to be the best. I appreciate that aggressive approach to research.
The real clincher for me in a 'learn to' book is being able to jump right to areas where I need assistance. Good reference doesn't make me read the whole thing to find what I am needing right now. 'Designing Interfaces' does just that - lets me have what I can use this moment and I will fill up on the rest as time permits - which is happening pretty quickly!
All told, this is a superb resource, one which has earned a front-row seat in my limited-space bookshelf. I am certain it will be in yours, too.
Friday, June 27, 2008
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