Recommended Books and Software

Books and Software for Web Site Design, Graphic Design, Page 1

Books on Creativity, Inspiration, Graphic Design, Typography, Web Design and Layout

Within the Recommended Books on Web Site Design, Graphic Design section you'll find books on color, creativity, inspiration, graphic design, graphics software programs and Web graphics, typography, Web design and layout, and color calibration software and hardware. You'll also find graphics software recommendations.

Each listing is hand chosen with thought and care to help WebsiteTips.com visitors in their searches for helpful Web site-related books, software, and other products. Recommendations cover needs for beginners through advanced.

Looking for Graphics Software and Books? It's moved to its own page. See Graphics Software, Books on Graphics and Graphics Software Programs, Web Graphics, and Graphic Design, still within WebsiteTips.com's Books and Software Recommendations.

Looking for Color Books and Software? It's moved to its own page. See Color Books, Software, Hardware, Accessories, still within WebsiteTips.com's Books and Software Recommendations.

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Do you have suggestions or recommendations? Do you have a favorite book or training video, favorite software, or several favorites related to Web site design and development, graphic design, graphics, Web site ownership, running a Web design business, or related topics? What are your thoughts about books and software already listed here? Please let us know!

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Creativity, Inspiration Books
Graphic Design Books
Typography Books
Web Design and Layout Books
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Recommended Books, Software Home (12 pages total)
New, Recently Added Books, Software (1 page)
Most Popular Books, Software (1 page)
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Markup, Code for Web Sites Books, Software (1 page)
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Web Site User Science Books (Accessibility, Information Architecture, Usability) (1 page)
Web Site Design Business Books, Software (1 page)
Web Site Content, Writing for the Web Books (1 page)

Creativity, Inspiration Books

Thinking Creatively

Inspiration for Color and Color Schemes

More books on color here at WebsiteTips.com.

Inspiration for Design Layouts

More books on layout and design here at WebsiteTips.com.

Inspiration for Design Layouts,
Organizing Information

More books on layout and design here at WebsiteTips.com.

More books on information architecture here at WebsiteTips.com.

For helpful resources on creativity and inspiration see also Web Resources Creativity, Inspiration here at WebsiteTips.com.

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Graphic Design Books

Books on Graphic Design

Books on Design and Typography

For short reviews of the above Design and Typography books, see Typography Books below.

For helpful Web Site Resources on graphic design, see also Web Resources Design, Web Design Design and Layout here at WebsiteTips.com.

Books on Graphic Design Business, Web Design Business, Freelancing

For helpful Web Site Resources on graphic design business or Web design business, see also Web Resources Web Design Business here at WebsiteTips.com.

For helpful Web Site Resources on typography, see also Web Resources Typography here at WebsiteTips.com.

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Graphics Software and Books has moved to its own page/section!
Looking for books on Photoshop, Illustrator, Fireworks, Flash, or other graphics software? Looking for Adobe CS3 software? See Graphics Software, Books on Graphics and Graphics Software Programs, Web Graphics, and Graphic Design.

Typography Books

Avant-Garde Page Design 1900-1950
by Jaroslav Andel. Published by Delano Greenidge Editions. Rave reviews from the New York Times, many others. This beautifully crafted book “shows how page design emerged as a highly sophisticated form of art in its own right, and directly or indirectly, prefigured the communication revolution we are undergoing today.” It's a fascinating book with images from more than 250 artists of the printed page. Great book for anyone interested in typography or design and layout. This book has a place of honor on my coffee table, and even friends who know nothing about the subject are fascinated looking through it. I get a lot of inspiration from it, too, with my Web site design and layout work.
Design with Type
By Carl Dair. University of Toronto Press (June 14, 2000). Highly recommended, popular book on design and typography. Canadian typographer, teacher, and font designer (now deceased), Carl Dair's Design with Type is a classic “must have” book on design and type. Grab your copy of Design with Type now while you can still buy it.
From Richard Miller's Book_Arts-L discussion list correspondence,
Dair's book is surprisingly unknown outside of Canada, except among older typographic designers in the US, Britain and, interestingly, Scandinavia, although it has been in print continuously for 30 years. Dair was fairly well known in the 50s (he won a silver medal at Leipzig in '59) and was invited to particpate in an international Bible typography exhibition... His book was published in '67 (following an earlier version in '52) and was one of the AIGA 50 Books of the Year.
It is an excellent introduction to typographic design but falls somewhat short as a manual of typography (which he didn't intend it to be). He points out in his preface that his unfair assumption (in the first book) that readers would have a basic understanding of typography has been rectified by the addition of a new chapter for those “students of typography who [have] never held a composing stick.” Nonetheless, his explanation and illustration of the (seven, I think) principles of harmony and contrast set a standard which, to my mind, is unmatched today. As Ron said: “simple, straightforward and easy-to-read, and yet still comprehensive.”
From the publisher:
Design with Type takes the reader through a study of typography that starts with the individual letter and proceeds through the word, the line, and the mass of text. The contrasts possible with type are treated in detail, along with their applications to the typography of books, advertising, magazines, and information data. The various contending schools oftypography are discussed, copiously illustrated with the author's selection of over 150 examples of imaginative typography from many parts ot the world.
Design with Type differs from all other books on typography in that it discusses type as a design material as well as a means of communication: the premise is that if type is understood in terms of design, the user of type will be better able to work with it to achieve maximum legibility and effectiveness, as well as aesthetic pleasure. Everyone who uses type, everyone who enjoys the appearance of the printed word, will find Design with Type informative and fascinating. It provides, too, an outstanding example of the effectiveness of imaginative and tasteful typographic design.
The Elements of Typographic Style, Version 3
By Robert Bringhurst. Third Edition published by Hartley and Marks Publishers, October 9, 2004. Now considered one of the standard books on typography that anyone interested in typography should own and read thoroughly. Amazon.com states,
This lovely, well-written book is concerned foremost with creating beautiful typography and is essential for professionals who regularly work with typographic designs. Author Robert Bringhurst writes about designing with the correct typeface; striving for rhythm, proportion, and harmony; choosing and combining type; designing pages; using section heads, subheads, footnotes, and tables; applying kerning and other type adjustments to improve legibility; and adding special characters, including punctuation and diacritical marks. The Elements of Typographic Style teaches the history of and the artistic and practical perspectives on a variety of type families that are available in Europe and America today.
The last section of the book classifies and displays many type families, offers a glossary of typography terms, and lists type designers and type foundries. The book briefly mentions digital typography, but otherwise ignores it, focusing instead on general typography and page- and type-design issues. Its examples include text in a variety of languages—including English, Russian, German, and Greek—which is particularly helpful if your work has a multinational focus.
All in all, The Elements of Typographic Style is a highly recommended book for anyone wanting to learn about typography.
Logo, Font, & Lettering Bible
By Leslie Cabarga. Published by How Design Books, March, 2004. Logo, Font, & Lettering Bible has received countless incredibly positive endorsements and reviews from peers, students, educators, and many others. The reviews and comments make it clear that there is much to be learned within this book, even for experienced typographers or logo designers. The author states,
The book is mainly about how to draw letters in Illustrator and Fontographer, how to turn those letters into logos and fonts, and how to understand what makes a piece of lettering or a font good or bad. It's got tons of examples of great work from dozens of contributors and from many eras. There is also a business section with advice on making sales, and finding and working with clients.
I, personally, have never found a book on this subject that goes into as much detail on every aspect of letter construction as mine does. It's got basic info for students as well as sophisticated techniques for experienced pros.
Visit also the online companion for the book, Logo, Font, & Lettering, where you can read more about the book, reviews, and more information.
New Typographic Design
by Roger Fawcett-Tang. Published by Yale University Press (May 21, 2007). Author of several successful and influential books, New Typographic Design is bound to be another popular and well-received book by Roger Fawcett-Tang. From the publisher:
As printing and design technologies have evolved over the past decade, so too have designers' approaches to type design and typography. Today's innovative designers have overturned established rules about type, turning letters into images and using typefaces in increasingly experimental ways. New Typographic Design covers a wide variety of applications from design for print—ranging from books, magazines, and brochures—to signage systems and screen-based typography, presenting the most current trends and directions of modern typography.
The book's introduction discusses changing attitudes to innovation in typography through the 19th and 20th centuries, including the changing role of the designer, the question of legibility versus form, how type has become image, and the differing requirements for screen-based and print-based type. Four accompanying sections illustrate the key areas of typography today: type as form (how can existing type be handled in order to create an original design?), type as image (designs inspired by vernacular typography and noted for their hand-drawn aesthetic), type as experiment (the work of designers who push the boundaries of typographic recognition and legibility), and type in motion (how type can function in a three-dimensional or screen-based environment).
Authored by esteemed designer Roger Fawcett-Tang, this lavishly illustrated volume will provide a rich source of inspiration for both practicing designers and students.
Featured designers include:
- Philippe Apeloig (France)
- Ruedi Baur (France, Switzerland)
- Oded Ezer (Israel)
- Grandpeople (Norway)
- Non-Format (England)
- Sagmeister (U.S.A.)
- Helmut Schmid (Germany)
- Stiletto Design (U.S.A.)
- Struktur Design (England)
- 3 Deep Design (Australia)
The author's Web site: Struktur Design.
Thinking with Type: A Critical Guide for Designers, Writers, Editors, & Students
By Ellen Lupton. Published by Princeton Architectural Press, November, 2005. Many educators are using this best-selling book to teach typography, and students are learning a lot from it. This book provides a helpful introduction to typography in clear, easy-to-understand language, and includes essays, examples, and practical guidance. Author Ellen Lupton has also authored and co-authored numerous highly regarded books on type design, graphic design, and related topics. See also the online companion to the book, Thinking with Type (online companion) with great information about type, including theory and practice, terms, examples, bibliography, tools for teachers.

Also Recommended on Typography

Typographic Ornaments, Typography Graphics, Illustrations, Clipart CD-ROMs and Books

For helpful Web Site Resources on typography, see also Web Resources Typography here at WebsiteTips.com.

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Web Design, Web Design and Layout Books

Deliver First Class Web Sites: 101 Essential Checklists
By Shirley Kaiser. Published by SitePoint Books, July 2006. While the entire book is packed with helpful checklists and explanations, examples, and references to help with designing Web sites, several chapters are specifically devoted to various aspects of design for Web sites. For example, Chapter 6: Color - Preparing a Color-friendly Work Environment, Choosing a Color Scheme, Using Color to Enhance Functionality. Chapter 13: Design - Basic Design Principles, Effective Typography, Brainstorming, Finalizing the Design. Other chapters cover planning your Web site, initial questions to answer, preparing and managing Web site content, usability, information architecture, navigation, W3C Recommendations and standards, accessibility, Web site optimization, search engine optimization, testing, launching your Web site, post-launch follow-up and long-term maintenance, and much more. In addition, all those who purchase the book have special access to downloadable, printable checklists to use for all your projects. More information: Companion Site for Deliver First Class Web Sites: 101 Essential Checklists, author's Web site: SKDesigns.
Web Style Guide: Basic Design Principles for Creating Web Sites, Second Edition
By Patrick J. Lynch, Sarah Horton. Published by Yale University Press, March 2002. This best-selling book contains easy-to-understand theory and philosophy on designing, building, and implementing a Web site, along with helpful illustrations and resources. Some of the categories are Interface Design, Site Design, Page Design, Web Graphics, Web Multimedia and Animation, more. Excellent book. Also visit webstyleguide.com for an online version of the book and to learn more about this exceptional publication.

Also Recommended by WebsiteTips.com
on Web Design and Layout

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Color Books has moved to its own page/section!
Looking for books on color, color management, or monitor calibration hardware, software? See Color Books, Software, Hardware, Accessories.

Note About This Listing

WebsiteTips.com's editor and owner personally owns many of the books, software, and products listed at this site, and all books, software, and products listed have received glowing reviews by recognized experts.
Each listing is hand chosen with thought and care to sincerely help WebsiteTips.com visitors in their searches for genuinely helpful books, software, and products on Web site topics.
You'll find a variety of writing styles, approaches, and skill levels within the listings. Each person learns differently, has different needs, skill levels, and preferences, so recommendations are made with those things in mind, too.

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Do you have suggestions or recommendations? Do you have a favorite book, software, or several favorites related to Web site design, Web site ownership, running a Web design business, or related topics? What are your thoughts about books, software, and products already listed here? Please let us know!

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Recommended Books and Software

Books and Software for Web Site Design, Graphic Design, Page 1