Jumat, 22 Juni 2012

Wow! eBook: The Icon Handbook - 3 new eBooks


Wow! eBook: The Icon Handbook - 3 new eBooks

Link to Wow! eBook - Blog

The Icon Handbook

Posted: 22 Jun 2012 07:39 AM PDT

The Icon Handbook

Book Description

Have you ever needed to create an icon for something and not known where to start? How do you go about crafting the right message, the tone, the line work and getting it to work in the environment it’s supposed to; be it , operating system, or browser. Thankfully we now have the place to go.

Jon Hicks’ ‘The Icon ’ will become the go-to book for the modern designer; for uncovering the thought processes, the skills and the reference for your own icons.

This book is aimed at designers who already have basic vector and bitmap drawing skills. It could be that you want to create a simple, unique favicon, or perhaps you’ve been asked to work on a app that requires them. It starts at the basics and takes you right the way through to being able to create stunning iconography.

Topics include:
Chapter 1: A Potted History of Icons
Let's start the journey from the very beginning and look at the of a symbolic language to complement our written one, how previous works have influenced modern icon design, and how the meaning of icons has evolved from religious art to encompass software. As part of the journey, I'll also delve into how I became involved with icons as early as 1984.

Chapter 2: How we use icons
Icons are more than just decoration or pretty pictures. They serve a wide range of purposes, from overcoming language barriers and describing functions, to conveying mood and emotion. This chapter looks at the various uses of icons, but also covers an equally important aspect — when not to use them.

Chapter 3: Favicons
Now we'll start building up our icon skills, beginning with favicons. Even if you've never created any other types of icons before, I'm willing to bet that everyone reading this has at some point made a favicon. For the majority of you, it's probably a regular task. They're an ideal place to start, as we can look at ways of achieving pixel-crisp artwork and clarity at small sizes — skills that we'll build on in later chapters.

Chapter 4: The Metaphor
The heart of an icon is the metaphor it uses, the functionality implied by the visual representation. This chapter starts as all projects do, with a client brief. We'll pick up this brief and run with it, working through the process of discovering if icon conventions already exist, and create them if they don't.

Chapter 5: Drawing Icons
At this point in the book, we've been through the initial process of reading the brief, checking for existing conventions, and deciding on the right metaphor to use. We've also created some simple favicons — now let's move on to creating some proper icons! In this chapter we'll look at the drawing process, then in chapter 6 we'll consider the final file format and deployment method for the icon which can have a bearing on how we create the artwork. We'll start with simple pictograms and then move on to small colour icons. We've already covered some basics of drawing to crisp pixels in chapter 3 about favicons. This chapter will build further on that, introducing the concepts of balance and consistency.

Chapter 6: Icon formats and deployment
There are a number of different formats of, and methods for, deploying icons, and while PNG is undeniably the most common, there are others with their own particular pros and cons that are useful if the context is right. We've briefly touched on this in chapter 3 with regards to favicons, but now we'll look at all the other contexts. The format we choose can also have some bearing on the creation of the artwork, so it's worth considering this before getting started. As well as covering the pros and cons of each format, and how it affects the artwork, we'll also look at the variety of techniques for displaying icons on the .

Chapter 7: Application Icons
We've developed our icon skills throughout this book, thinking about how we use icons and where they came from, then looking at designing simple favicons. We followed this up by tackling metaphors, pictograms and small colour icons. In this chapter, we’ll round off the book by exploring in detail the most complex and independent icon form: application icons.

Appendix (Common icon badges, Drawing and creation tools, Icon reference chart)
We've developed our icon skills throughout this book, thinking about how we use icons and where they came from, then looking at designing simple favicons. We followed this up by tackling metaphors, pictograms and small colour icons. In this chapter, we’ll round off the book by exploring in detail the most complex and independent icon form: application icons.

Book Details

  • Paperback: 323 pages
  • Publisher: Five Simple Steps LLP (December 2011)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-13: 978-1907828041
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A Practical Guide to Web App Success

Posted: 22 Jun 2012 07:38 AM PDT

A Practical Guide to Web App Success

Book Description

Most existing app books cover a specific stage of the process, such as the technical build or user interface design. For entrepreneurs or project managers who need a complete overview of the app lifecycle, little material currently exists.

In this book, balanced, well-researched advice is imparted with the understanding that different situations and organisations require different approaches. It distills the equivalent of multiple books into the vital, practical information you need to create a successful app, mixing robust resources with narrative explanations.

Who should read this book
If you're thinking about creating a web app, have already started to build one, or want to improve an existing app, you need to read A Practical Guide to Web App Success.

The book is especially useful for:

  • Individual developers and designers wanting to create a profitable app on a budget in their spare time.
  • Small web startups with technical co-founders who need to quickly broaden their skill sets.
  • Project managers in web agencies who want a better understanding of the web app development lifecycle.
  • Project owners in larger organisations who need to become familiar with the terminology and best practices for a web app project.
  • Technology entrepreneurs, investors and owners who want to discover the best strategies and tactics to create high-growth apps.

The book will take you through every important step of successfully bringing a web app to market, at a practical level of detail that avoids unnecessary technicalities and repetitive self-help rhetoric.

Table of Contents
Part I: Groundwork
Chapter 1. Introduction
Chapter 2. Elements of success
Chapter 3. Bare-bones project
Chapter 4. Getting set up
Chapter 5. Preparing web app foundations

Part II: Strategy
Chapter 6. Market research
Chapter 7. Analysing users with personas
Chapter 8. Choosing features to fit the market
Chapter 9. Pricing models
Chapter 10. The mysterious art of app pricing

Part III: Interface
Chapter 11. Complexities of for the web
Chapter 12. Interaction design
Chapter 13. Visual composition
Chapter 14. Colour and typography
Chapter 15. Prototypes and user tests

Part IV: Development
Chapter 16. Web technology fundamentals
Chapter 17. Rapid development
Chapter 18.
Chapter 19.
Chapter 20. and deployment

Part V: Promotion
Chapter 21. basics
Chapter 22. Measuring and monitoring
Chapter 23. optimisation
Chapter 24. Outbound
Chapter 25. Inbound marketing and a marketing case study

Book Details

  • Paperback: 362 pages
  • Publisher: Five Simple Steps LLP (November 2011)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-13: 978-1907828027
Note: There is a file embedded within this post, please visit this post to download the file.

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A Practical Guide to Designing the Invisible

Posted: 22 Jun 2012 07:37 AM PDT

A Practical Guide to Designing the Invisible

Book Description

It’s not enough to design a that looks nice. What’s the story? Why is that header green? Why is that icon shaped like a fish? for the is not just about fancy layouts, the latest 3 or 5 or technique. Great experiences tell a great story, and the Invisible will give you the tools to help you do it.

From apply colour to tell the right story, through to using the right words, this book details the basics of building great web experiences. If you’re starting out in then this book will give you some valuable tools in your design toolkit.

Who should read this book
This book is for design beginners. If you’re not a designer but sometimes are asked to do design, then this book is for you. If you’ve just started out in design, or are at college or university, then this book is for you, too. If you’re an experienced designer, then this book probably isn’t your thing, maybe you’d like to buy this book instead?

You won’t find any code in this book, and you don’t need to know your way around 5 or the latest 3 updates. Lucky you.

Table of Contents
PART I: INVISIBLE COMMUNICATION
Chapter 1. What is invisible communication?
Chapter 2. The power of invisible communication
Chapter 3. Communication in cultures
Chapter 4. Who should care and when?
Chapter 5. Making the invisible visible

PART II: FOLLOWING THE RIGHT SIGNS
Chapter 6. Showing the way
Chapter 7. Context and culture
Chapter 8. Wayfinding the world
Chapter 9. Wayfinding on the web
Chapter 10. Case Study. Guardian.co.uk

PART III: USING THE RIGHT PALETTE
Chapter 11. The importance of colour
Chapter 12. The colour of life and the web
Chapter 13. Connotations of colour
Chapter 14. Colour in Cultures
Chapter 15. Case Study. Carsonified.com

PART IV: USING THE CORRECT LANGUAGE
Chapter 16. The invisible side of language
Chapter 17. How the words look
Chapter 18. The Periodic Table of Typefaces
Chapter 19. Tone of voice
Chapter 20. Case Study. Innocent Drinks

PART V: TELLING THE BEST STORY
Chapter 21. Introduction to storytelling
Chapter 22. Storytelling conventions
Chapter 23. Storytelling on the web
Chapter 24. Storytelling through brands
Chapter 25. Case Study. Squaredeye.com

Book Details

  • Paperback: 204 pages
  • Publisher: Five Simple Steps LLP (July 2011)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-13: 978-0956174031
Note: There is a file embedded within this post, please visit this post to download the file.

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