PageSetter II is a versatile and simple to use `desktop publishing' program. It is page oriented, rather than document-oriented: the intention of the program is to allow the user to create pages one by one, with the maximum of flexibility to make design decisions at every stage. A document-oriented program is more suited for long, relatively uniform documents.
It is quite feasible to create long documents such as books and magazines using PageSetter II, but PageSetter II excels in situations where varied layouts with extensive use of graphics are typical; personal letters, newsletters, ad designs, brochures, and educational materials, for instance.
If you do wish to create a longer document, PageSetter II has procedures for formatting or coding text at the word-processing stage that make it very productive without sacrificing the convenience of interactive page make-up.
Although computer aided publishing has been around for some time, the technique has until recently required expensive equipment and specially trained operators, as in the more traditional forms of publishing. With desktop publishing you can perform the functions of graphic designers, writers, editors, layout people and typographers yourself. This not only saves you money, but drastically reduces the time needed to prepare a professional-quality document.
The phrase `desktop publishing' is often used in a rather misleading way. Logically, the publishing process includes all `pre-press' operations, from writing and editing to page assembly and platemaking. Desktop publishing programs, though, are more accurately described as `typesetting and page assembly' programs. PageSetter II allows the user to integrate all the stages of publishing on a personal computer, even though many of those stages involve other software products. The text and graphic components of a document can be gathered from their various sources (word processors, scanners, paint programs, etc.) and assembled into a complete document, then output to a graphics capable printer (eg. dot-matrix, ink jet, etc.). Despite its relative simplicity and economy, typesetting and page assembly with a desktop publishing system is still a skilled process. To create professional quality documents, some knowledge of typography and design principles is essential. In the same way that microcomputers made computing available to a mass audience, desktop publishing provides access to publishing tools to a larger base of users through personal computers and printers. As the term suggests, it is possible to fit all the necessary equipment for desktop publishing on a desk and with it produce high quality documents.
