<body text>The first step towards effective page design is a clear understanding of your audience. Some of the points you should consider before beginning your page design are listed below:
<body text>Where will my document be read?
<body text>Physical environment is an important consideration; e.g. natural or artificial lighting, in a factory, at a desk in front of a computer with limited space. These factors should influence your choice of page and print size, binding, and the use of matte or glossy paper.
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<subhead>Who is my reader?
<body text>Try to write in a style that is appropriate for your audience and be careful not to use words or pictures that may cause offense.
<body text>What is the age of my typical reader?
<body text>Small print is difficult for the young or elderly to read. You should avoid it when choosing the size of text intended for these audiences.
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<subhead>How motivated is my reader?
<body text>The less motivated your audience, the more visual appeal is necessary to capture their attention.
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<subhead>How easily can my reader pick out the relevant information?
<body text>What is the best way to structure the document and present the different levels of headings? Less important headings should be smaller than main headings.
<body text>What sort of image do I want to convey?
<body text>The image your document conveys, e.g. fun or serious, formal or casual, could make the difference between whether people read it or not.
<body text>Take a look at page design in books and magazines to see how the above factors have influenced the design of the different pages.
<body text>Considering practical issues
<body text>When designing a document, there are certain practical issues you should consider. Some of these are suggested below:
<body text>Is there a limit to the number of pages in my document?
<body text>The density of text on the page will affect the number of pages in a document. Density of text is in turn influenced by point size, leading, column width, the number of illustrations and the amount of white space on each page.
<body text>What kind of information will the document contain?
<body text>Will there be a lot of reference material, tables and diagrams? How will you produce any tables and diagrams that you require?
<body text>Does this document have to conform to a company style?
<body text>Will it be filed with other company literature and have to fit into a standard-sized folder?
<body text>How will my document be bound?
<body text>Will it be stapled in the corner, folded and stapled in the middle, spiral-bound, glued or bound in some other way? You need to allow sufficient margin space for binding.
<body text>Is the document to be printed on one or both sides of the paper?
<body text>If the document is to be printed on one side of the paper only, you should base your design around a single master page
<body text>If the document is to be printed on both sides of the paper, you will require left and right master pages, as the binding margin needs to be swapped around on alternate pages. You will need to bear in mind that the left and right hand pages are going to be seen at the same time so they should balance and complement each other.
<body text>What is my budget?
<body text>Your budget for the task will influence your decision on paper size and type, binding, the number of illustrations, the use of colour, and the time you can spend working on the document.
<body text>When you are aware of all the practical issues involved in the design of your document, you can begin to consider the details of its layout.
<body text>Deciding the number and width of columns
<body text>The number and width of columns is important to the overall look of the page. Professional designers usually start with a page grid, showing the number and width of columns, and the position of different features on the page. When deciding how many columns to have on the page, consider the following issues:
<body text>What is the page size, and what proportion of the page is devoted to text?
<body text>There is a physical limit to the number of columns you can fit into the available space. Unless your page is very wide, you probably do not want to have more than three columns on the page. A three column layout is most popular for newsletters.
<body text>Are all the columns to be equal in width?
<body text>Generally, make all the columns to be filled with the same piece of text equal in width.
<body text>How large is the body text?
<body text>The larger the body text, the wider the column should be. A line of body text should usually be no more than 65 characters long. The optimal line length for body text is considered to be between 40 and 60 characters.
<body text>Are headings meant to fit the column?
<body text>If your headings are expected to fit the column, is the column wide enough, or will any headings have to be hyphenated or split over several lines?
<body text>Where will pictures be placed in relation to the columns?
<body text>Will the pictures be at the top or bottom of the columns and will they overlap more than one column?
<body text>How much space do you need between the columns?
<body text>The column spacing should be sufficient to prevent the reader's eye running horizontally between the columns, but not so large that it makes the text look fragmented.
<body text>Publisher lets you choose how many columns to have on a page, and how much space to leave around and between them. Use Column Guides in the Page menu to set the number of columns and the space to be left between the column guides.
<body text>Choosing fonts, point sizes and text styles
<body text>Choosing fonts
<body text>The look of your text gives your document an immediate feel, which may invite or deter your reader from reading beyond the first page. The choice of font is a major part of this effect, and can be the most important decision you make when designing your document.
<body text>Some fonts such as Copper Black and Brushwood are ideal for producing posters and other material that has to be eye-catching. Serif fonts such as Toujours are suitable for large blocks of body text. The serifs help to guide the reader's eye horizontally along the line of text and reduce the reflection of light around the letters. Serif is particularly suitable where space is limited or columns are narrow. Sans serif fonts are more appropriate for headings, or if you are typesetting large blocks of text in very small point sizes.
<body text>Be selective in your choice of fonts. Generally, use just one font for body text and one other for the headings and subheadings.
<body text>Choosing point sizes and text styles
<body text>You may find it helpful to start by deciding what point size to use for the bulk of the text (body text). Next, think about the point sizes to use for the different heading levels. Headings should guide the reader through your document by providing sufficient visual contrast (visual cues) to mark the conclusion of one section or article and the start of another. If they are too small, they may be insignificant, and if they are too large, they may be overwhelming.
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<body text>╖ Think about the point size of other types of text, such as picture captions and headers and footers.
<body text>╖ A change in font or style can be just as effective in providing visual contrast as a change in point size.
<body text>╖ The more fonts you use in a document, the longer it will take to load and print.
<body text>Aligning your text
<body text>The alignment of your text is another factor influencing its appearance. The alignments available in Publisher are:
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<body text>╖ Centred and flushed right alignments are used for short lines of text such as headings, invitations, posters and special effects.
<body text>╖ Flushed left and justified alignments are mostly used for body text.
<body text>Body text
<body text>Body text is usually flushed left with a ragged right margin, or justified. Some people feel that flushed left text is more readable because the spacing between words is more even and the ragged right margin adds visual interest to the page. On the other hand, a fully justified alignment is often adopted for long documents, where the unsurprising look of the text on the page is considered to be more restful to the eye. Take care, however, that a document is not so unsurprising that the reader loses interest.
<body text>Fully justified text needs careful control over the spacing between words to avoid unsightly gaps. These gaps distract the reader from the content of the document, giving it a fractured appearance. They can also line up in successive lines, giving the effect of a white river flowing down the column. A river is particularly likely to arise if the column is narrow.
<body text>Setting the leading (line spacing)
<body text>The leading or line spacing, can make all the difference between text that is clear and legible and text that looks cramped.
<body text>Generally, the leading should be proportional to the point size of the text and the size of the lower case letters.
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<body text>╖ A good guideline is to make leading 20%% greater than the point size, e.g. choose 12 point leading for 10 point text.
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<body text>Text in very small point sizes or styled in a Sans font such as Autumn requires rather more leading to ensure legibility.
<body text>If you are using long lines of text, you may find that you need a larger leading to make sure that your readers can follow the lines easily.
