The Presentation Design Book



Author: Chris Reavis

Date: February, 1994

Keywords: Ventana Press review presentations graphic design

Text:
The Presentation Design Book
     Book review By Chris Reavis,SMUG member
     Want to spice up your electronic presentations? The Presentation
Design Book by Magaret Y. Rabb is a great place to start; it's filled
with the basics of graphic design.
     Technical specifications are as follows:
     Hardware:     Ninth grade reading level and an appreciation for
icons needed. Sorry, no balloon help!
     Installation:     The best I've seen, even though it doesn't use
Apple's standard installer. Seriously, it gets the points across well
and makes sense. My brain (access time specs unavailable) was
consistently able to retrieve information the book presented at a later
date  - a presentation book that presents itself well! No known
conflicts, but you never know... turn off your virus protection
software just to be safe!
     Startup: Easy, fun reading from the start. Each chapter is
comfortable as a stand-alone. Reading goes easily and quickly - which
is nice when you want to review the book's points.
     This book is really GUI (Graphical User Interface), if I can use
GUI to describe a book. (I just did, so I suppose I can.) It's well
laid-out, and has excellent graphics and icons to carry the message.
It's a solid piece of work.
     Much of the information is the basic components of graphic design.
It does mention use of some specific programs to implement these
designs, but not in any detail  (i.e. PageMaker is for desktop
publishing, PowerPoint is for basic slide shows).
     Although much of the book is old hat to me, the frameworks it
gives for projects are excellent. Regardless of your expertise, it's
quite a tool to have a well-composed channel to assimilate your
creative juices. For me, the multimedia section was helpful  in
planning a interactive piece on the world religions.
     The only problem I have with the book is that it is a bit too
general at times, bordering on insulting your intelligence. However,
not everyone has the same background, and this weakness could  also be
a strength. That is, the background it gives on every topic is
excellent.
     One of the biggest benefits of this book is that you'll never have
to call technical support - listening to cheesy elevator music for two
hours. 
     With my background in  design and graphics I would probably not
have purchased this book, I'm glad I had the chance to review it. If
you are interested in a schematic for your electronic presentations,
it's well worth the $24.95 price tag. 
     The Presentation Design Book, (Second Edition, 1993, Margaret Y.
Rabb, 346 pages, $24.95. ISBN 1-56604-014-0) is available from:
     The Ventana Press
     POBox 2468
     Chapel Hill, NC 27515

Copyright © february, 1994 by Chris Reavis