• What is Desktop publishing - It is the process of using the computer and specific types of software to combine text and graphics to produce documents such as newsletters, brochures, books, etc.
• What is Graphic design - It is the process and art of combining text and graphics and communicating an effective message in the design of logos, graphics, brochures, newsletters, posters, signs, and any other type of visual communication.
Desktop publishing is a term coined after the development of a specific type of software. Before the invention of desktop publishing software the tasks involved in desktop publishing were done manually, by a variety of people and involved both graphic design and pre-press tasks which sometimes leads to confusion about what desktop publishing is and how it is done.
Graphic design and desktop publishing share so many similarities that people often use the terms interchangeably, however they are not really the same animals. For our needs it would be helpful to know and understand how they differ and how some people use and confuse the terms.
• Graphic design jobs involve the creative process of coming up with the concepts and ideas and arrangements for visually communicating a specific message.
• Desktop publishing is the mechanical process that the designer and the non-designer use to turn their ideas for newsletters, brochures, ads, posters, greeting cards, and other projects into digital files for desktop or commercial printing. While desktop publishing does require a certain amount of creativity, it is more production-oriented than design-oriented.
Desktop Publishing Software
• Graphic designers use desktop publishing software and techniques to create the print materials they envision. The computer and desktop publishing software also aids in the creative process by allowing the designer to easily try out various page layouts, fonts, colors, and other elements.
• Non-designers also use desktop publishing software and techniques to create print projects for business or pleasure. The amount of creative design that goes into these projects varies greatly. The computer and desktop publishing software, along with professionally-designed templates, allow consumers to construct and print the same type of projects as graphic designers although the overall product may not be as well-thought out, carefully crafted, or polished as the work of a professional designer.
• Graphic design is the process and art of combining text and graphics and communicating an effective message in the design of logos, graphics, brochures, newsletters, posters, signs, and any other type of visual communication.
• Desktop publishing is the process of using the computer and specific types of software to combine text and graphics to produce documents such as newsletters, brochures, books, etc.
• Graphic design and desktop publishing are often used interchangeably but, in part because it is an activity also used by non-designers, desktop publishing is often considered a lesser activity than graphic design. In truth, the two are separate but intertwined disciplines.
• Not everyone who does desktop publishing does graphic design, but most graphic designers are involved in desktop publishing - the production side of design. The term desktop publisher can refer to a designer or a non-designer but it often carries negative connotations of an amateur.
Desktop publishing software is a tool for graphic designers and non-designers to create visual communications for professional or desktop printing. Desktop publishing software doesn't work in the same way as word processing software. It's different from graphics software; from setting up a basic document to complicated arrangements of text and graphics.
There are some basic similarities in how most desktop publishing page layout applications function. The tool names, icons, and keyboard commands may differ, but most desktop publishing programs share certain common characteristics, some of which are substantially different from how word processing / office applications and graphics software works.
Familiarize yourself with basics of:
• Master Pages
• Graphics Frames
• Text Frames
• The Toolbox
• Guides / Guidelines
• Styles or Style Sheets