Reviews (4)

Go further in describing the sharpening process.
Two powerful new titles are top picks which stand out from the computer books on the market. Bruce Fraser's REAL WORLD IMAGE SHARPENING WITH ADOBE PHOTOSHOP CS2: INDUSTRIAL-STRENGTH PRODUCTION TECHNIQUES goes beyond more general discussions of sharpening tools to pinpoint the kind of sharpening each image needs, and how to use Photoshop CS2's many tools to achieve perfection. Learn the range of these tools, their differences in application, and how to sharpen selectively in a book which comes form an internationally recognized authority on digital imaging and color image reproduction. Chapters assume a basic grounding in Photoshop but go further in describing the sharpening process.
In Focus
There are plenty of books by Photoshop gurus that explain the software's tone and color controls and most users can usually master these functions if they make a serious effort.But one function that always seems rather inexact is the detail function, as exemplified by the sharpening tools.This still seems to be a rather hit or miss proposition, and there has long been a need for more detailed instruction on this function.Fraser takes the function on, and even if you don't agree with all his recommendations, this book should clarify what sharpening is about.
Pretty Good
This book nicely compiles all of the information regarding multi-stage sharpening workflows Mr. Fraser has previously published in various articles over the years. If you've never read any of them, then this is a definite must buy. If you've read all of them, you won't find a lot of new information here aside from the highly welcome detailed explanation of CS2's Smart Sharpen filter. Adobe's own documentation has always been pretty ambiguous as to what all the little checkboxes and sliders do in the new dialog.
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Subjects:  1. Computer Books: General    2. Computer Graphics - Image Processing    3. Computer Graphics - Photoshop    4. Computers    5. Computers - Other Applications    6. Desktop Publishing    7. Desktop Publishing - General    8. Microcomputer Graphics    9. Computers / Computer Graphics / General    10. Photoshop   

Reviews (5)

A great book, check out my Shake Support site
Marco, as always, has created another great Shake book. But as many of you know, Apple has recently stopped support of Shake. But thankfully they also reduced the price to nearly nothing making this powerful software available to everyone. But what do you do if you need support as a user? Check out [...]

learning shake4
One of the best books in this field.Very comprehensive tutorials that make you understand shake in a minimum of time.

Nice book for beginers and students
This book is really good for someone who wants to start of with shake, gives you nice intro and then takes you all the way up, this book is not only full of tutorials but it also talks about the technical side, the humor makes me feel as if I am talking to the author. Its a good buy at the price and also there is no other material available on shake, I would like to see a part 2 of this book which is for film crew (compositors) who work with real difficult challenges cause each shot is different from the other. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer - Apple/Macintosh    2. Computer Books: General    3. Computers    4. Data Processing - General    5. General    6. Interactive & Multimedia    7. Operating Systems - Macintosh    8. Computers / Interactive Media    9. Image processing: video   

Reviews (10)

The mysteries of Photoshop unlocked
I have been struggling to make full use of Photoshop CS2's remarkable power, and it wasn't until reading and using Colin Smith's wonderful book that it all finally began to make sense.Not only is everything explained in clear language in a step-by-step way, but the companion CD allows you to go through the steps and get hands-on experience working with Photoshop so you can really understand what you're doing.
no doubt about it
......in less time than it takes to get up, carry the trash to the bin 15yds. from where i sit,.... adobe raw's wonder, became a part of my thinking...... i am not nesessarily a teach yourself book person, but i was familiar with colin' work, and commend the way he " shares " information, so i opted to purchase this gem of a manual. suffice to say, i've not been bored yet. In less than 10 minuets, raw became a whole new dimension, and figuring out the bridge ( somewhat ! ), was not far behind.
Covering all the new features of CS2
Colin Smith's COMPLETE PHOTOSHOP CS2 FOR DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHERSprovides tutorials covering all the new features of CS2. It's designed and written for digital photographers and provides all the basics to organizing, enhancing and touching up images, and includes start-to-finish instructions for everything. Add five video files from PhotoshopCafe and screen shots and photos in full color throughout and you have a digital photographer's dream reference. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Books: General    2. Computer Graphics - General    3. Computer Graphics - Photoshop    4. Computers    5. Computers - Desktop Publishing    6. Desktop Publishing - General    7. Digital techniques    8. Image processing    9. Photography    10. Techniques - Digital    11. Computers / Computer Graphics / General    12. Photoshop   

Reviews (3)

Great Training for FCP Certification
It is great to have a project ready to start editing on a moments notice and really provides some valuable working experience that will help you with a real job.Enjoy!This book is great resource for intermediate editors who wish to start the journey to be an advanced Final Cut Pro.I have enjoyed the entire Apple Training Series, the only thing I don't like about them is that it seems that a new book with a lot of similar material will come out every year depending on the FC studio releases.

Real Editing Practice
This book is an essential! Numerous projects and plenty of footage so you can
Student
This book was excellent. It thoroughly covered all proponents in what is to be found in FCP 5. There is a whole chapter on multi-cam editing which is a new feature on FCP. The DVD-ROM makes it easy for a reader to do the same excersies talked about in the book. However, this is an advanced editing book so if you are unfamiliar with the basics of FCP then you might want to start on an intermidiate lesson. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer - Apple/Macintosh    2. Computer Animation    3. Computer Books: General    4. Computers    5. Data Processing - General    6. Final cut (Electronic resource)    7. Interactive & Multimedia    8. Operating Systems - Macintosh    9. Computers / Interactive Media    10. Image processing: video   

Reviews (39)

Great tricks
This book has some great tricks, mostly for me it was more the steps to do the tricks which can be used in other designs. Its a good book to learn about different ways of doing things in photoshop.

PhotoshopCS Down & Dirty Tricks
Although this was written for CS and I've since upgraded to CS2 I still find the book extremely useful for those quick tips that can make a big difference to your image. Additionally "Down & Dirty" speeds up your production of projects as you get to learn about the new features that make Photoshop the number one product in its class.
THE TRUTHfrom someone who knows what they're talking about
Here are some noteworthy tutorials perhaps you may find a use for, even though I did not: DVD mockup, Book mockup, Grudge Effect, Making a Photo Look Old. The best tutorials are by Felix Nelson, because they are original and unique. Scott Kelby's stuff is kitsch. He copykats what graphic designer's are doing today and recreates a cheap knock-off tutorial for this book. Best Buy, American Pie's Logo, etc. Why the hell would I want to make a logo that looks just like American Pie's logo? Or a logo that looks just like EA Sport's logo? How trite. But if that's your thing to steal, mimic, and make crappy versions of the original then go ahead. I used to respect Kelby, mmm not so much anymore. Anything for a buck and reproduce filler garbage for the masses. I pity anybody who uses this for commercial purposes or for anything that the public will see. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Adobe Photoshop    2. Computer Books: General    3. Computer Graphics - General    4. Computer graphics    5. Computers    6. Computers - Desktop Publishing    7. Desktop Publishing - General    8. Microcomputer Graphics    9. Techniques - Equipment    10. Computers / Computer Graphics / General    11. Photoshop   

Subjects:  1. Adobe InDesign    2. Art & Art Instruction    3. Computer Books: Desktop Publish    4. Computers    5. Desktop Publishing    6. Desktop Publishing - General    7. Typography    8. Computer graphics software    9. Desktop publishing software   

Reviews (10)

An excellent book if you already know the basics
If you are a new InDesign user and/or do not understand concepts like bleed & slug/kerning & leading, then read Lynda.com's Hands On Training (HOT) first.Otherwise, you may want to consider Adobe's Classroom in a Book.HOT does a better job of covering the basics and the included videos are superb. But Classroom in a Book is also excellent and carries you a bit further than does HOT, particularly if you are producing a book with chapters.
Offers a great general overview
This book is great to get you started on the basic operations of Adobe Indesign. However, there are more than a few typos that make it challenging to get the exact end result that is described in the book. But with enough persistance you'll figure it out and coast through the other lessons. :)

Adobe Indesign CS Classroom in a Book is Terrific
This book is very comprehensive and well thought out. It is an indispensible tool for someone learning Adobe Indesign. This book, along with the included CD with exercise files helped me pass and assesment test for a job interview with flying colors!
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Subjects:  1. Adobe InDesign    2. Computer Books: Desktop Publish    3. Computers    4. Computers - Desktop Publishing    5. Desktop Publishing    6. Desktop Publishing - General    7. Photoshop   

Reviews (25)

Great Overview Without Getting Bogged in Details
One of my long standing complaints about computer software books is that they so often eliminate the first forty pages or so that explain just what this software is and what is supposed to do. This book (at 606 pages it's a lot more than forty pages) is essentially the front end description that explains what SAP ERP is and what it si supposed to do.
What happened in the new edition?
This edition appears to be about 1/3 the size of previous editions; and refers to a fairly old version of SAP... even though this was released in Dec 2005.
Poor Book, barely skims the surface
This book provides no real usable knowledge about SAP. There is absolutely no information on some areas, such as CATT's.And the areas that have some meat have only bologna. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Client-Server Computing - General    2. Client/server computing    3. Computer Books: General    4. Computer Science    5. Computers    6. Computers - Other Applications    7. Hardware - Personal Computers - Macintosh    8. Microcomputer Integrated Application Software    9. Programming - General    10. Programming - Software Development    11. SAP R/3    12. SAP R/3 (Computer software)    13. Computers / Database Management / General    14. Other software packages   

Reviews (29)

Review
The first part of the book is very valuable. The patterns described are on average rather shallow and don't touch on the real issues. For the 'novice' however this is a very relevant book to read. I do advice to deepen understanding by looking at actual websites to see how leaders have implemented the different patterns. Much more to learn there.

Very handy reference book and checklist
While there are many books on the market that discuss patterns related to programming, architectural elements, etc., this is the first book I've seen that focuses on web patterns at the user interface level. The book is essentially an indexed, cross-referenced, best practices guide to building web pages that attract and keep customers. Or at least keep you from pissing them off. The authors have collected and summarized a great deal of HCI research (all listed in the resources section of the appendix) on web usability, so none of this stuff is made up--it's all based on time-proven, tested, and verified data about how people actually use the Internet (e.g., see Amazon, Yahoo!, Google, et. al.). A few of the patterns are no longer considered best practices, due to evolving standards (e.g., CSS) and increasing browser standards support. This is a very handy reference book, especially for an in-depth UI checklist.

Design of Sites: Patterns, Principles...Review
I purchased the book while participating in the remodeling of a client website. The book is formatted in such a way that you can review only sections that relate to your project or read for overall background on web design. Our team found it to be a useful tool. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer - Internet    2. Computer Books: General    3. Computer Networks    4. Computers    5. Design    6. Desktop Publishing    7. Electronic Commerce    8. Internet - Web Site Design    9. Web sites    10. Computers / Internet / Intranets    11. Publishing on the Internet   

Reviews (15)

AIN'T FOR NEWBIES!!
I've always resected the "Dummies" for their simplicity, however, this book is strictly for "near" or wannbe professionals!I do not reccommend this book for the people who want to build their own websites.

exactly what I needed
this book was exactly what I needed to begin web design!

Excellent Primer
This book is a great starter if you want to learn how to design web pages.While it's not a step-by-step page building guide, it's an excellent source of ideas, theories and practical "how-tos" that will definitely get you going in the right direction.If you're interested in building your own site, you could also be interested in hosting your site after it's built.Check out the "Complete Guide to Web Hosting" on amazon.It's a complete kit with all software and instructions that will let you host your site on your own PC for free.I highly recommend both of these titles together. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer - Internet    2. Computer Books: Desktop Publish    3. Computer Networks    4. Computers    5. Design    6. Desktop Publishing    7. Desktop Publishing - General    8. Electronic publishing    9. Hardware - Network Hardware    10. Internet - Web Site Design    11. Web site development    12. Web sites    13. Computers / Internet / Web Site Design    14. Internet   

Reviews (1)

More for high school kids....but....
The "but" is after reading the first chapter of this book and looking through the contents there are some useful projects. I've been using Publisher since 2000 for a newsletter and brochure for a non-profit group and not much more. But now I can see several new uses for the program and I'll give them a try. Granted it's not a hard program to master the bare essentials but I think this book may open a much wider range of uses for this user. The only bad thing is the steep price for the book itself. I really would like to give the book a 3.75 star rating... ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Books: General    2. Computers    3. Computers - General Information    4. Interactive & Multimedia    5. Computers / Interactive Media    6. Desktop publishing software    7. Multimedia   

Reviews (9)

What they mean by "Art"
I think some readers may be confused by the title, "The Art of Maya."This is not a coffe tale book showing some art made by Maya users.The title is a play on Sun Tzu's book, "The Art of War."That is exactly what this book is, it is a soup to nuts explaination of the "art" of using Maya.
On The Money
My Book arrived in great condition and on time.
Very good overall Maya book
It's a very good book if you knew how to use Maya.
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Subjects:  1. Computer Animation    2. Computer Books: General    3. Computer Graphics - Game Programming    4. Computer Graphics - General    5. Computers    6. Computers - Other Applications    7. Desktop Publishing - General    8. Three-dimensional display systems    9. Computers / Computer Graphics / Design    10. Computing and Information Technology   

Reviews (4)

Type Book that dilivers!
I've always looked at design books that showscase work from firms around the country and have always wondered: "What typeface is that?". I really love how in this book it actually tells you the typefaces used in all of the work. I also love the cover and the layout. If your in type and love graphic design, BUY THIS BOOK!

Type as Art
Awesome selection of works with outstanding use of typography. nice collection of examples

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Subjects:  1. Art    2. Art & Art Instruction    3. Commercial art    4. Design - General    5. General    6. Graphic Arts - General    7. Graphic design (Typography)    8. Typography   

Reviews (2)

Great Resource
The reality is that lots of graphic designers don't have formal design training, which can result in a problematic lack of production and printing knowledge. This book is easy to read (in a day), thoughtfully illustratrated, and covers the most important productino and printing issues that a designer should be aware of.
New to print? You need this book
I know a teeny tiny bit of print. Spot colours - hmm I did know that one, but since I don't do much print (or haven't til this year) I was always at a loss when it came ready for the printer.This book is an essential guide for the non print designer.
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Subjects:  1. Computer Books: Desktop Publish    2. Computers    3. Computers - Desktop Publishing    4. Desktop Publishing    5. Desktop Publishing - General    6. Graphic Design    7. Computer Software Packages    8. Computers / Desktop Publishing / General   

Features

• Illustrated

Reviews (8)

iPod & iTunes: The Missing Manual
"iPod & iTunes" is part of the "missing manual" series from
Good book!
I agree this is the manual that should have been packed with the ipod.Outstanding information, some details of tricks that can be done espically if you are using an Apple computer.Still for those Windows people it is very worth while especially if you are having issues trying to do some particular task.
ipod to ituner
This book was worth every penny!! It not only tells you how to transfer songs from your ipod to itunes but tells you where to get the free software to do it. I ordered it because a family member and a friend had both lost their itunes library due to a crashed hard disk. The freind sent me an e-mail after she got her songs back in her iTunes library saying it was the most wonderful thing that had happened to her in a long time. Am working my way through the rest of the book, feel sure there will be more goodies but am satisfied if this is the only new thing I learn. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer - Apple/Macintosh    2. Computer Books: General    3. Computers    4. Genres & Styles - Electronic    5. Hardware - Personal Computers - Macintosh    6. Interactive & Multimedia    7. Operating Systems - Macintosh    8. iPod (Digital music player)    9. iTunes    10. iTunes (Computer software)    11. Audio processing: music & sound effects    12. Computer / Apple/Macintosh    13. Computers / Personal Computers & Microcomputers / Macintosh    14. music, iTunes, itunes music store, iPod address book, iPod games, iSync, iPodding, iPod, Missing Manual, David Pogue   

Reviews (10)

Best beginners supplement to product manual
Although I had a lot of experience with CAD programs, I struggled with Illustrator 8. I finally upgraded to v. 10 and bought Classroom In a Book for that version. You CAN teach yourself Illustrator with the manual and this book in a few weeks. ICIAB is a good supplement to the manual, which for reasons that always baffled me, has too few illustrations for information aimed at visually oriented people. Tutorial style book for creating illustrations, artwork, etc
After first determining why I needed Illustrator when I already had Photoshop, I picked up this book because of my positive experience with another book from this Classroom in a Book series (Photoshop 7.0). And this book does not disappoint in the least bit either. If you're going to criticize someone...
This book came highly recommended by an Illustrator 10 instuctor.It's an excellent resource for a very powerful software application.One doesn't need to be very technically oriented to get the most out of this book.Read more

Subjects:  1. Adobe Illustrator    2. Adobe Illustrator (Computer fi    3. Adobe Illustrator (Computer file)    4. Computer Books And Software    5. Computer Graphics - General    6. Computer Graphics - Illustrator    7. Computer graphics    8. Computers    9. Computers - Desktop Publishing    10. Desktop Publishing - General    11. Microcomputer Graphics    12. Computer graphics software    13. Computers / Computer Graphics / General   

Reviews (24)

This wow book really wows
Lots of tips and tricks on how to perfect your photoshop project. This book suits various levels of users: from begninners who just want to touch up their digital photos to users who want to have professional results on their media projects. Lots of how to's and detailed steps to achieve your final goals.

Get Wow CS2 published!!
Jack Davis:If you are reading this, please release your next book, CS2!!!My version of Wow 7 is worn out!THis is the book I carry everywhere.If I get stuck or forget a technique, I just open to that page and relearn it in under a minute.Photographs, artwork, webdesign artwork, typography, it's all there with plenty of illustrations.Just one to four pages on each issue, no need to read on and on.It's absolutely the best, (and I have almost every book on Photoshop published) book about Photoshop, regardless of version.But an update is greatly needed!!!

WOW! What else CAN you say?!
Jack Davis keeps surprising us with great effects and techniques for Photoshop, in this great step-by-step, easy to learn book. This was required in an advanced Photoshop class and it's one book I'm going to KEEP! Awesome! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Adobe Photoshop    2. Computer Books: General    3. Computer Graphics - General    4. Computer graphics    5. Computers    6. Computers - Languages / Programming    7. Desktop Publishing    8. Electronic Publishing    9. Image processing software    10. Microcomputer Graphics    11. Programming Languages - General    12. Computers / Computer Graphics / General    13. Photoshop   

Reviews (14)

WYBIWTP - What You Buy Is What Title Promises
"Essentials of Macromedia (now Adobe) Captivate" is the
These Drills Really DO Increase Your Skills!
I really think this is the best software tutorial I have ever used, and I have used quite a few in my trillion-year career as a technical writer. It has just the right level of detail. So many tutorial writers leave major concepts and steps out because they assume that you know what they know. And you don't, that's why you bought their stupid book. But this one guides you gently through all you need to know to get firmly established in using Captivate. It was a great help to me when I suddently found a Captivate project on my desk and didn't know exactly where to start. Essentials of Macromedia Captivate helped me start at the appropriate beginning point. It also provided lots of handy tips that I'm sure helped save me a ton of time that I would have spent if I had tried to figure out the software by myself. I would reiterate, as others have here, that you need to follow all the steps in the book to get the most out of it. But doing so is well worth your while.

Terrific Tool, Terrific Support
We purchased Kevin's workbook for our team to help us through the learning curve for a new tool in our group. Wow! Kevin's book really delivered and we were creating near finished product movies and company branded templates in a fews days. Kevin has also been very responsive and incredibly helpful via e-mail inquiries. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Books: General    2. Computer Science    3. Computers    4. Computers / Desktop Applications / Presentation Software    5. Computers / Desktop Publishing / General    6. Computers / Interactive Media    7. Computer Bks - Desktop Publishing    8. Desktop Publishing    9. Interactive & Multimedia    10. Presentation Software   

Editorial Review

Macromedia's Dreamweaver MX 2004 is the leading software tool for the creation of Web sites and other HTML interfaces. It's remarkably capable, able to deal intelligently with everything from fonts and images to JavaScript for client-side data validation and embedded Java applets. In most cases, Dreamweaver will save you time over hand-coding--and yield better-looking pages to boot. The program's learning curve, though, isn't trivial. That's why Read more

Features

• Illustrated

Reviews (27)

Very good manual
So many software books are so confusing and difficult to understand, I really appreciateone that is clear and truly helpful, which this one is.

Fantastic
I have read this book cover to cover.You can read it in front of your computer and perform the tutorials or you can simple read an look at the illustrations.Both provide you with a very accurate experience.The online web site allows you to download all of the necessary files to perform your labs if you desire.It is simple, elegant, and well thought out book.You can't walk away from this book and not say that you did not truely learn to use Dreamweaver MX 2004. I struggled to learn this program, after reading the book, I have built several complex websites, complete with dynamic database integration.This book is that good!

The Dreamweaver Missing Manual Rocks!
I admit I'm biased because I've had Dave as a teacher and he's a great one, but his book is like his teaching -- clear, comprehensible, practical and most importantly, funny. Who wouldn't want to work on the National Exasperator pages? His tutorials are excellent, easy to use and fun. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Authoring programs    2. Computer - Internet    3. Computer Books: Web Programming    4. Computers    5. Design    6. Desktop Publishing    7. Desktop Publishing - General    8. Dreamweaver (Computer file)    9. Internet - Web Site Design    10. Web site development    11. Web sites    12. Computer / Internet    13. Computer Software Packages    14. Computers / Internet / Web Site Design    15. Internet   

Reviews (11)

Get a sense of humor.
It's sad to see that so many computer users seem to have no sense of humor. I, for one, appreciate a book that approaches such a dry subject with a smirk and lightens the weighty technical jargon with an occasional witty aside.
Great in Layman's terms
Highly recommended.I just bought a new iMAC and had zero experience with Tiger or Apple software.I like the way the author keeps your interest with sometimes dull materiel.Hard to put it down.

10.4 fordummies
I am disapppointed in this book.I have been a mac user for 15 years and am currently using system 9.2.I just purchased a new computer with system 10.4 and eagerly awaited opening the book.
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Subjects:  1. Apple And Macintosh Programming    2. Computer - Apple/Macintosh    3. Computer Books: Operating Systems    4. Computers    5. Macintosh (Computer)    6. Operating Systems - Macintosh    7. Operating systems (Computers)    8. Programming    9. Computers / Operating Systems / Macintosh    10. Macintosh OS