The process of producing special effects typography often involves the addition of graphic elements, artwork, and line and shape detail that require considerable design expertise and skill. Although all bitmap and vector programs have the innate capability to produce typographic effects, they may not incorporate the range of capabilities that are particular to custom typographic composition. Their shortcomings make them dependent upon the use of supplemental programs that do have such specialized features. The synthesis of a design can involve a multitude of programs, each dependent upon the import and export capabilities of the software in use, to allow for the progressive development of a complex design.

Just as in machine typesetting, wherein specialized devices were invented to meet the precise requirements of the output form, so too in software have programs been created to address particular typographic production demands. Of particular note is TypeStyler 3, an especially capable application, with well over a decade of use by a large population of professional and novice users.

TypeStyler 3 is a Macintosh application that can produce professional quality display typography for print, Web, and video graphics. Within its easy-to-use WYSIWYG design environment, the user can produce truly dazzling typographic effects. The program works seamlessly with a wide range of drawing, painting, page layout, and design applications.

The user can manipulate any of their PostScript Type 1 or TrueType typefaces, as well as the included library of 110 Bitstream fonts, which are provided in both PostScript and TrueType formats.

The variety of typographic treatments is virtually infinite, and extends to total typographic control over a range of effects encompassing twisting, bending, reshaping, combining, embossing, overlapping, blurring, dimensioning, rotating, curving, shadowing, texturing, coloring, and much more. The key to the program's flexibility is the fact that type is manipulated as objects, which means that characters can break free from the relatively static forms of straight typographic composition.

Within the object-based environment, type can be converted into outlines, and be manipulated as independent shapes. The user gains the capability to access the actual outlines created by the type designer, and edit them at will. Control points can be added or removed, and each point can be moved anywhere.

TypeStyler 3 supports the importation of files that have been created in other programs, so that they can be combined in a specific design, or so that images, for example, can be used to fill a character or word, or be added to the program's image library. In addition to the creation of custom type, the program supports the creation of graphic shapes, called ""panels."" A panel is a graphic primitive, such as a star or rectangle, that can undergo any of the design treatments that are available for text.

What is especially useful is the fact that designs are composed of objects, and the features of each object can be changed at will, at almost any time.* This makes it very easy to make many variations of a single composition. $149.95 __________ *An exception is type that has been converted into outlines. In this state the type can no longer be edited as alpha characters.

RagTime 5 is a professional business publishing suite that supports text, spreadsheets, images, and graphs. Its calculation and graphing capabilities make it especially well-suited to the production of catalogs, price lists, and annual reports.

RagTime uses a layout scheme that is different from most others. The spreadsheet interface can be used to divide a page into any combination of rows and columns, and any page element can be placed in any cell. The contents of a cell can be replicated in any number of cells, a useful capability for ganging work, such as business cards. Any changes made to the source cell is reflected automatically in the related cells.

The program has several variable data capabilities, making it possible to produce customized mail merge documents that are built in a spreadsheet layout. These documents can be as simple as personalized letters, and as complex as customized product specification sheets.

The RagTime spreadsheet incorporates typographic features, such as paragraph and font style sheets; and calculation features, such as importation of Excel tables and the use of over 200 calculation and evaluation functions. The templates made from RagTime spreadsheets can include dynamic links that create what are termed "living" documents. A living document will respond to the input of new numeric data, reflecting new calculations in associated charts.

Other features include: Footnotes, tables of contents, indices, and drop caps; grid lines, baseline grids, variable units of measurement and rulers; small caps and kerning; 3D spreadsheet with 16,000 rows, columns and planes, unlimited spreadsheets per document; color management with over 30 MB of ICC-compliant color quality profiles; tear-off palettes and menus; extensive drag-and-drop support; and much more. $695

Quicken 2000 Deluxe for Macintosh is not only the most advanced personal finance software available for the Macintosh platform, it is also the most capable in terms of its features for the personal publishing of an individual's financial position.

The program maintains five default "snapshots" that present on-screen, or on paper, an overall look at an individual's account activity, repetitive expenses, investments, year-to-date expenses, and outstanding loan activity. These measures are arranged in a layout that is easy-to-read and navigate. Quicken 2000 Deluxe provides twelve such "snapshots" from which to choose, so that the user can customize the reports to suit their particular circumstances, or their need for a particular type of report. Many of the "snapshots" contain links that can be used to extend the information, customize it, edit it, or perform an analysis. The user has control over typeface and size selection, and can produce professional-quality reports for personal recordkeeping, review with a financial advisor, or as part of a proposal for a loan. $59.95

Sonar Bookends InDex is a plug-in for Adobe InDesign that provides intelligent indexing. The plug-in provides comprehensive indexing generation with the following features: Automatic word selection based on frequency; proper nouns detected automatically; index based on a user-defined list of items imported from a database, or created by marked entries; indexing of multiple files at one time; automatic reversal of first and last names in list; automatic conversion from a single-level to a multiple-level list; powerful sorting of both single- and multiple-level lists; Boolean searching capabilities; Table of Contents based on style sheets; optional prefixing of page numbers with section information; and more. Sonar Bookends InDex Index Only, $195; TOC Only, $95; Index and TOC, $275.

Print Screen Works is a software utility that supports the capture, print, e-mail or fax of anything that appears on the user's computer screen. It is activated by pressing the Print Screen key. The user can capture a full screen or any portion, printing it or saving it as a .bmp or .jpg file. Other features include: automatic printing or saving of each captured image; image encryption via 56-bit DES; and importing of any compatible image. $29.95

International Cuisine is one of several new titles produced by PhotoAlto, a Paris-based publisher of digital stock images. This collection, photographed by Jean-Blaise Hall, consists of 120 royalty-free drum-scanned photos in two resolutions: 75 dpi and 300 dpi.

The photos cover the complete menu of foods, from starting to ending courses. Specific foods include: mousse, almonds, figs, bread, biscuits, chicken, fish, tea, sushi, papaya, lime, guava, cinnamon, spices, soup, cheese, apple pie, salad, meat, strawberries, garlic, oranges, duck, cereal, jam, cherries, pasta, prawns, and many more. Each photo is tastefully and artfully presented in an appropriate setting. $299

WebRazor Pro Version 2.0 is a suite of programs supporting the production of Web graphics, animation and page production. The programs support 3D text manipulation, precise GIF control and file optimization (using Ulead's proprietary SmartSaver Pro technology).

GIF Animator 4, which is used for creating compact Web animations, supports drag-and-drop, onion-skinning and film-strip modes, video effects and merging. A new Headline Banner feature makes it easy to create animated text and banner headlines. Users can create animated text in neon, gradient, and marquee effects, and save the completed GIF file using enhanced compression and batch optimization to ensure the fastest possible download speeds.

The Ulead SmartSaver Pro 2.0 file optimizer will accept all of the common image file formats, including animated GIFs, and produce more compact versions. It provides side-by-side windows showing before and after previews. The new JavaScript rollover features include a unique "Distance Rollover" option which lets designers define actions in one part of an image based on mouse activity in another.

COOL 3D 2.5 provides a full complement of tools for creating animated 3D titles and attractive special effects, including 12 new special effects plug-ins, such as "Hollow," and "Glow," and new motion effects, such as "Path Animation" and "Dance."

The final element in the suite is Ulead Photo Explorer 5, a multimedia file management utility for managing and locating any multimedia file stored on a computer. Users can identify all media types by visual thumbnail representations, as well as quickly rename, copy and batch process files. Images can be located quickly using enhanced keyword features, and direct editing tools support rotation, cropping, brightness adjustment, and color and contrast balance control. The user can also export hyper-linked thumbnail images to a Web page, or create slide shows, calendars and screensavers from their images. $129

Norton Utilities for Macintosh 5.0 is the latest version of this truly essential system utility. This new version is both PowerPC native and supportive of the HFS+ file system.

A key improvement in this version is Live Repair, which enables the Macintosh start-up disk to easily and safely repair itself. Because Norton Disk Doctor repairs can be initiated from disk rather than the bootable CD, the program can be updated (LiveUpdate) by an automatic connection to the Symantec server, via the Internet. The CD is only needed on those occasions when the computer will not recognize the hard disk. The Main Interface now includes an entry for Norton AntiVirus for Macintosh.

Another new feature is Undo, which lets the user back out of any changes made to a disk if, under unusual circumstances, it becomes necessary to return to a previous state.

The UnErase utility, which enables users to retrieve files that are accidentally deleted, has been improved to support all file types. The utility can restore both files and folders, and lets the user set filters to quickly find the exact files needing recovery.

Other features include support for FireWire at the device-level, and an enhanced FileSaver utility, which now decouples volume updates and file tracking capabilities; $99.95

Face Factory is an innovative program that enables users to create, animate and manipulate photo-realistic 3-D heads from just two still photographs.

The program's "Head Station" area is used to input two face images, one a front view, the other a side view, from a digital camera, file or scanner. The program is able to create a 3-D model of a complete head that can be rotated, enlarged or viewed from any angle.

The three-dimensional head is created by joining the photos on the side of the head, and placing them over a wireframe. The user can fine tune the model by providing "hints," which help to define the exact location of the ears and nose. A photo "skin" is attached to the wireframe, and it can be bent and stretched when a special effect is applied.

In the "Effects Station" part of the program the user can apply 30 distortion effects that can produce a variety of amusing effects, such as "Cube" and "Alien." These transformations can be saved as an AVI video file.

Other features include: sending 3-D heads with text messages as e-mail; saving a 3-D head as a screensaver; and importing 3-D heads into virtually any program that can accept a standard graphic file format. $39.95

iREZ Reel-Eyes is an inexpensive application for transferring high-quality, 30 fps analog video to and from computer RAM or disk memory. The program supports the playback of feature-length movies from a computer, export of video to DV stream, and saving a selected portion of a video clip as a self-contained .avi movie. Source video can be cropped to a pre-determined fixed-frame size for transfer to RAM or disk. The program supports the full-screen video transfer, playback, export, or real-time viewing from any analog source, including VCR, Super-VHS, live television, DVD, etc.

Reel-Eyes supports the recording to multiple hard drives or partitions, at up to 40 Gb per drive. When the first or primary drive is full, recording continues, automatically, to the second drive, with no loss of content. Users can export in any format that uses QuickTime, including .avi, .mov, .bmp, .flc, etc. $34.95

3D Hunting is an immersive hunting experience that is presented in a realistic 3D environment. The user travels through a lifelike terrain consisting of hills, valleys, streams, and natural cover, representing locations in Oregon, Arkansas, Kentucky, and New York State. Within this virtual world are deer which move about as they naturally would, and interact with the environment around them. The user need not resort to violence. Rather than select from four weapons, the "hunter" can take screen shots that can be kept in a personal digital photo album. $19.95

ResumeMaker Deluxe Edition, Version 7.0 is the latest version of the number-one best-selling resume software product. This version responds to the rapidly changing world of the Internet by providing new features for job seekers to more effectively manage an online job search.

The Job Finder feature connects to the top 20 career Web sites, searching nearly 5 million job openings, including the classified job ads that appear in major newspapers across the U.S. It then displays a list of found job openings that meet the user's criteria. By clicking on any of the job listings, Job Finder displays a detailed description of the job, as well as responsibilities, qualifications and salary. In most cases, the user can apply for the job by submitting a resume directly from ResumeMaker, or through e-mail. A record of the contact can be added automatically to ResumeMaker's Contact Manager for follow-up.

The Resume Caster tool is used to submit, update, and, when necessary, remove, a resume from a major career Web site. A report on the status of the resume is maintained, and includes when it was last added, edited or removed. The tool is also used to connect to many online Job Agents, which automatically search the Web for job openings matching user-defined criteria. A list of matching jobs is sent to the user via e-mail as they become available.

Another new feature of the program is its capability to create a resume Web page in HTML for posting to a personal Web site. This provides yet another way for a potential employer to see a user's resume.

Other features include: Guided Resumes, a step-by-step process that creates professional resumes, with over 100,000 recommended phrases, 3,600 suggested action words, and job descriptions for 12,700 careers. Several resume types, formats and templates are included. Guided Letters provides a simple way to create professional cover letters, offer acceptance letters, thank you letters, referral letters, ad response letters, resignation letters, and fax cover sheets. The Contact Manager keeps track of all company contacts, phone numbers, interview appointments, to-do items, daily and weekly calendars, and a complete contact history of all job-related activities. The Virtual Interview lets the user practice with 500 possible interview questions. Expert Advice is a section that includes eight workshops that offer tips on career planning, salary negotiation, search techniques, and more. The Career Planner assesses the user's ideal career based on that person's skills, abilities, experience and preferences. $49.95

Green, Chuck

A design guide for the production of several categories of printed and Web-based work, including awards, binders, business cards, forms, signs and tickets. Each project is illustrated with a tasteful and aesthetic example, many shown both in their production state (with all technical details, such as type sizes, typefaces, measurements, etc.) and their finished state (in photographic form showing their actual use). There are 104 projects in all, each shown in a step-by-step sequence, with practical information for the designer related to available resources, and tips for working with illustrators, photographers, and printers.

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The Kleper Report on Digital Publishing is (c)opyright 1999, Graphic Dimensions, Pittsford, NY, all rights reserved. You may distribute the SoftLocked version of this document, unmodified and in its entirety. You may distribute portions of this document, up to 200 words in length, unmodified, provided that you also include this copyright notice and subscription information.