 The magazine of the Melbourne PC User Group Editorial Ash Nallawalla ash@melbpc.org.au |
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Desktop Publishing
It's that time of the year again, when I get to promote my favourite subject - Desktop Publishing (DTP). You almost got a 100% DTP issue but some members saw fit to keep some order in these pages and have contributed some articles on other subjects. Many commercial magazines and newspapers are beginning to use DTP tools for some (or most) of their production work. Unfortunately, some DTP magazines fail to practise what they preach. Have you seen a 'makeover' page, where they take an existing newsletter page and purport to improve its appearance? In many cases the original page looked better to my eyes.
If you are a Kiwi expat like myself and read the magazine North & South you may have seen the total lack of kerning (certain pairs of letters are tucked together, eg AWA) and ligatures (adjoining letters which deliberately touch, eg ffl). Absence of such typographical tricks diminishes readability and drives me to distraction. This does not mean I am right and they are wrong, but at least it shows that DTP has its share of false prophets and that there is more than one way to design a good page.
This magazine breaks a few rules of typography in order to fit more material. If we went by the book then you would see three columns and more white space. We presently use Times Roman as most experts say that it is the most readable typeface. In the Unix newsgroups there is an ongoing debate about the readability of Times Roman created by 300 dpi laser printers. They say that it is not as readable as an equivalent size font created by a typesetting machine (well over 1000 dpi). They tend to agree that Bitstream Charter is a more suitable fare for laser printers. I am not sure that I agree, especially at 9 point usage, but my main opposition to it is that a down-loadable font slows down printing. A year ago our PC Update SIG looked at various typefaces and agreed to stay with Times Roman (Bitstream Charter has been used for this page to illustrate the point).
Do not let the elegance of the typeface seduce you into thinking that it is necessarily more readable than another. I used to think that Palatino was readable but it is now used mainly on the cover and on certain pages. An ideal typeface should be 'transparent' so that the reader sees the printed message but not the individual letters.
Desktop Publishing Bulletin Board
A member is hoping to start his own, limited-hours DTP BBS. If you are interested in joining then please write to me at the club address. I will not reply individually but if this BBS starts then I will tell you where to find it. If anyone has public domain utilities (not fonts) for Ventura Publisher please write to me. I note that our own BBS is almost back to normal and that it will carry a Ventura Publisher echo.
PC Update Needs You
May I ask you all to think seriously about writing at least one article on any aspect of computing - it does not all have to be reviews or programming aspects. The previous issue was a good example of writing about some of the more human aspects of computing. The only problem there is this magazine is beginning to make us look like a branch of the Boston Computer Society because I have used much of their material. I will be contacting other large groups and in due course you will see material from other sources, but there is a danger in scaring off our own members. I have only rejected one article in the last six months because this author's work generally needs heavy editing and in this case the subject matter was not suitable.
Once your article appears in print you should write to the Administrative Officer and ask for your free voucher which will entitle you to $20 worth of public domain software (usually two disks) from our library.
New Members
New members include beginners and they sometimes complain that this magazine is far too technical. We went through that trauma last year and rectified it by trying to include one or two beginners' articles each month. Unfortunately I only publish what I can get and once a topic has been covered I cannot justify repeating it until a few months have passed. Back issues (some months only) are kept in stock by the Administrative Officer at our office and at the monthly meeting.
Buying from USA
In case anyone is interested, Ventura Publisher and the Professional Extension together weigh 8 lbs and customs duty of about $12 was charged based on media costs only and on a declared value of US$695. Someone who upgraded directly from the USA gave us this tip.
Viruses
Until recently, I had no close experience of a computer virus. I have not worried about them because I don't collect the type of software that apparently attracts them. This time the Marijuana virus surfaced in a locally written commercial package and disabled two PCs at a local school. I believe that one should keep virus detectors and allied remedies handy just in case.
Recommendations
It is worth noting that any recommendations appearing in this magazine on any page (or expressed orally at a meeting) are private opinions and that this group never endorses any product or service.
Dial Help
Roger Sewell is our new Dial Help Coordinator. Please contact him if you wish to add your name to the Dial Help page or amend your details. He has a busy radiography practice so you may have to wait a few minutes if he is busy. This applies to all Dial Help volunteers in general.
Reprinted from the August 1989 issue of PC Update, the magazine of Melbourne PC User Group, Australia
