June 1998

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	Hands-On Illustrator 7, by Clay Andres; Mac and Windows, MIS Press, $34.95 w/CD This helpful book filled with exercises is a good start for novice Illustrator users. It contains a thorough introduction to Illustrator's basic tools, but tends to jump around from one topic as it does with gradient fills. But it's step-by-step approach using files on the CD-ROM, and careful explanation of complex functions will make your first experience with Illustrator painless and pleasurable. However, the author's ignorance about American quilters, ("Pull up your rocker, because we will reproduce a fine old American quilt in this lesson."), will offend quilters like myself who haven't seen a rocking chair since their children were infants. He forgets that many people use Illustrator for textile design as well as for print and screen work.
	Illustrator 7 Complete, by Jennifer Alspach, Steven Frank, Kate Binder, and Harry St. Ours, Mac and Windows, Hayden Books, $45. The thirty-eight-page index is your first clue that this book is really a complete treatment of Illustrator 7. Not only do the authors cover all the features of this complex program, but provide step-by-step instructions for using those features. Their treatment of Extensis Vector Tools is superior and more comprehensible than the information in the Extensis manual. With its clearly explained treatment of Bézier curves, masking, and text tools, this book is a must-have for anyone working with Illustrator.
	Photoshop and Illustrator Synergy: Studio Secrets by Jennifer Alspach, IDG Books, Mac and Windows, $49.99 w/CD-ROM. This is a welcome book about synchronizing graphics from all the major applications including Painter, Streamline, Dimensions, PageMaker, Freehand, XPress, and Alien Skin's Eye Candy as well as Photoshop and Illustrator. The beautiful images along with the steps used to create them will inspire you and the wealth of tips and strategies will have you working easily and efficiently in these complex applications. Everything from scanning to printing is covered by gurus for guru wannabes, and the step-by-step instructions will make you stop drooling over the artwork and start creating your own.
	Microsoft Publisher 98 by Design, by Luisa Simone, Microsoft Press, $29.99. As the corporate cowards surrender to Windows, users looking for a page layout program that is simple but powerful will find Microsoft Publisher a good choice and this book an excellent guide. Filled with illustrated steps to creating different types of publications for print and screen, it provides many design examples and procedures that will have you up and running quickly. Both novices and experienced Publisher users will find much to learn from this well designed, highly visual book.
	Publisher 98 Fast and Easy, by Paul Marchesseault with Barb Terry, Prima Publishing, $19.99 If you're new to Publisher this is a good book to start with. Designed to have you functioning quickly in Publisher, it takes a graphical approach to the features and functions it describes. Its no-nonsense approach coupled with its step-by-step, keystroke-by-keystroke format is ideal for anyone new to the Windows environment. The book is especially good when dealing with inserting and manipulating graphics and with using Wizards to generate documents. Treatment of publications designed for the Web and a helpful glossary make this an ideal book for beginners.
	Teach Yourself Microsoft Publisher 3, by Devra Hall, MIS Press, $21.95. If you need to learn Publisher 3 and like having someone hold your hand through the learning process, this book is a good place to start. It covers different types of publications and shows you how to create them using Publisher's many features. Its breezy but intelligent style will make you comfortable with the program while you learn how to master its many functions. Designed around different kinds of business publications, the book is a practical handbook for learning a complex program--in a hurry!