Mark Gatter, the author of Software Essentials for Graphic Designers, assumes that as a graphic designer, you may specialize in one of four areas of design which are website design, vector graphics, image editing and page layout. Therefore, you will probably concentrate on those software programs that will help you in your area. But eventually, you may take on a project that will require you to use some of those other software programs that you may have just glanced at in the past. So where do you turn? This quick reference book will help you answer those basic how-to questions you encounter on the job.

Gatter chose to concentrate on the seven most popular 2D graphic software programs; Adobe^R Photoshop^R, Illustrator^R, InDesign^R, Dreamweaver^R, Flash^R, Acrobat^R and Quark^R QuartXPress^R. Each program is given its own chapter which begins with an overview of the program, what jobs it can be used for and how it differs from other design programs. The author tries to make the rest of the chapter as version independent as possible, which works to the readers advantage. Instead of concentrating on the new bells and whistles included in the latest version, he concentrates on the basic features which are included in any version. He hopes that by only teaching these basics skills, which are usually the skills you will need on most design projects, his readers will not be overwhelmed with information. Basically, he teaches you the skills you need to accomplish simple tasks with each of the seven software programs and gives you enough knowledge of the software to be ready to learn more advanced skills.

The CD contains the files used in the book and video tutorials that reinforce what you have learned. Mark Gatter has extensive experience in graphic design, web and print production and shares several tips throughout the book. He is also an instructor and the author of Getting It Right In Print: A Guide for Graphic Designers.