Looking for ways to ensure that your printed work looks as professional as possible?
Consider these suggestions, which suggest ways to design documents that direct readers
to information of interest to them, and that present your work in the most professional,
appealing manner.
| In this List of Suggestions |
Plan
the binding
Design the cover page
Identify Recurring Types of Pages
Design pages
Use emphasis type appropriately
Use heading type appropriately
Use body type appropriately
Align headings and text along the left margin
Present information in lists
Design tables
Present information visually
To call attention to a part of a page
Overall appearance |
| Plan the binding |
An academic paper or article: staple (unless
specifically requested to use paper or binder clips)? Document under 150 sheets of
paper (as many as 300 pages if printing on 2 sides), such as a user's guide or
training manual: use spiral binding, 3-ring folder or binder, or 3 staples along the
spine. Avoid binder clips unless specifically requested to use them.
Over 150 sheets: speak with a copying service about your options.
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| Design the cover page |
For an academic assignment:
- Name of the assignment
- Title of your paper (if different than the name of the assignment)
- Your name
- Date you submitted the assignment
For a user's guide, training manual, report, or other document:
- Name of the project
- Who prepared the project (name, title, organization)
- For whom the project was prepared (name, title, organization, if prepared on contract
for someone outside of the organization)
- Date that the document was completed
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| Identify Recurring Types of Pages |
- Differentiate among types of pages within the body:
- Chapter (section) beginning, which previews key sections or points, either with a verbal
introduction, a box listing upcoming pages, or some similar device. Might also include
graphical devices to indicate the beginning of a chapter.
- Procedures, which follow a consistent structure, such as brief overview, list of
materials needed, cautions and warnings, time needed, actual steps, and variations on the
procedure.
- Explanations, which might have a flexible design to accommodate the needs of the users
- Reference entries, which follow a consistent structure in each entry. The actual
structure varies, based on the nature of the subject matter.
- Examples, which follow a fleible
- Section end, which would have a summary of key points to remember, sometimes presented
verbally, sometimes presented as a checklist.
- In your word processor or desktop publishing program, set up templates for each type of
recurring page. Items to include in the template:
- Formats for headings (type font, type size, emphasis (if any), and graphical elements,
such as lines above and below)
- Format for body text (type font, size, and special fonts for special purpose, such as
direct quotes)
- Boilerplate text, such as text of recurring headings or text that appears the same in
every section, such as "To order, call 1-888-555-1278."
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| Design pages |
Make sure that each page has the following:
- Running header (or footer) with:
- White space (for a basic page, 25 percent. For a page that will be translated, 50
percent).
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| Use emphasis type appropriately |
Bold:
Headings (such as section headings, headings on charts and tables)
Captions
Italic:
- Titles of published works (books, videos, CDs, software). Example: The Grapes of
Wrath.
- Words that are appropriated from other languages and have not become standard English
(words such as détente)
Underscore: only to indicate hyperlinks. Avoid any other use.
Color: to indicate hyperlinks.
ALL CAPS: Never use. Looks like you're screaming at someone.
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| Use heading type appropriately |
Headings can be in a different type face than body type, but
all headings should use the same type face. Heading 1 is 4 points larger than body type
Heading 2 is 2 points larger than body type
Headings 3 and 4 are the same size as body type
Use only 1 type font for heading type. (More makes your document look like a ransom
note.)
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| Use body type appropriately |
Use serif type, considered the easiest to read. Use either
11 or 12-point type for body type.
Use black type on a white background for the sharpest contrast.
Avoid sans serif type.
Align all body type on the left margin.
Do not justify the right margin.
Use only 1 type font for body type. (More makes your document look like a ransom note.)
Ideal line length is approximately 50 characters.
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| Align headings and text along the left
margin |
Because readers scan text, they are likely to miss any text
aligned elsewhere.
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|
| Present information in lists |
- Bullets or numbers:
- Ordered list (in which list items must be considered in a particular order), use
numbers.
- Unordered list (in which list items may be considered in any order), use bullets.
- Margins:
- Bullet or number against the left margin.
- Text indented .25 inches from the left margin.
- Nested lists:
- Align dingbat (number or bullet) with the beginning of text from the basic list
- If using an ordered list within an ordered list, items on the nested list should begin
with letters
- If using an unordered list within an unordered list, items on the nested list should
begin with m-dashes
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| Design tables |
Use grid lines and borders, or alternate colors of rows and
shading on columns, to help readers scan across rows and down columns without losing their
places. Use headings at the top of columns to help readers decipher what's below .
Use lists within cells, to further help readers in scanning.
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| Present information visually. |
- Numerical data:
- To show relationship of parts to a whole, use a pie chart.
- To show the trend over time, use a histogram.
- To compare, use bar charts.
- Qualitative data:
- Objects (such as a machine or a building): line drawings or, if a marketing brochure,
photograph
- Procedures: flow charts (if appropriate, use icons to represent steps in the process),
animations
- Relationships of people: organization charts
- Schedules: calendars or GANTT charts
- Commands: use icons
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| To call attention to a part of a page |
Arrows Boxes
Shading
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| Overall appearance |
Go for a balanced, uncluttered look. If too many parts of
the page seem to scream for readers' attention, then you've got a cluttered look.
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(c) Copyright. 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002. Saul Carliner. All rights reserved.
