For what purposes are programs needed?
Before using programs for website layout, you need to divide them into several categories.
Working with graphics. First of all, the layout designer must be able to work with the layout he receives. If he cannot cut out the necessary parts from the layout, then further layout is impossible in principle.
Working with code. Once you have figured out the graphics and cut out everything you need, you will need to start the main work of a layout designer - writing code. To make this as fast and convenient as possible, you need to use the appropriate software.
Checking the work. When you have already done the main work, you will need to check its result. As a rule, you can make a lot of mistakes during the writing process, especially if you do not have much experience. Also, different requirements are usually placed on the finished layout. Checks will help to adjust it to these requirements.
To work with the layout
The layout designer needs to remember the need to work with the layout. There is PhotoShop for this, although you can use GIMP as a free alternative. Both are suitable, although Photoshop is, of course, a little more convenient.
You need to understand that a layout can contain hundreds of layers. To work with it without brakes, you need to work on less powerful hardware. Much depends on the layout itself. The fewer layers and elements, the smaller the file size, the faster it will be processed.
The actual layout
Everything is very clear with the layout, but what software can be useful for layout? Maybe you need a program for website layout using only html and css. In this case, you can choose something simpler. The more complex the work, the more functional the solution is worth using.
Notebook. The simplest thing you can have for editing code. No functionality. In what cases will you have to use it? Let's say you need to show a friend some piece of code, but it won't be on his computer. suitable program. Notepad is not suitable for editing, much less writing code.
Rice. 1. Notepad does not have syntax highlighting, so it is not suitable for working with code.
Notepad++. But this is a much more advanced tool. It is often called the programmer's notebook. It supports syntax highlighting, multiple languages and encodings. Writing code is easy, convenient, it is possible to connect plugins and work with big amount files at the same time. Depending on your knowledge of languages, you can enable or disable tooltips. Experienced coders usually turn them off because they only interfere with writing code.
Rice. 2. Notepad++ has excellent syntax highlighting. Tags, attributes, attribute values, and plain text are highlighted differently.
Adobe DreamViewer. More powerful program, which includes not only an editor, but also tools for completely visual creation of pages and elements. You will have to learn how to work with it, since it is quite complex. It must be said that any visual editor inserts a lot of unnecessary code.
This is also true in the case of Dreamviewer, but here you have to pay for speed. The program is suitable for professionals when they need to quickly get code pages to show it to the customer.
SublimeText. Very similar to Notepad++. It differs mainly only in the interface and various plugins that can be connected.
Front Page. Another program from Microsoft. It also allows you to work with images, videos and JavaScript.
Again, the choice depends on whether you need a visual component or if you intend to write more code yourself.
Statistics show that most developers use Sublime and Notepad++. These are the best programs for website layout. But they are suitable for you if you already know the code and don't really need help. Then these editors will give you more freedom.
You can also select UltraEdit. Although the program is not very popular, it opens quite quickly large files and it is also convenient to write code in it.
Many people also praise NetBeans. This development environment is well suited for writing web scripts and scripts. Recommended for beginner programmers.
Among more modern software we can note text editor Vim. In terms of functionality, it is considered one of the most powerful. For example, you can work with many files in one window, compare two files, and then quickly make edits. Another feature is the unlimited ability to cancel and return some of your actions.
Layout checking
As a rule, normal code editors already contain tools for checking what has been written. For example, code highlighting makes it easy to identify occasional typos and minor errors (unclosed tag, extra semicolon, etc.)
But checking the layout is not only about this. For more complete testing, you need to use other programs. For example, the same debugger. I have already mentioned it several times. Firstly, it is an opportunity to quickly find a problem and solve it. Because you can disable any styles in the debugger, it's a quick way to check if your media rules are working if you're also implementing responsiveness.
This may also not be enough. If the template should look the same in most popular browsers, you need to check the layout for cross-browser compatibility. There are several online services for this. One of the most popular is crossbrowsertesting.com/. Certain functions on the site are only available for money. The service gained popularity due to the ability to check the site in more than a hundred versions different browsers.
Rice. 3. Crossbrowsertesting is one of the resources that offers cross-browser testing in hundreds of browser versions.
It may still be necessary to adapt the layout for older versions of browsers. As you know, the most problems have always arisen with Internet Explorer. I previously wrote about IE Tester, a program where you can check for free how a site will look in older versions of this browser. NetRederender is also suitable for this. She lets you look appearance site in IE versions from 5.5 to 9.
Conclusion
Layout of a website may require quite a lot of services and programs. The minimum configuration includes a program for working with graphics, 1 code editor and 2-3 services for checking layout. I've seen people who have a much larger set of tools. It all depends on the complexity of your activity as a web developer. That's all for today. Subscribe to our blog if you want to know everything about website building.
Computer publishing (English Desktop publishing - “desktop publishing”, abbreviated DTP) - use personal computer and special software for creating a layout for subsequent printing in a printing house or printer.
The user creates his own page layout, which can contain text, drawings, photographs and other illustrative elements. Depending on the required quantity and quality of materials, printing can be performed on a printer, risograph or in specialized printing houses.
Examples of software specializing in computer layout are QuarkXPress, Adobe InDesign, Scribus, Microsoft Publisher, Apple Pages.
The term computer layout refers not only to the creation of page layouts for books and magazines. The term is also used for advertising layouts, packaging, exhibition stand design, etc.
One of the quality ones is Adobe InDesign CS2
I work in it: it allows not only layout, but also translation into typographic slides. With color, quality results are achieved. You can automate page numbering and style selection.
Compatible with other Adobe programs...
Convenient, high-speed and multifunctional...
Subtly reacts to errors during layout. Hints...
InDesign introduces Adobe as the best successor to Adobe PageMaker. InDesign is the heart of dozens of publishing systems for newspapers, magazines and other publishing environments; it is used by artists and layout designers of periodicals and books.
InDesign CS and InDesign CS2 are bundled with Photoshop, Illustrator, and Acrobat in the Adobe Creative Suite. Supports advanced transparency, styling, optical alignment, micro-typography, and cross-platform scripting using JavaScript (Visual Basic and AppleScript are also supported for scripting). Using a relational database, Adobe InCopy uses the same formatting engine as InDesign.
InDesign is the first major DTP with Unicode support for word processing and OpenType fonts. InDesign documents can be exported to standard PDF format with multilingual support.
Adobe is developing InDesign CS3 (and Creative Suite 3) as a universal, compatible with both Intel and PowerPC Mac platforms, dual software. The CS2 Mac version has code specifically tailored for the PowerPC architecture and is not compatible with the Intel processors in Apple's new machines. Porting products to another platform was Adobe's attempt to develop CS3 alongside Macromedia products, rather than reassembling CS2 and promoting CS3 at the same time. Adobe CEO Bruce Chisen announced that "Adobe will be the first software company to offer a full line of universal applications." In 2002, InDesign became the first desktop publishing program for Mac OS X.
InDesign is a direct competitor of QuarkXPress (the so-called “quark killer”); competitor from free software - cross-platform Scribus (Scribus).
There is also - CorelDRAW 12
Also a good program, but it doesn’t show pages in pairs...
CorelDRAW remains one of the most popular design and layout tools. We were able to get acquainted with the new version, CorelDRAW Graphics Suite 12, released at the beginning of the year, thanks to the assistance of the exclusive distributor of Corel in Russia, CPS.
The 180 MB installation file contained the entire package: CorelDRAW itself, Corel Photo PAINT, CorelRAVE (flash animation) and utilities - CorelTRACE raster image tracer, native format viewer and CorelCAPTURE (saving screen copies). The rest of the space on the first disk is occupied by a collection of fonts (unfortunately, there are no Cyrillic ones), a traditionally extensive library of ready-made vector images (clipart) and blanks in raster formats (masks, images, including those with clipping paths, frames, etc.) . The new version is available only for Windows - after failure with the previous one, they decided to abandon the promotion of the package on an alternative platform.
Several years ago, realizing the futility of the race with Adobe in the market for artistic graphics solutions, the company shifted its focus and focused on technical graphics (a direction close in spirit to the main product of the package). Developments in the form of interactive measuring tools, a mass of supported document formats and the flexibility provided by numerous dockers and interactive panels should have provided the editor with at least an equal position with Microsoft Visio and ACDSee Canvas. Naturally, the development of the editor as a tool for computer artists has completely stopped, and the innovations of the 12th version the best for that confirmation.
The only emerging art tool reminiscent of the editor's former role is Artistic Media (much like Illustrator's Symbol Sprayer). It began to support transparency and lenses; This is where the innovations in this direction end.
What is more interesting is what is connected with the editor’s approval in a new role: here are both Dynamic guides and Smart drawing tools. Although the technical bias is noticeable, they can also be useful for computer artists.
It will not be difficult for an experienced layout designer or web programmer to layout a simple web page using a regular text editor. But to perform complex tasks in this area of activity, it is recommended to use specialized software. These can be advanced text editors, multifunctional complex applications called integrated development tools, image editors, etc. In this article we will look at software designed for website layout.
First of all, let's start with a description of advanced text editors designed to make the work of a layout designer easier. By far the most famous program of this type is Notepad++. This software solution supports the syntax of many programming languages, as well as text encodings. Code highlighting and line numbering greatly facilitate the work of programmers in various fields. The use of regular expressions makes it easier to find and change code sections that are similar in structure. To quickly perform similar actions, it is suggested to record macros. You can significantly expand the already rich functionality using built-in plugins.
Among the shortcomings, one can name only such a dubious “minus” as the presence of a large number of functions that are incomprehensible to the average user.
SublimeText
Another advanced text editor for web programming workers is SublimeText. It can also work with many languages, including Java, HTML, CSS, C++. When working with code, highlighting, autocompletion and numbering are used. A very convenient feature is support for snippets, with which you can use templates. Using regular expressions and macros can also provide significant time savings when solving a given problem. SublimeText allows you to work on four panels simultaneously. The functionality of the program is expanded by installing plugins.
The main disadvantage of the application, when compared with Notepad++, is the lack of a Russian-language interface, which causes some inconvenience, especially for inexperienced users. Also, not all users like the notification that appears prompting them to purchase a license in the window of the free version of the product.
Brackets
Let's complete the description of text editors designed for laying out web pages with a review of the Brackets application. This tool, like its previous analogues, supports all major markup and programming languages with highlighting of corresponding expressions and line numbering. The highlight of the application is the presence of the function "Live Preview", with which you can view all changes made to a document in real time through a browser, as well as integration into the context menu "Conductor". The Brackets toolkit allows you to view web pages in debug mode. Through the program window you can manipulate several files at the same time. The ability to install third-party extensions further pushes the boundaries of functionality.
The only disappointment is the presence of some non-Russian sections in the program, as well as the ability to use the function "Live Preview" exclusively in the browser.
GIMP
One of the most popular among advanced image editors, which can be successfully used for creating web content, is GIMP. The program is especially convenient to use for drawing website designs. Using this product, you can draw and edit finished images using a variety of tools (brushes, filters, blurs, selections, and much more). GIMP supports working with layers and saving presets into its own format, with which you can resume work in the same place where you left it, even after starting it again. The change history helps you track all the actions that were applied to the picture and, if necessary, cancel them. In addition, the program can work with text applied to an image. This is the only free application among its analogues that can offer such rich functionality.
Among the disadvantages are the occasional slowdown effect due to the large resource consumption of the program, as well as significant difficulties in understanding the operating algorithm for beginners.
Adobe Photoshop
A paid analogue of GIMP is the program Adobe Photoshop. It is even more famous because it was released much earlier and has more advanced functionality. Photoshop is used in many areas of web development. With it you can create, edit and transform images. The program can work with layers and 3D models. In this case, the user has the opportunity to use more larger set tools and filters than in GIMP.
Among the main disadvantages is the difficulty in mastering all the functionality of Adobe Photoshop. In addition, unlike GIMP, this tool is paid with a trial period of only 30 days.
Aptana Studio
The next group of programs for web page layout are integrated development tools. One of its most popular representatives is Aptana Studio. This software solution is a comprehensive tool for creating websites, including a text editor, debugger, compiler and build automation tool. Using the application, you can work with program code in many programming languages. Aptana Studio supports manipulation of several projects simultaneously, integration with other systems (in particular, with the Aptana Cloud service), as well as remote editing of site content.
The main disadvantages of Aptana Studio are its difficulty in learning and the lack of a Russian-language interface.
WebStorm
An analogue of the Aptana Studio program is WebStorm, which also belongs to the class of integrated development systems. This software product has a built-in convenient code editor that supports an impressive list of different programming languages. For greater user comfort, the developers have provided the ability to choose the design of the work area. Among the “advantages” of WebStorm we can highlight the presence of a Node.js debugging tool and fine-tuning of libraries. Function "Live Edit" provides the ability to view all changes made through a browser. A tool for interacting with a web server allows you to remotely edit and configure the site.
In addition to the lack of a Russian-language interface, WebStorm has one more “minus”, which, by the way, Aptana Studio does not have, namely the need to pay for using the program.
Front Page
Now let's look at a block of applications called visual HTML editors. Let's start with a product review Microsoft called Front Page. This program was quite popular, since at one time it was part of the package Microsoft Office. It offers the ability to layout web pages in a visual editor that works on the WYSIWYG principle ("what you see is what you get"), like a word processor. If desired, the user can open a standard HTML editor to work with the code or combine both modes on a separate page. The application interface has many text formatting tools built into it. There is a spell checking function. In a separate window, you can preview how the web page will look through the browser.
With so many advantages, the program has even more disadvantages. The most important thing is that the developers have not supported it since 2003, which means that the product is hopelessly behind the development of web technologies. But even at their most better times Front Page did not support a large list of standards, which, in turn, led to the fact that web pages created in this application, were displayed only in the browser.
KompoZer
The next visual HTML code editor, KompoZer, has also not been supported by developers for a long time. But unlike Front Page, the project was stopped only in 2010, which means this program is still able to support newer standards and technologies than the above-mentioned competitor. It can also work in WYSIWYG mode and code editing mode. It is possible to combine both options, work simultaneously with several documents in different tabs and preview the results. In addition, Composer has a built-in FTP client.
The main disadvantage, like Front Page, is that KompoZer is no longer supported by developers. In addition, this program only has an English-language interface.
Adobe Dreamweaver
Let's finish this article a brief overview visual HTML editor Adobe Dreamweaver. Unlike previous analogues, this software product is still supported by its developers, which ensures its relevance in terms of compliance with modern standards and technologies, as well as more powerful functionality. Dreamviewer provides the ability to work in WYSIWYG, regular code editor (with backlight) and split modes. In addition, you can view all changes in real time. The program also includes a whole range of additional functions, making it easier to work with the code.
Free printing program for the layout of books, newspapers, magazines, booklets, postcards and any other printed materials.
With its capabilities it will satisfy almost any requests regarding printing. It can even compete with its paid counterpart - Adobe InDesign. Don't believe me? Compare!
Comparison of the book layout program Scribus with the paid analogue Adobe InDesign
Perhaps due to porting to Windows, or perhaps due to the lack of implementation of some ideas, Scribus looks a little “damper” than its paid “brother”. So, for example, the “Visualization” button is present, but when you try to insert a new block, an error is thrown.
However, since Scribus copes with its main purpose, you can turn a blind eye to some shortcomings (any image can be prepared in advance in a graphics editor).
Installing Scribus
Let's start installing Scribus. To do this, download the installer and run it. The first window will ask you which language to select for the program interface (select “Russian” or a language more native to you and click “Ok”):
Then you will have to “sign” the license agreement by checking the appropriate switch.
Next you will be asked to select an installation configuration. The “Full” option is more than suitable, but if you value hard drive space, you can remove the installation of additional fonts (you will save about 10 megabytes). But it’s better not to save money here.
Once the installation is complete, in the final window you can uncheck the "Show ReadMe file" checkbox. It’s still in English and doesn’t really help in mastering the editor.
The layout program itself will launch, but we will receive a warning that not all components are installed. It turns out that before installing Scribus it was necessary to install the Ghostscript complex.
PostScript- page description language for desktop publishing systems.
In principle, if you do not need support for the EPS format, and you do not need to work with the PostScript system, then you can refuse to install Ghostscript.
Close Scribus, install Ghostscript and launch Scribus again.
Scribus interface
Now there are no problems and the program prompts us to create new document. Here we can choose a layout for the layout of the book or create a new document from a template (if we have one).
Also at this stage you can set the number of pages, select how many stripes there will be, set the orientation (portrait/landscape) and page dimensions. When everything is selected, click “OK”.
As an example, we've created a default page to show the basics of Scribus. Let's take a closer look at the program window.
Conventionally, all Scribus tools on the panel can be divided into several groups (they are labeled in the picture above).
Validator- a program for checking for errors in the code.The first group in the top panel is responsible for creating and saving documents. There is a button for exporting to PDF and a “Validator” for the page code, etc. Next come the standard editing tools, after which there are all the specialized functions.
The last section is for those who want to add active elements to their eBook.
The bottom panel allows you to navigate through the document and manage its preview.
Cover layout layout
For now, we won’t go into the jungle of professional book layout, but let’s look at the main features of Scribus on simple example. Let's imagine that we need to make a layout of a future book. It usually consists of a cover and pages.
Let us immediately note that in Scribus you will mainly have to operate with rectangular blocks. Therefore, when inserting any object, first, using a frame, the boundaries of its block are indicated. If there are no questions, move on.
First, let's create the cover. Usually it is decorated with some kind of drawing or photograph. To add an image, click on the “Image Block” button on the toolbar and indicate the two corners of the block, which will look like a crossed out rectangle.
If you wish, you can fill the entire cover with this block, for which we stretch it from edge to edge.
To insert a picture, double-click on the block with the left mouse button and in the window that appears, select the picture for the cover.
Context menu- a menu that appears when you right-click on an object.Now comes the most important part! All elements of the Scribus workspace have a context menu, in which the most important item is “Properties”. Thanks to them, you can configure almost all parameters of the block.
For example, after inserting an image, it may appear smaller. Therefore, go to “Properties” and specify the desired scale of the image on the cover manually or set automatic scaling using the “Scale to block size” switch and uncheck “Proportional” so that there are no extra fields left.
Also, you can apply various photographic effects to the image, such as adjusting brightness, contrast, sharpness, etc., using the corresponding button.
In addition, in the “Colors” submenu in the same “Properties” panel, you can set some more parameters for this block. For example, an opacity of 90% for greater effect. But here you need to look at whether the applied effect will benefit the layout being made or will only make it worse.
And don’t forget to save the draft of the book being typed up (menu “File” - “Save As”), so that later it won’t be excruciatingly painful for wasted hours :) Projects are saved in SLA format.
Now let's add a title to our book. To do this, activate the “Text Block” tool and define its boundaries. Then double-click the left mouse button in the selected space and enter the desired text. At first it will turn out to be very inconspicuous, since it will be small in size.
To configure the text parameters, call the same “Properties” option from the block’s context menu. The important items here will be the “Text” and “Color” submenus. In the “Text” section we will be able to influence its various properties (font, size, fill color, shadow, etc.).
And thanks to the “Color” submenu, you can create a fill for a text block and change the color of its stroke.
Alpha channel- transparency of a certain part of the image.If you want to create a very non-standard inscription, you can always draw it in a graphics editor, and then save it with the alpha channel enabled (for example, in PNG format) and insert it into our layout editor as an image.
Adding new pages
So we made the cover for our book. But we only created one page, so how can we add new ones now? Very simple. Go to the “Page” menu and select “Insert”. In the window that appears, we configure exactly where we want to insert new pages, what they should look like and how many there will be.
In the same way, you can move or copy the current page using the appropriate commands in the "Page" menu. All copy pages will contain the same set of blocks. To clear them, simply delete unnecessary blocks by highlighting and pressing the "Delete" key on the keyboard.
Creating a Gradient
Gradient- a smooth flow of one color into another in a certain direction.You've probably noticed that in some books (and more often in booklets) the pages are not just white, but have a beautiful halftone gradient tint.
Implementing this effect in Scribus couldn't be easier. Let's activate the "Shape" tool, select some shape from the drop-down menu and create a new block with it on the entire page.
Now go to the properties of our block and go to the “Colors” section. Here we select the gradient type and set required colors. You can then set the opacity level, which will create a lighter toned effect on the page.
Ready! With this simple technique you can slightly elevate even a simple black and white page.
To see what the finished printed sheet will look like, we can use the function of inserting template text. To do this, just create a new text block and in it context menu select “Insert template text...”.
Then, in the window that appears, you will need to select the text language. The program will generate random meaningless text on which you can evaluate future view pages.
Text properties are configured using the same “Properties” menu, called up with the right mouse button.
When all the main visual parameters of the template have been adjusted, you can begin directly typing text. The best option for this purpose is the built-in text editor, which can be launched by clicking the “Change Text” button.
Using this editor, you can fine-tune each entered character or even specific printing parameters of entire words and expressions.
To view the changes made, use the “Update text block” button or the “Ctrl” + “U” key combination.
Saving a Layout
Export- converting a document into a format readable by other programs.And finally, when everything is ready, we can start saving and exporting our book. More often e-books published in PDF format. To do this, click the “Save as PDF” button. The program can warn us that there are certain errors in the template that are incompatible with the selected format.
If they do not seem critical to you, you can select the “Ignore errors” option, or try to correct them to be more confident in the result.
The layout saving window is the last stage of our work.
In this window you can configure the necessary parameters and the name of the future PDF document. It makes sense to study all the settings of this window, so that later you don’t have to ask why the pictures and text in the PDF book look different from the original version;)
conclusions
In addition to the visual interface, the Scribus book layout program has a powerful integrated script programming environment (PostScript and Python), thanks to which a professional can create an effect of any complexity or fine-tune any element of a future book.
And finally, a small children's flash game in which you need to assemble a car in the correct order for one of the Smurfs. Do you think you can easily assemble a wooden car? Ha ha!
P.S. Permission is granted to freely copy and quote this article, provided that an open active link to the source is indicated and the authorship of Ruslan Tertyshny is preserved.
P.P.S. One of the most important things in printing is beautiful fonts. On our website you can find an excellent selection of fonts for all occasions:
https://www..php
And magazines. But professionals prefer well-known products that are the most powerful on the market. What programs are these? Adobe InDesign and Quark Xpress. They will be discussed further.
Quark Xpress newspaper and magazine layout program
This development is the perfect tool necessary for preparing publications for any media projects. It is used by millions of people all over the world. These include designers from small companies and layout designers who work in major publishing houses. They all speak highly of the program's many functions and capabilities.
The latest version has received an excellent innovation - the ability to work with tablets and other popular mobile devices from a variety of manufacturers. This feature has turned the program into the only multi-platform layout tool in the publishing industry.
Key Features
The new version of this layout program has the following features:
- Conditional styles support. These are styles with the help of which certain pieces of text are designed based on the rules set by the layout designer. And all this happens in automatic mode. Thus, you can get a finished layout in a couple of minutes.
- Setting automatically changing numbering when adding or deleting items. Layouts can be imported into Word without losing bullets or numbering.
- Using callouts. This function makes it possible to bind any element or group to a page or a specific place in the text. If previously it was necessary to manually make any changes with notes and quotations, now this is possible using automatic settings.
- Ability to select font and size, set line breaks in an additional window. All changes made will be saved in the original layout.
Adobe InDesign program
The fame of this layout program extends throughout the world. After all, the developer on the market is simply a giant. This is the most best program of a kind. It has built-in support for the Russian language, unlike Quark. This is a universal application. It provides the most precise control over typography and design. With it, you can create expressive layouts for a variety of screens. When adapting to different formats high quality the image is saved.
List of program features
There are a lot of them:
- A feature called Fluid Layout allows you to easily design and create layout versions for different devices as well as printed materials. Moreover, all this is done in one file.
- Content can be linked even if it is contained in multiple documents. This makes it possible to apply changes to the parent text or object to all child elements associated with it.
- Text can be extracted from an existing layout using special tools to collect content.
- The ability to add interactive HTML content to layouts is a very interesting feature of InDesign magazine layout software.
- Projects can be composed while retaining features such as overlays.
- Support for integration with other company products. You can easily sell a wide variety of products.
- Improved features for exporting PDF documents.
As can be seen from the review, despite the possibility of choice, layout programs are in different weight categories. Most choose a product from Adobe. But there is no need to discount Quark, since the program becomes more convenient with each update. Although other analogues are striving to take their place in the market, it is still difficult for them to reach the giants.
