Adobe Illustrator 10 - Design Professional

Rating:
Summary: A really underrated publisher
Review: I got this book as a screener for a class on Adobe Illustrator and I am really impressed. For one, it's not an overwhelming book- it's got beautiful color graphics and spaces out the text very well on the page so it's easy to follow the examples. Plus, there are a whole bunch of really good example files you can download from the publisher's site. The examples here really help you learn the software bit by bit. Nothing about this book is intimidating; it really helps you get into the software without frustration. There are a couple of confusing passages, but that's many less than most books have. Plus, I've never enjoyed all of the black and white books filled with text out there nearly as much as I enjoyed this. Better than the more popular titles, no names mentioned.

Rating:
Summary: Humphrey
Review: This book was a reqired textbook for my intro design course. Not only was it easy for me to follow, but it was easy for the class and the teacher, who is a Graphic Designer by day. The teacher hadn't used the book in prior semesters, but he loved it and will use it from now on. The book made us create projects and we all now have something for our portfolios!

Rating:
Summary: Great graphics, great pacing
Review: This is the best laid out book I've used to learn software, and my students loved it. You download files from the publisher's site, then use those files to do the step by step exercises that are in the book. This is a great book for beginners and intermediate users, or users upgrading to version 10. It starts with the basics, but with each chapter it goes deeper and deeper into the program, building on techniques taught in previous chapters. The reviewer below who said that none of his 20 students could use this book must have been teaching a class of gorillas or chimpanzees.

Rating:
Summary: Terrible book for absolute beginners
Review: This was the required textbook for a beginning computer design/graphics course at a local college. No one, and I mean no one of the 20 students in the class had good things to say about this book. It might be fine for someone who has some experience with Illustrator, but for the complete newbie, it is misses the boat. Very difficult to use for specific applications nor as a tutorial. Definitely NOT recommended!

Rating:
Summary: Great graphics, great pacing
Review: Wow! Finally, a book that doesn't try "to teach" Illustrator but instead teaches "how to use" Illustrator. The difference is so important. This book is a series of step-by-step exercises. You follow the author as he creates some very cool and complex graphics with Illustrator 10. So you learn hands-on. It starts simple with great introductions and gets progressively more challenging. And since the author is a great designer, you learn all his tips and tricks and techniques for using Illustrator. I teach a college class on graphic arts, and this is the only book I'm using for Illustrator. The students love the approach and they stay interested because the graphics are so interesting. Good job!