Adobe InDesign CS6 Interactive: Digital Publishing for the Internet and the iPad (Adobe CS6) 1st Edition

My textbook was stolen. I am reviewing books to use to teach at our community college next Fall. 2015 semester. My experience has been positive and found the textbook easy to read and follow the steps. We are using the CC version of Adobe InDesign at the college and wondering how long this text book will be available for us to adopt. Nonetheless, I will learn enough to pass on skills as needed.

Great book at a great price.

I like the tutorial books and Botello does well again. I'm a big fan of the "Interactve" series and have learned several Adobe products this way.

(1) I take issue with the authors perpetuating the myth -- why this issue keeps popping up, I don't know (well, I do know: greed) -- that any person who has designed and implemented websites can EASILY become an iOS "app combination designer AND DEVELOPER). The fact is, "native apps" (Objective C; Xcode) are far superior in quality than "web apps" (HTML and Javascript) -- will always be so -- will never be any other way. A person has to get as much training in becoming "any kind of app developer" whether they take the native-route or the web-route. The native vs. web issue keeps cropping up because people think they can get somethin' for nothin' -- they see dollar signs ($$$) thinking they can take their HTML/Javascript experience and instantly jump onto the tablet-bandwagon and make oodles of money. Forget it. Becoming an app developer is painful and time-consuming whether you take the native-route or the web-route. Frankly, you have to put in equal time, effort and money into learning, and since native apps have the capacity to be average-to-superior apps (and web apps have merely the capacity to be inferior-to-average apps), train native (Objective C; Xcode). F.(2) The authors are of the opinion that InDesign CS6 generates code that you would be proud to use for an actual app (whatever kind). Not so. The only way to generate decent website/web app code is by knowing HTML4 or 5 (using programs like BBEdit or Dreamweaver, and if you want to get fancy, Javascript). InDesign generates code for PROTOTYPES (websites, tablet-apps, whatever) only. Why prototype? Because the code sucks. If you know even a little HTML, create a page in InDesign, then generate its HTML -- it is gobblydegook -- heaven forbid someone needs to alter the code -- the code is unreadable to humans -- the code is unstable, meaning the app crashes a lot. Garbage in, garbage out. People don't buy (or frequent) apps that crash a lot. Someone has to take the prototype and code in Objective C (native) or in HTML (web). It is useful, even necessary with the complexity of apps now, to have a prototype to work from. Adobe says zillions of places that InDesign (and Fireworks, and Flash, and a number of their other applications) do NOT generate usable code. F.(3) For the Kindle version of this book, the book is difficult to read because the authors chose a non-standard (called "Print Replica") format, a format that Amazon likely frowns upon but accepts if the author insists. If this book is an example of the digital book they tout, I can do without. F.(4) The money you would have paid for this book, invest in Lynda.com. Or buy any of the other books on the subject:  InDesign CS6: Visual QuickStart Guide , Adobe InDesign CS6 Digital Classroom , Adobe InDesign CS6 Classroom in a Book , Adobe InDesign CS6 on Demand (2nd Edition) , Real World Adobe InDesign CS6 , Interactive InDesign CC: Bridging the Gap between Print and Digital Publishing  (CS6 and/or CC versions).(5) For what you get (including the authors' bending the truth), this book costs too much.(6) My overall official opinion: Yuck.

Great book that taught me how to use indesign to build my own website. Would purchase from again!