Thread: New flyer, please correct

All,

I've designed a new color 1-page flyer.  I'm having it printed
*tommorrow*, so please forward any error corrections tonight.

I'll also have my copy-editor wife go over the text.

PDF (recommended):
http://pgfoundry.org/docman/view.php/1000047/12499/what_is_pg.pdf

OpenOffice (font is "Verdana"):
http://pgfoundry.org/docman/view.php/1000047/12500/what_is_pg.odt

I won't really have time to make any substantial changes to the design,
so if you think it's horrible, just tell me and I'll print fewer of them.

--Josh

Selena,

> I'm having trouble with the layout on open office, so it may print funny
> as-is. I'm going to play with it a bit more and try to make it better. I'll
> let you know how that goes.

Just do "show changes" in OOo and I'll enter them into my copy.

--
Josh Berkus
PostgreSQL
San Francisco

On 17/02/2009 01:59, Josh Berkus wrote:

> I've designed a new color 1-page flyer.  I'm having it printed
> *tommorrow*, so please forward any error corrections tonight.

Only a very small, picky point that may not be worth fixing: in the "Top
10 reasons..." block, increase the space between the numbers and the
text just a little - number 10 is squished right up against the text.

Looks good otherwise!

Ray.

------------------------------------------------------------------
Raymond O'Donnell, Director of Music, Galway Cathedral, Ireland
rod@iol.ie
Galway Cathedral Recitals: http://www.galwaycathedral.org/recitals
------------------------------------------------------------------

Josh

A few things I'd change.

1. Select a more suitable typeface. I personally prefer serif faces for body
copy, despite the current trend to using sans serif. But if you must, use
Optima. It is the most readable of the sans serif faces for body copy.

By the way, that is not just my opinion, the great typographer Fred Lubalin
believed it too.

2. Lose the -- and replace with an em dash ‹.

3. The image looks good but should be held back to about 50% of its current
strength to make the text more readable.

4. The expression '-- not some company' didn't do it for me. I'd drop that.
A lot of the people you are targeting work for some company.

5. I think that speed, rather than performance, would be in my top 10, along
with the sheer power of it and its advantages in transaction processing
applications.

There is a little nit picking in that list but at least you know I took the
time to think about it.

On 17/2/09 3:56 PM, "Josh Berkus" <josh@agliodbs.com> wrote:

> Selena,
>
>> I'm having trouble with the layout on open office, so it may print funny
>> as-is. I'm going to play with it a bit more and try to make it better. I'll
>> let you know how that goes.
>
> Just do "show changes" in OOo and I'll enter them into my copy.

Regards

Rob Napier
Managing Director
once:technologies pty ltd

46 Roseneath Street
North Geelong VIC 3215

phone:         +613 5278 6699
facsimile:      +613 5278 6166
mobile:         +61 4344 00000
after hours:  +613 5222 6999

homepage:     www.oncetechnologies.com

On 2/17/2009 6:52 AM Rob Napier wrote:

> 4. The expression '-- not some company' didn't do it for me. I'd drop that.
> A lot of the people you are targeting work for some company.

Agree with Rob that this wording jumps out.  Maybe:

Our worldwide community of hundreds of contributors in dozens of countries develops, runs, promotes, and controls
PostgreSQL-- no one company controls the project. 

Otherwise, I think it looks great!  One minor style suggestion, since we're all designer wannabes:  maybe turn off full
justificationin the grey boxes, leave it left-justified like the others. 

Cheers,
Ned


--
Ned Lilly
President and CEO
xTuple
119 West York Street
Norfolk, VA 23510
tel. 757.461.3022 x101
email: ned@xtuple.com
www.xtuple.com

Josh Berkus wrote:
> All,
>
> I've designed a new color 1-page flyer.  I'm having it printed
> *tommorrow*, so please forward any error corrections tonight.
>
> I'll also have my copy-editor wife go over the text.
>
> PDF (recommended):
> http://pgfoundry.org/docman/view.php/1000047/12499/what_is_pg.pdf
>
> OpenOffice (font is "Verdana"):
> http://pgfoundry.org/docman/view.php/1000047/12500/what_is_pg.odt
>
> I won't really have time to make any substantial changes to the design,
> so if you think it's horrible, just tell me and I'll print fewer of them.

I know it's late in, but it looks like a very cluttered design. It's
also kinda hard to read with that mix of background colors. So I'd go
for print fewer :P

Also, shouldn't there be colons as in "PostgreSQL: The Database System"?
It looks a bit weird to me now, but that could be non-englishism shining
through?

And are the boxes really supposed to be non-aligned?

//Magnus

Magnus Hagander wrote:
> Josh Berkus wrote:
> > All,
> >
> > I've designed a new color 1-page flyer.  I'm having it printed
> > *tommorrow*, so please forward any error corrections tonight.
> >
> > I'll also have my copy-editor wife go over the text.
> >
> > PDF (recommended):
> > http://pgfoundry.org/docman/view.php/1000047/12499/what_is_pg.pdf
> >
> > OpenOffice (font is "Verdana"):
> > http://pgfoundry.org/docman/view.php/1000047/12500/what_is_pg.odt
> >
> > I won't really have time to make any substantial changes to the design,
> > so if you think it's horrible, just tell me and I'll print fewer of them.
>
> I know it's late in, but it looks like a very cluttered design. It's
> also kinda hard to read with that mix of background colors. So I'd go
> for print fewer :P

That was my reaction too.

--
  Bruce Momjian  <bruce@momjian.us>        http://momjian.us
  EnterpriseDB                             http://enterprisedb.com

  + If your life is a hard drive, Christ can be your backup. +

Ok, so I think the mailing list has been eating my two responses :(

Here's an updated version of the flier:

http://wiki.postgresql.org/wiki/Image:What_is_pg(2).odt

and pdf:

http://wiki.postgresql.org/wiki/Image:What_is_pg(2).pdf

Changes include:
* Redesign of layout
* Some wording changes (including alterations that are similar to what Rob/Ned recommended)
* Heading changes
* Removed the hackers handbook quote
* Made background image a bit lighter so that it doesn't fight with the text so much.

It's not perfect, but given the time constraints, I did what I could.

-selena

--
Selena Deckelmann
Open Source Bridge - http://www.opensourcebridge.org
PDXPUG - http://pugs.postgresql.org/pdx
Me - http://www.chesnok.com/daily

Selena Deckelmann wrote:
> Ok, so I think the mailing list has been eating my two responses :(
>
> Here's an updated version of the flier:
>
> http://wiki.postgresql.org/wiki/Image:What_is_pg(2).odt
>
> and pdf:
>
> http://wiki.postgresql.org/wiki/Image:What_is_pg(2).pdf
>
> Changes include:
> * Redesign of layout
> * Some wording changes (including alterations that are similar to what
> Rob/Ned recommended)
> * Heading changes
> * Removed the hackers handbook quote
> * Made background image a bit lighter so that it doesn't fight with the text
> so much.
>
> It's not perfect, but given the time constraints, I did what I could.

Much better, thanks.

--
  Bruce Momjian  <bruce@momjian.us>        http://momjian.us
  EnterpriseDB                             http://enterprisedb.com

  + If your life is a hard drive, Christ can be your backup. +

Bruce Momjian wrote:
> Selena Deckelmann wrote:
>> Ok, so I think the mailing list has been eating my two responses :(
>>
>> Here's an updated version of the flier:
>>
>> http://wiki.postgresql.org/wiki/Image:What_is_pg(2).odt
>>
>> and pdf:
>>
>> http://wiki.postgresql.org/wiki/Image:What_is_pg(2).pdf
>>
>> Changes include:
>> * Redesign of layout
>> * Some wording changes (including alterations that are similar to what
>> Rob/Ned recommended)
>> * Heading changes
>> * Removed the hackers handbook quote
>> * Made background image a bit lighter so that it doesn't fight with the text
>> so much.
>>
>> It's not perfect, but given the time constraints, I did what I could.
>
> Much better, thanks.

Agreed, this looks much nicer! Good job!

A question for both of them though: is the elephant (in the background)
actually the correct aspect, or is it stretched vertically?

/Magnus

Selena Deckelmann wrote:
>
> Changes include:
> * Redesign of layout
> * Some wording changes (including alterations that are similar to what
> Rob/Ned recommended)
> * Heading changes
> * Removed the hackers handbook quote
> * Made background image a bit lighter so that it doesn't fight with the
> text so much.
>
> It's not perfect, but given the time constraints, I did what I could.
>

I like it. If I were to make a suggestion it would be for the watermark
elephant to be a bit lighter. Other than that, I think it is great.

Joshua D. Drake



> -selena
>
> --
> Selena Deckelmann
> Open Source Bridge - http://www.opensourcebridge.org
> PDXPUG - http://pugs.postgresql.org/pdx
> Me - http://www.chesnok.com/daily
>


--
PostgreSQL - XMPP: jdrake@jabber.postgresql.org
    Consulting, Development, Support, Training
    503-667-4564 - http://www.commandprompt.com/
    The PostgreSQL Company, serving since 1997

> I like it. If I were to make a suggestion it would be for the watermark
> elephant to be a bit lighter. Other than that, I think it is great.

Final version looks great in print (will upload soon).  Have ordered 300
of them for SCALE and future (along with 200 LAPUG "business cards").

--Josh