Making a book
So, a few weeks ago I mentioned that I was looking forward to an assignment which involved writing a book for someone else (this post) - I have been working on this over the last week, and I'm enjoying it as much as I thought I would, perhaps even more so!
Part of the fun is learning a new program, and the best part is that we are using freeware, which means ANYONE could get the program and be able to read the file, or use it themselves! The program is LibreOffice Draw, part of LibreOffice 4.0 (go on, have a look at their website) - although Draw was not designed specifically for publishing books, it is a very useful program. It even has a Mac version (not that I have a Mac, but I know a few people who do).
However, it is also helpful to have IT staff around who are familiar with the program, to help find buttons or tools or magical mysteries which may otherwise appear impossible to find, or to help think through alternate ways of doing something you are used to doing in a different program. For example, putting a border in. There is no border option in Draw, but that doesn't make borders impossible! You just need to be a bit more creative. Like inserting a shape with a coloured line but no colour inside the area. Or inserting a text box and rotating it so that it goes up or down the page as well as along the top or bottom!
I look forward to seeing the finished product of the book I am working on, but I am also a bit amused at how many hours I have happily spent playing with this program to make this book, especailly considering it is one of those unusual assignments which will not be marked! This is a labour of love for my nephew, but I will make sure I do one for my niece when I have some spare time (or maybe just when I need a productive distraction...)!
I'm even learning how to create a pdf version! So sometime in the future I may share a book with you here, if you would like to see some of the magic.
Part of the fun is learning a new program, and the best part is that we are using freeware, which means ANYONE could get the program and be able to read the file, or use it themselves! The program is LibreOffice Draw, part of LibreOffice 4.0 (go on, have a look at their website) - although Draw was not designed specifically for publishing books, it is a very useful program. It even has a Mac version (not that I have a Mac, but I know a few people who do).
However, it is also helpful to have IT staff around who are familiar with the program, to help find buttons or tools or magical mysteries which may otherwise appear impossible to find, or to help think through alternate ways of doing something you are used to doing in a different program. For example, putting a border in. There is no border option in Draw, but that doesn't make borders impossible! You just need to be a bit more creative. Like inserting a shape with a coloured line but no colour inside the area. Or inserting a text box and rotating it so that it goes up or down the page as well as along the top or bottom!
I look forward to seeing the finished product of the book I am working on, but I am also a bit amused at how many hours I have happily spent playing with this program to make this book, especailly considering it is one of those unusual assignments which will not be marked! This is a labour of love for my nephew, but I will make sure I do one for my niece when I have some spare time (or maybe just when I need a productive distraction...)!
I'm even learning how to create a pdf version! So sometime in the future I may share a book with you here, if you would like to see some of the magic.
everytime he is on the trampoline, he says "Sharna"
ReplyDeleteAwww! I miss watching him play on the trampoline, and running around the house. Looking through all the photos, I laughed at the ones involving pegs on his clothes!
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