Design trends are becoming increasingly difficult to keep up with; as technology advances, so do the design possibilities. Staying up-to-date on your design knowledge is a big part of continuously improving your design work. We’ve found 10 eBooks with actionable content to help you stay inspired. Which is your favourite?
1. Typo Tips: 7 Rules for Better Typography
This eBook is full of techniques and tips to help you improve your typography design. There are detailed examples including why you shouldn’t use all CAPS, when a different type dash should be used, and which style of quotation mark looks the best and why.
2. The Design Funnel: A Manifesto for Meaningful Design
It’s sometimes challenging to make sense of design briefs because clients have the tendency to be vague about what they want. This 12-page eBook includes a methodology with steps to convert your customer briefs into a design concept and gives an insight into the value of this process.
3. Designing for the Web
This practical guide shows what needs you should focus on when designing for the web specifically. This eBook is 137 pages and gives examples of how to design for specific web browsers in great detail – we’d say this is a fundamental piece of free content that every designer should read.
4. Everything There is to Know About Logo Design
This handbook explains the fundamentals of logo design in a lovely visual way. It’s helpful if you’re new to logo design or if you’re looking to brush up on your knowledge. These 25 pages are filled with best practices, colour psychology, and the typography principles that make logos memorable.
5. The Creative Aid Handbook
The concept of this handbook is explained by the founders as: “a mini resource for your creative projects and food for your creative thoughts. […] We want to give you the creative push from a direction you may not have thought of, be it informative, inspirational, or simply entertaining.” Inside you’ll find unique ways to foster your creativity and creative intelligence. Highly recommended to encourage your creative growth!
6. The Vignelli Canon
This 96-page design bible was created by one of the most iconic designers, Massimo Vignelli. Not only was he a great designer, but he was passionate about sharing good design principles, rules, and criteria so that others could replicate it. Here you’ll find actionable examples and tips for (re)creating good, thoughtful designs.
7. Design’s Iron Fist and Other Essays
This eBook is a compilation of the best design essays by Jarrod Drysdale. The focus is on getting the most out of your work on a daily basis and maintaining quality. In 92 pages you’ll read how design can help companies stand out in a world where unique content is becoming more and more difficult to create.
8. The Guide to Wireframing
UXPin’s 115-page design guide tackles wireframing from start to finish. This guide gives in-depth, visual explanations of different elements and their value to good UX design. If you follow the methods in this guide, you’ll be able to create a great design – starting with your wireframe.
9. UX Design for Startups
This eBook is great for both startups and for enterprise companies looking to dive deeper into UX Design. Throughout its 127 pages, the guide explains UXD from the basic principles to optimizing the design process by following real-life examples. There are also 8 pages of UX tools for wireframing, user feedback, A/B testing, and more.
10. Web Design Book of Trends 2015-2016
If you’re looking to stay up-to-date on your web design knowledge, this eBook illustrates 10 trends and tips on how to use them in your designs. There are also nearly 200 examples of how these trends have been used best. It’s a must-read for all designers and companies looking to stay on top of the developments in web design.
Do you you know any other useful eBooks that designers should read? Let us know in the comments or tweet us @usabilla :)
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