OUGD404 Overview of Design Principle Terms

GRID:
A grid is a structure made up of intersecting horizontal and vertical lines, it is used to structure content. It serves as a framework where designers can organise graphic elements in a way which is easy to understand. Grids help to define proportion and a grid can also be used to highlight specific areas of content simply by breaking elements outside the grid. 

COLUMNS:
Within a grid it creates columns, this allows you to place elements within these columns. Using multiple skinny columns can feel overwhelming and crowded, such as a page from a dictionary but has a distinct purpose. The text is not intended to read as a whole and is used for skimming short pieces of information. The space between each column can determine the readability of text.

GUTTERS:
When there are two columns of text next to each other there needs to be a separation between the two. It is an area of white space called the 'gutter'. This allows for better printing and readability. 

MARGINS:
Margins provide a buffer zone so that text and graphics do not 'fall off the page'. They give an eye break for the reader. They are a necessary dose of white space.

SUB-HEADS:
A subhead is presented in a smaller size than the main headline because it is secondary in importance to the head. 

PARAGRAPHS:
A distinct section of a piece of writing, usually dealing with a single theme and indicated by a new line, indentation, or numbering.

CAPTIONS:
A title or brief explanation accompanying an illustration, cartoon, or poster.

DPS:
Double Page Spread

DROP CAPS:
A drop cap is a large capital letter at the beginning of a text block that has the depth of two or more lines of regular text. 

HEADLINES:
The headline is the text indicating the nature of the article below it.

MEASURES:
Ascertain the size, amount, or degree of (something) by using an instrument or device marked in standard units.

FOLIO NUMBERS:
Page numbers

PAGINATION:
The process of dividing a document into discrete pages, either electronic pages or printed pages. Pagination encompasses rules and algorithms for deciding where page breaks will fall, which depend partly on cultural considerations about which content belongs on the same page: for example one may try to avoid widows and orphans.

IMPOSITION:
The arrangement of the printed product's pages on the printer's sheet, in order to obtain faster printing, simplify binding and reduce paper waste.