Punch list Drawing on years of experience, Brass Tacks Design helped the staff develop the following punch list of tasks to help them prepare for the launch of their redesign: All protypes must be based on reality and availability Headline relationships (compare serif vs. san serif, plain wieght vs. semi bold, etc.) – play heads visually and editorially. Which ones to use? Decide editorial purpose etc. Less weight on byline Space out email address (make more legible) Ruling system decide: vertical rules, horizontal rules, or boxes Gutter system – picas 1p within text boxes, 2p between elements Work on modifying flag for front Troubleshoot teasers, solidify strategy (what are we trying to accomplish), what content will achieve that, then execution: what design will work best with that content (make faces bigger). Along these lines, consider: how long will it take to do a drop out and do we have that much time? Will the content that fulfills the mission be drop-outable – and will we want to use it. Section flags: accent type must integrate with main type (also, drop the stuff off to the side?) Work on H&Js on body type, heads, cuts Give pagebuilders tools to aid in lining up (make things stupid-proof) such as auto constrain, working in picas, build elements in even picas, no fractions, teach how to use page guides, baseline grid, space align, top align (use a quick key sequence to align any two items) Get QuicKeys or Applescript Redo the agate, use Spartan Classified. (put thought into other elements primarily unique to sports) Work up Opinion page flag, style, format (also determine masthead, what to include) Think about using topic headers (keep simple – don't get too complex with them) Solidify goals, mission statement (get all to sign off on it) – prototype should embody these ideas. Finalize what kind of grid we want to be on. Get rid of bullet in teasers (also, determine teaser "rules" – design-wise and editorial) Consider full jump heads Incorporate grey bar Run press test, with primary goal to check body type (use black bar). Distinctions on decks – use periods, set them apart from subhead style (if there is one) Redo barcode Analyze what to put on bottom of page (think of infrequent items also – lottery, scramblr) Work on column sigs Color correction training Teaser training (for page designers and editors) Change paragraph indents to p9 Work on baseline grid – use resedit, take out baseline grid from PB machines. Consider implications of front page rail removal – do some research Complete simple style guide

“Alan came in as a consultant and immediately elevated our redesign efforts to the next level. Though his time with us was limited to a few days, his first task was perhaps his most important: He insisted we pause to evaluate our motives and establish editorial goals. Once we solidified our foundation, we were able to focus on design. Alan brings years of newspaper experience to the table, and his knowledge was invaluable as we honed our project. He knows what will work and what won't. He gave us honest feedback as well as suggestions on what could improve our product. To all this he adds an extensive knowledge of QuarkXPress, which enabled us to configure our templates to function optimally. Jacobson's comprehensive knowledge and experience in the newspaper industry made him the perfect choice for our design needs, and also gave us the peace of mind in knowing that all bases were covered as we moved into the final stages of our project.” – Matthew A. Snyder, Production and Design Editor, Benton County Daily Record