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Design by Numbers Paperback – October 1, 2001

by John Maeda (Author), Paola Antonelli (Foreword)
4.2 out of 5 stars 17 ratings
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A pioneering graphic designer shows how to use the computer as an artistic medium in its own right.

Most art and technology projects pair artists with engineers or scientists: the artist has the conception, and the technical person provides the know-how. John Maeda is an artist and a computer scientist, and he views the computer not as a substitute for brush and paint but as an artistic medium in its own right. Design By Numbers is a reader-friendly tutorial on both the philosophy and nuts-and-bolts techniques of programming for artists.

Practicing what he preaches, Maeda composed Design By Numbers using a computational process he developed specifically for the book. He introduces a programming language and development environment, available on the Web, which can be freely downloaded or run directly within any JAVA-enabled Web browser. Appropriately, the new language is called DBN (for "design by numbers"). Designed for "visual" people—artists, designers, anyone who likes to pick up a pencil and doodle—DBN has very few commands and consists of elements resembling those of many other languages, such as LISP, LOGO, C/JAVA, and BASIC.

Throughout the book, Maeda emphasizes the importance—and delights—of understanding the motivation behind computer programming, as well as the many wonders that emerge from well-written programs. Sympathetic to the "mathematically challenged," he places minimal emphasis on mathematics in the first half of the book. Because computation is inherently mathematical, the book's second half uses intermediate mathematical concepts that generally do not go beyond high-school algebra. The reader who masters the skills so clearly set out by Maeda will be ready to exploit the true character of digital media design.

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  1. Print length
    256 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    The MIT Press
  4. Publication date
    October 1, 2001
  5. Dimensions
    10 x 0.73 x 10 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0262632446
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0262632447
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

An internationally recognized leader at the intersection of design and technology, John Maeda is Executive Vice President/Chief Experience Officer at Publicis Sapient. He was the 16th President of the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD). He is the author of Design by Numbers, The Laws of Simplicity, and Redesigning Leadership, all published by The MIT Press.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ The MIT Press
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ October 1, 2001
  • Edition ‏ : ‎ Reprint
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 256 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0262632446
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0262632447
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.2 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 10 x 0.73 x 10 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.2 out of 5 stars 17 ratings

About the author

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John Maeda

John Maeda

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American technologist and product experience leader that bridges business, engineering, design via working inclusively.

MIT-trained computer scientist, both risk manager (MBA effect) and risk taker (learner effect), and seasoned for-profit/non-profit growth executive. Author of five books including the new How To Speak Machine and the bestselling Laws of Simplicity. Recently EVP/CXO of IT consultancy Publicis Sapient serving digital transformation needs globally across industries plus FED/SLED with the LEAD (Light, Ethical, Accessible, Dataful) system. Board of Directors at Sonos and the Smithsonian Design Museum, former President/CEO of Rhode Island School of Design and Partner at Kleiner Perkins venture capital in Silicon Valley. During his early career, Dr. Maeda was an MIT research professor in computational design represented in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art and recipient of the White House’s National Design Award. He has appeared as a speaker all over the world, from Davos to Beijing to São Paulo to New York, and his talks for TED have received millions of views.

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4.2 out of 5 stars
17 global ratings

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Top reviews from the United States

  • Piano music lover
    5.0 out of 5 stars private lessons from the virtuoso of organic digital design
    Reviewed in the United States on July 29, 1999
    Format: Hardcover
    how do you teach a child to play an instrument? how do you instill a sense of rhythm and tone -- expressiveness? maeda's instrument is the computer, and he is a viruoso. in "design by numbers," maeda introduces us to his instrument the same way a piano teacher teaches a student to play -- through a series of exercises and drills designed to both build skill and reveal the awesome power of the medium.
    jimi hendrix once said that he and keith emerson played the same instrument -- the speakers. they just used a different "axe." for digital artists, maeda's techniques are as revolutionary as the electric guitar or synthesizer.
    parents often feel compelled to teach their children certain skills - to swim, to ride a bike, throw a ball, to play an instrument. with "numbers" maeda adds a new skill that list - true computer literacy for artists who otherwise see the computer as an intimidating means to an end.
    5 people found this helpful
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  • Amazon Customer
    4.0 out of 5 stars Good even if you already know programming
    Reviewed in the United States on July 2, 1999
    Format: Hardcover
    If you're already a programmer, be warned that much of this book covers elementary programming concepts. I nonetheless found the author's explanations of these refreshingly innocent.
    Much of the book will also give you insight into computational art. Many nice example programs are given from which variations are easily created, and the author offers some glimpses into his own philosophy.
    The computer language used for the programs, dbn, seems designed to impose very pure, minimalist art. It uses a tiny screen space (101x101 pixels), no colours (only 101 shades of grey), has a small set of keywords (there's no "else" construct!) and has no built-in support for graphical primitives beyond points and lines. What's more, it is an interpreted language, and the interpreter is written in Java, which makes it pretty slow when run from a browser. You can however make some very attractive little programs with it, and it has the ease-of-use of a scripting language.
    The book is a quick read, having sparse text spread out over 256 pages :P but you really have to type out and try the programs to get the most out of it. Overall it's quite cool.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Rick Mullarky
    5.0 out of 5 stars You know, it's strange....
    Reviewed in the United States on November 29, 2000
    Format: Hardcover
    I like this book a lot, but the thing I like best has nothing to do with programming --- It's the attention to typographic detail.
    Beautiful grey/black combinations, meticulous rags, tiny illustrations and a very interesting grid make this the best looking book with sample code I've ever seen.
    It's a book about method, so if it's Maeda's work you want to see, I assume his next book is the one you want.
    It is a beautifully made basic primer which articulates the virtues of a new technology for design-- it has a proud place on my shelf next to 'Grid Systems' by Josef Mueller-Brockmann and 'Typography' by Emil Ruder.
    6 people found this helpful
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  • Simulacrum
    3.0 out of 5 stars Design and Programming Tutorial
    Reviewed in the United States on August 1, 1999
    Format: Hardcover
    This is both a book and an interactive tutorial in computer programming for artists and designers. While it is now common for printed books to include CD-ROMs, this one has instead its own website where free software, called DBN (Design By Numbers), can be accessed, downloaded, and used by anyone with a JAVA-enabled browser. Using the book and website in combination, it is the intention of the author (who heads the Aesthetics and Computation group at MIT) that designers, even those who are "mathematically challenged," might quickly acquire "the skills necessary to write computer programs that are themselves visual expressions," and, as a consequence, "come to appreciate the computer's unique role in the future of the arts and design." Unfortunately, the layout of the book is so unexceptional (particularly the dust jacket, which might have been used in a powerful way) that it is unlikely to convert any graphic designers, who create far more complex forms intuitively, with little or no knowledge of programming. As a result, it may only reach those who need it least, meaning those who are already straddling the line between art and mathematics, between graphic design and computer programming. (Copyright by Roy R. Behrens from Ballast Quarterly Review, Vol. 14, No. 4, Summer 1999.)
    14 people found this helpful
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  • Design and Technology Consultant
    2.0 out of 5 stars Two Stars
    Reviewed in the United States on May 12, 2018
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    Numbers = code, not proportions or geometry.
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  • p4trickt
    3.0 out of 5 stars un buon libro forse un po sorpassato
    Reviewed in Italy on July 7, 2017
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    ho acquistato questo volume perché conoscevo John Maeda e sapevo che i concetti in esso contenuti hanno ispirato la comunità che ha successivamente sviluppato Processing. Nulla ha in effetti smentito queste aspettative ma ci sono sicuramente volumi più aggiornati e specialistici per chi volesse approfondire questo tema.
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  • ron
    3.0 out of 5 stars Detailed guidance
    Reviewed in Canada on January 26, 2019
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    Excellent theme but require more technical expertise than expected
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