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History of Desktop Publishing

Take a trip down memory lane. Find out about the coining of the term "desktop publishing," the software used over the years, and the evolution of desktop publishing. Reacquaint yourself with the precursors and earliest versions of Corel Ventura, Microsoft Publisher, Serif PagePlus, and Adobe PageMaker. Anyone remember GeoPublish, PFS: Publisher, Express Publisher, and the graphics collections for The Print Shop? What year was CorelDRAW! 1 released? Get answers to these and other desktop publishing trivia in these pages.
Volume Printing Now and Then - Desktop Publishing History
Historical perspective and fun facts (or, Why desktop printers and copy machines are so cool!)
Myths and Misconceptions About Desktop Publishing
Aldus Corporation founder Paul Brainerd, is generally credited for coining the phrase, desktop publishing after the development of Aldus PageMaker (now Adobe PageMaker). Before the invention of desktop publishing software the tasks involved in desktop publishing were done manually, by a variety of people and involved both graphic design and prepress tasks which sometimes leads to confusion about what desktop publishing is and how it is done.
When was Desktop Publishing Invented?
Several events of the mid-1980s including the development of Aldus PageMaker (now Adobe PageMaker) ushered in the era of desktop publishing. Find out what those events were and how the continue to shape the face of desktop publishing.
Apple II History - Software
Newsroom was the first WYSIWYG desktop publishing application for the Apple II, in 1985. Scroll through all the years from the 80s to 1994 to see what desktop publishing software and other applications were being released for the Apple computer.
History Buff - Computer Disk That Helped Topple a Government
Did you know that desktop publishing and PageMaker played a key role in helping Boris Yeltsin wrestle control of Russia from Communist hard-liners in 1991?
How the LaserWriter and Photoshop Changed the World
An excerpt from "Inside the Publishing Revolution: The Adobe Story" is available in PDF format from creativepro.com. One story is about Steve Jobs and putting PostScript in the LaserWriter decision. Another is the origins of Photoshop.
Let's talk about Word
In his blog, Microsoft insider Chris Pratley details some of the history of Microsoft Word which includes a bit about the development of Windows and explains that funky Word numbering scheme (2.0 to 6.0).
PageMaker for Desktop Publishers - History of the Blank Page
Ever wonder about those pages in books that read "This Page Was Intentionally Left Blank"? This humorous story explains it all, maybe.
PageMaker for Desktop Publishers - Past, Present, Future
"In the beginning, there was PostScript..." and it just snowballed from there. Read about the development of PageMaker and other events that contributed to the birth of desktop publishing.
TechTV History of Adobe
Watch video highlights and download a PDF excerpt of this show that looked at Adobe's role in the "desktop publishing revolution."
Volume Printing: Now and Then
Go back in time and follow desktop publishing from today back to the invention of the printing press.

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