Print Design Vs Screen Design

As current technology advances, individual also advances from gaining information from print-based document to screen-based documents. Screen-based documents are informations in websites that have picture, movements, audio and hyperlinks as compared to print-based documents that consists of text and a few pictures as illustration. According to Walsh (2006) there are a few consideration considerations that when designing for screen versus print documents. The 3 considerations I will mention about is 

1. Principal mode

For print-based documents, the principal mode is the words that tell, and the arrangements of chapters, paragraphs and sentence whereas for screen-based documents includes visual image, graphics and audio, hyperlinks and frames.

2. Interpersonal meaning

Print-based documents interpersonal meaning is developed through verbal voice which uses narrators whereas screen-based documents is developed through visual voice such as positioning, angle, and sound.

3. Reading pathway

For print-based documents, readers reads and follow the text in sequence. The reading pathway for screen-based documents use less sequence and mostly based on the readers interest and choice to interact. 

According to Hall, Larson & Marsh (2003), states that especially in childhood education, screen-based text has been effective in the addition to theories and practice of literacy teaching and learning. 

An example of print-based documents

(Source: http://abode-of-books.blogspot.com/2010/01/lord-of-rings-trilogy-by-jrr-tolkien.html)

An example of screen-based documents

(Source: http://www.lordoftherings.net/home.htm)

As shown in the above pictures, the print-based documents contains only text and wordy which makes individuals not willing to read. However for screen-based documents, readers or users of the site might be interested to stay longer in this site because this site is much more interesting. Readers of screen-based documents can click on the hyperlinks based on their interests whereas readers of books containing text only can read in sequence.

(291 words)

References

Hall, N, Larson, J & Marsh, J 2003, Handbook of Early Childhood Literacy, viewed 25 August 2011, <http://books.google.com.my/books?id=yqmSwTkzLAEC&pg=PA420&dq=how+to+read+screen-based+documents&hl=en&ei=UE1WTrDuFMaqrAe6m9zfCg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCoQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=screen-based&f=false>

Walsh, M 2006, Textual Shift: Examining the Reading Process with Print, Visual and Multimodal texts, Australian Journal of Language and Literacy, vol.29, no.1, p.24-37.