DK Handbook, The

"I would describe The DK Handbook as visually arresting and a breath of fresh air in the market of composition handbooks. . . . I think this text is remarkably suited to today's generation of visual learners." -Joel Henderson, Chattanooga State Technical Community College "Users were extremely positive about the use of examples and the distinctive formatting of the headers vs. the examples" -Tharon Howard, Director of Usability Testing Facility, Clemson University "These pages show that the authors have considered both the students' desire for ease in accessing information and the instructors' concerns about organizing their lectures. When may I have a copy of this textbook?" -Cheryl Clements, Blinn College-Bryan "Too often, students just want to use the handbook to check their punctuation. This text puts those concerns into context and connects them to a larger writing process. It shows students that it is ridiculous to worry about comma splices before you have figured out who you are writing to, what your purpose is, and how you are going to arrange your work." -Erica Messenger, Bowling Green State University "I love it! Great! Easy to read, the layout makes locating information fast even when scanning the pages. . . . The visual approach is fantastic. Stunning." -Sharon McGee, Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville (Advisory Board Member) "Such a large chunk of material is available at a glance. Students can use the icons as they do on MS Windows and on the cell phones. This entire project makes so much sense." -Scott Douglass, Chattanooga State Technical Community College "The audience section seems to be among the most comprehensive I've seen. I like it and could easily envision a detailed lesson built around this section." -Michael Knievel, University of Wyoming (Advisory Board Member) "This is the most visually appealing handbook out there. The visuals are actually useful, not just decoration. The book is very user-friendly-easy to flip through. I think students will find it easy to use and will find it very useful for their writing." -Valerie Russell, Valencia Community College-East "The DK Handbook is informative, clearly organized, and written in a way that speaks directly to the student rather than the teacher. Its design has website-like appearance, which most students would be familiar and comfortable with. The visual component of The DK Handbook makes it stand apart from most other handbooks I've read." -Kip Knott, Columbus State Community College "Research = EXCELLENT! I especially like the sections on using library databases... this is not covered in such depth in other handbooks. I also like the way you talk about evaluating the relevance of sources and appropriateness. Examples here are great." -Kerith Dutkiewicz, Lansing Community College "What strikes me foremost about this book is the layout and design. Instead of putting too much information onto one page, a concerted effort was made to highlight important sections of, for example, citations, and then build on those skills over several pages. I think this is a significant improvement over our current text in terms of layout and usability." -Darren DeFrain, Wichita State University "This handbook covers the same material as my current handbook, but this one is clearer and more enjoyable to read. I like the design, the introductions, the examples, and the way the steps are broken down into bite-sized chunks of information." -Gary Zacharias, Palomar Community College "The combination of simple language and layout make this most unlike other handbooks I have used. Of course, all handbooks strive to be accessible but this one seems to be aware of the student as audience-not the teacher. The readability and layout are exceptional!" -John Allison, Morehead College (Advisory Board Member) "I've never seen argument presented this clearly before." -Joseph Schrer, Community College of Allegheny County (Advisory Board Member)

"I would describe The DK Handbook as visually arresting and a breath of fresh air in the market of composition handbooks...I think this text is remarkably suited to today's generation of visual learners." -Joel Henderson, ChattanoogaStateTechnical CC Transforming student and instructor expectations for textbooks,The DK Handbook presents information in newly accessible, scientifically tested, and student-friendly ways. Never before seen in the handbook market, The DK Handbook's design is a true marriage of visual and textual content, in which each topic is presented in self-contained, two-page spreads for at-a-glance referencing. Explanations are concise and "chunked" to be more approachable and appealing for today's readers, and accompanying visuals truly teach - making concepts and processes visible to students. The ground-breaking layout creates a consistent look and feel that helps students connect with the material, find information, and recognize solutions to writing problems they often don't have names for. In planning this new kind of handbook, Longman commissioned an in-depth usability study to learn more about how students use handbooks and where they have difficulties. The results not only informed the handbook's development, they confirmed that The DK Handbook's distinctive presentation is more effective and "useful" than the market-leading handbook. In addition to the groundbreaking design, The DK Handbook provides the content that students need. With more attention to research-particularly online research-than other handbooks, DK gives students a solid foundation in information literacy. The handbookalso presents grammar and documentation (MLA, APA, CMS and CSE) in new ways that makes the material more accessible, including unique "pattern pages" that help students grasp principles visually. With strong attention to the rhetorical situation, a visual presentation of the writing process, and usablity tested grammar, research and documentation coverage, The DK Handbook offers all the standard material expected in a handbook, but presents it in a revolutionary format that will motivate students to use their handbook - and help them become better writers and researchers.