PW: No Dummies They

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Visually, the books pair familiar elements of the For Dummies look--bands of yellow and black on the cover--with such touches as full-color photographs. With the Idiot's Travel books going out of print, IDG sees no direct competition for the new series, which Spring calls "unique. Most other guides are encyclopedias of information that overwhelm you with choices," he says. "Unless you're between jobs, you don't have time to wade through 1,000 pages of material. The For Dummies guides are not just for those fresh off the farm, but are also for people who may not have been to a given destination before, and who want a knowledgeable friend to sit down with them and point them in the right direction. This is a very different approach."

By the end of 2001, there are plans to have at least 28 titles in the series, says Spring, who has great expectations for the launch. "The Dummies brand has been enormously successful, and this is a natural extension of the line."