Take the 2-minute tour ×

I'm looking for a term that In Brazilian Portuguese we call "diagramming", which is used to characterize the work of positioning news in a newspaper, setting image places and text flow of a page. In our case, this is done in Adobe InDesign.

The desired use is for a web application of similar behavior, where users will be able to schedule news for different positions and sections of a website.

share|improve this question
Possibly page mock-up. –  John Lawler Sep 5 '12 at 17:05
You're creating a layout. The process is also more technically called desktop publishing, although I must confess I never quite understand all of what that entails. –  Cerberus Sep 5 '12 at 17:06
I believe that the work is laying out, and a (page) layout is the result; a mockup is a more or less rough draft of the layout. Desktop publishing means creating layouts using WYSIWYG "layout" software on a computer. –  StoneyB Sep 5 '12 at 17:54
Thanks for the help, guys. Didn't get what's up with the downvote, anyway... –  vmassuchetto Sep 6 '12 at 2:44
Before the advent of Desktop Publishing, page layout was also called paste up. –  ghoppe Sep 6 '12 at 15:50

1 Answer 1

up vote 4 down vote accepted

If you are dealing with print publishing, or graphic design that would be used for publications, the correct terminology would be that you are "setting up the layout" or "designing the layout" of a particular item, with the latter be the predominant structuring.

If you are dealing specifically with web design, you could use the above (with the preference being "designing the layout"), or, more specifically, you could say you are "creating wireframes."

If you are dealing with type and fonts, you would be "setting the type" or "typesetting."

All of these things could be done within the same project, just with different media or on different parts of the same medium/media.

For a more extensive list of terminology used in page layout and design, you can go to About.com's Desktop Publishing portion and peruse their glossaries.

share|improve this answer
Thanks, but all this seem a little distant from what they say in a newspaper editorial department. =/ –  vmassuchetto Sep 6 '12 at 2:46
Specifically, for an editorial department, they would be dealing with "setting up the layout" or "laying out the [item's] design" or "designing/adjusting the layout." If you are using InDesign, you're doing one of the first two things in my initial answer. If you come across anything else, please add it to your question/these comments. –  dcoreys Sep 6 '12 at 3:49

Your Answer


