This text presents and dicusses a variety of graphics used in transmitting information, analyzing signs, graphs and charts through a method similar to that found in Edward Tufte's books, Envisioning Information and The Visual Display of Quantitative Information - both texts that have been seen to have had considerable influence on late-20th-century graphic designers. Including numerous colour, and black and white illustrations, the volume examines airplane safety cards, street maps, corporate logos, subway guides, magazine advertisments, cookbooks, computer diagrams, and car manuals, all as a means of explaining how information can be conveyed without words.