Pictograms and icons are a keystone of nonverbal and multicultural communication. But what exactly are pictograms, and when is it appropriate to use them? What are their advantages? What rules must be followed, and what are the pitfalls that designers of pictograms and icons must take care to avoid?

Rayan Abdullah and Roger Hübner address these questions and scores of others in this copiously illustrated, practical guide to pictogram design. Drawing on a multitude of examples from around the world, they outline the history of the pictogram and show how it has been applied in commercial and creative fields over the past century, as well as offering invaluable hints and advice to all design practitioners.

Features include:

• Over 2,000 examples of pictograms organized by theme, including pictograms from all the Olympic Games from 1964 to 2004

• Tips and background information from successful pictogram designers, with lots of real-life examples to instruct and inspire

• A detailed discussion of icons, the ‘silent servants’ of online communities

• A chapter by Jochen Gros on his quest to create a visual language that crosses all grammatical, semantic and semiotic boundaries - to create, in effect, a ‘language without words'