Book excerpt: Space planning involves much more than sketching a preliminary floor plan. A designer must take a client's programming needs into account and must also consider how other factors such as building codes and environmental factors affect a spatial composition. Space Planning Basics, now in its Third Edition, offers a highly visual, step-by-step approach to developing preliminary floor plans for commercial spaces. The book provides tools for visualizing space and walks the designer through other considerations such as building code requirements and environmental control needs. Specific programming techniques covered include matrices, bubble diagrams, CAD templates, block plans, and more. New to this edition are coverage of the basics of stair design, an essential aspect for planning spaces.