New topics from the graphic design forums, May 2007

The graphic design forums continue to grow with active users joining every month. The April design forums saw some fascinating new discussion topics started, as well as the usual tips, tricks and ongoing graphic design troubleshooting advice and suggestions.

As we head to the middle of the year (didn't those first few months pass quickly?) the forums continue to be a valuable source of both 'short-term' graphic design solutions, as well as a resource for more in-depth information for researchers, students and established creative professionals alike.

One of the areas that we have noticed becoming more and more popular are questions from designers about prepress and production issues. Luckily there are some extremely helpful and knowledgeable prepress experts out there and solutions and opinions are usually only a forum post away.

As ever this area will highlight selected new topics from the forums. Click here to view the latest new threads from the forums and to find out how to join in the discussions. Or use any of the links on the left to go directly to the relevant bulletin board. The forums are free to browse, but to take a part in the discussions you must be registered (which is also free).

We can't promise that all your questions will be answered, but we can be sure that some of the many friendly forum members will do their best to help or engage in an intelligent conversation. To quote one satisfied user, "I officially love this forum".

Recent selected forum topics

• When we are forced to upgrade our software for whatever reason, there are often disruptions to out workflow. This designer has found that exchanging files with a colleague is causing a PostScript file placing error since upgrading to a newer version of Illustrator.
• Have our quality thresholds been lowered by the predominance of digital photography? This designer thinks so and asks has digital photography reduced the quality of graphic reproduction? And, if so, what are we going to do about it?
• Are designers and pre press professionals snobs? Or do we use expensive graphics software for a good reason? This topic asks, what's wrong with Microsoft Publisher?
• All designers have their favourite design software tools. So, what software do you create your design concepts in?
• There are as many working practices out there as there are creative companies and each has a different approach to the other. Some companies encourage their creatives to deal with clients directly, whilst others have a sales manager or account handler to mediate. Stupid things your account handler says to you is a thread about what can go wrong with the second option.
• Time was when Jakob Nielsen was the first point of reference for web designers. Jakob Nielsen - usability guru, questions if this still the case, or whether Nielsen past his sell by date.
• We get a lot of questions on the forums from graphics designers wanting advice on becoming self-employed. So this topic is very well titled. What's the Best Advice to Give to a New Freelance Designer?
• Error messages are annoying at the best of time. But when you are on a deadline and Flash starts playing up on you, it can end up being a very long night in the studio. Here's an error message you don't see every day; be sure the destination file is not locked or on a locked drive. Anyone got any ideas?
• As well as creative design, many people use the forums to discuss pre press and print production issues. This member wants to know whether a problem they are having is a RIP issue or an application issue. White areas not printing or knocking out.
• How long should it take to design an ad? Some of the issues of working as a designer in a newspaper department.
• Deadlines are bad enough, without your computer equipment letting you down. So what do you do with a MacBook Power Adapter Not Working? This thread offers some opinions on troubleshooting the problem.
• Keeping up with software development as products are upgraded is always hard. As is finding new features. This member of the forums wanted to know how to find fraction symbols in Quark. Luckily someone had a solution for them.
• What's the best way to get an Adobe Illustrator file into InDesign? Is copy and paste as good as importing an EPS in the traditional way? And are the Illustrator files editable from within InDesign? Importing from Illustrator to InDesign discusses various options.
• What's your ideal graduate job? Nobody's going to offer you a Porsche, but what would you like for your first graphic design job?
• There are often complaints, from both design graduates and employers, about the lack of preparation of design students for 'real world' design. For those interested in design education, this thread asks how to teach graphic design.
• The IT software industry has long got used to outsourcing as a fact of life. But what happens when the issue of outsourcing graphic design starts looming over the horizon. This thread explores some of the issues and concerns for the creative and prepress industries.
• The business of graphic design is like no other industry. This often means that business software tools such as client relationship management for advertising agencies and other resources are not always targeted at what we do. This topic covers a discussion on some of those software tools.
• Many design students are surprised to find that universities not only teach practical graphic design, but also ask them to write essays on graphic design. This particular student has been given the task of writing an essay on the differences between art and design. A subject we have visited on the forums a few times before.
• Less is more, is a term that has been bandied about for so long now that it is sometimes used more ironically, than seriously. But it certainly has a meaning for designers and this design student is researching its meaning.
• Sometimes operating systems and software programs just get confused. In this example Photoshop tries to open QuarkXpress files. Which is obviously somewhat annoying for the designer concerned.
• As Adobe finally announce the end of the road for Freehand, once Illustrator's rival vector drawing program, members of the forums offer their own opinions; Freehand Discontinued! Has Illustrator Copied All The Good Features?
• Most experienced designers will have realised that the colors that we see on the computer screen rarely resemble the final printed result from an offset litho printing press. But how about for local printers when printing a dummy booklet? This designer asks whether photos that look great on screen, will stay great when printed.
• The World Wide Web, browser technology and the computers that we use to view it on have moved on dramatically since its foundation. And so have the many principles of web design. Once upon a time computer graphics cards and monitors could only display a certain gamut of colors and so web designers has to adapt to this. But how far have times moved on? This web designer asks web safe colors, are they still needed?
• Adobe's Creative Suite 3 has only recently been released. As a result many graphic artists are still getting to grips with its many new features. This is especially true as many Apple Mac-based designers have been holding back from upgrading from much earlier versions for a long time, whilst waiting for these Mac-Intel versions of Adobe's software tools to be released. Having recently taken the plunge, one designer has decided to post an ongoing review of Adobe CS3 Design Premium, which is one of six versions of the Adobe CS3 range.
• Not every visitor to the design forums is a graphic designer. Some are those who would normally be clients of graphic designers, or those who work closely with them. This marketing professional wants to know how to brief a graphic designer.
• Of course designers don't only design projects for printing on paper. There are plenty of other substrates and surfaces that require careful planning for. Printing on a CD for example. Pantone on an actual CD - what color is matte white?
• Many graphic designers complain about not being taken as seriously as some other professions. In this topic – Stop Asking for Graphic Design at a Discount – graphics professionals discuss why some clients feel that they should have the right to ask for a discount on design services.
• Adobe Photoshop is a power hungry beast. Here, graphic designers share their secrets for speeding up Photoshop. Have you got any tips?
• Design school projects can be a pain and students often visit the Design Talkboard forums to ask for help with a project. This design student needs to interview a graphic designer for a course project. Anyone fancy helping out?
• Becoming a freelancer requires a not insignificant financial investment in software and equipment. Deciding what computer to buy for graphic design is never an easy choice. Especially when working to a budget, it is important to balance the choice between processing power, memory and peripherals.
• Graphic design is not all about inks and color choices. The substrates that we print on can be a major factor in how the final design job is perceived. This forum member asks for advice on paper stock and receives some good advice from other members.
• This one is not just another Windows versus Macintosh thread. A computer scientist asks, what's the best mobile computer setup for freelance graphic design? The answers, as ever, are varied and helpful, with both hardware and software issues being taken into the equation.
• It's easy to convert a vector image into a bitmap. Usually you can just open the file into Photoshop and choose your resolution and color settings. But going the other way is never as easy. What is the best way to convert pixel images to clean illustrations?
• Adobe InDesign has quickly become the top dog for desktop publishing for many design companies. However, as this designer found out, it can be expensive to keep upgrading to the latest version. So, how do you open an InDesign CS2 file with an earlier version of the program?