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DeskTop
Publishing Myths
DTP
Myth #1: Having a computer makes you a designer
Part of the lure of
DeskTop Publishing is the notion that all you need is
some hardware and software to produce your own materials
for printing. Large companies monitoring monthly and
yearly payments to ad agencies, typesetters, and design
firms jumped on the bandwagon in order to cut
expenditures and gain control of the design process.
Individuals interested in starting their own businesses
saw an opportunity to save tremendously on start-up
costs.
The truth is if you can't
design without a computer, you shouldn't think you can
design with one. A Macintosh may be the most advanced
artistic medium in history, but it is still just a medium
the same way a paint brush is just a medium. You wouldn't
automatically consider someone to be an artist simply
because they bought a pallet, canvas and paints, would
you? Of course not. It takes time to learn a skill. TOP END
DTP
Myth #2: You MUST be an artist to use a computer
I know this seems like an
"about face" of the first myth, but stay with
me here. Unlike other artistic mediums, creating with a
computer is a lot easier than with other types of design
tools. No other design tool ever before had things like
templates or infinitely editable and re-sizeable
clip-art.
Can't draw a straight
line? No problem! The computer can do it, as well as
every other geometric shape imaginable. Yes, the tool
takes time to learn, but it doesn't take nearly as long
to learn as, for example, pen and ink rendering. TOP END
DTP
Myth #3: Anybody can do it
One of the things I have
always said in computer training sessions is,
"Anyone can drive a car, but Mario Andretti does it
at 200 MPH." In the same respect, Leonardo Davinci
sketched with a pencil--and who doesn't own a pencil? Any
tool is only as good as the hands which move it.
When I tended a public
access computer center, I would always give new customers
a five minute introduction to the Mac. There were some
people who could grab the mouse and just zoom on down the
road. Others came back week after week and asked the same
questions every time. TOP END
DTP
Myth #4: Computerized is best
Believe it or not, I still
use actual cut & paste techniques at times. I mean
really physical cutting and gluing pieces of paper
together. Sometimes I need to tile sheets together for
work which is larger than my printer can handle.
Sometimes there's a piece of clip-art that is already the
right size and whose quality is compromised by scanning.
It depends on the job.
Also, computer half-toning
is not always the best way to go. It can be very time
consuming to adjust the settings and the size of scanned
photo files is enormous. I usually scan photos only for
sizing and cropping. Then I use the percentages and rough
output as a guide for the camera operator.
Quality--quickly and affordably--that's the real
objective. It is not necessary to computerize EVERYTHING. TOP END
DTP
Myth #5: In-house is always less expensive
For some DTP items, this
is not a myth: memos, letters, and simple bulletins. But
for something more complicated like a newsletter the
costs can add up.
If you're lucky, you might
not need to upgrade your hardware or software, but you
will have to pay the employee who has the task of putting
the newsletter together. While it may seem cheaper to pay
someone $6-7 per hour as opposed to an outside firm
charging $60 per hour or more, this may not always be the
case. First, unless you hire a new, highly skilled
employee, this means a current employee's time spent on
the newsletter is time spent away from other
responsibilities. Also, it can take an unskilled user
many more hours to produce a piece. When it is done, the
work will probably not match the quality, which is
another hidden cost. If your newsletter will be viewed by
your customers, it's best to think twice before sending
out an inferior product. TOP END
DTP
Myth #6: The cheaper the service, the better
Because of the lure all
these myths help generate, a lot of people want to break
into the business and therefore offer services at greatly
reduced rates. Remember, the lower the rate, the less
room you have to argue the quality of the service and
delivery time.
I occasionally have
clients who take their business elsewhere because they
"got an offer to do the job for less." The
inconvenience of missed deadlines, low-quality and the
frustration of having no room to complain about either of
these things usually makes them realize the economy of
paying for quality work. TOP END
DTP
Myth #7: A computer is all you need
Publishing is a four-part
process: Conception, Execution, Replication,
Distribution. The computer DTP revolution only really
deals with the second step. As illustrated by Myth #1,
without the mind of a creative operator, the computer
will never conceive any idea on its own. And if you have
more than 10 or 20 copies to make, a laser printer is not
an efficient means of replication. Finally, until E-Mail
evolves a very significant amount, the post office will
probably still handle the lion's share of distribution.
Reality lies somewhere in
between these myths. If you don't have a sense for
design, it is easy enough to find something which already
exists and adapt it to your purpose. Even the best of
designers adopt ideas from other works. And there are
concepts to computer creation that make it easier to
learn than other mediums. Also, while it is true not
EVERYBODY can be the Leonardo Davinci of the Mac, most
people can achieve a fairly sophisticated level of
performance in a modest amount of time.
Keeping in mind efficiency
means using whatever avenues of creation are necessary,
and that there's no such thing as a free lunch, it is
nice to know today we have more options than ever for
pre-press production. TOP
Bill Bricker
specializes in information architecture and computer
illustration. He designed the logo for Todd Rundgren's
Utopia reunion tour.
        
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