Issue #9
October 06, 2005

Welcome to Inside Freelance Design (IFD), your free, bi-weekly e-letter from American Writers & Artists Inc. Every other week, you can receive this special alert with secrets, tips, and insights from AWAI's graphic design pros to help you improve your skills and reach your goal of becoming a professional graphic designer in the fastest time possible.

IN THIS ISSUE:
  • Choosing the Right Computer System, Part 5: Graphic Gadgets Demystified
  • Quick Tip: Back Up and Sleep Soundly, Part 1
  • The IFD Mailbag
Choosing the Right Computer System, Part 5
Graphic Gadgets Demystified

After you have decided on your basic computer system, you'll probably be tempted to add one or more of the various computer or graphics “gadgets: to it. To help you make those decisions, we asked our panel of graphic-design experts which gadgets they use or are going to purchase in the near future.

Lori Haller: My goal is to have “bluetooth” connection using a BlackBerry® very soon, so I can check emails while away from the studio. That will provide me with even more flexibility to run my business ... and also have time with my family.

[Ed. Note: A BlackBerry® is an electronic device with phone, email, Web browser, and personal calendar (PDA) capabilities. To learn more about BlackBerry®, go to www.blackberry.net. “Bluetooth” is a relatively new wireless technology that allows you to connect to mobile phones and other bluetooth-enabled devices.]

Roger Parker: Your very first add-on should be a system to do automated backup of both data files and program files. Restoring a computer involves more than just data; programs and settings and preferences can take hours to re-do, plus many programs can only be installed a limited number of times without dealing with software vendors.

Viruses and spyware are frequent problems on Windows systems (much less so on Mac). So adequate spyware, virus, and adware protection is a must – including keeping them upgraded.

Dennis Rome: My handiest device is my portable USB backup drive. It is an 80Gb 2.5” hard drive that came out of a previous laptop. It requires no power cables, just a simple USB port to get its power. At the end of the day, I back up all the files I worked on that day to that 80Gb portable drive and to my second desktop PC. (I simply jot down the names of the files on a piece of paper throughout the day as I work on clients' stuff.) And I ALWAYS take that drive with me when I leave my home office – just in case! (It is so small it can fit in a shirt pocket.) Simple, yet effective.

The second most useful thing is our new super-high-speed Internet access – 10Mbps via fiber optic cable. This is very handy for all those large graphics files that need to be transferred to and fro.

Mike Klassen: Dual-monitors is the best investment for designers. There is nothing like being able to open a program like InDesign or Photoshop on one monitor, and have all your palettes on the other monitor. That gives you maximum space to see your design, while still having full access to all your palettes.

Another useful gadget is a USB or Firewire hard drive to back up your important files. Your computer's hard drive will eventually die or become corrupted. You'll be glad you have your work backed up on another device that can easily be plugged into a new computer.

Kammy Thurman: This is kind of boring, but the only extra “gadget” I have is an external hard drive to back up my files. I decided to go this route when a couple of viruses got past my scan software and crashed my computer so badly the repairman had to pull everything off the hard drive and reload it.

As you see, the most-recommended “gadget” isn't a gadget at all. Our experts agree that after setting up your basic computer system, your next purchase should be a device that allows you to back up your important files. (See our Quick Tip, below, for more information on backing up your data files.)

If you want to learn much more about how to set up your graphics design business –what you need to do and buy … and how to save money doing it – check out AWAI's new Graphic Design Biz-In-A-Box program at http://www.thedesignerslife.com/getanswers/

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Now you can experience AWAI's 2005 FastTrack to Graphic Design Success Bootcamp … from the comfort of your own home! Click here to find out more: http://www.awaionline.com/graphicsbootcampathom/

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QUICK TIP: Back Up and Sleep Soundly, Part 1

There's only one 100% safe way to protect your valuable work files from being lost in a hard drive or system crash: Back up your data.

There are two practical approaches to backing up files. The first is to copy your files to an external hard drive connected to your computer. The second is to use an online storage provider.

Today, we'll talk about using an external hard drive. Next issue, we'll delve into Web-mail and online storage providers. We actually recommend that you use both approaches – and you'll understand why after reading both Quick Tips.

The biggest advantage of backing up to an external drive connected to your computer is that you can use software to do it automatically.

The two best-known backup utilities are Data Backup by ProSoft Engineering (for Mac only, around $50) and Retrospect (for both Mac and PC, around $100). Both of these applications work automatically after you set up a schedule. Then, you don't have to do a thing. The software does it all.

The first time you run the software, you specify which folders you want backed up and where you want them saved. The “where” should be to your external drive. After the first save, the “which” should be any files that have changed.

You can purchase a USB or Firewire drive with enough storage capacity (80 to 250 Gigabytes) for between $90 and $160 online.

While it's possible to use CDs for backing up your files, it's slow and inefficient. Soon, you put off doing it ... and, eventually, it just stops happening.

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FROM THE IFD MAILBAG ...
by Kristin Schwarz

Hello, everyone!

Our first email comes from Jen, who writes:

I am having a little trouble when dealing with leading and kerning. I understand the concept, but when given a choice , I cannot pick the most appropriate spacing for the page. Is there anything I can do to help train my eye?

I would also like to know how I can get my hands on new fonts. My computer only has one of the fonts mentioned in the Graphic Design Program, and if I am to give each assignment a voice I'm going to need more voices to choose from.

Sincerely,
Jen

Thank you for your email, Jen. Please don't get discouraged! Determining the right leading (space between lines) and kerning (space between individual letters) comes with practice.

When laying out a letter or other direct-mail piece, here's what I recommend: Type a few paragraphs, and copy/paste them a few times to get several samples you can work with. Apply different leading, font size, and kerning to each sample. Then, to see the difference, print them out and study them carefully.

Keep in mind that your goal is to make reading the copy as easy as possible. So ask yourself the following questions about each one:

  • Is my eye following the text naturally ... or are there any “stumbling blocks”?
  • Are the lines too long, making reading difficult? Should I break up the text and make the lines shorter to improve readability?
  • Are the lines of text cramped and too tight?
  • Is there enough space between paragraphs ... or does everything just looks like a big block of copy?
  • Is the font used appropriate and the right size?

Another thing that will be helpful is to look at your swipe files to see how different fonts are being used. Not everything out there is an example of good design, but often you can learn a lot just by looking at what comes in the mail.

You also asked about where to get new fonts. There are many places, including www.fonts.com, www.adobe.com, and www.veer.com. Veer is a good source, because they let you “test-drive” their fonts. You can type a section of text and choose a font to see how the text looks.

You can find many free fonts on the Internet. But I don't recommend downloading them, since they could be corrupt – and you won't find out that something is wrong with them until your file is at the printer.

Now, here's another question – this one from Jamie, who has written to us before:

In all the ads I see for freelancers, the requirements are almost always for experience in Quark, InDesign, Illustrator, and Photoshop. When I started Graphic Design Success, I was told I would need Word and, maybe later, one page-layout software program(I chose InDesign). But now when I look for work, I see the above requirements. What do I really need to get hired in this field – one or all four?

Thank you,
Jamie

Job listings for graphic designers are “wish lists,” Jamie. Same is true for many other professions. Companies often list more requirements than they really need ... maybe to discourage candidates who do not feel confident in their abilities.

Just because you don't have all the programs doesn't mean you can't offer your services as a freelancer to any company. Nobody starts out knowing every program that is out there. As with every profession, the more experience you get, the more expert you become. And as you become more confident in your skills, you will want to expand your knowledge and learn more programs.

A big factor in choosing which software to invest in next is the kind of design you'll be doing. If you plan to design high-end, full-color brochures, you'll eventually want to get an image-editing program like Photoshop. If you want to specialize in logo design, you might want a vector-drawing program like Illustrator. If you want to design the sales letters and other direct-mail pieces that we focus on in Graphic Design Success, you already have an excellent tool in InDesign.

Until next time ...

Kristin

[Ed. Note: If you have a question or comment for Kristin, please send it to:
insidefreelancedesign@awaionline.com, Attn: Kristin Schwarz.]

EXTRA! EXTRA! News and Job Opportunities for AWAI Students
  • GRAPHIC DESIGNER – FOX News Channel needs a creative graphic designer who can work odd hours and keep a level head under pressure. You'll work across different departments to create graphics and animations. You need to know PhotoShop and Illustrator, as well as After Effects for the animations. Send your resume to resumes@foxnews.com or by mail to Fox News Channel, Human Resources, 2nd Floor, Attn: Graphics, 1211 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10036.
  • EXPERIENCED GRAPHIC DESIGNER – Quality Publishing Services, an event-planning company, is looking for an experienced graphic designer to create a number of marketing materials, magazine ads, signs, and more. You'll need to be skilled in QuarkXpress, Illustrator, and PhotoShop. Dreamweaver and Flash will also be helpful. Send your resume, salary requirements, and work samples (pdf or online) to Cassandra Hollemon at chollemon@qualitypublishing.net.
  • TEMPORARY, ENTRY-LEVEL DESIGNER - The Robert Allen Group, a home furnishings designer and marketer, has an opening for a graphic designer to join their team on a temporary, part-time basis. You'll work on a variety of marketing projects, helping the studio update existing communications and create new marketing materials. This is an entry-level position, requiring one to three years of graphic-design experience. You need to be proficient in PhotoShop, Illustrator, InDesign, Quark, Acrobat, and MS Office. Send your resume to jobs@robertallendesign.com.
COMING NEXT ISSUE:
  • Graphics guru Roger Parker tells how to increase your Productivity (and profitability) with templates
  • QUICK TIP: Back Up and Sleep Soundly, Part 2
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Inside Freelance Design is a FREE bi-weekly newsletter from American Writers & Artists Inc., available to AWAI members and friends.

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