It is an issue for me when it comes to specifications of a personal computer for a designer, in general. It is because designers, like me, have a keen eye for details and obesession (with compulsion) when it comes to smoothness and clarity of an artwork, designs, illustration and layouts. Prayers will not save your work for a client if you are using obselete (obselescent perhaps) hardware and software in your PC. You will miss the half of your life, only to realize that you have been left behind.
Well, I did not miss half of my life but I think I am left behind.
My five-year old PC, abosulutely obselete while working still soundly, is always left on the race everytime I am going to see such amazing layouts and illustrations which were only possible in high-end, up-to-date software and hardware. My illustrator and photo-enhancement program are always crying for help everytime I am going to use them for intensive detailed project (I was a part of a publication in college and my job is to do layouts). And I did realize how much opportunity cost I have missed.
Although this not-so-catasthropic but lingering problem of my technical relationship between my PC, I have managed to think of think-tank ideas in accordance to design theories living with a limited resources. And to those designer’s out there, who have missed a lot in their PC specs, there are hundreds of ideas to try, while not murdering your PCs. The award-winning yet tech-savvy ideas in designing with limited resources are as follows:
- Minimalist Designs. These are designs or layouts that uses a lot of space, not too much details, but uses big big fonts and pictures. This is ideal for those designers who cannot afford to be in ICU (intensive care unit) dissecting details from largest to smallest details of a project. It uses a lot of space (any color of spac you think), so the readers could understand your design, straight to the point. This could also be used in web interfaces and book layouts.
- Use three to four colors. It is useful when you are designing simple layouts, but be sure to choose colors that complement to each other. Warm is to warm and cool is to cool is traditional yet it gives a professional look and feel to your layouts. You could actually use only one hue with different brightness. Just make sure, to choose colors that are can ruined eyesights, depending on what time you want to show it and readers of course. Don’t use too much neon colors as they will give you dizziness, they are only useful at night especially in bars (the lasers).
- Use only two to three typefaces. Did you know that your PC gets slower when you have so many fonts installed? Not yet? Well, you know now. Your PC loads them all during start-up opening a particluar software. This is so evident that font list was like a curtain that slowly shows different faces and this happen most of the time. I am not suggesting to delete them all (do it at your own risk), but you should delete fonts that are not so necessary. Just leave the fonts that are useful, readable and flexible to any projects. Some of the fonts that you should have or use in your projects: Helvetica, Garamond, Futura, Boton, Gill Sans, Georgia. Let me remind you that some of these fonts must be purchased, as they were created by professional typographers, but you can visit this site I found, to download free fonts, yes, absolutely free, but gives professional feeling to your project. 40 Excellent Free Fonts of Smashing Magazine.
- Use simple shapes. If your PC application software cannot afford to use those avant-garde, extra-terrestrial, multiple layers of designs, then you should stick to using circles, squares & triangles. They are perfect not only because they have finite angles, because they give a sense of simplicity in designs.
Note: Please be sure to check back this blog, because I am going to give some wonderful tips and resources in the ideas I have listed above. It just so happen that I need to hurry up and pay some bills, I’ll be back. -Rom Simplicio
No comments:
Post a Comment