graphic design, freelancing, illustration, advertising, web design

Hi Tara - I would add one essential piece of software: FileZilla (for FTP file transfers). A day does not go by for me without it!
-Eric

People stil use Quark? I guess I’m out of the loop, in my neck of the woods it is as if the company fell off the map.

One quibble, Suitcase is the pits, I far prefer Linotype Font ExplorerX which is cleaner, simpler, smarter, and best of all… free.

-Dave

HI Eric - thanks for the FileZilla suggestion, I use Cyber Duck on my mac

Hi David - A lot of people round here still use Quark, but I think Indesign seems to be taking over, I guess I will have to make the switch but I had Indesign’s picture handling. I hadn’t heard of Linotype Font ExplorerX , thanks for the suggestion, I might take a look at that myself.

I don’t second the Mac supremacy thing.

Don’t get me wrong - I know lots of people who use Macs, but also lots of people who use PCs. Both get the job done. Macs are usually prettier. PCs are usually cheaper. That’s how I see the issue.

Other than that, great list. All the basics are covered (and the advice is sound!).

Can I add two important items of equipment for a graphic designer:

1. A pen/pencil
2. A pad of paper

These are the most important and they won’t need upgrading, they won’t crash (unless you screw the paper up or your pen leaks!) and they won’t go out of date!

I use FireFTP, which is Firefox’s FTP program, for file transfers. Your list is great, and I’m especially interested in options for an inkjet printer which can print colours as reliably as can be expected (given they’re inkjets and not professional digital/offset)

hai

Your website information is very useful for me

Thanks for the insight, Tara, and what a great addition from Gareth (Dot Design).

For an external hard drive I would recommend acomdata’s PureDrive 500GB 7200 RPM eSATA ($110 at Newegg). As for the rest I just sat here and drooled….

Hi Tara, Interesting article.

One question, you say you use the new iMacs. I have been put off these due to their glossy screens - are these easy to colour calibrate? I have read that these new screens on the iMac are great for watching films or playing games as they give a great high contrast image but this may not be so good when working on print projects when you need more realistic colour?

Steve

Useful information, thank you for sharing.
As back-up device I would recommend a simple flash drive, they are large enough nowadays

Can anyone make a similar list for the windows world?

@Warenwirtschaft:
I’m from the world of Windows and I would say it’s pretty much the same. You need a good graphics card, about 4 GB memory and plenty of hard drive space. Everything else is cross platform. View Sonic screens are good for color reproduction, but I find that I don’t worry about that much, even though I’m a print designer. I’ve never had so many fonts that I need 3rd party software for handling it, but Extensis does make a version of Suitcase for Windows.

Also like I said, Vista can be buggy with CS2/CS3 (the only versions I’ve tried with it), so if you can, I would advise sticking with XP for now. Also it’s a pain that you can’t print to PDF with Vista. I haven’t tried exporting from InDesign with Vista yet, but there might be some problems there, too, which is why I’m duel booting with XP, just in case I need it.

I’m a graphic designer and I built my first computer a couple months ago after hours of research (ugh). I stuck with Windows XP Home, because Vista has too many bugs for my taste. For a graphics card I chose the XFX GeForce 8800 GT 512MB and for the monitor I went with a HP w2207 22″ widescreen. I only have 2GB of memory (G.SKILL PC6400) and one hard drive (SeaGate 320GB Barracuda), but I plan on getting a second HD for Photoshop to use as a dedicated scratch disk. Graphics card, monitor, and a good CPU (I have the Intel Quad Q6600 SLACR) are the main components you should splurge on for graphic design.

@Doug,
Before you have to learn the hard way, always back up your files on a secondary hard drive. It can be internal, but it should be separate from your OS disk. External drives aren’t a bad idea either (I run a backup to an external about every 6 weeks–should be more often–and put the latest working files on it).

And you’re right about Vista issues… I did finally fix that PDF writer bug by reinstalling Acrobat Pro 8 again.

I fully agree with you.Maybe a good Nikon or Canon camera is needed for a graphic designer also.

Hi there another software which is ok (not the great)
is the coreldraw suite (x4 is the latest).Is coming with a full suite(power trace,photo editing…) and u can do web work except print. On the oldest version the main disadvantage was that was crashing so often but the newest version has been improved. For me is a reasanoble solution and the main thing that is much cheaper(£170inc VAT) than the adobe one.Also is file compatible with all the adobe and microsoft formats.

I am a die hard PC loyalist. Never had any problems designing on it. Never needed to try anything else. Nonetheless, a good list with all the basics covered.

Would you say a tablet was necessary for serious graphic design? Also, I have a Macbook which is my only computer, I haven’t the budget to upgrade to a Pro or get an imac just yet, would you recommend getting an external 20″ Apple cinema display and have you had any experience with these displays? Thanks alot

Lauren, as soon as funds allow I’m going to get a second hard drive or that external acomdata PureDrive I mentioned. Building this computer sucked up all my spare cash. As for Acrobat 8 I really don’t care much for that one so I’ve stuck with version 7.

guadeloupe, I agree. A good digital camera is as much an asset to a designer as Photoshop. I’d always wanted one myself and last summer I happened upon a $400 Sony CyberShot DSC-H2 sitting all by its lonesome in the display case at Target with an orange clearance sticker on it for $87.49. The clerk was as shocked as I was by the huge price reduction, and of course I bought it immediately. There is absolutely nothing wrong with the camera and it takes awesome photos. Talk about the deal of a lifetime, eh?

yannis, CorelDraw is an awesome program. A very excellent artist named Mike Kungl uses that program to make his beautiful art deco posters (along with Photoshop and Painter).

Steve, a Wacom tablet is a vital addition to any designer’s toolbox. I have been wanting one myself for some time, especially that gorgeous-looking Cintiq (drool). The same can be said for the Apple cinema displays; they are quite pricey but then I have heard nothing but praise for them. It all depends on whether or not you can afford these things or (as in my case) justify spending all that money.

Thanks for the help. If I get an apple cinema display it will only be the 20″ model which should be more than sufficient for my needs. The Wacom tablets are really expensive but you can get the Wacom Bamboo for quite cheap although this might more of a mouse replacement, not a graphic design tool, il probably have to save up for a more expensive one, right now Im doing fine without it however, I keep hearing people say how useful they are!

Steve,
A Wacom is one of those things you didn’t know you couldn’t live without. Once you get one, you will probably never go back.

There are things you can do with a tablet–like on-the-fly opacity and brush tip width control–that you simply cannot do with a mouse. There are even more options when you start getting into the Intuos and Cintiq models because of the levels of sensitivity for things like pen tilt and rotation (though I wouldn’t invest in a Cintiq unless you are an artist, illustrator, cartoonist and need that super-fine level of control). I have an Intuos3 and love it.

Sure you can get along ok without a tablet, but you’ll wonder how you did it once you get one!

I use a MAC at work and PC at home. Haven’t found any difference between them and i use photoshop on both. Could do with a graphics tablet which would help me draw. I also use flash just for simple animations and then dreamweaver for authoring sites.

I could say computer is the most basic tool in graphic design. My second is the adobe suite.

There are a couple of softwares you listed that I didn’t know thanks for that!

If you have some experience with programmation, you may also try Flex. It generates .swf, as Flash, but it is more programmer oriented.

Hmm. i like the suggestions except for the quark express its expensive and i think its unnecessary. I would also prefer a pc though but thats just me.

i hear a lot of rave reviews about Canon iX400, are you also satisfied with yours? i might get one…

what computer specifications would i need, to run Photoshop, Illustrator, Dreamweaver etc. Also does anyone know how too get all this,cheap!

@Charlene: you’ll need at least 2 GB of RAM (preferably 4), about 3 GHz processor (duel-core is nice), a decent video card and lots of hard drive space.

If you are a student or you work for a non-profit, check out Academic Superstore (though I’m not sure if they ship outside the US) for your software. Otherwise, you’ll have to pony up for the suite at full cost. Good news is that future upgrades are at least half the price!

Your list is jampacked the only thing left is a skilled graphic artist:)

I don’t know if it has been mentioned, but let me say that I’ve been using Extensis’ Universal Type Server for a few days now and it is spectacular!

Adobe apps run MUCH smoother with this new software than they ever did with the Suitcase X11 server version. And you don’t have to keep the app running to have your fonts available anymore.

A font server isn’t for everyone, but if you have 10 or so Macs at your location, it’s the bomb!

Hi Tara, there is another great tool for file sharing, it is Smart Extranet, you can find it here http://www.smart-extranet.com
You can share all types of files, you don’t have to worry about the size anymore, and you can share your work with your clients/partners in extranet work zones. It is really ideal for all graphic designers!

Great run-down!

thanks for that useful list.. great for newbies like me. =)

One useful tool that I always find handy for quick fixes is firehand ember. It is a highly-rated photo viewer, manager, and touch-up system.

I was just thinking about Equipment for a Graphic Designer and you’ve really helped out. Thanks!

That firehand ember tool really does come in handy. It loads up really quick and lets me touch things up or resize. Another useful tool I suggest is ST Thumbnails Explorer. Its a small tool and lets you preview eps and ai files without loading them into Illistrator.

That ST Thumbnails Explorer saves me tons of time. THANKS!

I would add a decent graphics tablet to that list - wacom are the best and these days you can get an entry level one so cheap - a definite must for any illustrator.