Aesthetics (off-topic) (was: Re: Talking vs Doing)

[P3D Jim Crowell <crowell@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

At 5:44 AM -0700 10/14/97, P3D  Peter Davis wrote:
[deleted]
>>
>> It used to be that you took your data to a graphic arts person to make into
>> figures, but what with the ubiquity of computers & drawing programs it's
>> getting harder & harder to justify shelling out the money to pay someone
>> else to do it...
>
>I realize this is WAY off the 3D topic, but I couldn't let it go by ...
>
>This is exactly the problem.  Computer and drawing programs DON'T make
>design decisions.  Yes, the can eliminate the need for the mechanical
>abilities of drawing, but they can NOT (at this time) design an
>effective presentation that communicates information.  You might just
>as well say the ubiquity of compasses and rulers make graphic artists
>unnecessary.

Sure, but the point is that people (e.g. government funding agencies)
aren't willing to shell out dough for aesthetics--and you do have to pay
for them.  The fact that there are programs that make the mechanical
aspects of graphics easy makes it harder to get money to pay a professional
graphic artist.

The people who write graphing programs, for example, try to help out a
little by bundling pre-created templates that you just have to drop your
data into, but they're pretty much all aimed at business people rather than
techies; I've never actually found one that I was able to use...

-Jim C.

----------------------
Jim Crowell
Caltech Division of Biology
216-76
Pasadena, CA 91125
Tel: (818) 395-8337
Fax: (818) 795-2397
jim@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx



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