Ubuntu and Design Suit

[nkl_dp]

Hello,
My name is Nikolay I'm really interesting in Graphic Design.I'm still Junior in this kind of stuff.
I don't want this post to be something like somebody vs somebody just want to know are application like
Gimp and Inkscape can be powerful tools for Professional Graphic Design like others application which most people use in Mac & Windows?
The real reason to choose this OS is that
I really love Ubuntu and don't want to use Windows but want to know is possible to improve my skills in this field and
someday to become professional Graphic Designer who work like freelancer because I'm from i a little town and don't want to move to a big city.It will be great if I can talk with some professional designers in PM.
Thank you for understanding!

[psoulocybe]

Software tools are just that... tools.
No set of software will ever define you as a designer.
I still find it necessary to use Photoshop for certain corporate clients that have existing Adobe files I need to work off. Other than that, I can design what I want using Gimp, MyPaint and Inkscape. Learn on paper, and then use the software. That is the #1 rule for designers. If you can't draw it with a pencil, you're not going to be able to draw it on the computer.

[mainerror]

Software tools are just that... tools.
No set of software will ever define you as a designer.
I still find it necessary to use Photoshop for certain corporate clients that have existing Adobe files I need to work off. Other than that, I can design what I want using Gimp, MyPaint and Inkscape. Learn on paper, and then use the software. That is the #1 rule for designers. If you can't draw it with a pencil, you're not going to be able to draw it on the computer.

This.

[jmjgodville]

welcome to the world of graphic arts
"A Journey of a Thousand Miles Begins With a Single Step"

some good resource for

gimp
http://gimp-savvy.com/BOOK/index.html

inkscape
http://inkscapetutorials.wordpress.com/

[rax0]

Hi,

I'm not a professional designer, but I worked professionally before.

I used both proprietary and open source design tools, so I kind of know what I'm talking about. If you are serious about design you should use proprietary software PERIOD.

Let me explain, You will encounter various people in your career path, the majority (if not all) of them expect you to know adobe's programs (Photoshop, Illustrator, Indesign, Flash, Dreamweaver...) so when you talk with them you will hear these formats (PSD, AI, EPS, PDF, FLA...), now everybody knows that open source programs like (Inkscape, GIMP...) can't handle these formats well with the exception of some older versions of them(the formats), so what are you going to do when they ask you to open/give them a file in a PSD, don't even think about GIMP.

The second thing is the CMYK support, that 's a color profile for printed work, there's no support for that in open source software, and if there is, it's incomplete.

The third thing is Flash, there's no flash in Linux at all (I don't mean flash player), so what are you going to do if you can't make printed works and you can't make flash for web works?

That leaves us with:

- Logo design:

You can make logos in Inkscape, in fact, Inkscape is probably the only 2D useful program, and it is no where near Adobe Illustrator (just take a look at CS5 to see for yourself).

- Web design:

Thankfully there are many alternatives to Dreamweaver (better actually) like Aptana. and you can use the power of GEdit too.

- 3D:

Blender is a VERY good program, I hadn't have the chance to try it thoroughly, so you have a chance there.

- Painting:

I don't paint, but if you want to try that too, that would be awesome.


Bottom line:

You have to at least learn Adobe software even if you won't use it, and don't listen to the ones that say I can live without Adobe, I can design with GIMP, they can't in fact, they are amateurs. Just make something with an open source software and try to open it with a respective proprietary program, it won't open, and when it does it looks like ****.

[mainerror]

Bottom line:

You have to at least learn Adobe software even if you won't use it, and don't listen to the ones that say I can live without Adobe, I can design with GIMP, they can't in fact, they are amateurs. Just make something with an open source software and try to open it with a respective proprietary program, it won't open, and when it does it looks like ****.

Very true. I'd like to add another point to that. Speed. If you need to get something done fast then you should maybe not use Gimp in the first hand but Adobes' program for that task.