I posted this on my blog (wafflesatnoon.com) and thought it would be appropriate to re-post here among my CorelDraw brethren. It's my story how I became a CorelDraw user and some of the adversity I've faced in a world full of Illustrator users...
From 1992 until 1996, I used Adobe Illustrator exclusively. I used at my job, so this was not low-end hobby use. It was full-time, high end output. Daily. In late 1996, my boss took it upon himself to hire a graphic artist who I would train, but I wasn’t consulted on who was hired. The new guy showed up to work on his first day with a copy of CorelDraw 6 under his arm and a goofy grin on his face. I told him I had used version 5 and really felt it was far behind Illustrator 6 that was currently on the market. To be fair, I let him install it and show me what it could do.
A month later, we had Draw on all of our computers and I never used Illustrator full-time again. I had to admit that this goofy new guy had shown me a product that got the job done easier, better, and cheaper - in my opinion. And my opinion is all that mattered at this company. Looking back, I probably never really gave CorelDraw 5 a fair look. And that still seems to be the case for those who have never really learned to appreciate the program.
Fast forward to May 2008.
I’m having dinner with an acquaintance I had just met through a mutual friend. This guy is also a professional graphic artist. The conversation started out focused on his training. He went to school to study graphic arts, so I already knew he was an Illustrator guy. He also mentioned he used a Mac. It was a great conversation about life as a graphic artist.
And then he asked me about my graphic arts career.
I told him that I learned by doing, in my parents’ print shop while working my way through college (studying a far different career path). Then I told him I had used Illustrator early on, but decided to switch to CorelDraw, which I still used. His response?
“I didn’t know they still made that.”
I’ve heard similar reactions.
A few years ago I was doing some ads to go in the USA Today. Because they said PDF’s generated by Illustrator were the preferred format (at that time), I decided to design the ads directly in Illustrator (version 10). They were using an earlier version. I sent over a PDF, created in Illustrator. My rep called and said there was a translation error going backwards in version and to PDF at the same time. Apparently a drop shadow or similar effect didn’t turn out right. We went back and forth, and she gave me the exact settings to use, all to no avail. Finally, I decided to re-create the artwork in CorelDraw and publish it as a PDF using the PDF settings she gave me for Illustrator. I purposely didn’t tell her what I had done, only to try the new file. “Whatever you did worked that time!” she emailed.
In about 2001, I was calling around for print quotes. One pre-press person I spoke with heard “CorelDraw” and over-reacted like a 10-year-old when Sesame Street is on TV: “Oh no. You don’t use THAT do you?” She acted like my artwork would have cooties.
I responded firmly but politely, “Yes. I don’t bash your software so please don’t bash mine. I’ve been using it for years and have never had an issue with it.” I decided to use someone else.
So back to where my original story started… After a few years of using Draw with my colleague, I had been promoted and was running the advertising department. We were expanding, so I had to hire a couple new employees. This time I said Draw was a required experience. There was no shortage of applicants, many of whom were highly talented. I wondered if all those dogmatic Illustrator users realized just how many Draw users were out there.
I really have no beef with Illustrator or its users.
I do have a problem with ignorant arrogance. If I meet someone who uses Freehand or another illustration program, instead of unknowingly bashing it, I ask them what they like about it and why they chose not to use the “industry standard.” It can be an enlightening conversation, and I’ve seen some brilliant artists that don’t use Draw or Illustrator. I’ve seen great effects in some of these lesser known apps that neither Draw nor Illustrator have.
There are many schooled graphic artists who subscribe to all of the dogma their Illustrator evangelists preached to them. I actually feel sorry for these people. Their ignorance borders on bigotry toward users of alternate applications. Draw users have seen and heard it all before - the snide comments, the rolling eyes, and the uneducated dismissals. This from people who have probably never even used the application.
There’s a reason CorelDraw exists today in its 14th version. It’s a great app, every bit as good as Illustrator (if not better), significantly less expensive (with far more extras included in the box), and arguably far easier to learn and use.
I’ve used Draw at my full time job for the past 12 years. I’ve done several 200+ page magazines, huge signs, small signs, nearly 200 pocket-sized pamphlets, web site graphics, postcards, newspaper advertisements, high end graphics, low end graphics, logos, T-shirts, you name it. CorelDraw has aptly handled every task I’ve thrown at it.
The computer world is filled with zealous users of products that don’t have the most sales. And they’ll all tell you that “most popular” doesn’t always mean “better.”
Just ask advocates of Macintosh, Zune, Firefox, WordPerfect, and Linux.
And CorelDraw.
Hear! Hear! Thanks for posting it here.
comin' atcha from up on the hill in Abbotsford, BC CANADA
I read this last night when I received it as one of my Google alerts. I worked with a guy, who's last day was a couple of days ago, who was a dyed-in-the-wool Illustrator fan boy. I would sure like to get that post to him somehow.
I could consistently out produce him with me on CorelDraw X3 and he on Illustrator CS2 but he would refuse to concede that CorelDraw was a superior product. One thing we did agree on was that SignLab was NOT a design program. Unfortunately, that's what the boss thinks everybody should be using and there's absolutely no reasoning with him.
I'll use Illustrator if I absolutely must but it's at the end of a list of vector graphics programs that I use. Last on the list to be exact
Corel needs to airdrop loads of CorelDraw into the schools and hand out lots of free copies to educators or those in charge of procurring software for schools. The payback would come a couple of years down the road when those students one day become workers and managers.
Just my 2¢ worth.
Dan
Dan W. Armeneau Sign Artist Website Sign Designs Resume
“I didn’t know they still made that.” or “Oh no. You don’t use THAT do you?”
Only the truly ignorant who has been trained with blinders on and no creative imagination of their own would say that. They're probably from the same gullible-bow-down-and-pray-to group as the Macfanboys. To be a PRO graphics artist, you must have imagination, creativity and curiosity..always looking towards a "How can I accomplish this task" type goal. An artist that is not open to, or have knowledge of, other possibilities will and up having their creativity stymied. Imagine where we would be if those that write the plugins, macros and programs operated with a "tunnel vision" attitude. The real power of a graphics program lies within the curiosity of the user and the play value of the different programs. The artist will search out new ways and possibilities, never happily accepting just what is plopped in from of him / her.
The moment I hear “I didn’t know they still made that.” or “Oh no. You don’t use THAT do you?” ( and, like you, I have heard it before), I RUN in the other direction, least I catch their tunnel vision attitude towards graphics and lose my creativity and objectivity.
I'm also a pro photographer and just because I use Canon equipment it doesn't mean I can't drool over a new piece of Nikon glass.
If the mind is not open and the eyes do not see past what is in front of you, creativity is lost. Without that, your graphics ability wil end up being limited to painting pedestrian crosswalks.
Ted
I posted this on my blog (wafflesatnoon.com) and thought it would be appropriate to re-post here among my CorelDraw brethren. It's my story how I became a CorelDraw user and some of the adversity I've faced in a world full of Illustrator users... From 1992 until 1996, I used Adobe Illustrator exclusively. I used at my job, so this was not low-end hobby use. It was full-time, high end output. Daily. In late 1996, my boss took it upon himself to hire a graphic artist who I would train, but I wasn’t consulted on who was hired. The new guy showed up to work on his first day with a copy of CorelDraw 6 under his arm and a goofy grin on his face. I told him I had used version 5 and really felt it was far behind Illustrator 6 that was currently on the market. To be fair, I let him install it and show me what it could do. A month later, we had Draw on all of our computers and I never used Illustrator full-time again. I had to admit that this goofy new guy had shown me a product that got the job done easier, better, and cheaper - in my opinion. And my opinion is all that mattered at this company. Looking back, I probably never really gave CorelDraw 5 a fair look. And that still seems to be the case for those who have never really learned to appreciate the program. Fast forward to May 2008. I’m having dinner with an acquaintance I had just met through a mutual friend. This guy is also a professional graphic artist. The conversation started out focused on his training. He went to school to study graphic arts, so I already knew he was an Illustrator guy. He also mentioned he used a Mac. It was a great conversation about life as a graphic artist. And then he asked me about my graphic arts career. I told him that I learned by doing, in my parents’ print shop while working my way through college (studying a far different career path). Then I told him I had used Illustrator early on, but decided to switch to CorelDraw, which I still used. His response? “I didn’t know they still made that.” I’ve heard similar reactions. A few years ago I was doing some ads to go in the USA Today. Because they said PDF’s generated by Illustrator were the preferred format (at that time), I decided to design the ads directly in Illustrator (version 10). They were using an earlier version. I sent over a PDF, created in Illustrator. My rep called and said there was a translation error going backwards in version and to PDF at the same time. Apparently a drop shadow or similar effect didn’t turn out right. We went back and forth, and she gave me the exact settings to use, all to no avail. Finally, I decided to re-create the artwork in CorelDraw and publish it as a PDF using the PDF settings she gave me for Illustrator. I purposely didn’t tell her what I had done, only to try the new file. “Whatever you did worked that time!” she emailed. In about 2001, I was calling around for print quotes. One pre-press person I spoke with heard “CorelDraw” and over-reacted like a 10-year-old when Sesame Street is on TV: “Oh no. You don’t use THAT do you?” She acted like my artwork would have cooties. I responded firmly but politely, “Yes. I don’t bash your software so please don’t bash mine. I’ve been using it for years and have never had an issue with it.” I decided to use someone else. So back to where my original story started… After a few years of using Draw with my colleague, I had been promoted and was running the advertising department. We were expanding, so I had to hire a couple new employees. This time I said Draw was a required experience. There was no shortage of applicants, many of whom were highly talented. I wondered if all those dogmatic Illustrator users realized just how many Draw users were out there. I really have no beef with Illustrator or its users. I do have a problem with ignorant arrogance. If I meet someone who uses Freehand or another illustration program, instead of unknowingly bashing it, I ask them what they like about it and why they chose not to use the “industry standard.” It can be an enlightening conversation, and I’ve seen some brilliant artists that don’t use Draw or Illustrator. I’ve seen great effects in some of these lesser known apps that neither Draw nor Illustrator have. There are many schooled graphic artists who subscribe to all of the dogma their Illustrator evangelists preached to them. I actually feel sorry for these people. Their ignorance borders on bigotry toward users of alternate applications. Draw users have seen and heard it all before - the snide comments, the rolling eyes, and the uneducated dismissals. This from people who have probably never even used the application. There’s a reason CorelDraw exists today in its 14th version. It’s a great app, every bit as good as Illustrator (if not better), significantly less expensive (with far more extras included in the box), and arguably far easier to learn and use. I’ve used Draw at my full time job for the past 12 years. I’ve done several 200+ page magazines, huge signs, small signs, nearly 200 pocket-sized pamphlets, web site graphics, postcards, newspaper advertisements, high end graphics, low end graphics, logos, T-shirts, you name it. CorelDraw has aptly handled every task I’ve thrown at it. The computer world is filled with zealous users of products that don’t have the most sales. And they’ll all tell you that “most popular” doesn’t always mean “better.” Just ask advocates of Macintosh, Zune, Firefox, WordPerfect, and Linux. And CorelDraw. http://coreldraw.com/forums/p/6521/23834.aspx#23834
Corel ROCKS !