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Little Things Count

November 10, 2008 Click to visit Printing Tools Online 
It has always been the little things that impress me most. The sleight-of-hand magician who does close up feats of dexterity and misdirection - the one that leaves you shaking your head even if you know how he does it - is so much more impressive than making the Statue of Liberty disappear. It's even more impressive if you have ever tried sleight-of-hand magic yourself and realize the amount of practice that goes into pulling the feat off.

That's why coding gurus that make software sing really grab my attention. And to be honest, it's not simply a matter of putting together the lines of code, it's putting together the whole package. For printing software development that means knowing what it is people are actually doing day to day out in the real world. It's not just knowing what they do, but how they do it. Knowing how they think and how their customers think. Knowing what they mean as well as what they say.

The folks who are out there creating this stuff every day deserve our undying gratitude.

Now it's true that software doesn't always do what we want or work the way we want it to. That's why so many small entreprenuers are busy creating simple (simple!!??) little programs that fill holes, plug leaks, fix "issues" and solve problems. These are the plug-ins, the automation tools, the PDF fixers, the color management hooks, the asset management interfaces, the web tools and on and on that make it easier to get things done on a daily basis.

www.graphicartsonline.com/info/CA6605972.html

One small tool may solve one giant irritation.

But sometimes it's hard to find precisely the tool you need. If you're like me, and you have two dozen screwdrivers of various sizes and configurations, the one you actually need will be the one that you don't have.

We're trying to make it a little bit easier.

We're making an attempt to get those little known but much-loved products better known to the print provider community by launching Printing Tools. It's a place where you can see what some of the best minds in the business have been able to put together to make your life a bit easier.

Check it out, and tell us what you think. And let us know what tools you would like to see on the site. Perhaps your favorite Quark XTension or Photoshop Texture. Let us know!

Click to Visit Printing Tools Online www.graphicartsonline.com/info/CA6605972.html

Posted by Stephen Beals on November 10, 2008 | Comments (0)