Technology, Society and environment Flashcards
Computing devices
Graphic communication uses computing devices at every stage: preliminary, production and promotional. Computing devices have made drawing, modelling, designing and editing quicker and more accurate than traditional methods.
Desktop Computer
Advantages:
Great processing power
Ability to upgrade and swap components
Ability to add more memory or upgrade graphics card
Graphic designers and CAD technicians favour these due to large display capabilities and processing power
Usually contain disc drives and multiple UBC ports to support input devices
Disadvantages:
Not portable
Requires mains power
Usually more expensive
Laptop Computer
Advantages:
Great processing power
Built in keyboard and mouse/track pad
Portable
Powered by rechargeable battery
Disadvantages:
Entry level laptops will not have the processing power to run CAD software.
Netbook
Advantages:
Smaller than laptop
Built in keyboard and mouse/track pad
Disadvantages:
Less powerful than a laptop
Operates more slowly than a laptop
Smaller hard drive so reduced storage
Limited processing power to run CAD and DTP software
Tablet
Advantages:
Growing in power
Many apps can work similarly to desktop apps
Excellent portability
Great for digital sketching
Disadvantages:
Not able to run full versions of CAD software
Smartphone
Advantages:
Growing in power
Connected to internet
Sharing files and communicating
High resolution camera
Disadvantages:
Smaller screen size limits use for digital sketching
Input devices
Mouse
Hand-held pointing device. Can be wired or wireless. Laptops usually have a built-in trackpad instead of a mouse.
Graphic Tablet
Allows a designer to use a pen stylus on a trackpad to draw straight into the computing device.
Keyboard
Allows users to input a range of data to a computing device including numbers, letters, directions and functions. Many CAD and desktop publishing packages have a range of keyboard shortcuts that can be used to increase speed for the user.
Digital Camera
Professional DSLR cameras allow users to take high-quality images. These can be input into a computing device to allow images to be used in designs and for editing.
Flatbed Scanner
Enables sketches, drawings and other documents to be copied electronically, allowing them to be stored and edited digitally.
Hand-held Scanner
A smaller, more portable version of the flatbed scanner where the user moves the scanner along the surface of the document.
3D Scanner
Allows a 3D product to be scanned and turned into a 3D digital file. 3D scanners capture measurements of 3D objects and can quickly create models of complex shapes. Examples of use are in medicine to create prosthetics and in orthodontics to create braces.
Output devices
Monitor
Computer monitors output information visually. It is what allows users to interact with the computer and view what they have produced. For desktop publishing, it is desirable to have HD (high definition) resolution, a large screen size and the ability to display a vast RGB colour space. Many designers have more than one monitor in their computing system to reduce clutter on their monitor.
Projector
Projectors are devices project what would be seen on a monitor onto a large surface. They are often used to present ideas with clients or to a design team.
Printers
Printers are devices that output digital formats to physical formats.
2D and 3D Computer Aided Manufacture
2D and 3D graphics can be exported to computer aided manufacturing devices and machines:
2D Laser Cutter
3D Printer
These output devices are used to create prototypes and models.
Print devices
Modern Printing
Modern printing techniques offer a range of benefits:
Complex images can be printed
A large range of colours can be used
Items can be printed more than once
Printers are very accurate
The process of printing is fast
Inkjet Printer
Inkjet printers are usually found in homes or small offices, as they don’t take up much space and they are more economical for smaller print jobs. They work by spraying very small droplets of cyan, magenta, yellow and black ink on to paper. They print with vivid colours and high quality. Replacement ink cartridges can be purchased in shops and online.
Laser Printer
Laser printers are more suitable for mass printing at a low cost and have a fast printing speed. Laser printers use cyan, magenta, yellow and black toner (powder) and fuse it to the paper with a laser to create images. Laser printers are more expensive than inkjet printers initially, but save money and are more economical in the long run due to the lower cost of print per page and printing speed.
Wide Format Printer
A wide format printer is any printer up to a width of 2.5 metres. These are used to print banners, posters, wallpaper, murals, architectural drawings, construction plans, artwork and signage. This style of printer can consist of inkjet or laser based technology.
Drum Plotter
Plotters are different to printers as they rely on vector (line path) format and use a pen or several pens to mark the paper. It does not print in horizontal lines as it moves down the page, instead, the plotter pen moves to follow the path of the image or content. Images are created with lines on a grid. Drum Plotters are used to print architectural plans and engineering plans.
Soy ink and wax ink
The ink used in inkjet printing and the toner used in laser printing are not sustainable due to the way that they are manufactured and the products that they are derived from. Ways of reducing the environmental impact of inkjet printing include:
Reducing the amount of ink used on a project
Keeping the background of printed documents white to reduce ink
Reducing the scale of the print document
Using environmentally friendly ink
Two environmentally friendly ink choices are:
Soy ink
Soya beans are processed to extract soy oil. The oil is refined and blended with pigments, resins and waxes to make the ink. Soy ink is renewable due to the soya beans being a renewable resource. It is available in a wide range of colours and makes the process of recycling paper easier.
Wax ink
Wax ink is only found in a limited number of printers due to copyright. Rather than a liquid or powder, these printers use a block of wax ink that creates excellent colour quality but requires a special print process to melt the wax ink on to the paper.
Using recycled materials
Today, recycled paper and card is widely available and is better for the environment. Manufacturing recycled paper uses less energy and water and produces less carbon emissions than manufacturing non-recycled paper. Using recycled paper and card reduces the amount going to landfill, as paper can be recycled 4 to 5 times.
Paper and cards thickness is called gauge. Using a thinner paper gauge helps to reduce environmental impact of using paper. The most common standard paper gauge is 80 gsm and card gauge starts at 200 gsm.
When printing multiple graphics on one piece of card or paper it is important to leave as little space between graphics as possible to reduce wasted material.
Reduce gauge of paper
Use recycled paper
Reduce scale of document
Reduce waste products
The paperless office
Many offices have opted to become ‘paperless’. Most of their documents are stored and managed digitally.
Benefits of paperless office include:
Time saved retrieving physical copies
Improved collaboration between team members
Information can be more secure
Reduced cost of printing and storing documents
Touchscreen devices
Today, many digital devices such as smartphones and tablets use touchscreen technology. Touchscreen devices remove the requirement for input and output devices such as a monitor, keyboard and mouse.
Many designers and artists use touch screen devices over manual, traditional methods such as traditional sketching and drawing. Touchscreen devices can make sketching and drawing more simple and accessible, as apps are able to provide a wide range of brushes, pens and colour pallets that would traditionally have had to be purchased from an art supply shop.
When designing for touchscreen devices it is important to use shapes that are large enough to be interacted with and colours that contrast to allow the user see the display clearly.
Remote working
Developments in technology and communication systems allow for the ability for jobs to be performed digitally and online.
Colleagues can be in constant communication through a range of means including email, instant messaging, phone call, and video conference calls (Teams meet, Skype, Zoom). Benefits of remote working include:
Easy sending of graphics and documents electronically to relevant people
Easy collaboration of people in different locations globally
Ability for 24-hour working across the globe
The option to work at home or another desirable location away from the company office
Reduced need to commute and travel
Communicating across international boundaries
A range of issues may occur if companies in different countries are collaborating on the same project:
Language barriers
Using different software
Using different drawing standards
It is vital for these companies to follow the same standards in their graphics. This is developing a common graphical language. Graphics, signs, silhouettes and symbols are frequently used instead of words to guide and instruct people as they cross language barriers.
Cloud computing
The goal of cloud computing is to allow users to benefit from remote and instant access of computer system resources through the internet. An example of cloud computing for CAD is Autodesk Fusion 360.
Advantages of cloud computing
Cloud computing allows for an ease of collaboration within a company
It would allow users to access their work from anywhere
Many staff can work collaboratively on projects simultaneously
Can be accessed remotely, even internationally
It can be used with mobile devices
Disadvantages of cloud computing
Cloud could be hacked leading to problems of data security
Requires access to internet at all times
Cloud servers may fail
Virus infection of the system/software
Cloud storage
Cloud storage is where data is stored online and is accessible over the internet. An example of this is saving files or data to Microsoft OneDrive.
-Advantages of cloud storage
Information can be accessed anywhere with internet access
Can be accessed and shared with others
Can be accessed on multiple devices or platforms
Information can be downloaded/uploaded at any time
Portable devices with less storage capacity can access the information, as items will be saved in the cloud, not the device
-Disadvantages of cloud storage
Cloud could be hacked leading to problems of data security
Requires access to internet at all times
Cloud servers may fail
Virus infection of the system/software
Communication with clients, manufacturers and building construction
Computer Aided Design (CAD), both 2D and 3D, allows for effective communication between designers and their clients, manufacturers and built environment colleagues. As CAD models are created to a set of standards and can be viewed in many different ways they work for all communication.
For example, an architect can create a CAD model of a house and use that model to create a 3D rendered pictorial of the exterior and of interior spaces so that clients that do not have a graphics background can understand it. They can then use the same CAD model to create floor plans and elevations that can be used to communicate key information such as dimensions and building materials to the builders and other building construction trades.
Another example is a toy designer. The designer can use CAD to model their new toy; they can create realistic renders of the model and use these in promotional graphics to sell the toy (communicating with clients). The same CAD model can be used to create orthographic drawings detailing to manufacturers how to make parts. They can also be used to create exploded views to show assembly technicians how to assemble the different parts correctly.
2D and 3D Computer Aided Manufacture
Workforce
Manufacturing processes have become far simpler due to Computer Aided Manufacture. It has caused a loss of skilled jobs due to machines being able to fulfil these roles, often more quickly and with greater accuracy. However, new roles for CAM technicians have been created. They run and oversee the production of products using these machines. These staff need to be trained to use the machines that comes with monetary and time cost.
3D Printing
3D Printing has developed dramatically in recent years, becoming more affordable and accessible. 3D Printing is an output device and is the process of making three-dimensional solids from a digital file. Most 3D printers spools of plastic filament and create the product through extrusion of the heated plastic. It is used to make scaled prototypes of 3D CAD models and is able to manufacture complex shapes.
2D CAM
There is a range of 2D Computer Aided Manufacture machines available to use with a range of materials. 2D CAM machines are output devices as they are controlled by the output of the computers digital file. 2D laser cutters use paths provided from computer files to cut into wood, plastic and in some cases metals. Laser cutters have the ability to cut through a material or to etch a design on to a material.
Environment
It is important to ensure that material is not wasted, therefore if multiple parts are being cut from one piece of material they should be placed close to one another to limit the amount of waste material created.
DTP in marketing and promotional activities
Desktop Publishing in Marketing
There are various features of desktop publishing software that make it useful for creating promotional graphics. These include:
Ease of editing different elements
Images and graphics can be easily manipulated
The layer function can be used to overlap and organise elements
Variety of fonts are available to try
Grid/guide tools can be used to enable accurate alignment of elements
Speed of production
Layouts and files can be sent quickly over long distances via email
Allows for remote working, rather than being in a design studio
Ease of sharing with the client
Wide range of fonts and colour schemes available
Digital Advertising and Promotion
Widespread usage of smartphones and the internet has meant that digital advertising is highly influential.
Benefits of advertising digitally over traditional printed advertising media include:
Capability of reaching a larger target audience
Ability to edit in post-production
Digital media can be easily adapted or changed at a later date
More information about the product can be communicated to the viewer
Hyperlinks can be included to take viewers to other web pages
Ability to interact with the electronic promotional item
No printing or transportation costs, or waste of printed materials
Flexibility to send and share in multiple ways
Sharing Graphics Online
Many companies upload instruction manuals and assembly instructions to the Internet rather than printing them. The impact of this is:
Less weight when shipping the product
Reduced pollution
Reduced printing materials
Customers can gain immediate access
Reaching a wider audience
Ease of sharing
Ability to update when required
Can be backed up in cloud or online storage
