Webmaster forum - what does professional design mean?

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what does professional design mean?

MadeInUSSR

2006-09-15, 6:57 pm

what does professional design mean? and what about you think when you
hear "Professional design" or may be just "Very good design"?
Please tell

Brian Cryer

2006-09-15, 6:57 pm

"MadeInUSSR" <papiroska@XXXXXXXXXX> wrote in message
news:1158140440.799052.237400@e3g2000cwe.googlegroups.com...
> what does professional design mean? and what about you think when you
> hear "Professional design" or may be just "Very good design"?
> Please tell

To me, "Professional" really just means "paid". So "professional design"
means a design you paid for. However the context makes a difference - if its
on an advertisement then its a meaningless phrase that the author probably
hopes will convey a good impression, if its on a review then "professional
design" probably does mean the same as "good design".

These are just my impressions - my dictionary disagrees with me, so I'm sure
others will too.
--
Brian Cryer
www.cryer.co.uk/brian

CJM

2006-09-15, 6:57 pm

"Brian Cryer" <brian.cryer@127.0.0.1.ntlworld.com> wrote in message
news:vMWdnVxIWuFJS5rYRVny3g@pipex.net...
>
> To me, "Professional" really just means "paid". So "professional design"
> means a design you paid for. However the context makes a difference - if
> its on an advertisement then its a meaningless phrase that the author
> probably hopes will convey a good impression, if its on a review then
> "professional design" probably does mean the same as "good design".
>
> These are just my impressions - my dictionary disagrees with me, so I'm
> sure others will too.

I can only disagree with that last line, because I completely agree with the
rest.

Couldn't have put it better myself. Well actually I could, but I dont want
to show you up! :)

'Professional' = paid-for/nothing/good depending on the context.

CJM

Brian Cryer

2006-09-15, 6:58 pm

"CJM" <cjmnews04@REMOVEMEyahoo.co.uk> wrote in message
news:4mq4q5F78silU1@individual.net...
>
> "Brian Cryer" <brian.cryer@127.0.0.1.ntlworld.com> wrote in message
> news:vMWdnVxIWuFJS5rYRVny3g@pipex.net...
>
> I can only disagree with that last line, because I completely agree with
> the rest.

Probably time I changed my dictionary then. (grin)
--
Brian Cryer
www.cryer.co.uk/brian

Charles Sweeney

2006-09-15, 6:58 pm

Brian Cryer wrote

> "MadeInUSSR" <papiroska@XXXXXXXXXX> wrote in message
> news:1158140440.799052.237400@e3g2000cwe.googlegroups.com...
>
> To me, "Professional" really just means "paid". So "professional
> design" means a design you paid for. However the context makes a
> difference - if its on an advertisement then its a meaningless phrase
> that the author probably hopes will convey a good impression, if its
> on a review then "professional design" probably does mean the same as
> "good design".
>
> These are just my impressions

I'd go along with that.

--
Charles Sweeney
http://CharlesSweeney.com

George L. Sexton

2006-09-15, 6:58 pm

On Wed, 13 Sep 2006 11:00:39 +0100, Brian Cryer wrote:

> To me, "Professional" really just means "paid". So "professional design"
> means a design you paid for. However the context makes a difference - if its

I would refine that a little bit. I would add the distinction that it's
done by someone who makes their primary income from doing that activity.

--
George Sexton
MH Software, Inc. - Home of Connect Daily Web Calendar
http://www.mhsoftware.com/connectdaily.htm

mbstevens

2006-09-15, 6:58 pm

On Wed, 13 Sep 2006 11:08:16 -0600, George L. Sexton wrote:

> On Wed, 13 Sep 2006 11:00:39 +0100, Brian Cryer wrote:
>
>
> I would refine that a little bit. I would add the distinction that it's
> done by someone who makes their primary income from doing that activity.

If someone provides a paid service that is not their primary income, I
don't think that it follows that the service is not professional, nor that
the quality of the service must be diminished. Even in the most difficult
professions it is not unusual to see people who have competency in more
than one. Physician-lawyers are not that uncommon.

The question itself of whether a service is "professional" is of minimal
importance. The important question is whether it is competently carried
out.

I have also noticed an inverse ratio between the amount of time members of
a profession spend discussing "professionalism" of their profession, and
the actual importance to the world of that profession.

David Hennessy

2006-09-15, 6:58 pm

MadeInUSSR wrote:
> what does professional design mean? and what about you think when you
> hear "Professional design" or may be just "Very good design"?
> Please tell
>

"Professional" means, to me, that the product (in this case, a design of
some sort) is either being made by, or under the direction of, a master
in that particular field.

"Amateur" would be someone doing something who has no business doing it,
at least not for somebody else, at least not without making some
disclosure. This is what you typically find at ISPs where they have a
minimum wage guy designing sites, being billed out for $100/hr. :-P

Either can be done for free or for pay.

--
David J. Hennessy
http://maidix.com/

Ben Jamieson

2006-09-15, 6:59 pm

On 2006-09-13 05:40:40 -0400, "MadeInUSSR" <papiroska@XXXXXXXXXX> said:

> what does professional design mean? and what about you think when you
> hear "Professional design" or may be just "Very good design"?
> Please tell

To me, 'professional design' as a service means design work by someone
who has studied (and understands) colour, layout, typography and how
the three interact with regards to producing a desired reponse, be it
emotive, guiding or otherwise, in human beings.

The 'studied' part could be in the form of formal training, such as
college/university, or through their own research/time/practice etc.
(many of the best UI designers I know have no formal training
whatsoever)

A 'professional designer' will hopefully also have a creative talent
and an understanding of business, which will enable them to visualise a
client's needs and present them in an effective manner (as opposed to
an 'artist' who may have the exact same level of understanding of
colour, layout, type, etc, but utilises their talents to express,
rather than put a face on a commercial enterprise)

Professional design as a product is a design piece that was created by
a professional designer

Probably.
--
Thyme Online Ltd
Caribbean Web Design
http://www.thymeonline.com/

KimmoA

2006-09-24, 6:57 pm

MadeInUSSR wrote:
> what does professional design mean?

"Professional" is a buzzword and (usually) means "bloated" and
"crappy".

--
http://www.kimmoa.se/

Phil Payne

2006-09-24, 6:57 pm

> I have also noticed an inverse ratio between the amount of time members of
> a profession spend discussing "professionalism" of their profession, and
> the actual importance to the world of that profession.

I've been in commercial IT pretty much since the beginning - 1968 on
BIG IBM mainframes and everything else since. I've lost count of the
number of debates I've seen about the professional status of skilled IT
people - the systems analysts got there first, followed by the
programmers. We're still about as far from a kind of "chartered
practitioner" status as we ever were, but it took the doctors and
lawyers a few hundred years so there's still time.

KimmoA

2006-09-24, 6:57 pm

Phil Payne wrote:
> I've been in commercial IT pretty much since the beginning - 1968 on
> BIG IBM mainframes and everything else since.

Ah. An old "Big Blue"er! Cool.

--
http://www.kimmoa.se/

Brian Cryer

2006-09-24, 6:58 pm

"Phil Payne" <phil@isham-research.co.uk> wrote in message
news:1158402471.951275.238430@h48g2000cwc.googlegroups.com...
>
> I've been in commercial IT pretty much since the beginning - 1968 on
> BIG IBM mainframes and everything else since. I've lost count of the
> number of debates I've seen about the professional status of skilled IT
> people - the systems analysts got there first, followed by the
> programmers. We're still about as far from a kind of "chartered
> practitioner" status as we ever were, but it took the doctors and
> lawyers a few hundred years so there's still time.

Firstly, I agree ...

Here in the UK the British Computer Society does run a scheme that allows
you to become a chartered member. That said, in all the companies I've
worked the BCS hasn't seemed very popular amongst the software engineers.
Also, of the only three software engineers I've known who achieved chartered
status two were absolute dorks. I resigned my BCS membership almost 10 years
ago and have never regretted it.
--
Brian Cryer
www.cryer.co.uk/brian

CJM

2006-09-24, 6:58 pm

"Brian Cryer" <brian.cryer@127.0.0.1.ntlworld.com> wrote in message
news:E4mdnSvGKLkI9ZPYnZ2dnUVZ8qqdnZ2d@pipex.net...

> Firstly, I agree ...
>
> Here in the UK the British Computer Society does run a scheme that allows
> you to become a chartered member. That said, in all the companies I've
> worked the BCS hasn't seemed very popular amongst the software engineers.
> Also, of the only three software engineers I've known who achieved
> chartered status two were absolute dorks. I resigned my BCS membership
> almost 10 years ago and have never regretted it.
> --

Hey! Are you tarring us all with the same brush?

CJM
B.Eng(Hons) C.Eng MBCS CITP

Andy Dingley

2006-09-24, 6:58 pm

CJM wrote:

>
>
> Hey! Are you tarring us all with the same brush?

I don't know --- Do you wear a brown suit and talk fondly of
punchcards?

I wouldn't like to tar _all_ BCS members with the same brush, but I see
no relevance of the BCS to _anything_ useful. IEE / IEEE or even the
IoP are far more useful.

CJM

2006-09-24, 6:58 pm

"Andy Dingley" <dingbat@codesmiths.com> wrote in message
news:1158577312.262599.248510@d34g2000cwd.googlegroups.com...
>
> I don't know --- Do you wear a brown suit and talk fondly of
> punchcards?
>

Not *all* the time.

> I wouldn't like to tar _all_ BCS members with the same brush, but I see
> no relevance of the BCS to _anything_ useful. IEE / IEEE or even the
> IoP are far more useful.
>

IEE were hopeless. More than £1000 in fees over the years for zero benefit.
I couldnt even become a full member because they couldnt get the
organisation & administration right for 3 whole years. And they were totally
London-centric. No presence out-side the capital. Obviously YMMV.

Phil Payne

2006-09-24, 6:58 pm

> Here in the UK the British Computer Society does run a scheme that allows
> you to become a chartered member. That said, in all the companies I've
> worked the BCS hasn't seemed very popular amongst the software engineers.
> Also, of the only three software engineers I've known who achieved chartered
> status two were absolute dorks. I resigned my BCS membership almost 10 years
> ago and have never regretted it.

Around twenty years ago the BCS sent me a letter saying I could become
an MBCS for fifteen quid if I got a letter from my employer certifying
I'd been in IT for ten years or more. No exams, no nothin' - just send
the money.

CJM

2006-09-24, 6:58 pm

"Phil Payne" <phil@isham-research.co.uk> wrote in message
news:1158592723.896143.63700@m7g2000cwm.googlegroups.com...
>
> Around twenty years ago the BCS sent me a letter saying I could become
> an MBCS for fifteen quid if I got a letter from my employer certifying
> I'd been in IT for ten years or more. No exams, no nothin' - just send
> the money.
>

Ironically, while that obviously changed as it grew, it's almost com full
circle now. As of 2005, if you have a qualifying degree or pass the exams,
you can pay your money and be an MBCS. You only have to *prove* your
experience and face the interview panel (etc) if you want to be a Chartered
member... which was a populist if not popular move. It was designed to allow
more people to gain some post-nominals, but has annoyed those who were full
members...

Note: Chartered Computer Engineers need to be registered with the
Engineering Council and have exactly the same standards as the IEE and other
comparable fields such as Mechanical Engineering, Chemical Engineering
etc...

Funnily enough though, I get regular contact from the IAP where I can become
a full member if I pay my £125 up-front. A simple application form, and
nothing else... Likewise for the IEE (now IET), fill in the form, attach
your CV and send them a cheque...