Please forward any comments, suggestions, additional information and so forth, I will endeavour to include them in future versions of this continously updated FAQ.
More FEEDBACK equals more USEFUL!
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SECTIONS:
1. Where to get this FAQ.
2. What, Why, Where?
3. Programs for technical illustration
4. File formats
5. Internet related information, other useful resources
6. Disclaimer and Credits
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~ SECTION 1.
This latest version of this FAQ may be retrieved from the following sites:
Q. What programs should I use for technical illustration?
A. Check out Section 3 below, for suggestions.
Q. Should I use a Mac or an ibmPC or?
A. People have been debating this one for a decade or more. Without wishing to start a flame on the subject; if the people you deal with use imbPC's, get one, if they use Mac's, get one. If you can afford it, get both and experiment! (I use a PowerMac with a DosCard in it for beta-testing and variety!)
You might find youself running on a Sparc or something else I know nothing about, please inform this FAQ if we can usefully add something on the subject. Having said that, this FAQ is aimed more at the individual than the industrial giant.
Q. I'm told computers can't do 'Thick & thin'?
A. This is like saying, "Cars can't do more than 30-miles/per/hour", these days they can! Each program will have it's own way of doing it, RTFM, experiment.
Further, in Illustrator, for example, a satisfactory method is to take an object with a fill, and 'paste behind' the same object with a line weight twice the width you require. So where you need a 2pt line, give the rearmost object a 4pt line. (Try it). This is also a good way of 'outlining' letters, the true character of the frontmost letter is then retained. An additional advantage to using 'filled' objects in certain programs, is that it is easier to 'colour' them later, than if you only have 'unfill
ed' lines everywhere.
IsoDraw, with a different approach, now has a command to switch the line weight from one side to the other.
Q. I'm told computers can't do 'perspective'?
A. Similar to above quote, they can do perspective "IN SPADES". Adjustable perspective, turn on, turn off, fly-throughs... Technical shapes can be drawn with no foreshortening, perhaps using 'x' & 'y' & 'z', or 'plan' & 'elevation' & 'rear' views, then adding appropriate, mild, perspective later.
Q. What is a typical 'drawing standard' on a computer in the US or UK or elsewhere?
A. Inking 'on the board', usually requires a 0.25mm or 0.3mm pen alongside between 0.5mm & 0.7mm for the heavier line weight. This is equivalent on the computer to between 0.35pt & 0.5pt for thin, with between 1.0pt & 2.0pt for thick. There may be a 'house-style' which will dictate the actual line weights used.
Otherwise the following is a reasonable middle-ground to tread: Thin = 0.5pt, Thick = 1.0pt, Annotation lines = 0.7pt
Q. How do I 'thicken up' a colour rendering?
A. Generally colour illustrations do not use edge shadings as used in traditional black & white illustrating. The colour and shade is usually enough to form the shape and 'feel' of depth.
Q. Computers are cheating surely?
A. That's what they said about photography back in the 1840's, "Art is dead!" Probably what those old guys with brushes and ink said about technical pens and ellipse guides!
Q. How on earth do I draw with a mouse?
A. Don't! (another area of debate) ;-)
Seriously, there are 3 prime methods of digitising by hand; mouse, puck, and pen. The good ol' MOUSE has it's limitations but if you get an ergonomical (hand-shaped) one, it will be quite sufficient. The PUCK is more accurate with a cross-hair on a magnifying glass and particularly suited to tracing and plotting. The PEN, usually pressure sensitive, has a more natural feel and is probably less likely to promote RSI.
Q. What is RSI?
A. Repetitive Stress Injury. Incurred by (in this case) computer usage with too much keyboard and mouse operation and unsupported wrists. I wear a fingerless glove to keep the wrist warm, and give a soft contact with the desk area. Try it before you dismiss it giggling, you may look stupid, but your hand may last longer!
See also "RSI Newsletter", contact Caroline Rose (crose@applelink.apple.com) and check the mailing lists below.
Q. Why are my straight lines jagged when printed?
A. Sometimes the lines on the screen look straight until printed. This is because the screen resolution is 72dpi (dots per inch), which is quite coarse and the screen is incapable of showing the detail, so it approximates the line. Usually there are constraining key/s in a program to ensure the cursor is 'snapped-to' a grid, to ensure they are 'true'.
Also your printer might not have the resolution to print fine lines. 300dpi is a minimum, 600dpi is usually OK, imagesetters at 2400dpi are of course, the best.
Q. How do I set the transparency bit on my web page?
Q. How do upload my illustrations to the 'net?
Q. How ... ?
A. These and all other Internet related questions can be answered by ferreting about in the appropriate FAQ, or asking in a pertinent newsgroup, see section 5 below.
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~ SECTION 3.
There are several different 'types' of program used for technical illustration, which you use will depend on how you are going to construct your drawings. 2D, 3D, CAD:
2D: Illustrator and Freehand type programs are 2-dimensional, they can be treated a bit like the 'inking' of a traditional pencil drawing, and are responsible for much of the technical illustration done on the computer to date.
IsoDraw is a program designed specifically to replace the board, and will tend to be more familiar for traditionally trained illustrators, who may be unused to the 3D modelling world or 'virtual-reality' style programs.
3D: A program typically working with a 'wireframe' or block shapes to construct a 'working model'. Dimensions can produce a 3D framework and simple renderings which may be manipulated further in the 2D programs above. You might for example produce a basic shape, export it and add colour or 'thick & thin' techniques. Complex rendering within Dimensions alone can produce unwieldy (big) files.
Form-Z is an example of several programs which can 'draw anything', from a simple unfolding box, to a complex organic shape, and then animate it in fully rendered 'spectacucolour'. Several CD-rom games (eg: Journeyman Project) have been drawn in Form-Z.
CAD: For example: AutoCad & MicroStation, the 'big boys', are designed for 2D drafting and producing blue-prints. These are now able to automatically generate complete 3D perspective and rendered views of the objects, based purely on the CAD drawings. There is a full range of CAD programs from these 'high-end' to simpler pixel based versions, the latter working purely in 2D.
These applications will NOT replace illustrators until companies are prepared to pay engineers, (rather than illustrators), to 'visualise' the item 'in-situ', and in colour with appropriate cutaways, and so on. Even though different skill bases are bound to overlap, engineers or draughtsmen are _not_ graphic designers, or technical illustrators.
The following are programs that might be used for technical illustration. Program name with current version number in brackets; company; typical usage; typical output file formats.
APPLE MACINTOSH:
AUTOCAD* (v11) from AutoDesk; 2D drafting & 3D modeling; DXF & DWG.
DIMENSIONS* (v2) from Adobe Systems; 3d Graphics; Illustrator & Freehand.
FORM-Z (v2.7) from Alt-Sys-Desk; 3D modelling/rendering; DXF & EPS.
FREEHAND (v5) from Macromedia; 2D illustration; EPS.
ILLUSTRATOR (v6.0) from Adobe Systems; 2D illustration; EPS & PDF & TIFF.
Of the above program, those marked with an asterisk (*), have a review uploaded on the TechIll website:
http://www.uplex.net/mdf/techill
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~ SECTION 4
Typical file formats: V = vector, B = Bitmap, V/B = 'hybrid' format using both vector & bitmap together. (For an extensive explanation of image file formats see the FAQ available from the comp.graphics.misc newsgroup and from rtfm.mit.edu as /pub/usenet/news.answers/graphics/fileformats-faq).
..CGM = Computer Graphics Metafile, V/B
..DWG = AutoCad DraWinG file, V/B
..DXF = Digital eXchange Format, V
..EPS = Encapsulated Postscript, V/B
..GIF = Graphics Interchange Format, B
..IGES = International Graphics Exchange System, V/B
..JPG = Joint Photographic Group format, B
..PDF = Portable Document Format, V/B
..PICT = Macintosh PICTure file, B
..TIFF = Tagged Image File Format, B
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~ SECTION 5
Related newsgroups and mailing lists, web sites etc.
MAILING LISTS:
Technical Writers List; send an email message to LISTSERV@LISTSERV.OKSTATE.EDU, don't put anything in the subject field, put "SUB TECHWR-L _firstname _lastname" in the body field. ie; SUB TECHWR-L John Smith
The health effects of computer use
Address: listserv@iubvm.ucs.indiana.edu
Message: sub C+HEALTH Your Name
Carpal tunnel syndrom, tendonitis etc. (discussion)
Address: LISTSERV@ITSSRV1.UCSF.EDU
Message: subscribe sorehand Your Name
NEWSGROUPS:
alt.cad
alt.corel.graphics
alt.illustration.technical
alt.industry
alt.sys.intergraph
bit.listerv.techwr-l
comp.cad.i-deas
comp.cad.microstation
comp.graphics.apps.freehand
comp.graphics.apps.photoshop
comp.graphics.apps.pagemaker
comp.graphics.misc
comp.graphics.rendering
comp.graphics.visualisation
comp.sys.mac.graphics
comp.prepress.electronic
comp.publish.electronic.end-user
comp.publish.prepress
news.answers
WORLD WIDE WEB SITES:
The TechIll website;
http://www.uplex.net/mdf/techill
Technical communicators resource site;
http://www.rpi.edu/~perezc2/tc/
The International Society for Technical Illustrators
http://www.epic-isti.com/epic
Technical Communicators site;
http://www.in.net/~smschill/techcomm.html
A useful Graphics page;
http://www.best.com/~bryanw
DTP tips & tricks;
http://www.winternet.com/~jmg/GetInfo.html
CAD related web site listings
http://www.webcom.com/~imt/other.html
Maps, cartography, DXF and Adobe Illustrator links
http://www.shef.ac.uk/~sc/
FAQ's, (Frequently Asked Questions):
TechIllFAQ;http://www.uplex.net/mdf/techill and http://www.rfitech.com/index.html
Graphic File Formats FAQ; by ftp at rtfm.mit.edu /pub/usenet/news.answers/graphics/fileformats-faq
For a really good place to start with Internet info try looking at "The Internet and Computer-Mediated Communication" authored by John December (decemj@rpi.edu), ftp to "ftp.rpi.edu".
~ SECTION 6
This FAQ is the product of it's lack elsewhere coupled with a percieved need. Thanks in particular to Mark Foster <mdf@uplex.net> and various other people for their encouragement. This FAQ is not affiliated to any group or company (except my own), and all comments are mine, and should be treated with caution, unless expressly stated otherwise. This document may be distributed freely so long as it is unaltered in any way. All comments welcome, (within reason)!
;-)
Technical Illustration FAQ
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Copyright RFI
richard@rfitech.com
End
Richard Foley, RFI Ingleton, UK richard@rfitech.com
Maintainer of the Technical Illustration FAQ; "Techill-FAQ"
