Design Team Changes

We have two changes tonight concerning the design team:

1) We now have 3 distinct design team groups: Apprentice, Gold and Platinum Designer. These people will be the only ones allowed to enter contests in the near future, and it will be up to the contest holder which groups they wish to allow to enter.

Obviously platinum contains our best designers, and apprentice contains those who still need some work on their skills.

2) The design team now has its own discussion forum. This can be viewed at the bottom of the page under the DC category, and is viewable only to design team members. Discuss contest holders, contests, or anything else related.

Hopefully these changes will be for the better!

Sounds good - but I have to wonder: If there are varying levels of design, does that mean that certain contests will only allow for the "best" designers? Or do low-price contests mean that the upper echelon aren't allowed to participate?

And would anyone want to use the lower rung when the upper rung is available?

So far what we have seen is that contest holders are allowing everyone to enter their contests. After all, you never know when the apprentice designer is going to do platinum quality work.

The new community portfolio will also allow contest holders to better choose which group they wish to have enter in their contests.

So far what we have seen is that contest holders are allowing everyone to enter their contests. After all, you never know when the apprentice designer is going to do platinum quality work.

The new community portfolio will also allow contest holders to better choose which group they wish to have enter in their contests.

I would say a comment like this makes a good arguement for not trying to create a class system in the first place. why:

1. If the beginners aren't alllowed to compete then they will never pit their work against work done by more experience people and therefor not get the visual incentive to improve.

2. Having everyone participate does allow the contest holder to see more potential designs.

3. The only real benefit of these class designations that I can see is for high ranking people to have better opportunity than those of low or no rank. Sorry to see it that way but your last sentence of the quote seems to suggest this. Obviously if a client had to choose he/she would choose the perceived better artists.

OK that said. I'll sum it up. I really like this community. It has SO MUCH potential. I don't like classist structures though. They fragment communities and create imbalance. I hope you guys decide to reverse this class oriented trend atleast inpart by making the classes less significant as they were before.

That said I hope this doesn't interfere with my own approval process. OOPS there it is again, this inquiry is another example of why class systems can potentially be bad. I felt it might be a mistake to speak my mind about this because I'm beholden to your judgement regarding my app. Don't you want a community that feels free of this predicament?

Thank You. I'm just wanted to make a case for a free and fair process.

I would say a comment like this makes a good arguement for not trying to create a class system in the first place. why:

1. If the beginners aren't alllowed to compete then they will never pit their work against work done by more experience people and therefor not get the visual incentive to improve.

2. Having everyone participate does allow the contest holder to see more potential designs.

3. The only real benefit of these class designations that I can see is for high ranking people to have better opportunity than those of low or no rank. Sorry to see it that way but your last sentence of the quote seems to suggest this. Obviously if a client had to choose he/she would choose the perceived better artists.

OK that said. I'll sum it up. I really like this community. It has SO MUCH potential. I don't like classist structures though. They fragment communities and create imbalance. I hope you guys decide to reverse this class oriented trend atleast inpart by making the classes less significant as they were before.

That said I hope this doesn't interfere with my own approval process. OOPS there it is again, this inquiry is another example of why class systems can potentially be bad. I felt it might be a mistake to speak my mind about this because I'm beholden to your judgement regarding my app. Don't you want a community that feels free of this predicament?

Thank You. I'm just wanted to make a case for a free and fair process.

Our judgements on the design team are made solely on the portfolio and the persons attitude (ie if they call us stupid f***ers). By speaking your mind and telling us what you think, you are actually helping us, and we appreciate that. We would never make a judgement on a valid comment that someone makes.

With that said, all design team members can participate in contests now. They will not be based on class. However, you must be a team member in order to participate in a contest.

I believe the classes are also a valuable way to push yourself to work harder. I'm golden right now, but you better believe I'm working up a portfolio to show that I hope will gain me that platinum title. The classes only motivate improvement among the designers. Additionally, more choice is not always better. Say a client doesn't have a lot of time to go trawling through the forum, looking at two dozen posts a day worth of logos. Maybe they would make a gold and platinum or even platinum only contest. Yes, it would be unfortunate for the underdogs who may be able to also make quality logos, but business is about pleasing the client, not the designers. And another argument I can make (which is actually more extreme than the current rules setup, but I still feel is not unfair) is that the classes are not arbitrarily assigned. The gold and platinum designers are more experienced and produce better quality logos than the apprentices, and probably also charge more for their independent services. There's a real part of me that thinks that there should be dollar cutoffs for Apprentice and Gold entries (similar to Design Outpost but also applying to Gold as well) because this gives an incentive to the more experienced designers to enter a contest (they don't have to deal with a million other entries and a clogged post) and gives the Appentice and Golds a real motivating force to improve (money!)

I don't say this as some kind of elitist looking down on the Apprentices...two months ago I would have been one! I was rejected from Design Outpost the first time I applied. But as someone who has worked hard at improving my own design abilities and been (I think) fairly successful at doing so, it really makes me appreciate the designers better than myself even more. I know that it's tough looking up from the bottom and saying to yourself "I'm as good as these guys, why should they get something that I don't have," (I had a bit of a self-aggrandizing attitude when I first started) but after a while you realize that there are differences in quality, and that these differences often come from experience.

This has been a bit long-winded, and I'm sure I repeated myself once or twice, but I have a very strong opinion on the subject. I absolutely respect the apprentice designers, and the term is apt: they are learning their trade. In a month, or six, or a year, they may have improved so vastly that they will be the person everyone looks up to and says "wow, I want to design like them!" But there's a period in there where we just have to roll our sleeves up and really work on improving our portfolios and professionalism.

I have to agree with you mbleigh.

About a year ago, I was at a point where I thought I was good (and I suppose I was by some standards) but I just wasn't good enough. I saw all these cool websites that I just couldn't create. I want to make a career out of graphic design, and looking at what I couldn't do really made me rethink my future.

Fortunately, I did not give up. I tried and tried and tried again. I have really improved in a year, and I am proud to say that I am currently at a skill level that I see fit enough to charge people money for. As time goes on I am sure that my skills will improve, and I am motivated to improve them.

Ok I am blabbering on now.. enough about me!

Both sides have made valid arguments. I've visited this site a only few times but when I do I'm here for hours looking at the designs posted and reading through the threads. Each time it amazes me, the amount of time and dedication each contest participant has put towards the end product.

As long as we all remember why we are here, and what the purpose of this site is, I don't feel like a "class" system will detract from the great work that gets posted.

To penguinpedias' point, it takes time for us to develop and strengthen our craft. I too, after graduating, thought VERY highly of my work. About a year and a half in the real world made me realize that a design can never be perfect. Look at your work a year later and you'll know what I mean, you thought it was done, finished...perfect.

This community helps us all grow, and the design team levels give us all something to strive for.

I agree, if you're in the apprentice team, then you'll always try to improve more to aim for getting into the platinum team. If there was only one group, once you're in it, then you wouldn't really have anything else to strive for.

I'm not really a fan of this class system due to the fact that a design can be distinguished differently as apprentice, gold, or platinum work depending on who is viewing the piece. In all honesty, I think your rank is mostly a matter of opinion.

I'm not really a fan of this class system due to the fact that a design can be distinguished differently as apprentice, gold, or platinum work depending on who is viewing the piece. In all honesty, I think your rank is mostly a matter of opinion.

Yes - it is a matter of the opinion of a committee of people, who vote on all applications. I could agree with you if it were only one person deciding, but since we are all designers with different styles, techniques and skills our rating system is pretty fair.

It should also be noted that we more often than not all agree with each other when voting someone into the team...

So we have to reapply if we signed up before those changes?

So we have to reapply if we signed up before those changes?

No - but all previous team members will be reviewed again.

I have a question which was probably out in the open, but I didn't find. If you start out as an aprentice designer, can you move up to gold or platinum? If so how would you do that?

Thanks,

Matt

Hi Matt , its usual that a designer starts as an apprentice, but then, the practice and experience that you get from entering the contests make you a better designer, and just before you know it, you realize that you have learned new technics and your designs look better than when you started . At DC we are always looking at how the designers improve and its amazing!, so when we see that someone is still an apprentice but had grown as a designer and also participates in the community, we propose to move it to Gold or Platinium and vote on the issue. Hope this helps.

take care
Bella

Hi Matt , its usual that a designer starts as an apprentice, but then, the practice and experience that you get from entering the contests make you a better designer, and just before you know it, you realize that you have learned new technics and your designs look better than when you started . At DC we are always looking at how the designers improve and its amazing!, so when we see that someone is still an apprentice but had grown as a designer and also participates in the community, we propose to move it to Gold or Platinium and vote on the issue. Hope this helps.

take care
Bella

Thank you that has helped a lot. I am going to register a domain for a design company im starting up. I have a few basic concepts nothing special, but I should have it up soon.

A little of topic, but DOOM 3. I am having withdrawal from it and I don't have the game yet. I'm going crazy I'll get it later today. I am planning on beeing up at 3 AM with the lights off alone playing the game on the highest quality. When i do it I'll tell you how it is.


Thanks,


Matt

As an Apprentice Designer I would have to disagree. My design skills are at a Platinum Design level. Call me arrogant! If its not broken don't fix it!!! My two cents.

Shane Link
http://www.shanelink.com/

As an Apprentice Designer I would have to disagree. My design skills are at a Platinum Design level. Call me arrogant! If its not broken don't fix it!!! My two cents.

Shane Link
http://www.shanelink.com/

No they aren't at a Platinum level.

Sorry to burst your ego bubble, but 5 people decided to make you an Apprentice based off of the work you supplied us with. Unless you have some secret stash of platinum designs that no one can see, you are still an Apprentice (or Bronze - which will be changed shortly )

Thanks for the comments. I will work harder!!! =)

Ok guys, off topic again. I bought Doom 3 today and I am going to play it at night when it is dark. I am having regrets about it. I have seen some pretty scary stuff. Well I'm off.


Wish me luck,
Matt