"Aw, yeah! I like a challenge!"
Words I've often uttered, only because I am fearless when it comes to change.
It was this very phrase I said to my friend Mary, who was also my boss at that time. We worked together at a little company called Classic Games about 18 years ago. It's not a real well-known company; they made minor league sports cards and a variety of games. Fun stuff. And, I was the newbie in the Creative Department.
I had graduated The Art Institute of Atlanta only a mere nine years before. I brought with me the arcane lore of marker comps, ruby and amber lith mechanicals, paste-up and photographic color separation.
I was ready to show Mary my amazingly mad skillz. "Okay, where's the workroom?" I asked. She took me to my cube/desk, and pointed to a small computer on the desktop with a cute little rainbow-colored apple on it. What the...
"Um, alright. Look, I'll need some markers for comps..." Again, but with a wry smile on her face, she wordlessly pointed to the little computer.
I was beginning to question her sanity. "Mechanicals. Where do you guys do..." She continued with her annoying smiling and pointing. "Typesetting?" She points some more. "Layout?" More pointing. More smiling. "How about a friggin' cup of tea??" Mary doubles over laughing, and we go get a cup of tea.
As we refresh ourselves, I try to take it all in. "So, you're telling me that everything we do is now done on that little Macintosh computer?"
"Well, not everything. But, about half of what you know can be done on a Mac. It makes our job as graphic designers and production artists quicker and easier." She got a little serious. "Things have changed a lot, thanks to the Mac. A lot of people have left the industry because they're stuck on doing things the old way. They're a little ticked off that they have to learn a new skill."
She gave me a sly, sidelong look. "You think you can adapt?"
I gave her my patented reply. "Aw, yeah! I like a challenge!"
It wasn't a tough challenge, actually. Turns out, that little computer was a powerhouse machine (at the time). By virtue of its intuitive use, I could tell it was well-made. I could make changes on the fly. I could see my designs close to how they'd look as a final piece. And, I didn't come home covered in wax and spray mount with half a finger missing.
I know I'm not the only person whose life was touched by the ingenuity and hard work of Steve Jobs. I'm just happy to have been a part of it.
On behalf of all of us old skool designers: Thanks, Steve. We really appreciate it.
