Lesson 3: Tools in Graphic Design

1. Operating System- The most important program that runs on your computer.; It manages all other programs
on the machine.
Basic Tasks of an OS:
1. Recognizing input from the keyboard or mouse.
2. Sending output to the monitor.
3. Keeping track of files and directories on the disk.
4. Controlling peripheral devices such as disk drives and printers.
TYPE OF Operating Systems (OS)
1. Single-user, single task. This type manages the computer so that one user can effectively do one thing
at a time.
2. Multi-user, multi-task. Allows two or more users to run programs at the same time. Some operating
systems permit hundreds or even thousands of concurrent users.
3. Real Time Operating Systems. RTOS are used to control machinery, scientific instruments, and
industrial systems; Resources are managed so that a particular operation executes precisely the same
every time.
4. Single-user, Multi-task. This is the type of operating system most desktops and laptops use today; it
will allow a single user have several programs in operation at the same time.
2. Web Browsers. A web browser (commonly referred to as a browser) is a software application for retrieving,
presenting and traversing information resources on the World Wide Web.
An information resource is identified by a Uniform Resource Identifier/Locator (URI/URL) and may be a web
page, image, video or other piece of content.
Although browsers are primarily intended to use the World Wide Web, they can also be used to access
information provided by web servers in private networks or files in file systems.
The major web browsers are Firefox, Internet Explorer, Google Chrome, Opera, and Safari.
3. Images
An image is a visual representation of something; a picture that has been created or copied and stored in
electronic form; it can be described in terms of vector graphics or raster graphics.
An image stored in raster form is sometimes called a bitmap.
A raster image is made of up pixels, each a different color, arranged to display an image.
A vector image is made up of paths, each with a mathematical formula that tells the path how it is shaped
and what color it is bordered with or filled by.
Raster images are often large files, while vector images are relatively lightweight.
Vectors display at the highest resolution allowed by the output device, while rasters blur when blown up.
4. Graphic Software Applications
Graphics software refers to a program or collection of programs that enable a person to manipulate
images or models visually on a computer.
Graphics software is used to create images and to edit and convert graphic files of different formats.
Graphics software handles two basic types of images: raster graphics and vector graphics.
4.1. Raster Graphics
Raster graphics are formed by a matrix of pixels.
Raster software is graphics software used to create, enhance, or modify raster graphics.
Four (4) common raster graphic file formats:
1. BMP (bitmap). BMPs or bitmaps are resolution-dependent and support 24-bit color.
2. JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group). JPEGs are compressed and sacrifice image
quality in exchange for a reduction in image size.
3. TIFF (tagged image file format). TIFFs are used with high-resolution images.
4. GIF (graphic interchange format). GIFs display up to 256 colors, feature built-in
compression, and work with most web browsers.
A raster graphics editor is a computer program that allows users to paint and edit pictures
interactively on the computer screen.

 Top 3 Raster Graphics Editing Software:

1. Adobe Photoshop. Adobe Photoshop is the most famous Raster Graphics editor
and is mostly used by experts. It is available for Windows and Mac OS and is
proprietary.
2. GIMP. GNU Image Manipulation Program, shortly known as GIMP is a free raster
graphics editor. It is primarily employed as an image retouching and editing tool
and is freely available in versions tailored for most popular operating systems,
including Windows, Mac OS X, Linux etc
3. Corel Photo-Paint. Corel Photo-paint is another raster graphics editor and a part of
the CorelDRAW suite. It is proprietary. It also comes with all those basic
components of a graphics editor and does its job good. The program also supports
plug-in functionality including those developed for Adobe Photoshop and Paint
Shop Pro. Other extensions such as brushes are also compatible with Photo-Paint.
4.2. Vector graphics
are used in applications designed to perform digital diagramming or computer-aided design
(CAD).
Vector graphic software is graphics software used to create, enhance and modify graphics that represent
digital images as a collection of geographic entities (i.e. points, lines, and shapes).
A vector graphics editor is a computer program that allows users to compose and edit vector
graphics images interactively on a computer and save them in one of many popular vector graphics
formats.
Five (5) popular vector graphic format:
1. Encapsulated PostScript (EPS) is a standard format for importing and exporting PostScript
language files in all environments.
2. Portable Document Format (PDF) is a file format used to present and exchange documents
reliably, independent of software, hardware, or operating system.
3. Windows MetaFile (WMF) is a file extension for a graphics file used with Microsoft
Windows. WMF files can contain both vector and bitmap image information.
4. Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) is the description of an image as an application of the
Extensible Markup Language (XML). It allows three types of graphic objects: vector
graphics, raster graphics, and text.
5. Vector Markup Language (VML) is an XML-based file format for two-dimensional vector
graphics. It facilitates the use of vector graphics on the Internet, especially on Web sites.
Top 3 vector graphic application software:
1. Adobe Illustrator is the industry leader in vector drawing applications. This
was one of the original software applications produced by Adobe. Originally
used for creating vector designs for print, it is now also used for creating web
and screen based graphics (including graphics for mobile devices).
2. CorelDRAW is another popular vector drawing application. It has many
similar features to Illustrator. One of the differences between the two
packages is that CorelDRAW allows for multi-page editing whereas
illustrator only allows for single page editing. The main disadvantage of
CorelDRAW and possibly one of the reasons that Illustrator is more widely
used, is that it is only supported on the Windows operating system (Windows 2000 onwards).
3. Adobe Freehand (formerly Macromedia) is used for creating vector graphics
for desktop publishing and web platforms. It has a lot of similar features to
Adobe Illustrator, so much so that Adobe have no plans to upgrade Freehand
at present. Instead they are suggesting that customers to move over to
Illustrator.