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On this page we will provide advice and suggestions from our
instructors. Visit often; this page will always be under construction!
Purchasing Software:
Visit Academic Superstore
to save money on software needed for your courses. Students are eligible
for significant educational discounts. You only need the ACC tuition receipt
to prove that you have registered for a class, and students in Austin
can get free shipping with the discount code "ACCstudent."
Online courses vs. the classroom:
The advantage to an online course is the convenience. You don't have to commute
to one of the ACC locations, the schedule is flexible, and the tuition is often
less. You can communicate with your classmates and your instructor via discussion forums and emails. When an online class is in progress, our instructors answer emails within 24 hours, quite often even faster.
However the advantages to classroom instruction are significant: you get immediate,
personal attention, without waiting for feedback. Demonstrations, explanations,
and group exercises often make the classroom a more engaging learning environment.
If you are good at problem-solving and enjoy working on your own, online courses
may be for you.
If you enjoy interaction with instructors and students, and prefer a high degree
of assistance, the classroom is often a better choice.
Graphics software:
Which of the many graphics programs should I choose?
- Photoshop: Adobe
Photoshop is the industry standard image editing
software. It offers virtually everything you could possibly need, but
is expensive. Most professional designers use Photoshop.
- Adobe Illustrator, CorelDRAW, Macromedia FreeHand: These are drawing
programs used for creating line art (logos, charts, icons, etc.)
rather than photorealistic images. Drawing programs cannot retouch
photos.
- Paint Shop Pro:
JASC Paint Shop Pro is a Windows-only, low-cost alternative to
Photoshop. It does not have as many features and is not as widely used,
but some find it less intimidating, and its features sufficient.
- Fireworks: Macromedia
Fireworks is another low-cost alternative to Photoshop. It works
much like a basic draw program that also offers photo-editing features.
Another advantage to Fireworks is its tight integration with Dreamweaver
and Flash.
- Flash: Macromedia
Flash is not a graphics package. While it has simplistic drawing tools,
its function is to create interactive movies that include animation,
sound, and video.
For comments and questions about this site contact
the mnouzovs@austincc.edu.
© 2002 Austin Community College
This site was last updated March 2006
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