Understanding the Common Types of Designer

A designer is someone who designs something before it’s even made, usually by sketching plans or drawings. Designers are needed in all walks of life and industries – from film production to furniture manufacturing, and from automotive to software design – as the process of creation requires a designer for every little step along the way. The word “designer” is often used synonymously with “emaker,” and though the two professions share many things in common, the differences between the two become apparent when you consider just how much time and effort goes into designing something. Just making something from scratch can take months or years, and while the overall effort is certainly more than minimal by any standards, the designer spends far more time than the maker doing just that – working on the drawing or blueprint until it’s just right, going over it numerous times until it looks right, and then putting it all together in just the right way. And designers aren’t just working in their studios, but they’re often out in the field, making prototypes and such – which takes even more time.

There are many different types of designer, though there are several common types that are very common. The typist is someone who writes, including everything from simple handwritten notes to full fledged screenwriting. A designer might be involved in the creation of the website or other visual interface that a typist would work on, and the designer can often be seen in charge of the design of advertising campaigns or the creation of graphics. The visual artist is someone who brings a vision to life through his work, drawing everything from basic lines to 3D scenes and objects. Sometimes the designer and artist are one in the same, working together to create the final visual product – though often the designer will make the initial sketches and plans, and the artist will illustrate them.

Web designers are responsible for creating the graphical interface that users will interact with on the web. In this role, the user will usually have no direct interaction with the program code, but rather should rely on the visual presentation of the application. Web designers use a variety of different techniques to facilitate this – including Java, Flash, Silverlight, and many others. Web developers generally need to know a lot about visual design software, and often will be required to develop their own interface. Programmer is a bit more involved, and is involved in coding the actual application, but has the final responsibility of ensuring that the web pages are displayed properly.