Creating a Logo using Serif's PagePlus X3 Desktop Publishing software

This is my first project I give to myself for logo creation. I am going to show how I used Serif's PagePlus X3 desktop publishing software to create a simple logo for a fictitious company called Sharky's Diving Enthusiasts. The logo would ideally be in single color. To visualize the shark in creating the logo, I have to check out pictures of sharks out from the web, and ideally I would want to have a shark that is somewhat shaped like the letter S to make it easier but there aren't any. Anyway, I proceeded with my project.

1. With the Page Plus workspace open. On the left are the Tools toolbar. I created a circle thru the Quickshape flyout -> Quick Ellipse under the Tools toolbar. 

 2. I converted the circle to curves. Right click on the circle then, Convert To -> Curves. I knew that the circle had been converted to curves as there were already four nodes: top, left, right and bottom of the circle. I manipulate this nodes to put on the desired shape as will be shown below.

    I clicked and dragged the node on the left of the circle:

    To remove a node, I double clicked it and here’s what happened:

    To add a node, I just double clicked on the part where I wanted it to be on the circle. 
    When I clicked on one node, there was a broken line that appeared. The endpoints of this line wereused to give a more customized shape on either side of the point. I choose on the types of curves to determine how the node will behave either a straighten line, sharp corner, smooth, symmetric corner, smart corner:

 3. The shape of the shark especially the front part using the steps mentioned above:

  

    4. The shark was already taking the form of letter S. The shark was rather large in the workspace so I made it smaller by pressing Shift while dragging the size handle on the lower right of the image.

    5. Then I have put the company name along with the image. I edited the image with Logo studio found right clicking on the image:

   6. In the Logo studio I chose the Forte font for harky’s and OCR A Extended font for Diving Enthusiasts. I used the Align tab to center things. Then I closed the Logo studio:

    7. Back in the main workspace, I dragged the logo to the Gallery tab found on the right then named it sharky single color logo so that I can easily drag it to any document the logo is needed:

  
Serif PagePlus X3 is an affordable easy-to-use desktop publishing software for a novices like me. It has been said that it is also considered as a viable alternative to other high priced softwares. As I continue to learn as I am striving any way I can, I am quite hopeful and enjoying every minute of it. Next time I will incorporate this logo to publishing documents. Thanks for reading! Feel free to leave your comments.

Looking back on what they said before the Pacquiao - Cotto match

I still can't seem to get over the recent victory of Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao over Miguel Angel Cotto. I had the copy of the sports section of one of the leading broadsheets here in the Philippines, Manila bulletin, on the day of the "Firepower" fight and I have jotted down here the predictions of some boxing people that almost, if not, said it correctly:


Billy Keane, manager of Gerry Penalosa -- "If Cotto makes the same mistake Hatton made -- trying to come out and show that he is stronger -- I think Manny will KO him in 1 or 2. If he boxes from the start I think Manny will stop him on cuts around the 9th."


David Diaz, ex-Pacquiao foe -- "Cotto is patient and has skills he needs to use it in the early rounds. If he can force Manny to lunge him, that's the only way Cotto can connect. If it goes to the later rounds, that's when it will get bad for Cotto."


Gary Gittelsohn, manager of Brian Viloria -- "I believe Mannny's God-given speed combined with his extraordinary ring intelligence will overcome the physical strength advantage Cotto enjoys. Manny will frustate Cotto all night."


Shelly Finkel, ex-manager of Pacquiao -- "The Manny of today and the Cotto of today. I pick Manny by stoppage in the middle rounds."


Sergio Diaz, manager of Antonio Margarito -- "I think Cotto has recovered from the Margarito fight. But still Manny is the better all-around fighter and it's helping him a lot to have a great trainer in Freddie Roach."


Hillary Clinton, US Secretary of State -- "Of course the Pacman's going to win. I mean, is there any doubt?"


Mike Tyson, former world heavyweight champion -- "I pick Manny Pacquiao by knockout. I think he will knock him out in seven or eight. Manny has just too much for Cotto."


Bernard Hopkins, former middleweight champion -- "Pacquiao is going to chop Cotto up. Cotto will get some rounds but Manny is the Bruce Lee of boxing. His basketball and martial arts background give him that speed and agility. You can't tell where his shots are coming from."


Joe Calzaghe, Britain's undefeated world super-middleweight champion -- "Manny Pacquiao is going to be too quick for Cotto. I was ringside when Cotto fought (Joshua) Clottey and he seemed to struggle a bit in that fight. Cotto is the bigger guy but I still think Pacquiao beats him in a decision."


Freddie Roach -- "I honestly don't think we are going to knock him out -- We are going to make him quit."


So there you have it. All the fine points raised by some well-known personalities about the "Firepower" fight. Most of the accolades have been Pacquiao. None much has been said about his team. They are so underrated. I still think the factors of the success of Pacman is that he trains hard, trains smart with the help of his team. They have a closely-knit team with a very good foundation that builds trust and consistency, solves problems and boosts confidence:


Freddie Roach - who transformed Manny Pacquiao into a two-fisted juggernaut
Alex Ariza - physical conditioning coach responsible for transforming Manny Pacquiao into a powerful boxer
Buboy Fernandez - assistant trainer considered to be Manny's best-kept secret weapon
Michael Koncz - Pacman's advisor. He is the most hated but nevertheless still part of the team.


Even if they have altercations, minor or otherwise, I hope they keep their act together. Hope everything goes well on the next successive fights. So much for boxing. I will return soon to normal programming. :)

Manny Pacquiao -- the BEST boxer EVER!

Congratulations to Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao for winning his 7th World Boxing Title from Miguel Cotto!!! You made us again proud to be Filipinos! Mabuhay ka! Look who's talking now? Who's next?

Creative Workplace perspective

We have met with the architects to have a look on how to go about making our new site, comfortable, efficient and conducive to productivity and creativity. When they showed me their design perspective, I am delighted but then I suggested they use neon green and gray alternately on the walls. I decide our workspace will have a touch of red, black, blue and neon green to create a strong and exciting presence. Here's a sample of the raw perspective they showed me, with no editing yet but pretty much will be the outcome only with different colors:

What's your creative workspace like?

Business Plan

Business plan is necessary in order for your business to have a direction. I got a business plan template for my startup business from www.score.org. They have a comprehensive way of how you are going to start and work on your business plan. Also the things I like that goes with it as well are the: 


Opening Day Balance Sheet
Sales Forecast Sheet
Startup Expenses Sheet
Break-Even Analysis Sheet
12 Month Cash Flow Statement Sheet
12 Month Profit and Loss Projection Sheet

This somehow, gave me an idea of how to formulate a business plan. 

A printing Blog

I just recently followed the blog, ZX-printing blog. I especially liked the articles, "A Crash Course in Digital Printing", "What a Digital Printing Company Can Provide for your Convenience", and the many marketing ideas the different printed products offer to a business! 

LOL

In memory of my dog, Queenie, who died more than 2 years ago:

You might be thinking that what’s written here is something to laugh about. But it’s no laughing matter. Besides, the title LOL doesn’t necessarily mean laugh out loud. It means loss of life. Yes, my dog Queenie, whom I spent almost half of my life with, has passed away… The last moments of her life was the saddest of my life since my Lolo and Lola's(Grandpa and Grandmas) died… There she was, barely able to stand up, but she managed to eat… A lot! She was really hungry having came from the veterinary. The vet said she didn’t ate anything… Knowing Queenie, she only ate what we usually ate. Not the typical dog food found in stores… Her last meal, consists of gound beef with rice. We, I, mama, papa and my brother were glad to have her back after two days of her stay in the veterinary… Certainly, that’s the way she feels too. Being sick, you certainly would want to be with your loved ones… your family… Observing Queenie, who was really weak that time, still wanted to walk… She had this look in her eyes that told me, she missed us… When I embraced her, I felt her quiver and let out sigh of relief… My brother was really attentive to her. Queenie laid down on the towel beside my brother’s bed…. The bag of dextrose which Queenie had was carefully hanged… All through the night, the bleeding never stopped.  We took turns on cleaning her up. Washed her. Watched over her. There was also a time that me and my brother cried for her… I can see from the eyes of our dog… tears. Tears… which I wasn’t sure if it is because she feels that she was dying or it is because of the joy she felt of having us together… But what I was sure of was, the time of her life was slowly fading away… we were hoping that the time would stop… Stop her from the pain she was going through and us as well… And then it came… she was taken again to the vet… The vet wanted to give another round of medication but my brother insisted that she be put to rest. I just got it from my Mom who told me that my brother called up to say that. I wasn’t there with my brother and the reason I didn’t come with them to the vet, was because I had an inkling that my brother would push for putting to sleep, Queenie because he couldn’t bare anymore the pain of seeing what Queenie had gone through… I couldn’t stand it as well and also couldn’t stand to see Queenie being put to rest… The inevitable happened. I really didn’t like the idea but I guess, it was the best thing to do. I maybe right or wrong… Then they came, with the lifeless body… My best friend… My companion… I can only whisper my last words… my last touch… Queenie has died… but she was buried in my heart…

Free 3D Paper Art

Are you looking for some wonderful ways to spend wonderful time at home with your family? Try 3D paper art! I have no kid/s myself but a kid-at-heart, I was fascinated with this art when I saw it from the Internet. These realistic paper structures brings you closer to the real thing. I haven't seen one in person so I why not create one myself, I thought so. There are quite a number of point of interest in the Internet for free paper arts: Canon Creative Park and Yamaha Paper Crafts. Browsing over the website of  Canon Creative Park, under the Animals -> Dogs/Cats category, I chose the smooth coat Chihuahua. Some facts from the site:

"The Chihuahua is thought to be a descendant of a breed of dog called the Techichi. The Techichi was the dominant breed in the 9th century in the area that is now Mexico. The Techichi was a pet of the Toltec people. The Techichi was not only a pet to the Toltecs and the Aztecs, but also was important for religious reasons. It was believed that if Techichi were creamated with the dead, the Techichi would take on the burden of the deceased person's sins and turn away the anger of the gods. Further, it was believed that the Techichi would protect the souls of the dead from evil spirits, and lead them to their final destination in the afterlife. The Chihuahua of today is thought to be a cross between descendants of the Techichi and a hairless dog called the Chinese Crested Dog. There are two types of coat found in Chihuahuas - the Long Coat variety has long hair, while the Smooth Coat variety has short hair. The hair of the Long Coat is sometimes curly."

My Tools and Materials:

230 GSM glossy photo paper to  give my furry friend a shiny coat

Pen type cutter - be careful with it!
T10 printer with CISS
popcicle stick
All purpose Glue

Following the instructions included, it is quite hard to make at first and it took me 4hours to finish it! This is the finished product:

 

So that's my first shot on 3D paper art... Thank you for reading! Have a question? Post a comment and I’ll be happy to answer it… 

Rhematec Electric Business Card Cutter Part 1

Business cards are often the first corporate publication to be exchanged especially during the first meeting of business people . It is very important to make that great impression on  business cards -- the mood set by the color, the emphasis put on by the fonts used, the lasting message of the content and the smooth, clean edges! No matter how well-designed the business card is, if it has rough edges, it will still be perceived to be unprofessional. Does your  company deserve that? If you are looking for an affordable business card cutter, the Rhematec TESS 900 Card Cutter may be worth the try.

The supplier in Taiwan are prompt, willing and helpful with whatever queries I had. There are currently five standard models:

M/N: EBCC-B90R-E54R-A         (for size A4 paper with 10-up (2x5) non-bleed layout, finished card size 90 x 54 mm)
 M/N: EBCC-B90R-E50R-A         (for size A4 paper with 10-up (2x5) non-bleed layout, finished card size 90 x 50 mm)
 M/N: EBCC-B91R-E55R-A         (for size A4 paper with 10-up (2x5) non-bleed layout, finished card size 91 x 55 mm)
 M/N: EBCC-B85G10-E54R-A     (for size A4 paper with 10-up (2x5) half-bleed layout, finished card size 85 x 54 mm)
 M/N: EBCC-B88.9R-E50.8R-A   (for size Letter paper with 10-up (2x5) non-bleed layout, finished card size 3.5" x 2")

If you would like to have a custom-made cutter for slitting a specific size, you can send them the layout for their evaluation then they will let you know if it's feasible to make on their electric business card cutter. An example is a custom-made cutter for slitting an A4-sized paper with 9-up, full bleed layout (3 mm gutter) into playing cards.

What I have is the model for size A4 paper with 10-up (2x5) non-bleed layout, finished card size 90 x 50 mm. What does all the cutting specifications mean? It only implies that for every A4 paper, one can have 10 pieces(2 columns and 5 rows) each of size 90mm x 50mm business cards. The term "non-bleed" means that there are no prints on the edge of each business card and therefore no spaces between them on the layout of the card. This is the sample of the layout:

Notice that there are no spaces between each cards. So this model is more suitable for cards with either solid color or none at all over the edge.

Key Features:
- Light, portable, and compact design for home or office use
- Precise paper cutting @ 4 to 6 sheets/min (depending on paper thickness) enables making hundreds of quality business cards in a few minutes
- User-friendly operation
- Cut up to 300gsm paper




The shipping dimension is Length x Width x Height = 42cm x 23 cm x 18 cm. Gross weight is 3.5 Kg.

Opening the box there are two styropor block inside and another box which houses the main unit and the power adapter.

There is a nifty informative label on top:

Another important notice:

What you will see inside the box are the business card cutter, the sliding tray(stored inside the front cover of the cutter), the power adapter, operation guide and the printed paper for test cut along with some 10 pcs of blank papers.

The body is all made up of hard plastic.

Next time, I will post on the operation of this machine. Thanks for reading! 

Searching for the print shop's "perfect" location

I may have found the "perfect" location for our start up print shop business. Since our target customers will be the MSME's(Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises) young family and professionals aged 20 - 34, this location fits the bill. The Cybergate plaza  is home to a handful of residential and office condominiums. I am quite familiar with the place since my Globe Telecom days. The exact location is at 2F One Gateway Place, Cybergate Plaza EDSA corner Pioneer Street Mandaluyong. Someone already had his/her foot on the two first floor spaces. Well the good thing is, there are spaces still available on the 2nd Floor.


Here are the pictures of the site:

I was taking this picture of One Gateway Plaza from the middle of the road. The shop is on the second floor.

This is the photo from the car on the road showing the street level view on the 2nd floor shop.

This is the pedestrian view on one side of the vacant commercial space of One Gateway Place across the road. My brother is taking some pictures of his own.

This is another pedestrian view on the other side of the said commercial space.

This is the exclusive stairway to the vacant 2nd Floor commercial space.

This is how it looks like when you look up while on your way up the stairway.

The view on the left from the inside. The window almost occupied the height of the commercial space.This is where the Cybergate Place 2 and Robinsons Forums are visible.

The view on the right from the inside. This is where the Pioneer Highlands or Globe Telecom Plaza, Cybergate 3 and The Legend Villas Hotel are visible.

What has led me to this location?
The new building projects a fresh image which is very much in sync with the company's projected brand

It is not saturated by competition.

The location has substantial foot traffic.

The location is near its target consumers.

The location is accessible to customers. There is adequate and safe parking space alloted. It is near Boni MRT(Metro Railway Transit) station.

Very accessible to suppliers.

There are at least five office condominiums nearby. 

There are at least three residential condominiums nearby.
There is a nearby courier.

There is a mall nearby.

The area is flood-free.

Mandaluyong has one of the lowest business tax in the metro.

Personally, I like the location for our upcoming print shop business.


How about your business location? Kind enough to tell me why you chose it?

Starting a Digital Print Business

My first brush with business was when I was a kid. That time when my mom would ask me to remove her white hairs for 5cents each. During that time, my childhood want was candies. Years went on, wants have changed. I think major reason could be was my grandfather's influence to me to be a boss of my own. My fascination with printing started when I frequent the copy centers to have my classmate's notes be duplicated. I figured, I will need an investment or a fortune to start one. And the only resort I was thinking was to work out of the country to earn enough to start a business. As I was able to do that, now is the moment of truth. I am now starting a digital print business. I am actually be working with my brother who has deep sense of creativity having learned using Adobe design publishing softwares from First Academy of Computer Arts.

Knowing that we had enough to start one, I had four options, two franchises and two printer dealers. These are with no large format printers.

Franchise GB print shop

I checked the franchise for printshop. I even wrote down the questions before I went to meet the franchiser:

What are the equipments?

Answer: heat transfer equipments, desktop printer, computer, softwares

Can the satellite be converted to a full service store?

Answer: No. But the satellite store can resell services offered by the full service store like large format printing, riso printing, picture printing, etc.

Post opening assistance?

Answer: The franchiser will monitor the sales once a week

Where is the training going to be held?

Answer: The training is going to be held in the nearest full service store.

What are the products for personalized printing?

Tshirts, caps, button pins, PVC ID cards

How many service crews?

Only two for the satellite branch

ROI?

after 9months

How is it going to be competitive?

Open the store within malls and resell what the full service store is also selling aside from the usual products.

Where are the satellite branches?

Answer: The current satellite branches are at the provinces.

Royalty fee?

They have no royalty fee but a fixed fee per month whether you earn or not.

The guy told me that they assist in all the business requirements and that also include the location.

Franchise R printshoppe

I checked again the franchise for printshop. I even wrote down the questions before I went to meet the franchiser:

Do you offer locations?

Answer: They are offering locations suited for this business. They do marketing study prior to approving even your suggested location.

What are the equipments?

Answer: Riso, Copier, Computer, FAX machine, Scanner, blue print machine

What will be the products and services?

office forms, photocopying, scanning and fax service, design/layout service, cards, letterheads, brochures, flowcharts, business cards, certificates, banners, and other paper works.

ROI?

9months

Royalty fee?

5% per month

How many service crews?

two service crews and one financial officer going to supervise the operations and the marketing stuffs. The two service crews will be coming from their employment services company that is also belong to the same group of company. The franchisee will have to interview the candidates.

Where will the training be?

at the franchisers office.

They offer assistance on the business requirements which also include the location. They only offer this franchise per city.

Printer Dealer C

I went to their office and they showed demo for the machines they are selling. They have the printshop package and a sale to boot amounting to as much as 40% off. For the RISO printer and the Multi functional laser printer.

Printer Dealer U

Offers similar products to Dealer C. The demo was better than Printer Dealer C but no sale items.

Going down on my choices, the franchises didn't offer much transparency on their product offerings. The discussion was too general. So that's why I thought I have to start by my own. I chose Printer Dealer C.

From the marketing material of Printer Dealer C:

Why Print Shop is the right business for you?

• There are neither royalties nor franchise fees to pay!
• There are no special skills required to operate the machine!
• It is easy to set up and can conveniently co-exist with your other business, if any.
• The space requirement is minimal - 18 to 24 square meters can be sufficient.
• The return on investment can be in less that one year
• It can easily be expanded into a full-service printing business
• The services that be offered using the machines are various
• It is not just a fad, the services are needed by almost all kinds of businesses all year long
• Sales are easy to monitor because of the meter counters found in the main machines
• Materials used have long shelf life, so spoilage can be controlled and minimized
• The potential market is vast and continuously grows each day
• The business has been tried and tested by about 800 print shop owners nationwide

How about you? What business are you planning to start? Or what made you choose your business? And why?