Dear Kerby,
In the 90s I remember getting my first computer that ran Windows. It was not exactly mine, it was a family computer. The computer came with a small CD-ROM Binder. The binder included a few educational games like Gizmos and Gadgets, word processing/presentation software and the encyclopedia.
I greatly remember a disc from the Hallmark company. It could do about anything creative; cards, banners, certificates, and more. Later on I got tired of the presets and began using the blank pages to do my own thing. The main feature inserting clipart and some word art. Clipart is a way of saying pre-made illustrations.
I was a fan of printing out anything an everything. The printer did not scare me. I was not afraid of ink. I graduated from the Hallmark into a few other programs that would make cards. The new program had a feature where you could edit the clipart. I spent many an hour recoloring the designs to get the right color. Ever seen a purple bear? Not exactly sure how many color schemes I went though or how many fonts I learned to like with this process.
By high school I still had a family computer. This computer change so much over the years as did my use of design programs. My dad knew of someone that could get us used copies of programs. I had Photoshop and Illustrator from Adobe. 98% of it was using Photoshop because I had acquired a few books on how to do some simple graphic techniques. I also had a photo magazine that had step-by-step instructions on how to edit photos. It showed how to crop photos and create different color effects. Little did I know that later on in my life I would be using Illustrator more than Photoshop.
My enjoyment of design and art came from a need to print especially custom greeting cards.
Talk to you later,
Bluelaugh