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seahorse
Senior Member
USA
1075 Posts |
 Posted - 21 September 2005 : 11:23:02
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I've been using these sites for logo creation and I've been pretty happy with the freelancers that bid on the site projects.
The logo, letterhead, and business card for my new site was created by one of the desingers there.
www.threecontinents.com
I've been wondering about trying one of the developers for a project.
The thing I'm wondering about is how would I know if they did a good job with the code? If this was work, I'd pack it off to the IS/IT people, but since it's my own project, I'm on my own for this one.
Suggestions? |
Ken
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Worldwide Partner Group
Microsoft |
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pdrg
Support Moderator
United Kingdom
2897 Posts |
Posted - 21 September 2005 : 11:57:11
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tough question - depends how you define good code?! Try asking for an arbitary sample of the code they've produced, and although they'll send you their 'sunday best' code, at least it'll show if they've got a methodical working method, approach to commenting, etc.
Beware though, code is only ever as good as the specification - if you want good results, define it explicitly, define the speed, target system, interfaces etc.
Sadly, there's no shortcut to good, fast code development (from experience...) |
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sr_erick
Senior Member
USA
1318 Posts |
Posted - 21 September 2005 : 12:00:21
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| How much did it cost for that logo / design? |
Erick
Snowmobile Fanatics
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Astralis
Senior Member
USA
1218 Posts |
Posted - 21 September 2005 : 14:43:08
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You first need to know what good code looks like and then look at their capabilities and execution. They should easily provide sample code. But, be sure that what they've done is real. Ask for references and follow-up. I've had work from planetsourcecode.com and so many people there are fraudulent.
Also, be prepared to pay for quality and it's often best to hire a producer who works on a team depending on the scale of your project.
Additionally, you should find someone to audit their work.
One way you can seek out the authentic is to provide an RFP and then judge them based on the proposals. It's not fool-proof, though.
I also have had great luck and have been very happy with logo design from elance.
IMHO |
Edited by - Astralis on 21 September 2005 14:48:21 |
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MarkJH
Senior Member
United Kingdom
1722 Posts |
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pdrg
Support Moderator
United Kingdom
2897 Posts |
Posted - 22 September 2005 : 03:51:01
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| In essence, custom code always costs a lot more than you expect...if you can buy off-the-shelf and adapt your processes to fit, you'll save a mint. Just a general rule! |
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seahorse
Senior Member
USA
1075 Posts |
Posted - 22 September 2005 : 11:37:27
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quote:
Originally posted by sr_erick
How much did it cost for that logo / design?
Hi Eric,
The corporate image project on elance.com cost me $190 USD for the logo, letterhead, and business card. I'm really happy with it. Hell, I paid more for my Xbox. The guy I ended up awarding the project to is Russian. Goes by the AZgraphic handle on elance.
He must have gone through 15 different designs before I finally chose one. It was tough choosing. That doesn't include the design variations I asked for. Got rights, original source files and everything.
I'm thinking about going back to him to do my packaging design.
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Ken
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Worldwide Partner Group
Microsoft |
Edited by - seahorse on 22 September 2005 11:51:49 |
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seahorse
Senior Member
USA
1075 Posts |
Posted - 22 September 2005 : 11:39:33
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quote:
Originally posted by pdrg
tough question - depends how you define good code?! Try asking for an arbitary sample of the code they've produced, and although they'll send you their 'sunday best' code, at least it'll show if they've got a methodical working method, approach to commenting, etc.
Beware though, code is only ever as good as the specification - if you want good results, define it explicitly, define the speed, target system, interfaces etc.
Sadly, there's no shortcut to good, fast code development (from experience...)
I was afraid you say something like that.
I've been using one of my company's former interns for the design and templates for my site. He's a great kid, but he's still in school and I was hoping for someone with a little more experience in designing secure applications.
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Ken
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Worldwide Partner Group
Microsoft |
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seahorse
Senior Member
USA
1075 Posts |
Posted - 22 September 2005 : 11:49:45
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quote:
Originally posted by AstralisI also have had great luck and have been very happy with logo design from elance.
IMHO
Yeah, I've found quite a few portfolios I really liked from Indians and Eastern Europeans.
It's my first "offshoring" project and I was impressed. It only cost me $190 bucks, but still.
One of the reservations that I have about them is that it's harder to have the Russian designer you employed talk you your printer if you're having problems getting your business card printed (Non-US standard business card size), which is a problem I did have.
It wasn't a big deal, I wound up fixing the design myself. But if you're aren't comfortable with that kind of stuff, I'd choose a designer in your home country.
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Ken
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Worldwide Partner Group
Microsoft |
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pdrg
Support Moderator
United Kingdom
2897 Posts |
Posted - 23 September 2005 : 04:40:09
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Hey Seahorse, it's such a gamble sometimes...really good developers are usually serious money prices, but you can get someone who will 'get the job done' (inelegantly) for next-to-nothing.
Where the difference lies is not only the speed of the code, but things like the better coder will have loads of error trapping and clean, maintainable structure, whereas the spaghetti code will be impossible to troubleshoot, adapt or maintain :(
If you want to try offshoring, I do have the details fo a company in Dehli who have done work for Thames & Hudson, and Govt of India - doesn't necessarily mean great code, but stands a better-than-average chance, and the price could be a lot better. You'd still have to define what you wanted carefully though - if you want help with what things you need to define, let me know, I'll give you an overview (been both sides of that spec document - I know just how important it is!) |
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seahorse
Senior Member
USA
1075 Posts |
Posted - 23 September 2005 : 13:15:28
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Thanks, Paddy. The suggestion would be great.
I'm just thinking about it at the moment. I've got some ideas that'd I'd like to see executed in a web app, but it can wait until my company actually has a product to sell. I'm pondering at this point. The corporate stuff at threecontinents.com is there, but the products aren't yet.
Lots of ideas. Lots of stuff to do and pay for. Lots of bills. Money is just going out so far.
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Ken
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Worldwide Partner Group
Microsoft |
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