How to Create an Elegant Wedding Invitation

How to Create an Elegant Wedding Invitation As a designer, wedding invitations are some of the most fun projects I get to work on. Theres something incredible about creating something thats one-of-a-kind and tailor-made to a couples personalities and style- not to mention that the invite itself becomes a keepsake for the couple even after the wedding is over.Because of the creative freedom that wedding invitations allow, its easy to get overwhelmed by all the style and production choices. Whether youre a designer working for a client or youre creating invitations for your own wedding, here are a few tips that can help take your invitations to the next level and create a polished, beautiful visual experience for guests. While making creative choices for your invitation, its important to keep in mind the style of the wedding and personalities of the couple in order to design something that truly represents them and feels appropriate for the event. This can be a great source of inspiration for you as you begin designing. Its also important to consider a couples budget before beginning so you dont present them with options they cant afford. With a little creative thinking, distinct and beautiful invitations can be created on any budget.SizeOne thing that can help your invitation stand out is considering a unique size for your invitation. While a standard 5x7 invite feels traditional and formal, a different proportion can create a custom feel. A smaller invite has an intimate feel, while a larger one can feel grandiose. Play with the proportions and orientation as well- try a tall and skinny shape or flip the invite to be landscape instead of portrait. Another option to consider is a square, circular, or die-cut shaped invite. However, keep practicality in mind–too small and your invite might not have enough room for legible information, and too large or uniquely-shaped and it might be challenging or expensive to package.TypographyWhen choosing the typeface for your invitation, think about how formal y ou want the invitation to appear and the overall impression you want guests to get from the invitation. Using a formal script font for the names of the couple is a great way to make the invite traditional and elegant. These fonts generally use thinner and more intricate strokes, and they work well with ornate graphics and imagery. Casual script fonts more closely resemble actual handwriting and can give a personal, laid-back appearance to your invite. Their heavier brushstrokes make them more modern-looking than formal scripts.Serif fonts also feel traditional and classic, and when printed are some of the most easy-to-read typefaces, making them ideal for the supporting body copy on your invite and invitation materials. Sans serifs feel modern, clean, and classy, and they work great both for headers and body copy.When choosing font pairings, its best to stick with fonts that contrast with each other to create a sense of balance and harmony. Avoid using scripts for anything except ti tles and headers, as these can be difficult to read at small sizes.If youre on a budget, it can be difficult to find quality typefaces for free or little cost, so below Ive outlined a few good choices that are completely free to use. Font Squirrel is a great resource to find quality fonts for free.Heres some free fonts that would look great in a wedding invitation.Unique imageryTo make an invite truly feel like it was custom-designed, consider creating custom visual elements or illustrations. This will make the invite feel personal and considered, and your client will probably appreciate the extra touch. A custom or unique illustration avoids making the invite look like it was created from a pre-designed template.If youre not an illustrator, another route is finding quality illustrations that you can repurpose to create a one-of-a-kind invite. The Graphics Fairy is a great online resource for free, public domain images including flourishes, floral accents, and page dividers. Or, con sider creating minimal, geometric graphic elements for a polished and clean look which pairs great with a sans serif font.Paper stockThere are lots of options when it comes to choosing the type of paper you print your invites on, even if youre on a budget. Paper with a matte finish feels classic and minimal, while textured paper can elevate your design and has a more artistic, handmade feel. Shimmer paper or other types of lustrous, semi-gloss papers create an upscale and luminous feel. Cotton or fabric-based papers are warm and approachable. Thinner paper stocks feel delicate, while thicker stocks feel substantial and considered.Along with weight choices, paper stock also comes in different variations of white and ivory. A bright white paper feels fresh and modern, while ivory or off-white feels traditional and antique. You could also use brown kraft paper for a rustic vibe or colored cardstock for a fun pop of color. Overlaying your invite with a translucent vellum paper is an eas y way to create both elegance and visual interest.If youre not sure how a certain paper will look or feel, dont hesitate to ask your printer to send you paper samples- many common printing sites online offer this option for free on their websites. Making guesses about a paper stock without samples or a physical proof can lead to extra costs and time spent if the paper isnt what you expected. This also makes the choice easier for your client if they can see and touch the paper before buying.ProductionThere are a variety of different finishing techniques that can elevate your design and give it a premium feel. Letterpress invitations add dimension and texture. Currently, letterpress is a very popular option for printed pieces like invitations and involves making impressions on paper to create a raised surface out of lettering or design elements. Foil-stamping, another popular technique, is a great way to add metallic shine to your invite, and it is usually available in a variety of go ld, silver, and bronze tones which can be applied to any part of the design. A great way to create an intricate feel is having edges or elements of your invitation laser-cut into lace or floral-like patterns.Finishing options like the ones listed above can be costly, but there are several less expensive ways to add interest to your invite. Simply rounding the corners of an invite can help it feel softer and more custom-made. Printing a pattern or solid color on the blank side of your invite is also a great added detail. Instead of having your invite be a flat piece of paper, you could consider a folded card for your invite. Tri-fold designs are a popular option right now, and a bonus aspect of this design is it allows extra room for other photos and graphics to be added. Folded cards can add an element of anticipation as a guest opens and unfolds the invitation, and they also work well to contain other pieces that go along with the invite, like RSVP cards and maps to the reception.A s with paper stocks, talk to your printer to see what finishing options they have available and how much they cost. If youre crafty and have the time, DIY can also be an option to cut production costs- foil stamping kits, corner rounders and punches, and paper scoring tools can help you achieve your desired effect without spending a lot of money.Invitation suitesOne of the best ways to make your invitations feel professional is to create a cohesive package of all the different printed pieces for the wedding that all use the same design elements. Think save the dates, envelopes, RSVP cards, reception maps, programs, menus, place cards, and thank you cards. Having all these different pieces feel cohesive is an ideal way to reinforce the wedding theme through a guests entire experience, and itll save your clients time and hassle because they wont have to design every piece separately.PackagingFinally, consider the way your invitation will be packaged and sent to a guest. To secure the contents of the invitation together, consider using elements like belly bands, ribbons, twine, or lace to add a handmade touch and to allow the guest to easily pull the whole stack out at once. Custom envelopes that match the design are an easy and relatively inexpensive way to package everything up, but if your budget allows, sending your invites in a small or shallow box can really make an impression. For the address labels, printing or stamping the text directly onto the envelope or package looks professional, but handwriting adds a personal touch that your guests may appreciate. To seal your envelope, design a custom sticker with the couples initials or use a wax seal. Packaging is a great opportunity to think creatively and to try the unconventional.Overall, dont be afraid to think outside of the box for the design and production of your invitation- the right solution will make your invite stand out and be a beautiful reflection of the couples heart and character.

Discover the History of the ENIAC Computer

Discover the History of the ENIAC Computer As technology progressed in the early and mid-1900s, the need for enhanced computational speed grew. In response to this deficit, the American military invested half a million dollars to create the ideal computing machine. Who Invented the ENIAC? On May 31, 1943, the military commission for the new computer began with  the partnership of John Mauchly and John Presper Eckert, with the former serving as the chief consultant and Eckert as the chief engineer. Eckert had been a graduate student at the University of Pennsylvanias Moore School of Electrical Engineering when he and Mauchly met in 1943. It took the team about one year to design the ENIAC and then 18 months plus half a million dollars in tax money to build it. The machine wasnt officially turned on until November 1945, by which time the war was over. However, not all was lost, and the military still put ENIAC to work, performing calculations for the design of a hydrogen bomb, weather predictions, cosmic-ray studies, thermal ignition, random-number studies, and wind-tunnel design. The ENIAC In 1946, Mauchly and Eckert developed the Electrical Numerical Integrator And Calculator (ENIAC). The American military sponsored this research because it needed a computer for calculating artillery-firing tables, the settings used for different weapons under varied conditions for target accuracy. As the branch of the military responsible for calculating the tables, the Ballistics Research Laboratory (BRL) became interested after hearing about Mauchlys research at the Moore School. Mauchly had previously created several calculating machines and in 1942  began designing a better calculating machine based on the work of John Atanasoff, an inventor who  used vacuum tubes to speed up calculations. The patent for ENIAC was filed in 1947. An excerpt from that patent, (U.S.#3,120,606) filed on June 26, read, With the advent of everyday use of elaborate calculations, speed has become paramount to such a high degree that there is no machine on the market today capable of satisfying the full demand of modern computational methods. What Eas Inside the ENIAC? The ENIAC was an intricate and elaborate piece of technology for the time. Housed within 40 9-foot-tall cabinets, the machine contained 17,468 vacuum tubes  along with 70,000 resistors, 10,000 capacitors, 1,500 relays, 6,000 manual switches, and 5 million soldered joints. Its dimensions covered 1,800 square feet (167 square meters) of floor space and weighed 30 tons, and running it consumed 160 kilowatts of electrical power. Two 20-horsepower blowers delivered cool air to keep the machine from overheating. The vast extent of energy being used led to a rumor that turning on the machine would cause the city of Philadelphia to experience brownouts. However, the story, which was first reported incorrectly by the Philadelphia Bulletin in 1946, has since been discounted as an urban myth. In just one second, the ENIAC (1,000 times faster than any other calculating machine to date) could perform 5,000 additions, 357 multiplications, or 38 divisions. The use of vacuum tubes instead of switches and relays resulted in the increase in speed, but it was not a quick machine to reprogram. Programming changes would take the technicians weeks, and the machine always required long hours of maintenance. As a side note, research on the ENIAC led to many improvements in the vacuum tube. Contributions of Dr. John Von Neumann In 1948, Dr. John Von Neumann made several modifications to the ENIAC. The ENIAC had performed arithmetic and transfer operations concurrently, which caused programming difficulties. Von Neumann suggested that using switches to control code selection would make it so that pluggable cable connections could remain fixed. He added a converter code to enable serial operation. Eckert-Mauchly Computer Corporation Eckert and Mauchlys work extended beyond just ENIAC. In 1946, Eckert and Mauchly started the Eckert-Mauchly Computer Corporation. In 1949, their company launched the BINAC (BINary Automatic Computer) that used magnetic tape to store data. In 1950, the Remington Rand Corporation bought the Eckert-Mauchly Computer Corporation and changed the name to the Univac Division of Remington Rand. Their research resulted in the UNIVAC (UNIVersal Automatic Computer), an essential forerunner to todays computers. In 1955, Remington Rand merged with the Sperry Corporation and formed Sperry-Rand. Eckert remained with the company as an executive and continued with the company when it later merged with the Burroughs Corporation to become Unisys. Eckert and Mauchly both received the IEEE Computer Society Pioneer Award in 1980. The End of the ENIAC Despite its significant advances in computation in the 1940s, ENIACs tenure was short. On October 2, 1955, at 11:45 p.m.,  the power was finally shut off, and the ENIAC was retired. In 1996, precisely 50 years after ENIAC was publicly acknowledged by the government, the massive computer received its place in history. According to the Smithsonian, ENIAC was the center of attention in the city of Philadelphia as they celebrated being the birthplace of computation. ENIAC was ultimately dismantled, with sections of the massive machine on display at both Penn and the Smithsonian.

Global Computing System Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Global Computing System - Essay Example Attempts have been made to solve most of these challenges by enhancing technology systems. In today's global computing world, advanced technology systems like multi-lingual Translation Engines, Distributed Computing, Overlay Computing, Component based Computing, Service Oriented Architecture, Cryptography Systems, etc have enhanced the experience of Global Computing to a large extent. These technology solutions definitely have enhanced the global computing experience. However, they cannot bridge the gaps in cultural acceptance of content of a Global Application. Example, a translator converting American English to German language might do an excellent job grammatically but the Germans may not like the writing style of translated script because of some cultural mismatch. This is the reason that some companies have preferred to maintain multi-lingual web-sites rather than relying upon the translation engines. Moreover, security has remained a large challenge in Global Computing posed b y known threats and emerging threats turning up continuously (Perrault, Anna H and Gregory, 2001; Jones, Cameron and Twidale, Michael 2006). Other challenges that needs further research & enh... egration, Data Consistency, Speed & Performance, Identity Management, Legal & Compliance framework, Quality of Service, etc (Perrault, Anna H and Gregory, 2001; Jones, Cameron and Twidale, Michael 2006). Description of the Project and its Significance: Following are some examples of Global Computing platforms (Nicola, Rocco De, 2006): Internet: An integrated platform of millions of websites whereby practically every educated individual of the world gets millions of avenues to collaborate with the rest of world. Intranets and Extranets: Collaborative platforms deployed by an organization to interact with employees and customers. Virtual Private Networks: Secured connections between clients and servers via site-to-site and user to site encrypted tunnels. World Wide Web: An integrated platform of millions of IP based networks which can be used by businesses and people to connect to practically any part of the world. Telephone Network: Establishment of Voice over IP networks and their connectivity to local PSTN networks has created a virtual exchange which has empowered every multi-media enabled personal computer to act like a telephone. Moreover, such technologies have also presented Video over IP systems to global users such that they can interact with any Internet user across the globe using Video-Conferencing. GRID: A well co-ordinated multi-protocol network of resources across the world managed at higher layers of the OSI seven layer model without any centralized control that ensures proper personalization to an individual, groups and companies. Following is a partial list of applications of Global Computing platforms: Knowledge Enhancements Knowledge Management Business Process Collaborations and Transactions Trading, Sales, Marketing, Brand Building, etc. News and