In one of the other threads in the myths section, an excellent point was brought up ...
Quote:
Originally Posted by deter
I have found only a few know what the hell they are doing. I have called many places on the phone, and they can't answer simple questions.
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In the Video Industry you have many false prophets and a only a few wise sages. It takes ones intelligence to figure out what is correct.
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Part of why the myths section was started in the forum -- and why anti-myth / anti-propaganda information has been present at digitalFAQ.com all the way back to the earliest of site guides -- is because it generally takes an actual professional to spot a non-professional. Consumers (and even sometimes corporate clients) generally don't have enough knowledge to distinguish the pros from the hacks.
Professionals generally don't take kindly to myth-spreading interlopers that "mess about" in their field, as it can cause extra effort on our parts. We're forced to answer stupid questions that would NOT have existed without the propaganda, and we often lose business because these hack "competitors" promise the impossible. From all counts, myths are a nuisance.
When it comes to the media fields I work in, I can generally ask a few very basic jargon-filled questions, as a test of knowledge and competency. I created this thread (and made it a sticky!) to put a few of them out there.
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Example 1:
Claim: Somebody tells me that they're a
professional photographer, and have been doing it pre-digital.
My test: "Did you ever mix the stop, or did you just run water?"
And if this person either does not understand my question, or does not have an answer, then he/she has clearly never worked in a chemical photographic darkroom. At very best -- BEST! -- the person may have used a darkroom in a school or college class for a short time. But they wre definitely NEVER in a production environment of any kind. And if they're lying about the film era, I can only assume their digital era claim is equally as fudged or bogus.
Example 2:
Claim: Somebody says that they do (or did) work in
marketing.
My test: "What's your standard copy ratio in collateral? How much copy do you generally put in collateral?"
And if this person either does not understand my question, or does not have an answer, then he/she has clearly never worked in a professional marketing environment that involved any kind of creative production. At best, this person was in sales or telemarketing or something along those lines -- not "marketing".
Note: This test can also apply for public relations.
Example 3:
Claim: Somebody says that they are a
professional video service, in the capacity of format conversions and/or encoding.
My test (1): "What do you use for ingest hardware, and what intermediary (if any) is used for NLE work? What NLE?"
My test (2): "What long GOP formats do you encode out? Which encoder?"
And if this person either does not understand my question, or does not have an answer, then he/she is most likely using consumer terminology, hardware and software to run their little non-professional hack operation. That's fine for their own personal needs, but when you start to run a service -- even a small one with a narrow niche -- you need to run it with professional grade tools, terms and methods.
Some of the answers regarding hardware and software require judgments, too, as they may have an answer for you that lists $100 or less consumers apps. So you have to know what is and what is NOT a quality item.
Example 4:
Claim: Somebody says that they are a
web host.
My test: "Who's your bandwidth supplier?"
And if this person either does not understand my question, or does not have an answer, then he/she is clearly not a real web host, but merely a reseller -- or worse! (Lots of horror stories regarding "kiddie hosts" at Webhostingtalk.com!)
Example 5:
Claim: Somebody says that they are a
professional layout designer at a print publication, such as a newspaper or magazine.
My test: "Is 'the' part of your official wordmark, or just part of the masthead version?" (Note that this question is specific to a possible scenario, and not a general use type question.)
And if this person either does not understand my question, or does not have an answer, then he/she is definitely not designing anything in any measurable capacity at any print pub. Knowing the terminology for laying out page 1 is basic Design 101 college material. At very best, this person was thrown into a layout position with no knowledge, no training, no skills. Sadly, I do see this. I've seen secretaries turned into "designers" because the company is being cheap (and lacks any common media-field sense).
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Interns and fresh-faced graduates are very guilty of professing "knowledge" when they (at best) had only mild experience at any of these things. And I used to love making them appear stupid in an interview. Watch the moron squirm. As a general consumer seeking quality media work, are you after a boastful kid, or a seasoned pro? You have to decide what you want. There's a lot of ballsy teens out there, especially in the all-digital services realm (web hosting, web design, etc). You REALLY have to watch for that, or potentially lose time and money from their inexperience and/or incompetence.
Not to suggest that adults are necessarily better.
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Understand that this isn't just a collection of random jargon or some kind of "gotcha" question, but sincere tests of knowledge that would be required for daily activities in these media professions.
These questions are also not something you can "Google" or find an answer to with a few minutes of web surfing. It would pretty much require a decent working knowledge of the field, either from actual education or from experience in the industry!
So there's really not a way to cheat.
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Now the point of this thread wasn't to "show off" how smart I am, or anything of that nature, but simply to provide examples of how complicated it can be to discriminate the professional from the hack. You almost have to be one to know who's NOT one. The main reason so many people think they're a pro is because access to once-obscure and once-expensive media tools are now somewhat mainstream: computers, cameras, scanners, DVD recorders, etc.
And it's not that a hack can't do a passable job, or give a "best effort", but rather it's the difference between a gourmet chef and the guy standing over the griddle at Burger King. Do you want fast food quality, or do you need something better? Are you satisfied by the "old college try" (possible even performed by a college kid!), or do you want a seasoned industry veteran to oversee your important project?
Anybody that wants help vetting a professional for info is most welcome to post questions in this forum. We'll help you create a list of questions to ask this person or company. Then you can post those answers here, and we'll help you analyze their competency on the subject.
While we may not know everything either, there's something to be said for decades of experience.
And a willingness to share it with you!
Thanks for reading.
