Tools I’m Thankful For

As we head into (American) Thanksgiving, I have many people and things to be thankful for. Family. Friends of the grad school, special needs mama, book club, and neighbor varieties. Health. Indoor plumbing. Chocolate. Stretchy pants.

I’d like to also tip my hat to the scicomm-related tools that, thankfully, have made my job easier this year:

1. Excel’s Choropleth Map tool. This year, I collaborated with another woman-owned small business to develop a PowerPoint deck for their client. The presentation included a *ton* of maps. Being able to create those maps in software I already knew was an amazing time- and sanity-saver.

2. Alignment tools. Microsoft has these. Adobe products do, too. They line up images and text perfectly without me needing to squint at the screen and nudge items in millimeter increments.

3. Instant Eyedropper. I learned about this one through Ann Emery’s blog. Short of using embedded eyedropper tools in PowerPoint or Illustrator, Instant Eyedropper is the easiest way to coordinate a design’s text and fill colors with colors from an existing logo or photo.

4. Editable SVG files. Do you ever find a stock digital illustration that’s *almost* perfect for your project? If only the colors were bold instead of pastel. If only the person were holding a butterfly net instead of a hammer. This year, I was able to help a client start with stock vector illustrations (purchased from Shutterstock) and customize them to be perfect for their new initiative. It was much more efficient than starting from a blank screen, and it helped ensure that the final art was exactly what they were envisioning.

5. The Noun Project. As already established, I LOVE using icons in communication products. For $40 a year, I can download as many icons as I want from The Noun Project. They have a library of more than five million icons, which helps me avoid the generic look that can sometimes come with using software-specific icons.

What are YOU thankful for this season? Comment below!