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Design Photoshop Foundations Layer Basics Introduction to Layers

Why is the downloadable file the completed version?

The downloadable file is the completed version, but the video asks the user to follow along. It should either be the beginning version OR a separate before and after.

Lisa Dean
Lisa Dean
3,524 Points

I agree. I would learn more if I were to be given the original file and I was allowed to do each step along with the instructor.

Absolutely. There is nothing to "follow along." I'm very disappointed so far. How hard would it be for them to go back after the fact and add in another file?

8 Answers

Maery Rose
Maery Rose
7,067 Points

Since the original question was posed a year ago, I guess the decision was not to change. So far, this has been the most confusing group of videos I've watched. I'm on Adobe Photoshop CC 2015. I don't see some things on my Photoshop window that are in the video being discussed and I don't know how to make them show up or if they are no longer part of Photoshop. And I assumed I should be working along with the video and was following the steps until I realized what I was creating already existed in the file so I had to delete things to make it work. A bit of upfront explanation that your version of Photoshop might look different (since all Adobe products do change frequently) would be good. And that the file already has the steps completed so just watch the video.

Javi Pérez
Javi Pérez
7,642 Points

Yes I think that they need to put two files, one done and another not... I'm agree with you, on CSS videos they did that...

Mark Singleton
Mark Singleton
5,182 Points

They should have provided both files. Javi is correct, on the CSS videos they provided a file for the initial state and the final state which is very handy. I am paying 25 bucks a month so would expect something as basic as this.

Yosef VanTine
Yosef VanTine
8,880 Points

do you realize how hard it must be to make every single video perfect? come on guys cut some slack.

I agree... but some things like this should be easy wins. post two files... or edit out "follow along".. or put a note indicating what the actual intent was.

Generally, they do a great job, but the truth is that there are plenty of quality, free resources where I can learn similar things. free. I pay for this and enjoy it. I think it is fair for me as a paying customer to mention how a course or class can be less confusing.

Because, relatively speaking, it's an extremely basic task to create a layer group in Photoshop, vs learning how to write a new selector in CSS. I think that if it was more complicated, and you were actually drawing something, they would use before and after files, but here you're just moving layers around.

Edit: Just to add, I'm watching Responsive Web Design and, in one example, the code was already complete. Ever since I saw this question posed, and have moved onto other courses, I have been thinking about why, for this one course, for this one example, for a minor task that is quite easy to do, this is the only time a before/after complaint has been raised in any Treehouse course I've taken. This happens often enough in other courses for more difficult tasks that this type of complaint should appear more often, but it hasn't. I'm just wondering why this complaint is appearing here, for this action, for this course, and not in other courses or tasks I've come across.

You're absolutely right. There's no reason to attach a completed file to a lesson that asks you to follow along, and I found this comment because I was going to make a similar one. It's the wrong attitude to take criticism about how to make a video or lesson better and less confusing, and then to say "well, but they generally do a good job so let's just leave it." It would probably take them 10 seconds to create a file that makes sense to go with the video and replace the one they've added with it. Why not let them know that's what they should do?

Just so everyone is aware, there are some pretty good tutorials on adobe.com that seem to be very helpful.

Ben Holland
PLUS
Ben Holland
Courses Plus Student 4,062 Points

I thinks it because if you want to follow along or check on the code for a code challenge or quiz so you don't have to re watch the whole video.

But the logic does not make sense. "Here, now do this thing... " that is impossible because it is already done AND maybe completed 4 steps ahead in a way that is not recognizable. I could be wrong, but I don't think the work flow for most people is to watch the entire video and then look at the file, but to listen to the teacher say "do this thing"... pause... do thing... press play. To me, if they are asking students to follow along, they should have the beginning file as a minimum, but preferably a beginning and an ending file.