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d4nth3m4n · Oct 11, 2004, 05:33 PM

i KNOW there are threads on this, but rather than bump, you get a brand new thread!

there is a woman in my photoshop class, who is a professional photographer. she has a g3 (dont know if it is a beige, i think its a smurf blue one though) running 9.2 that she wants either panther or jag on and photoshop installed. she also wants me to back up her files.

i know that if it is a beige i will need xpostfacto and all the other techie stuff (if she has no firewire do i have any other alternative than to network her g3 to my ibook to burn files off?).

but the question remains-
is $20/hr reasonable to ask for this kind of work? should i just set a price for all of the work?
i've only worked for "friends" in the past and i dont really have a firm grasp on what is too much to ask for.

also, how adamant should i be on trying to sell her on a new eMac (or other machine)? educationally, they are only $750 with a combo drive. especially since i am going to advocate either a new HD or RAM. (or both).

Ghoser777 · Oct 11, 2004, 06:04 PM

$20? Are you NUTS!?!??!

Well... this is always the hardest part for me... and it sort of depends.

1) Are you a professional in any regards? I don't "know you," so I don't know if you have course work in C.S. at a college, a job in the C.S. world, or what not, but you charge more automatically if you have that.

2) Are you charging by the hour or a lump sum? I almost always do lump sum because by the time I fix everything they screwed up, I've spent sevearl hours more than I planned (and I don't want my friends to need to take out a second mortgage

)

I think $35 is an okay amount for the job. I seem to do $40-50 consistently... and that's the price people offer me, not what I ask for. It all depends on your area and who you're helping too.

d4nth3m4n · Oct 11, 2004, 06:07 PM

im kind of up in the air about whether to go with the per hour plan or the lump sum plan. this was kind of a reason to start this thread.

all she wants is panther (if possible) and photoshop on her machine.

i have no degree, but i do know what the hell im doing. hell ANYONE on this forum could do this.

Ghoser777 · Oct 11, 2004, 06:53 PM

But you have to use xpostfacto, which is slightly out of your way, and makes the install over the heads of some people.

I'm saying a lump sum of $35 with a clause that allows you to charge more if this becomes more than an OS X / Photoshop install.

Heck I help people learn what email "is" for more than $20.

d4nth3m4n · Oct 11, 2004, 06:56 PM

Originally posted by Ghoser777:
But you have to use xpostfacto, which is slightly out of your way, and makes the install over the heads of some people.

I'm saying a lump sum of $35 with a clause that allows you to charge more if this becomes more than an OS X / Photoshop install.

Heck I help people learn what email "is" for more than $20.

the $20 was $20 PER HOUR. and i also dont know if ill need xpostfacto (only for the beiges, right?)

do you read the threads you post in?

qualey2 · Oct 11, 2004, 06:58 PM

When I do "repairs or up-grades" I charge about $30.00 to $40.00 depending on the person and the bullsh*t factor.

d4nth3m4n · Oct 11, 2004, 06:59 PM

Originally posted by qualey2:
When I do "repairs or up-grades" I charge about $30.00 to $40.00 depending on the person and the bullsh*t factor.

units? ...like per hour, or total.

this isn't complicated people!

Scientist · Oct 11, 2004, 07:07 PM

I'd respond to help you but I really don't want to be ridiculed for it.

Ghoser777 · Oct 11, 2004, 07:11 PM

Originally posted by d4nth3m4n:
the $20 was $20 PER HOUR. and i also dont know if ill need xpostfacto (only for the beiges, right?)

do you read the threads you post in?

Yes. Instead of getting mad, I gave you my opinion - $35, lump sum. I would charge more than $20/hr for email anyway (although I couldn't see the benefit of sitting down longer than that talking about email, so I assumed the entire job would be done in one hour).

qualey2 · Oct 11, 2004, 07:12 PM

Sorry per hour. I was watching something on the tube and typing @ the same time.

DeathToWindows · Oct 11, 2004, 07:13 PM

ok. I do this fairly frequently... so here goes.

I charge $20/hr rounded to the nearest quarter. Geez... tell the client to get a non-G3 though... panther will run, but just. PSD CS will not...

Nicko · Oct 11, 2004, 07:13 PM

Originally posted by d4nth3m4n:
i KNOW there are threads on this, but rather than bump, you get a brand new thread!

there is a woman in my photoshop class, who is a professional photographer. she has a g3 (dont know if it is a beige, i think its a smurf blue one though) running 9.2 that she wants either panther or jag on and photoshop installed. she also wants me to back up her files.

i know that if it is a beige i will need xpostfacto and all the other techie stuff (if she has no firewire do i have any other alternative than to network her g3 to my ibook to burn files off?).

but the question remains-
is $20/hr reasonable to ask for this kind of work? should i just set a price for all of the work?
i've only worked for "friends" in the past and i dont really have a firm grasp on what is too much to ask for.

also, how adamant should i be on trying to sell her on a new eMac (or other machine)? educationally, they are only $750 with a combo drive. especially since i am going to advocate either a new HD or RAM. (or both).

IMO install the software and backup her files for free. Suggest the upgrade to an eMac....and then she MIGHT buy you a beer (if you're lucky)

d4nth3m4n · Oct 11, 2004, 07:21 PM

Originally posted by Scientist:
I'd respond to help you but I really don't want to be ridiculed for it.

is it really ridicule if you're only asking for clarity. i can say a lot of numbers, but without any units or context they mean nothing. that is all im trying to say.

second post where ghoser says-

I think $35 is an okay amount for the job. I seem to do $40-50 consistently

this just kind got to me. sorry.

and she emailed me out of the blue today asking what my "fee" was. i would have done it for free had she asked me, but she brought up the money thing.

in my email back to her, even though i said $20/hr, i went on to ask her if that sounded reasonable (hell, I feel a little weird asking so much for something this routine).

anyway, give me some more ideas here people- we have one at $35 for the whole shebang. i think thats a little low- who knows how long it will take to get panther on this thing, and then AFTER that i have to install PS. yup, too low.

d4nth3m4n · Oct 11, 2004, 07:23 PM

Originally posted by Ghoser777:
I would charge more than $20/hr for email anyway (although I couldn't see the benefit of sitting down longer than that talking about email, so I assumed the entire job would be done in one hour).

huh? didn't you bring up the email thing?

Scientist · Oct 11, 2004, 07:36 PM

Originally posted by d4nth3m4n:
is it really ridicule if you're only asking for clarity. i can say a lot of numbers, but without any units or context they mean nothing. that is all im trying to say.

I was commenting on the tone off your request for clarity. And the use of this -->

I sure hope you don't get frustrated so easily in real life. It is no big deal though.

Back on topic: Personally I feel 20 per hour is too low to bother with. If you are going to charge that just do it for free. But if you already quoted her that price just do it for that price. Also, she may not be happy with photoshop on her computers if she does anything other than just adjusting colors, lighting and contrast. Creative work in photoshop is still frustrating on my Ghz G4 and will be even worse for her if she is used to OS9's snappiness.

d4nth3m4n · Oct 12, 2004, 12:30 PM

here is the deal- we agreed to 20/hr for this. it is a beige, so i think she is going to be getting jaguar (because i dont want to deal with it, and im pretty sure she will just be correcting color and contrast)

i go in there tomorrow. shouldn't take all that long. and at the place i am right now, $80-100 is very worth it for me.

ort888 · Oct 12, 2004, 01:23 PM

What about sexual favors?

bradoesch · Oct 12, 2004, 03:10 PM

I charge $20 CAD/hour, $20 minimum for my computer services. I have no qualifications and it's all word of mouth. If too many people start calling the rates go up.

storer · Oct 12, 2004, 04:56 PM

I would advise her to get a new machine if it is a Beige Model G3. They have enough trouble running OS9, let alone X. Photoshop would be terribly slow and so would the OS in general. You would have to be careful of the graphics card too.

SafariX · Oct 12, 2004, 05:14 PM

X on beige is painful. Very painful. And 30/hour is a good rate for this type of work.