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Thread RV File Naming

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WHAT IS RV AND WHY?

  • RV is a system of file naming:
    • R for revision [for external]
    • V for version [for internal]
  • Why?
    • As we introduce project management software this will be more important.
    • To help designers find and work on each other files.
    • To help project managers find files across departments.
    • To help account managers know what phase of the project they are in.

 

RECOMMENDED FORMAT

In  short, the recommended file naming is made with the following order:

Client + Item + R + V + date + person.file

  • Date and person is optional, depending on the need of the project

 

BREAK DOWN

1. Client Name:

Simple easy to read client name, keep it consistent as what is being named in the Global root folder.

2. Item Name:

Descriptive of the item which the files contain, avoid being overly general, e.g. ALDI-Brochure-xxx.file. [Be specific enough about what brochure that it would be]

3. V [stands for version]:

Example

  • HelloKitty-Leaflet-R0-v3.pdf

What does this mean? It means this leaflet design has gone through 3 rounds of internal changes before sending to the client.

Note: use dashes between each R or V not R7V3

4. R [stands for revision]:

Client loves changes, so we created the R tracking different rounds of the revision that is being sent per client’s changes.

As an example, client received our hello kitty leaflet, and requested changes to be made, after that, we would consider that as the first round of revision.

In case of naming the design that has not been shown to the client yet (e.g. concepts), we would use R0 as a prefix.

Example

  • HelloKitty-Leaflet-R1-V4.pdf

Note: always use client name – item name in a concise way,

5. Dates [optional]:

Dates help us to better track the progress of the project, for the sake of consistency, we use DD-MM-YYYY format for our date.

Please note, it is not always mandatory to add date, use it when it is adding value / ease to locate files.

For example, sometimes we execute multiple small changes to one continuous file in high frequency, the difference between those edit are often minimal, so in this case, it makes more sense to distinguish the edits not by version but by the dates.

Example

  • HelloKitty-Leaflet-R1-V4-10092019.pdf

6. Names [optional]:

Sometimes when there are multiple colleagues working on the same file, it is needed to have name as file identifier, in this case, name is always put in the end of the file.

Example

  • HelloKitty-Leaflet-R0-V1_Harry.pdf
  • HelloKitty-Leaflet-R0-V1_Eva.pdf
  • HelloKitty-Leaflet-R0-V1_Jennifer.pdf

7. Production File / Outlined File [optional]:

At the end of each design task, the design team is needed to produce final artwork for production. Usually this only involves outline the text and stroke, therefore there is no need to add revision and version number. It is recommend to distinguish the file with

Example

  • HelloKitty-Leaflet-R5-v5.ai [last version]
  • HelloKitty-Leaflet-R5-v5-outlined.ai [outlined]

 

EXAMPLE CHRONOLOGY

If you have correct adopted the naming rules, the files in should appear this orderly fashion:

  • HelloKitty-Leaflet-R0-V1.pdf
  • HelloKitty-Leaflet-R0-V2.pdf
  • HelloKitty-Leaflet-R1.pdf
  • HelloKitty-Leaflet-R1-V1.pdf
  • HelloKitty-Leaflet-R1-V2.pdf
  • HelloKitty-Leaflet-R1-V3.pdf
  • HelloKitty-Leaflet-R2.pdf
  • HelloKitty-Leaflet-R3.pdf
  • HelloKitty-Leaflet-R4.pdf
  • etc…

WHY DOES THIS HELP?

  • Designers can alert managers how many revisions a concept has had
  • Clients can see where they are and match files to emails and contracts
  • We can also track and search for files easily when we make a file database

DON’TS?

  • Do not put words like “new” “final” “newer” into the file naming
  • Do not put underscore “_” into the file naming, as it will become hard to read in the hyperlink or when it is underscored.
  • Do not produce overly long names
  • Avoid using those “quickly and dirty” naming at all time, such as 123.jpg, toharry.pdf etc, even when it is just a quick internal file

 

IF YOU SPOT ANY ERRORS?

In order to encourage a better habit to name your file, we are implementing a penalty system.

How it works? It is easy!

Every time that you spot an error in file naming, find out who the file comes from, or come to ask Harry to help you find out. And this person has to make/buy you a cup of tea/coffee on your choice.

Happy file naming!!

 

 

Category: Workflow