I'm a terrible artist; I wouldn't try to make mockups if there weren't sites like Balsamiq. Even if I tried, they would be too rough to serve as any kind of spec. The right tools allow more (not all) people to succeed in trying their hand at design. Of course they will never be a "real designer", but hopefully they can accomplish more of their goals without help.
This is a great analogy, but unfortunately I think it undermines your point somewhat.
Almost anyone can become a great artist or designer, but what it takes is practice, years of practice, and learning from others who have gone before and are working now. There are no short cuts and tools are really the least important element in any discipline, be that design or programming.
> Almost anyone can become a great artist or designer
I challenge this claim. I don't think just anyone can become a great artist or designer and if you think this I think you miss a great deal when it comes to evaluating these skills. Maybe anyone can become great at Photoshop and the other various tools, but if you don't find yourself enjoying designing, and you haven't had an artistic trait that others have recognized in you early on and you're not making much headway now, you probably want to find out what other talents you might have.
I think that if you enjoy designing you should pursue it. I think wanting to be good at something can lead to a high degree of skill because the motivation will drive you there. Not everyone has that motivation and so not everyone can be a great artist or designer. I think the same thing can be said of engineering. People who go into this field to get a 9-5 job and hate the work will struggle competing against people who love what they do and would do it even if they weren't paid for it.
I don't think just anyone can become a great artist or designer and if you think this I think you miss a great deal when it comes to evaluating these skills.
I'm a designer, trained as an artist ;) I do agree motivation is key though.
This is a great analogy, but unfortunately I think it undermines your point somewhat.
Almost anyone can become a great artist or designer, but what it takes is practice, years of practice, and learning from others who have gone before and are working now. There are no short cuts and tools are really the least important element in any discipline, be that design or programming.