Fact Sheets
Macintosh Applications
Graphics
Adobe PhotoShop
Macromedia Freehand
Adobe Illustrator
Page Layout
QuarkXpress
Adobe Pagemaker
Windows Applications
CorelDraw
Adobe Pagemaker
QuarkXpress
Macromedia Freehand
Publisher (limited applications)
Word (limited applications)
Word Processing Applications
Some popular software programs create good looking designs, layouts and documents on screen and usually what looks good on screen outputs successfully to your inkjet or laser printer. However, to print your document using professional printing equipment requires software that is somewhat more sophisticated.
Word processing programs such as MS Word, Word Perfect and others, can create beautiful documents on screen and you can print these documents to an inkjet printer or download the file to a colour copier and they look just fine. But inkjet printers and colour copiers reproduce a "composite print" (all the colours print onto the media at one time). Offset printing methods require colours to be "separated" (each colour being reproduced must have an individual black and white original). Word processing and unsophisticated graphics software programs do not have the ability to colour separate your artwork.
You might think that if you're producing a booklet-style document, you could use a word processor. While these have increased in sophistication to the level where they have nearly as much functionality as an entry-level DTP package, they're still no match for a professional DTP package. Consider the amount of illustrations and special effects that will be in your document and how you're getting it printed. Few, if any, word processors have the facility to print crop and registration marks-necessary for multicolour printing-so if you're using colour in your document, you'll have difficulty producing it on anything but DTP software. (Since colours are printed separately, they need to be aligned precisely using registration marks as a guide or the result will look ugly.)
Desktop Publishing Applications
Desktop Publishers use more than just the page layout program to accomplish all stages in the computer design process. For instance, while photographs and illustrations can be rotated, cropped and tinted within these packages, the images can't be edited.
Most designers need three types of programs to meet today's demands. Furthermore, these applications must have one common denominator, the ability to utilize the PostScript page descriptive language. All the applications discussed below conform to the conventions of PostScript output and export to formats that are interchangeable among them.
Page Layout Programs
Page layout programs are the backbone of desktop publishing. If you only get one program to start, it should be one that can handle all the text and tabular copy that is expected. Although drawing applications can handle text, they are inefficient when large amounts of text are to be used. The two programs most used today for page layout are QuarkXPress and PageMaker. Both do an excellent job of handling text and importing graphics.
Graphics Illustration Programs
These are the drawing programs. They let you create and edit vector based illustrations and logos. The three programs most used today for drawing are Adobe Illustrator, MacroMedia FreeHand and CorelDraw. The files generated from these programs can be saved in their native application format, or be exported into Encapsulated PostScript (EPS) for placement into a Page Layout Program.
Image Manipulation Programs
These are the programs that let you edit scans and draw bitmapped artwork. The program most used today for photo and bitmap editing is Adobe PhotoShop. The files generated from photo-editing programs can be saved in their native application format, or be exported into EPS or Tag Image File Format (TIFF) for placement into a page layout program.
What Makes These DTP Programs Best for Print?
Each of the above have special features that make them unique, but all three give you the power to create pages with dynamic typography, illustrations and photographs combined.
True desktop publishing programs have certain qualities that permit high-end output. These qualities are:
The ability to import objects from other desktop publishing programs.
The ability to export the page or objects on the page into another acceptable desktop format.
The ability to use CMYK or Pantone printing colours.
The ability to separate colours when sending to laser printers or imagesetter's.
The ability to print bleeds, colour, crop and registration information to the output material.
Non-desktop publishing applications
Some programs that lack the features of Desktop Publishing Programs include:
Word Processing Programs
These programs provide for quick input of type but lack the proper colour palettes and output features necessary for film output.
Slide Presentation Programs
These programs often do not or have limited ability to export illustrations and type in an acceptable vector format.
Web Authoring Programs
These programs work with an entirely different page descriptive language and the images in these programs are sampled at a much lower resolution than is needed for desktop publishing.
Spreadsheet, Chart and Database Programs
These programs provide for quick input of tabular and numerical information but lack the proper control of colour and output features necessary for film output.
Many low-end home based publishing packages
These programs are usually great for creating greeting cards, banners and family newsletters. They come with a number of fonts and clip art and print to a wide array of laser, ink jet and dot matrix printers. Their shortcomings usually surface when trying to print colour separations.
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COPYRIGHT
Copyright law protects a broad range of material; works of art, literature and music, films and other materials such as broadcasts, computer programs and traders' catalogues. Its purpose is to protect and reward creativity and intellectual effort.
The law of copyright is contained in a Federal statute - the Copyright Act 1968 and this Act sets out what is protected and what the protection involves.
PROTECTED MATERIAL
Literary Works
Poems, books (historical, fiction, etc.), articles, short stories, rules to games, instruction manuals, lyrics to songs, catalogues, compilations, computer programs and all other forms of writing (except trival expressions such as titles or slogans).
Dramatic works
"Pop" or "serious" scores and other combinations of melody and /or harmony. (Note: Songs involve two types of works - literary (the lyrics) and musical).
Artistic Works
Paintings, sculptures, engravings, photographs, maps, drawings (sketches, architectural drawings, dress patterns, technical drawings, etc.) and works of artistic craftsmanship (ceramics, wood carvings, etc.)
Films
Motion pictures such as documentaries, feature and animated films, TV programs, video tapes, video cassettes and other fixed or recorded sequences of visual images.
Sound Recording
Vinyl and compact discs, audio tapes and cassettes and other fixed or recorded sounds, eg. Taped interviews.
Broadcasts
Radio, television and certain satellite broadcasts - that is the signals of sound and/or images transmitted by the broadcaster.
Published editions of works
The publisher's typesetting
BOOKS, FILMS AND RECORDS
Books, films, records (and certain other articles) can contain a number of copyrights.
A book may involve copyrights for: the literary work of the writer, the artistic work of the illustrator, and the published edition of the publisher.
A film shown on TV and a record played on the radio also involve many copyrights. In the case of the film there may be copyrights for the signals of the broadcaster, the film itself, a dramatic work in the form of the script and the musical work on the film's sound track. There may also be a number of artistic works in the film such as paintings and sculptures. In the case of the record there will be the broadcaster's signals and also the recording itself together with the music and lyrics on that record.
PROTECTION IS AUTOMATIC
There is no system of copyright registration and protection does not depend upon publication, a copyright notice, or any other procedure. Protection is free and automatic. Material is protected from the time it is first written down or taped.
Foreign copyright owners are protected in Australia and Australian copyright owners are protected in most other countries. To obtain the most extensive international protection available, the copyright notice should be placed on all copies of published works.
Although the copyright notice is not required for protection in Australia it is advisable to place the notice on all copies as it acts as a warning that the work is protected and identifies the person claiming the rights. Copyright owners can write the notice on their work themselves - there is no formal procedure. The notice consists of the symbol © followed by the name of the copyright owner and the year of first publication:
© JT-Press 2001
REQUIREMENTS FOR PROTECTION
The author or maker must be a citizen or resident of Australia or of a country to which our Act extends, or the work must be first published on one of those countries.
The material must be "original" - that is, not copied from another source. It need not be unique or novel. The fact that it is based on, or similar to, another idea will not prevent it from being original. It will be original if it is a product of the author's independent skill and labour.
OWNERSHIP
The general rule is that the author (creator) owns the copyright in literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works. Accordingly, the author generally has the exclusive rights over his or her work described above.
Similarly, the producer or maker of a film or sound recording generally owns the copyright; the broadcaster owns the copyright in a published edition.
Exceptions are: Works created in the course of employment where the author is an emplyee, rather than a freelancer; commissioned photographs, portraits, engravings, sound recordings and films; and material created under the direction or control of the Crown or first published by the Crown.
INFRINGEMENT
It is an infringement to do or authorise any act included in the copyright owner's exclusive rights has expired or a special exception to infringement applies.
Copyright a part of a work also infringes copyright if the part is a "substantial part". Copyright is infringed by use of substantial part whether the use is copying or another act which the copyright owner's permission.
LENGTH OF PROTECTION
The general rule is that copyright lasts from the time the material is created until 50 years from the year either of the author's death or of first publication, depending on the material. There are, however, a number of exceptions and the Copyright Council should be consulted for detailed information.
QUESTIONS THAT ARE OFTEN ASKED
Is there copyright protection for titles?
No, however, if an author has a reputation in a title, he or she may be able to prevent others from using it if that use would mislead consumers. Generally, an author is entitled to choose any title provided it would not lead to confusion.
Since there is no registration of copyright, how can I prove I am the copyright owner?
You will only have to prove that you own copyright if your claim to copyright is disputed in court. If you own copyright as a result of being the author/creator, you would prove this by calling witnesses who know that you created the material and by producing original manuscripts, etc.
How much do I have to change work to avoid infringing Copyright?
Copying a work usually infringes copyright unless permission is obtained The "Copy" does not have to be exact to infringe copyright. Do not attempt to change the work as such changes rarely avoid infringement.
Does copyright protect ideas?
No. Copyright protects the expression or form that the ideas take, e.g. a manuscript. If the "ideas" (e.g. the plot) of a book are used by another author, this will only amount to an infringement if there has been substantial reproduction of the author's skill and labour in the literary, artistic or other protected expression.
I have not copied a work but mine is very similar to another work. Have I infringed copyright?
No. Only if the similarity is the result of copying will copyright be infringed - e.g. two photographers may take separate photos of the same subject. Both are "original" and therefore protected but the question of infringement only arises if the second photographer copied the first by taking a print.
(Source: Australian Copyright Council)
For more information
www.copyright.org.au/
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Before you begin editing or creating your photo or image, decide whether it will be used for press or if it will be viewed only on computer monitors. Make sure to check the size and resolution of your image file. The Dots Per Inch (DPI) of bitmap images is critical to the quality of the printed piece. The drawbacks of bitmapped images occur when scaling. As the image is enlarged, curves and edges appear to get rough or jagged. Increasing dpi on a low resolution image still results in jagged printed material.
Before you scan any art, determine the size of the item as it would be placed for output. All image files or scans need to be at 300 dots per inch at 100% of final desired size to render them properly for print reproduction.
When you have finished editing your photo or image, and are ready to import the image into a page layout application, you must decide on which file format to save it in.
The two formats that maintain the necessary information for commercial printing are
TIFF (Tagged Image File Format) and
EPS (Encapsulated PostScript).
Both formats work well on the Macintosh and PC platforms.
Deciding on which of these two formats to use is more a question of what other applications can do to the file after it is imported. Your page design does not need for all the images to be one format. Choose TIFF or EPS on an image by image basis.
Files supplied in jpeg format will be accepted but not recommended. Each time that a file is saved in jpeg the compression associated with the file format will reduce the quality of the image.
EPS (Encapsulated PostScript)
The Encapsulated PostScript file format is generally the preferred format for importing vector based images. On the Mac platform it is the universal way of saving files from FreeHand and Illustrator and is often the best method for saving from PhotoShop.
Reasons to use the EPS file format in PhotoShop include:
- The use of clipping paths to mask objects.
- Saving Duotones with Pantone Colours
- Setting the screen and transfer functions
- Having the option for saving whites as transparent. This enables users to set the background colour later in a page layout program.
TIFF (Tagged Image File Format)
The Tag Image File Format was developed to offer a convenient means of saving graphics that are scanned or generated electronically.
The format is especially versatile for use with PostScript and non-PostScript printing devices. It is based on reducing an image to a bitmap representation of the artwork very much like a drawing made using the squares on graph paper.
The Tag Image File Format offers some unique features when imported into QuarkXPress, FreeHand or PageMaker.
Grayscale or Bitmap images saved as TIFs can be altered after being imported into these programs by manipulating certain attributes using the Style (Quark), Element Info (FreeHand), or Image Control (PageMaker) menus.
Quark allows users to foreground and background colours as desired.
Pagemaker allows users foreground colours as desired.
Choosing the Correct Colour Format
Getting the colour you see on screen to look the same on paper can pose a problem. When you look at your computer monitor, you see colours produced electronically with light rays using RGB values (red, green and blue-just like television). When we print colour ink on paper, we use the CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow and black) process colours for 4-colour process offset printing, or we use the PMS (Pantone Matching System) for ink colour designation.
In order to properly print on paper, you must convert your RGB colour files to CMYK files. This means you cannot rely on your colour monitors display for colour selection, correction, or proofing. What you see is NOT what you get. Colours you see on screen may be very different from the colours printed by offset methods.
The stock (paper, etc.) used also has a dramatic effect on colour reproduction. We can show you examples of printing on various paper types to meet your budget and esthetic needs.
Scanning Tips
Many desktop publishers often scan at too high a resolution. With the increased scan resolution, too much detail is captured and the scan file size increases tremendously. The PostScript imagesetter, laserprinter, or other device must render all of the data, causing loss of time in the page rasterising process.
In addition, as you work with a scanned image, the computer constantly has to re-crunch the scan data. Over the course of a project this time really adds up. As we count on computer's CPU to do more and more of the work for screen presentation or ink jet printer output we can slow our system to a crawl by using too much data.
Scans with too much data not only rob your time, they can even crash the Raster Image Processor or lock-up your computer.
Scans at low resolution or too little data will result in a sub standard result. The image will look pixilated.
Take a few moments to calculate what you need rather than scanning at a high DPI just to be on the safe side. Capture just enough detail for what you need to do.
Production tips
Do a little arithmetic before you scan. Planning to reduce the image to 50%? This doubles the resolution. Reducing to 33% triples the resolution, and so on.
A final resolution of 1.5 times the LPI works well in most cases. LPI stands for lines per inch, and for offset printing the LPI is usually 133 or 150. Final scan resolution means that you've calculated the change in spatial resolution when you size your original scan, so the formula is:
DPI = LPI x %increase or decrease of original x 1.5
Clean up scans in a retouching program before using them. Adjust their size and resolution before placing them in a layout program.
Crop the image in a package like PhotoShop as close as possible to avoid having the RIP compute all that white space. Avoid using PageMaker or other layout programs ability to crop a scan, this feature merely masks an area and does not decrease the data that the RIP must compute.
Sharpening the image in a retouching program gives a better looking result than using a high scan resolution. Make the on-screen image just a little sharper than you think is needed-it softens a bit in production. The CCD chip in your scanner that actually reads the grayscale data is linearly balanced, meaning that the transitions between grey areas tend to be minimised. Sharpening algorithms in a retouching program like PhotoShop can adjust for this. Always run your programs Sharpen routine on a scanned photo to compensate for this.
Another tip is to add noise to an image to minimise the transitional steps between gradations. For instance if you have created a blend in your illustration package that has thirty steps, you can export the EPS file into an image editor and add 1 or 2 units of random noise with the noise filter to take away the hard edges between steps.
Descreening and scanning
If you frequently scan printed matter that is screened at 133 LPI or above, you probably see a moire pattern when you view the file in a photo manipulation program or attempt to print the picture. Try scanning at 718 dpi (with descreening on if your scanner has this function), apply PhotoShop's median filter with a 2 pixel radius and reduce the resolution to 300dpi. then apply an unsharp mask with the settings at 50 percent, 3 pixels and a threshold of 5. You may have to play with these settings but you should get something acceptable.
Line art scanning
Line Art scanning is best defined as simply transferring pen and ink style drawings, clip art, and some pencil sketches into the computer system. Line Art has no shading nor colour other than black. Line Art scanning is considered 1-bit scanning, that is the computer sees the image as either black or white.
Line Art scans, since they can only be black or white, do not have the luxury of anti-aliasing (a technique that makes smooth transitions between black and white by adding varying steps of grey), and therefore are prone to having jagged edges around curves when scanned at lower resolutions than the final output device. Therefore, you should not use Line Art style scanning to scan photographs or textured art.
Line Art should be scanned at as high a resolution as the final output device to eliminate the jaggie effect. In other words if you have original art that is 5x7 and you're going to output at 5x7 on a 1200 dpi imagesetter, ideally it should be scanned at 1200dpi to achieve the best possible image. Note that if your original is larger than the final size, you should adjust your original scan resolution by the same ratio so as to not have more resolution than necessary.
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Absorption
A property that causes paper to accept liquids or vapors that come in contact with the paper
Adobe Postscript®
The industry standard page description language invented by Adobe and introduced in 1985 for printing documents that integrate text, graphics, images and colour.
Against the grain
Folding paper at right angles to the grain of the paper
Alterations
Changes made to copy after it has been set in type
Ampersand
The symbol used for 'and' (&)
Application
A term for software that helps people perform a certain type of work or activity
Art paper
Paper, usually of high gloss, coated with china clay
Artwork
Drawings, lettering and general ornamentation prepared by the artist in final form for reproduction
Ascender
That part of the letter that rises above the main type body, as in 'd'
ASCII
A plain text file format. A file in ASCII format lacks frills such as fancy fonts or complex formatting
Author's corrections
Corrections made by the author to modify a proof from the original copy
Author's proof
Proof showing corrections made by the author or editor
Backing up
Printing the reverse side of a sheet already printed on one side.
Back Lining
Paper or fabric adhering to the backbone or spine in a hard case book
Banding
A visible stair-stepping of shades in a gradient
Banker envelope
Envelope with the opening on its longer dimension
Bank paper
Thin, tough writing paper, usually less than 61 gsm in weight
Bezier Curve
A curve used in various software programs that provide control handles for manipulation the shape of the arc; named after cathedral shapes in Bezier, France
Bitmap
Generally a file that describes a sequential collection of bits that together will display an image on the screen. Some of the most popular bitmap formats are BMP, GIF, JPEG, PCX, and tiff
Black and white
Originals or reproductions printed in black (as distinct from multicolour)
Blanket
In offset lithography, a flexible fabric clamped around the cylinder, which transfers the image from plate to paper
Bleaching
Papermaking process to whiten cellulose fibres
Bleed
Where the image extends to the edge of a printed sheet, without leaving a border
Bleed-through
Occurs when printed on one side of a sheet of paper shows through to the other side
Blind emboss
A design that is stamped or pressed (without metallic leaf or ink) into a piece of paper
Blowup
Enlargement
Body Type
Type used for the text of a book. As distinguished from the headlines
Bond Paper
Writing paper or printed paper where strength, durability and permanence are required. Used for letterheads, business forms, stationery, etc
Brochure
phamplet bound in the form of a booklet
Bug
An error in a software program or hardware device
Bulk
Thickness of paper
Burst binding
A form of binding similar to perfect binding
Cache
A very fast and expensive type of memory (SRAM, or static RAM) most often used to hold data frequently used by the CPU
Caliper
Thickness of paper, expressed in microns
Caption
Term applied to the explanatory text accompanying an illustration
Case-Bound
Books bound in stiff boards covered by fabric or other material
Cast coated
Coating paper dried under pressure against a polished cylinder to produce a highly glossed, mirror-like finish
Catching up
Indicates that the non image areas of a lithographic press plate are inking up
Clean proof
Printers proof which requires no corrections
Clip art
Graphics that can be placed electronically into documents you're creating on your computer.
CMYK
Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black, the ink colours used for process colour reproduction. (The 'K' stand for keyline)
Coated paper
Paper with a surface coating to produce a smooth finish either matt or glossy
Collate
To bring sections of a work together in correct sequence
Colour bars
A band of colour printed next to the gripper or tail edge of a sheet to check colour density across the sheet
Colour correction
Improving the quality of the colour rendition
Colour separation
Separation of the colours making up a full colour original, usually into the three primaries (cmy) plus black, each of which will be reproduced by a separate printing plate.
Additional colours are often needed for fine art reproduction. Modern colour separation systems use laser scanners controlled by computers.
Composing
Setting type
Concertina fold
Term used for two or more parallel paper folds, which open in concertina fashion
Continuous tone
Photographic image which has not been screened and contains gradient tones.
Contrast
Tonal graduation between highlight and shadows in an original or reproduction
Copy
Typewritten manuscript, picture, artwork, etc., to be used in the production of printing
Copyfitting
In composition, checking type size, arrangement, or content of copy to fit a given area
Cropping
Trimming or masking off unwanted portions of illustrations or pictures.
Crossmarks
Registration marks for accurate positioning of images in multicolour printing.
Dampeners
In lithography, cloth-covered, parchment paper or rubber (bare back) rollers that distribute the dampening solution to the press plate
Deboss
A plate sunk image
Densitometer
Photoelectric instrument which measures the density of photographic images, or of colours. Used in colour printing and quality control to determine accurately whether colours are consistent throughout the run. The Densitometer reads the solid colour bars to be seen on the untrimmed printing sheet
Desktop
In Macintosh and Windows applications, the computer's on screen working environment including the menu bars, icons etc. Arranged on the surface of your display
Desktop Publishing
Creating corporate documents, periodicals, brochures, books, etc., using equipment like personal computers, page layout software and printers
Die-cutting
The process of using sharp steel rules to cut special shapes in the paper being used in the production of a project
Digital
Related to digits or represented in digits. Digital information is expressed in bits (zeros and ones), the form understood by computers. Digital devices are hardware products like printers or scanners that receive and/or send out information in a digital format
Digital colour printing
A printing process that allows colour printing directly from electronic images without the need for film or colour separations
Digital colour proof
An electronic colour proof reproduced from the electronic data
Direct to plate printing
Imaging directly to the plate material used in offset printing. The traditional offset printing process included printing film (typically from an imagesetter today), 'burning plates' by exposing the aluminum or poly plates with the film, and mounting the resulting plates on offset presses. Direct-to-plate printing eliminates the film imaging step by imaging directly on the plate material
Distributing Roller
Rubber covered roller which conveys ink from the fountain to the ink drum of a printing press
Document
A file created by a program. Don't think of it only as text. Just like a paper document might also contain photos or art, a computer document can be anything you've created on the screen with an application and saved as a file
Dot
The basic constituent of a halftone
Dot gain
A tendency in the printing process for dots to print larger than they appear on the film and printing plate
Download
The process of moving a copy of a file from one computer to another
DPI
An acronym for Dots Per Inch. The number of dots that fit horizontally and vertically into a one-inch measure. Generally, the more dots per inch, the more detail is captured and the sharper the image will print
Dropout
Halftone with no screen dots in the highlight
Drop Shadow
A tone of colour, or line, which falls on one side of horizontal and vertical parts of type or picture, as would a shadow on a three dimensional object
Dull Finish
A paper finish with little or no gloss
Dummy
Samples of the proposed work prepared before printing to assist in assessing design and estimating production requirements. A binder's dummy is made to establish the exact dimensions of the bound book
Duotone
Halftone printed using black and colour halftones, or in any two colours
Duplex
When paper is printed on both sides of the sheet
Fountain Solution
In lithography, a solution of water, gum arabic and other chemicals used to dampen the plate. Moistened non-printing areas do not accept ink
Four Colour Process
A method that uses dots of cyan, magenta, yellow and black to simulate the continuous tones and variety of colours in a colour image
Gatefold
Flap from the fore-edge, with a fold running parallel to the spine of the book. The finished page is marginally smaller than the normal trimmed page. A double fold, usually of card or heavy board, from the two outside edges of a folder. The two folded pages meet in the centre of the page, edge to edge, rather like a double gate
GIF
A file format for bitmap images (short for Graphical Interchange Format) Gif is popular format for www because it allows images to be compressed so that they can be transmitted faster, and also lets deigners add animated effects to images. This format is not recommended for the printing process as it only works in 256 colour space.
Graduation
Gradual transition from one tone to another, ie. Dark to light or one colour to another
Grain
In papermaking, the direction in which most fibres lie corresponding to the direction that the paper travels during the papermaking process
Grammage
Weight of a standard area of paper expressed in grams per square metre, abbreviated as GSM
Graphics
The drawings or design components of material prepared for printing. These can be hand drawn, derived photographically or computer generated
Gripper edge
Leading edge of paper blank to receive grippers as it passes through a printing press. The front edge of a lithographic or wraparound plate secured to the front clamp of plate cylinder
Gripper margin
Unprinted blank edge of paper on which grippers bear, usually half an inch or less
Grippers
Metal finders that clamp on paper to hold it as it passes through a printing press
Halftone
Reproduction of continuous tone artwork, such as a photograph, with the image translated into dots of various sizes
Hickey
Spot or imperfection in printing due to dirt on the press, hardened specks of ink, ect.
Highlight
Whitest parts of a photograph represented by the smallest dots or the absence of dots
Hue
The main attribute colour which distinguishes it from other colour
Hydrophilic
Water loving, can be wet by water, rejects oil
Hydrophobic
Water rejecting, water repellent
Imagesetter
A device that outputs computer generated images on film negatives, film positives or poly material
Imposed signature proof
Proof of a section of a book, usually the first, which carries the title page and other preliminary matter
Imposition
Laying out of pages so that they will be in correct order after the printed sheet is folded
Impression
In printing, the impression of image, plate or blanket as it comes in contact with the paper
Ink Holdout
A paper's ability to hold printing or writing inks on its surface instead of absorbing the inks
Inkjet printing
Creates a desired image on paper by squirting droplets of liquid inks under pressure from a printhead containing on or more nozzles. The printer's resolution (often expressed as dots per inch, or DPI) is dependent upon a number of factors, such as the number of nozzles; the frequency of ink droplets; the placement of the droplets; and the quality of the paper used for printing.
Interleaf
Leaves inserted between pages of a book
International Colour Consortium (ICC)
A group of companies charted to develop, use, and promote cross-platform standards so that applications and devices can exchange color date without ambiguity. Founding members include Adobe, Agfa, Apple, FOGRA, Kodak, Microsoft, Silicon Graphics, Sun and Taligent
Jobbing Printing
Printing other than book, periodical and newspaper work
JPEG
A file format for bitmap images (short for Joint Photographic Experts Group, the organisation that created the format). The JPEG format allows images to be compressed, so that even large pictures do not take up much space on disk when transmitted over the Internet. For this reason, JPEG is a popular format for designers of websites.
Justify
To space words and letters to a given measure. Vertical alignment at the right and left of the column.
K
Abbreviation for a quantity of 1000
Kbps
Abbreviation for 1,00 bits per second
Kerning
Kerning involves closing up type where the letter shape resulting in uneven letterspacing
Keyline Drawing
Simplified overlay with instruction as a guide to illustrated material
Kilobyte
A unit of storage equal to 1,000 bytes
Laminate
Bonding clear plastic film by heat and pressure to a sheet of paper to protect the print and improve its appearance
Landscape
Page or illustration wider than it is high
Laser Printer
Uses a laser beam that is focused on a rotating mirror, which deflects the light through a focusing lens. The printer uses a high-powered single concentrated light source that is directed onto a photosensitive material located on a drum. Dots are created and placed in succession as the light beam scans the rotating drum on a horizontal path
Layout
Sketch or plan specifying size, position of type and illustrations, treatment of headings, etc.
Widely used in the preparation of advertisements
Leaf
Two pages of a book, the front and back of a single piece of paper
Letterpress
Printing directly from upraised type or blocks
Lithography
Printing by planographic process (Q.V)
Make-ready
Final machine preparation for printing to ensure an even impression over the entire printing area. Can be a significant percentage of the costs of printing, particularly for short runs of colour work
Margins
Space surrounding the print area of a page
Matt finish
Paper finish without gloss
Megabyte
A unit storage equal to one million bytes
Mock-up
Model of the finished book or magazine with essential detail sketched in
Moire
Screen pattern in printing caused by overlaying conflicting screen angles. Resembles the moire pattern in silk
Montague
Combination of related pieces of copy appearing as one to tell a complete story
Mottle
Spotty or uneven appearance of printing
Mpeg
A digital movie format created by the Motion Picture Experts Group (MPEG). MPEG files allow for none realistic notion with a smaller file size than earlier formats, making it a popular format for digital full-length movies. Files in the MPEG format have a .mpg extension
Multimedia
The use of more than one media, such as any combination fo sound, graphics, animation and video
Negative
Photographic image on film in which black values in the original subject are transparent, and white values are opaque; light greys are dark and dark greys are light
Network
A group of computers and related devices, such as printers, that are connected by cable or some other means so they can communicate with each other
Nonimpact Printing
Describes a segment of printers, such as inkjet, laser, thermal or electrostatic, that creates images without needing to strike the page
OCR
Optical character recognition of type by a scanner, which senses the light reflecting from the printed image and provides impulses to recognition circuits to identify each character. This can also be achieved by software from a scanned image
Offset
Printing in which the image is transferred from plate to paper by means of a rubber-covered cylinder. A general term for offset lithography
Opacity
Property which minimises 'show through' of printing from the reverse side of a sheet of paper
Overhang Cover
Cover larger in size than the pages it encloses
Overprinting
Double printing; printing over an area already printed
Overs
Copies of print matter in excess of the quantity required
Pagination
Paging of a book and the numbering of the pages
Pantone Matching System (PMS)
The most widely used system for specifying and blending match colours
Paper
The word derives from Papyrus, a reed-like plant growing in Egypt along the banks of rivers
Paper grade
Papers manufactured to fit within a group or type of papers. Each grade of paper uses basically the same fiber, colour, additive and chemical compound
Perfect Binding
Form of binding in which the pages are attached to the cover by means of a heat set plastic
Picking
Lifting of the paper surface, occurs when ink tack exceeds the surface strength of paper
Pigment
The colour particles that give colour, body or opacity to printing inks
Piling
The build up or caking of ink on rollers, plate or blanket or the paper build up on the blanket of an offset printing press
Pixel
The smallest dot on a computer display or in a digital image. Pixels are the building blocks for making the letters and images you see on your computer screen. An image on a screen can be made up of hundreds of pixels, each a different colour
Plate
Printing surface such as a litho plate.
Press Proof
A proof to indicate the appearance of a colour subject printed on a production or proof press. The last proof taken before a print run
Primary colours
Yellow, magenta, cyan in printing; red, green and blue in photography
Process printing
Printing from two or more plates to produce intermediate colours and shades. In four-colour process: yellow, magenta, cyan and black
Proof
Reproduction of type or illustrations, prior to final, for the purpose of assessment or correction
Ream
500 sheets of paper
Register
Accurate superimposition of colours in multicolour printing; exact alignment of pages so that they back one another precisely
Register mark
Crosses or other marks on originals to act as a guide for platemaking, printing and colour registration; sometimes known as keys
Re-screen
Line reproduction of a photograph, which has already been screened (printed), to give the give the impression of a halftone
Resolution
In monitors, resolution is commonly measured by the number of pixels that can be displayed in a specified area. In printing, resolution is measured in dots per inch (dpi). In either case, more pixels or dots mean a finer graphics image
Rough
Artists sketch or visual, preliminary to preparation of art, photography and type
Run
Number of copies to be printed
Run-around
A type area set in measures that are adjusted to fit around a picture
Saddle stitching
Securing pages by wire staples through the centre fold. In saddle-stitched work the printed sections are inserted one inside the other
Sans Serif
Typeface without serifs
Scaling
Determining the proper size for an image to be reduced or enlarged
Scanner
A device for converting text or graphics into a digital image you can display on your computer screen and use with certain applications
Scoring
Furrowing a sheet, particularly if it is heavy stock, so that it will fold without cracking
Screen
Screen used to convert a continuous tone image to a dot formation. The greater the number of lines to a centimetre the finer the screen
Screen angles
In colour reproduction, angles at which a halftone screen or the original itself are placed for each of the colour separation negatives, in order to prevent formation of interference patterns (moire) in the completed colour reproduction. Angles of 30 degrees between colours produce minimum patterns
Screen ruling
Number of lines per centimetre on a contact screen or ruled glass halftone screen
Scum
In offset lithography, a greasy film which tends to sensitise non-image areas in a plate to accept ink
Self cover
Cover printed on the same stock as a book
Serif
Short cross-lines at the ends of the main strokes of letters in some typefaces
Set-off
In presswork, when the ink of a printed sheet rubs off or marks the next sheet as it is being delivered. Also called offset
Shadow
Darkest parts in a photograph, represented in a halftone by the largest dots
Sheetwise
To print one side of a sheet of paper, with one forme or plate, then turn the sheet over and pront the other side with another forme using same gripper and side guide
Short-grain paper
Paper in which the machine direction is parallel to its shorter dimension
Short Ink
Ink that is buttery and does not flow freely
Show-through
When printed on one side of a sheet of paper can be easily seen from the other side
Side-stitching
Securing sections of a book by inserting stitches through from the first sheet to the last
Signature
The name given to a printed sheet after it has been folded. Also the sections if a book which are gathered for binding
Signature mark
Used in bookwork as a guide to gathering. The signature mark is usually a small capital letter, but may also be a figure or bar printed at the bottom of the first page of each section of the book. The sequence of signatures is progressive throughout the book
Silk screen (screen-printing)
Method of printing from stencils through a fine mesh of silk, metal or other material. The stencils may be photographic or cut by hand
Spine
Part of a books cover or jacket, visible when the book is on a shelf
Spiral binding
Book bound with wires in spiral form inserted through holes punched along the binding side
Step-up (step and repeat)
A system of repeating an image on a plate by stepping it into position according to a predetermined layout.
Used for multiple printing of packs on a sheet
Stet
Means let it stand. It is written on the margin of a proof or manuscript to cancel an alteration, the word or words to be restored being underlined with dots
Stock
Paper or other material to be printed on
Strike-through
The penetration of ink through paper during printing
Stripping
In offset lithography, the positioning of negatives (or positives) prior to platemaking
Tack
Viscosity. Property of cohesion between particles of an ink against another surface. Tacky ink does not break apart readily
Text
Body matter of a page or book, as distinguished from headings
Throw-out
Folded map or plain printed and bound in a book to fold out to a size larger than the page size
Tints
Even tone area of a solid colour
Transparency
Monochrome or full-colour photographic positive or picture on a transparent support, intended for viewing and reproduction by transmitted light
Transparent ink
Inks which permit underprinting to show through; two colours blending to produce a third
Trapping of Inks
Proper trapping is the condition when the same amount of ink is transfers to previously printed ink as to blank paper
Trim
To take a small cut off the outer edge
Trim marks
Marks placed on copy to indicate the edge of the page for trimming
Underline
Rule printed under a word or words. Also for marking copy and proof
UCR (undercolour removal)
In process printing, colour separation films are reduced in colour in neutral areas where all three colours overprinted and the black film is increased in equivalent amount in these areas. This improves trapping and can reduce make-ready and ink costs
Up
In printing, two-up, three-up, etc. refers to imposition of material to be printed on a larger size sheet than would be necessary for only that material, to take advantage of full press capacity
UV
Ultraviolet rays used as an ink vehicle drying method
Vacuum frame
An exposure frame in which the negative (or positive) is held directly to the plate by vacuum
Varnish
Thin, protective coating applied to a printed sheet for protection or appearance. In inkmaking, it can be all or part of the ink vehicle
Verko
An embossed printing effect achieved by the use of special inks and powders
Vignette
Illustration in which the one fades gradually away until it blends into the unprinted paper
Viscosity
A broad term encompassing the properties of tack and flow of printing inks
Wash-up
Process of cleaning the rollers, forme or plate, and sometimes the fountain of a press
Watermark
A name or design impressed into paper by the raised pattern of the dandy roll during paper manufacture
Web press
A press which prints from rolls of paper
With the grain
A term applied to folding paper parallel to the grain of paper
Work and tumble
To print one side of a sheet of paper, then turn the sheet over from gripper to back using the same side guide and print the second side
Work and turn
To print one side of a sheet of paper, then turn the sheet over from left to right and print the second side. The same gripper is used for printing both sides
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Printing is a complex process that involves many areas. It takes many steps in production before you receive your final printed product. If you have ever wonder why it takes as long as it does to receive your job this brief description may explain why.
Quoting
Before a job is started, everything involved must be looked at to see the best way to produce the job and to remain in budget. Art time, plates, paper, press time, binding and delivery all have to be accounted for. When requesting a quote it is always beneficial to give as much information as possible.
Art Room
At JT-Press will have a complete art studio using the latest in software and hardware. We also have the ability to scan high quality, high resolution images from your original. (If you are supplying your own files please refer here for the correct method.) Once the job has been designed you will receive a proof. (even if the file is supplied you will still receive a proof) It is in your best interest to check your proof very carefully. Also, please return it as soon as possible to avoid extending the delivery date.
Digital Printing
If the job is going to one of our digital devices, once the proof is approved, it will then be imaged directly. From here the product may go to our binding section to be finished.
Pre-Press
Once a Proof is approved it then goes to our pre-press section.
The job will then be imposed and trapped on our state of the art PDF agfa workflow system. Plates are then run directly from our computer to plate (CTP) machine.
Press Room
The form of printing that we use at JT-Press is Offset Printing. This process runs along the principal that water and ink don't mix. Ink sticks to the imaged area on the plate. On the non image area water covers it and prevents the ink from transferring to the paper.
We can print in process colour and spot (pantone colours). 'Process Colour' means that 4 colours (cyan, magenta yellow and black) are mixed together in various screen percentages to make up many colours. If you look closely at a printed photo you will see dots of colour making up the image.
Depending on the paper and inks used the drying times may vary; some dry quite quickly, others can take several day's. If a job is cut or folded before it is dry it may result in offset of the image onto the back of the sheet on top of it or marking during the folding process.
Binding/Finishing
Once the job has had time to dry it will then go to binding. Binding may be as simple as cutting the job down on the guillotine and putting into boxes. Others may need to be collated, folded, die cut, embossed, numbered, foiled, drilled or many other specialised procedures. These steps may be very time consuming and labour intensive.
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Please read to avoid delays with your files:
If the file is to be printed to the edge of the paper, provide 3mm additional image beyond the crops.
When sending native application format files, also provide all external image files (tiff, eps). If supplying image files please send with a preferred resolution of 300 dpi at 100%. Convert colours from RBG to CMYK or grayscale as required.
Provide a composed print out for all pages for accurate output. If you are e-mailing your file, fax a hardcopy. The fax number for JT-Press is (07) 3284 1477.
Files can be supplied on CD, Zip or floppy disk. Files may also be emailed if the total size of the job is under 5mb. Files may be compressed using winzip or stuff-it.
If you are sending your file in a compatible native application format you should also provide all required fonts. Send both the screen font and printer font for ALL of the fonts that you have used in your file. Avoid using TrueType fonts as they do not print as reliably as PostScript fonts on all systems.
Files can be supplied in the following Programs (see Applications for Desktop Publishing)
Macintosh
QuarkXpress
Adobe Pagemaker
Adobe PhotoShop
Macromedia Freehand
Adobe Illustrator
Windows
CorelDraw
Adobe Pagemaker
QuarkXpress
Macromedia Freehand
Publisher (limited applications)
Word (limited applications)
Tips on Collecting Fonts
For Windows 95/98/NT:
Type 1 Fonts:
On your hard drive there should be a directory called \psfonts which contains [filename].pfb files. Within that directory is a directory called pfm\. This contains the [filename].pfm files. For each font send both the .pfm and the corresponding .pfb file.
True Type fonts:
In the control panel, open the fonts folder. Right click on the desired fonts, select "copy"and drag them into another folder. Then send us those files.
For Macintosh:
Type 1 Fonts:
Copy the screen fonts and printer fonts out of your System/Fonts folder.
True Type Fonts:
Copy the True Type font out of the System/Fonts folder.
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