Printing Terms and Glossary
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Tech Tips:

Old Ink – GATF says ink over one year old can cause problems, especially when printing on cast coated, matte or dull stocks. The driers become less effective, leading to possible set-off, and more rub and marking problems. Remember ink is a small cost when compared to the paper and labor costs to reprint a job.

First Class Mail Growing – In 2005 the U.S. Federal Reserve reported that house holds with internet access receive 30% to 38% more mail than homes without internet. They also note that the number of household using the internet is increasing (20,000 million more in 2005, than in 1997).

Printing on Plastic – GATF reports that when printing on plastic the “rings” or “patters” (and may feel rough to the touch) that sometimes appear, may be coming from static discharge in the press delivery. This may cause the anti set-off powder to form these patterns.

Postal Reform WWW site – International Paper (along with PIA/GATF) has a WWW site for postal reform information:
Click here for more info

Transparent Objects – PDF files created in In Design may contain “transparent objects”. Great for the designer but BAD for Postscript output devices that do not support transparent objects in a PDF. Starting with Acrobat 7, you can detect in a PDF, objects that are transparent, and perform “flatten transparency” without printing.

Mail List Cleaning – It as been suggested that about 17% of consumers move or change their name every year. Be sure to request that the mailing list be put through one of the “list cleaning” programs that most mail houses use. The cost may be far less than printing and mailing to bad addresses.

Resolution – The resolution of furnished images should be at least two times the line ruling that the project is being printed in. For example, if you are printing at 200 lines per inch, your images should be a minimum of 400dpi. Images grabbed off of the web will not be sufficient to use in commercial applications, as they are 72 dpi, and are RGB or indexed color. Be sure your images are cropped to the correct measurement or box size, and at the correct resolution, and then placed into your desktop publishing program, such as Quark Express or In Design. Never blow-up your images in your desktop publishing application, as that will reduce the effective resolution and the print quality will suffer.

Mail Eligibility Change – As of June 1, 2005 Standard Mail rates (as opposed to First Class rates) may apply for mail which includes “information specific to the recipient”. To view this new ruling and other USPS regulations got to: www.usps.com

Serifs Are Best - Study after study has shown the serif typefaces are more readable because the serifs give the brain more clues as to the meanings of the form of the letter.

2006 "Hot Colors" - The Pantone Color Institute has determined the "hot" colors for 2006 are: chocolate brown, power blue, burnt orange, apple red, and yellow green.