Developments in Prepress Technology (PDFDrive)

Developments in Prepress Technology
Paul Lindström
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© Copyright
Pira International Ltd 2006
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Contents
List of figures v AppleScript and Automator 24

Executive summary vii
1
Visual Basic and Javascript 25
Automated impositioning 25
Presettings 25
Middleware and help tools 26
Developments in computer-to-plate
Introduction 1 production 27
Scope 1 Processless plates 27
Methodology 1 Violet vs thermal 28
Definitions 1
2
Developments in screening
technology 28
DI presses 29
Digital presses 30
JDF – the glue in a complex workflow 31
4
Quality assurance 7
Colour management 7
How it all begins 8
Characterisation of devices 11
Measure and calculate colour
Collaborative workflows 33
deviation 11
Digital asset management (DAM) 33
Proofing 12
Metadata 33
How to verify a proof 14
Versioning 35
How to verify a softproof viewed on a
Web interface and plug-ins 35
monitor 14
Colour management and image
Preflight 15
processing 36
Early preflight 16
Database support and portability 36
Server-based preflight 16
The X-files 17 Digital Rights Management (DRM) 37
Adobe PDF Print Engine 18 Editorial systems 37
Microsoft XML Paper Specification Web publishing systems 38
(XPS) 18 Collaborative softproofing systems 39
Press control systems 19 Notification tools and web interface 39
Examples of press control systems 19 Pixel streaming 40
JDF 21 Preflight 40
3
Colour management 40
IT and security 41
JDF integration 41
Quark XPress7 41
Automation 23 Adobe Version Cue and WebDAV 42
Macros and Hot Folders 23 JDF and collaborative workflows 42
Page iii © Copyright Pira International Ltd 2006

Contents
5
Web to print, print on demand 49
JDF and databases 49
Database driven production 45

Management information systems
(MIS) 45
Cross media publishing 47
6
End-user trends 51
Publishing 51
Personalised print, print on demand 48 Packaging print production 52
Page iv © Copyright Pira International Ltd 2006

List of figures
2.1 Poor spectral distribution of office 3.1 An example of a fully automated DI
fluorescent light tubes 9 press 29
2.2 The spectral distribution of light from 3.2 The Kodak VersaMark digital
a light source conforming to D50 10 press 30
Page © Copyright Pira International Ltd 2006

Executive summary
Prepress technology has entered a slightly less hectic phase after years of intense and
often dramatic changes in the execution of graphic arts production. This has generally
meant moving from a craft process, often involving many analogue components, to an
increasingly digitised and abstract production process. The internet has become the
natural communication channel for graphic arts production, and more and more software
and production systems rely on web browser technologies to interact with users.
Since page design and page creation is often the responsibility of the print buyer
and/or publisher, special attention has to be paid at the transfer points, where documents
move from one workflow stage or subprocess, to another. It is crucial to establish where
quality controls should be applied and who is responsible for them.
There are three main areas to be covered when establishing a highly efficient,
productive and profitable workflow: quality assurance, automation, and means to establish
network-based collaboration on projects.
In particular the following aspects are covered to provide examples of how to achieve
this:
 A key area of quality assurance is well-implemented and fully understood colour
management, both in regard to which measuring devices are needed, and which
software to use.
 Another important area of quality assurance is to establish preflight checks in the
workflow, and tightly integrate them into approval cycles.
 Automation can be done through extensive use of macros and scripting or custom-
tailored programming. Apple Script, Java Script and Visual Basic are examples of
suitable tools for this.
 Another important way to achieve a high degree of automation is to preset devices in
the workflow using the JDF (job definition format).
 Automated impositioning, presetting of CTP devices, printing presses and bindery
equipment should be a natural and integral part of modern print production.
 Many publishing scenarios call for teamwork based and collaborative types of
workflow. This in turn makes it necessary to introduce efficient databases in more
places in the workflow.
 In order to facilitate search and retrieval of documents, metadata has to be applied
to the files in the databases. Digital asset management (DAM) systems are examples
of where databases come into play, and rich metadata is essential.
 Introducing or expanding your present management information system (MIS) system
will help to facilitate efficient order management. Cost effective print production of
very short runs, down to one copy in personalised print, is another example where the
use of databases is essential.
 The predominant document formatting technology at the moment is XML, and it is
used throughout a modern publishing workflow. One application built on XML is JDF,
and it is a fair guess that the uptake of JDF will be substantial over the next two or
three years.
Page vii © Copyright Pira International Ltd 2006

Introduction
1
The days of staggeringly fast developments and changes in graphics arts production seem
to be over, at least for a while. The introduction of personal computers, Postscript and
soon after that, the arrival of the internet, had a dramatic impact on how publishing is
done today. However, today’s technology base has largely stabilised.
Scope Currently we are seeing a steady consolidation of how new technologies are used in
everyday work. In this study the objective is to identify the tools and means now available
to establish efficient workflows, signified by means for quality assurance and automation,
as well as network-based collaboration.
With an entirely digital workflow in place at most printers and publishers around
the world, the task now is to redefine how to ensure quality assurance, establish who is
responsible for what in the workflow and develop new print applications.
With new workflows come new ways to automate for efficiency. The internet has
brought additional ways to collaborate when proofing, to reduce errors and gain precious
time. Collaborative workflows also rely to a high degree on efficient and robust databases,
containing relevant and useful metadata.
Methodology There are few books entirely devoted to modern prepress workflows, so this technology
report is based on a wide selection of sources, ranging from what has been published in
both domestic and international trade magazines, observations from attending most of
the major trade shows as well as many special seminars, particularly in Europe and, of
course, visits to customer sites.
When possible, technologies and software have been tested for their specific uses,
be it colour management software and measuring devices, monitors, softproofing
systems, colour printers, DI presses, screening technologies or press control systems. When
statements are based on hands-on testing, this is indicated in the text. In addition to
documentation from vendors and distributors, both printers and publishers have been
interviewed in order to obtain different perspectives on trends and developments in the
market.
Definitions When describing modern prepress workflows and network-based production, it is impossible
not to use and introduce a lot of technical terminology, including a range of IT terms and
acronyms. Some of these are therefore listed below, to help in understanding the text.
AM screen
Amplitude modulated screen technology. The most commonly used system to generate
one-bit dot patterns on film or plate to create the appearance of greyscales in print.
Bitmaps
One-bit dot patterns created on paper, film or printing plates to generate the image to be
reproduced.

Introduction
CIE
Commission Internationale de l’Eclairage. The organisation that created standardised ways
to describe and calculate colour conversions.
CIELab
The CIE colour space, a three-dimensional, approximately uniform colour space
produced by plotting L*, a*, b* values in rectangular coordinates, where L is luminance
(brightness), the a-axis are red to green colours and the b-axis are yellow to blue colours.
CIP4
Cooperation for the Integration of Processes in Prepress, Press, and Postpress. The
successor of CIP3, develops the Job Definition Format (JDF), the data standard for
electronic ‘job bags’.
CMYK – cyan, magenta, yellow, key (black)

The four subtractive process colours used in printing. Cyan, magenta and yellow are
the inverse of red, green and blue, and produce black when printed on white stock. But
the black produced by mixing C, M and Y is not pure (dark) enough for most printing
purposes, so black ink is included as the fourth colour. The black is referred to as K for key
– a shorthand for the printing term ‘key plate’ – because it is ‘key’ to producing accurate
darks.
Colour gamut
The range of colours in a scene or image, or that can be created on a particular output
device and/or medium.
CTP
Computer to plate – a technology to produce printing plates without the use of repro
films as an intermediate medium.
DAM system
Digital asset management system. A database for all the documents used in the
publishing process. By using indexes and rich metadata the documents can be fast and
easily retrieved by searching the database.
Delta E
A formula to calculate the difference between two colours, expressed in CIELab. The E is
generally understood to mean ‘error’, and is correctly written ∆E.
Desktop publishing
A phrase strongly associated with Paul Brainerd, founder of Aldus (later bought by

1
Introduction
Adobe). The layout software PageMaker was the first software that allowed users of
standard PCs to set up a complete publishing system on their desktop, assuming you had
a laser printer at your side. Thus the term 'desktop publishing' was coined.
DI press
Direct imaging press. This is a type of press with a built-in plate setter. While often
referred to as digital presses, the DI presses actually cannot produce variable data
printing.
FOGRA
German research association for the graphic arts industries (originally called Deutsche
Gesellschaft zur Förderung der Forschung im graphischen Gewerbe). FOGRA collaborate
tightly with several standards organisations like for example the ISO (International
Standardisation Organisation) and ICC (International Color Consortium).

Grey balance
The set of tone values for cyan, magenta and yellow on colour separation films or in a
data file, appearing as an achromatic colour under certain viewing or printed conditions.
HTTP
HyperText Transfer Protocol, a communications protocol for linking electronic documents
via specific points within the document.
ICC profiles
Data files describing how a certain device, be it a digital camera, scanner, monitor or
colour printer, will render colours when a given input value is applied. The ICC standard is
developed by the International Color Consortium (www.icc.org).
IPTC
International Press Telecommunications Council. Responsible for metadata standards used
for image and newspaper content delivery.
ISO
International Organisation for Standardisation. This is the body responsible for framing
and publishing international standards. ISO is not an acronym; it comes from the Greek
word iσος (isos), meaning ‘equal’.
JDF
Job Definition Format. A digital job-ticketing specification, based on XML, developed by
members of the CIP4 organisation.

Introduction
JPEG
Joint Photographic Experts Group. A popular file format for compressed image files. JPEG
files have .jpg or .jpeg extensions.
MIS system
Management information system. A collection of software to handle cost estimates,
logistics, planning and scheduling as well as customer relations management. Fully
implemented a MIS-system help the management to extract production and cost statistics,
information about customer satisfaction and behaviour, and from that make strategic
business decisions.
Metadata
The data associated with a digital file, the information about the information.
Moiré
The unwanted pattern, artefacts or visual interference produced between multiple two-
dimensional periodic (repeated) structures.
OPI
Open Prepress Interface. A link between a low resolution copy and a high resolution
image file. The low resoution version is the working version, with the high resolution
image replacing it when the file is RIPped (see below) for output.
PDF
Portable Document Format. A device-independent (more or less) digital file format. PDF
files have a .pdf extension.
PDF/X
PDF exchange. The PDF eXchange data formats restrict the characteristics of a PDF
to production-specific criteria. There are several iterations of PDF/X, some of which
are recognised international standards, and others which are endorsed by graphic
organisations, but are not official standards.
PDL
Page Description Language. A standardised way to format the data to be imaged on
screen or a substrate, be it film, paper or plates. Examples of PDLs are AFP (IBM), CT/LW
(Scitex), GRO (Barco), HPGL (Hewlett-Packard), Interpress (Xerox), PDF (Adobe), PostScript
(Adobe), PPML (Podi), SGML and XML (World Wide Web Consortium, W3C).
PJTF
Portable Job Ticket Format. Adobe’s job ticketing format, now subsumed into JDF.

1
Introduction
PODI
Print On Demand Initiative. A membership organisation for digital printing technology
developers.
PostScript
A page description language from Adobe that has come to dominate page production in
the graphics arts since its introduction 1983. Recently Adobe has changed to PDF as its
preferred format, and further development of Postscript is not expected.
PPF
Print production format. Developed by CIP3 for exchanging prepress data with press
control and finishing systems. Now subsumed into JDF.
PPML
Personalised Print Markup Language. An XML-based standard for managing variable data
content elements for output on a digital press.
Prepress
The sub-processes of file preparation between the document origination and plate
production in a print production process.
Preflight
The process of analysing native or PDF digital files prior to their insertion in a prepress
workflow, or before outputting the job to print, to ensure they are ready for their intended
purpose.
RGB
A colorimetric colour space with three colour primaries, red, green and blue. Commonly
used to define colours in digital cameras, scanners and monitors.
RIP
Raster image processor. A device to interpret and process the page description data and
then render it into a one-bit dot pattern that is used to output to film, printing plates or
paper.
SGML
Standard generalised markup language. Developed in 1969 by Charles F Goldfarb
(together with Edward Mosher and Raymond Lorie – the acronym GML represents those
gentlemen), while working at IBM.

Introduction
SWOP
Specifications for Web Offset Publications. A printing standard mainly for the US market.
Is about to be aligned with the ISO 12647 printing standard.
WebDAV
Web-based Distributed Authoring and Versioning. A set of extensions to HTTP. WebDAV
is basically a network protocol capable of generating network based activities among
collaborative authoring technologies. In other words, as long as networked servers use the
WebDAV protocol, collaborative stuff can happen without having to invest in additional
collaboration-enabled technologies.
XML
eXtensible Markup Language. A page description language derived from SGML.
XPS
XML Paper Specification. Microsoft’s Page Description Language, developed for Windows
Vista. Also a document exchange format, similar to PDF.

Quality assurance
2
Print quality is at the heart of publishing and printing. Quality assurance for print
depends on many factors, beginning with file creation and ending with measured and
visually inspected sheets on the press. In a digital workflow where content is described
electronically, the content is vulnerable as it passes from stage to stage in the production
process, that is, each ‘phase change’ needs to be monitored and handled with extra
care. Colour control is one of the most important considerations for print quality, as are
checking the printability of documents which are delivered electronically. It all comes
down to process management.
While colour management is not a new thing as such, the all-digital colour workflow
makes its own, to some extent new, demands on software and hardware. It is still a
challenge to achieve and maintain a fully colour-managed publishing workflow, but all
the tools are now finally there to support it.
When much of the work on design, layout and page origination is digital, the files
that are submitted for eventual publication are, of course, in an electronic format. The
format that totally dominates electronic file delivery is Adobe’s PDF (Portable Document
Format), and the typical way to check PDF files for production readiness and printability is
referred to as preflight. Preflight checking is the first step towards print quality assurance.
There is a range of software and system solutions available to help printing and
publishing professionals to establish an efficient and reliable check-in station for receiving
files for the publishing process. ‘Preflight’ is a term borrowed from aviation, meaning
checks performed by pilots to ensure that an aircraft is safe before take off. A check-in
station in a prepress department (where preflight should typically be performed) means
a dedicated place or sub-process where incoming documents and materials are cleared
before being allowed further into the workflow.
Correct handling of print orders calls for complete and easy-to-read order forms,
which provide the basis for job bags. Job bags and the information they contain is the
first step in establishing a quality assured production process. In our digital era, job
bags need to be digital, and the recommended format for electronic job bags is JDF (job
definition format). No future digital workflow can ignore JDF, and already today many
printers and publishers are benefiting hugely from the early investments they have made
into JDF. One important way to establish quality assurance objectives is to measure
quality, and to do so regularly. The JDF format makes it possible for an electronic job bag
to be the transport vehicle for both what is to be monitored and measured, as well as the
measurement data itself. JDF is capable of much more than this, so every chapter of this
study will explain how JDF can come naturally into play at more or less every step of the
print production process, starting with job submission. Which ICC profile to use with a
certain paper, for the printing process at hand, is just one example of data that the JDF
job ticket can contain.
Colour management Modern colour management started around 1993 with the introduction of the ICC
standard, developed and published by the International Color Consortium (ICC). The

Quality assurance
objective was to offer a framework and procedure to establish a device-independent

means of communicating colour across computer platforms and operating systems.
The first solutions, including both hardware and software, were not fully functional,
and for some time ICC-based colour management lost credibility and was not considered
feasible for professionally colour print quality management. Of course inadequate
software programming and functional implementation can be corrected. Today, with
version 4 of the ICC profile format, it is safe to say that a fully colour-managed workflow
can be established using proven, well-tested and widely implemented ICC profiles for each
device in the workflow. These can be digital cameras, scanners, monitors, colour printers or
printing presses.
How it all begins Almost all books on colour management tend to begin with an introduction describing
the nature of light, colours, and how we humans interpret the visual stimulations of
light into coloured images in the brain. While the nature of light and colour is a very
interesting topic, today you do not actually need to be a colour scientist or engineer to
put a colour-managed workflow in place. Any experienced scanner or press operator can
use their existing knowledge of how to colour separate RGB pictures into printable CMYK
data, and apply it to a workflow that uses ICC profiles. ICC profiles offer a very flexible
way of managing images, as well as a means of creating customised colour conversions at
the last minute for different types of publishing and print output.
Some basic knowledge of light and its appearance does help in understanding the
various processes involved, especially when it comes to trying to understand the inherent
limitations of the devices involved. Not all devices can reproduce all the visible colours,
and not all measuring devices read and measure colours in the same way as humans
perceive colour.
We humans only see a limited part of the energy radiation called light. Visible light
for us is the part of the spectrum between around 385nm (nanometres) and 720nm.
Below this is UV light, and above 720nm is infrared radiation, which we cannot see but
can feel because it is heat.
Electronic devices used to measure and analyse light mimic the human eye’s way
of detecting it; that is through registering the three primary colourants in emitted light,
the red, green and blue parts of the spectrum. A digital camera, scanner, colorimeter
or spectrophotometer basically does a similar job to the cones in the human retina and
detects the proportions of emitted RGB in the analysed light. The trick is to transfer those
colours into print on some kind of substrate, most commonly onto paper. This is done
by using the subtractive counterparts to RGB, which are the cyan, magenta and yellow,
or CMY, ink set. When using CMY in print we can, theoretically at least, reproduce all
the corresponding colours as you could when using the additive colour setup RGB. In
practice the limitations of both substrates and ink formulas falls somewhat short of this
theoretical goal. However it comes close enough to trick the eye into accepting a good
match between the captured image, presented on film or on a monitor, and the printed

2
Quality assurance
reproduction. Getting as close as possible is what quality assurance for colour print is all
about. For example we can manipulate a CMY-based colour image to improve its contrast
by adding black ink in the deep shadow areas. Black plays an important role in print
quality management, hence the black is referred to as the key colour, or K.
To be able to see and judge colours we need light, so quality control processes
start with the quality of the light used to view them. When we look at printed proofs or
press prints we need to understand that the perceived colours vary depending on the
light source. Tungsten lamps, which are generally used indoors, create a warm yellowish
light, while florescent light tubes can produce light with a very different, bluish colour
temperature. A complication in predicting colour appearance in a particular artificial
light is that different light sources have different spectral distribution of the wavelengths.
Some types of lamps, such as energy saving street lamps (where the problem is at its most
extreme), lack whole sections of visible light and so cannot show the full range of an
object’s colours.
FIGURE 2.1 Poor spectral distribution of office fluorescent light tubes

*OUFOTJUZ

8BWFMFOHUI
Source: Robin D Meyers, using SpectraShop
It is important to use a light source with a good spectral distribution for proofing. Non-
specified fluorescent tubes for office light, like the ones represented in the diagram above,
will not show colours correctly.
Natural outdoor light varies with the seasons, the actual local weather situation and
what time of the day it is, and these factors must also be considered for quality control.
When we talk about ‘daylight’, we are actually referring to something that is quite vague.
Fortunately we have references for some commonly used light sources that simulate
daylight, so that it can be better defined. Daylight for the northern hemisphere is called
D65, defined by the CIE (Commission Internationale de l'Eclairage, which is the French title
of the international commission on light). A light source conforming to D65 has a colour
temperature of 6,500K (Kelvin), and an even distribution of the wavelengths within the

Quality assurance
whole visible spectrum. The term Kelvin refers to the electromagnetic radiation a so called
‘black body’ would emit at a certain temperature.
While daylight conditions according to D65 often are used for photography, these are
not commonly used as reference in print and publishing. Much printed matter is viewed
indoors using light sources varying from tungsten lamps (light bulbs) and many types
of fluorescent light tubes. These light sources produce light with a colour temperature
between 3,000–5,000K. As a compromise between indoor light sources and ‘standard’
daylight of 6,500K, most printers and publishers have agreed to use proofing light
conforming to another standard called D50. This means a light source of 5,000K and a
good spectral distribution of wavelengths in the visible spectrum.
FIGURE 2.2 The spectral distribution of light from a light source conforming to D50

*OUFOTJUZ

8BWFMFOHUI
Source: Robin D Meyers, using SpectraShop
All printing standards assume proofing at 5,000K, using a light source with a spectral
distribution similar to the one represented in the diagram above. This will show colours
correctly.
But it is not enough to define the colour temperature of the light source. We also
need to specify how bright (intense) this light has to be, to show the colours accurately.
Many proofs are viewed under office lighting, which may or may not create a reasonable
match with how the final print will look in correct lighting situations, say at D50 and
at sufficient brightness of at least 1,500Lux. Lux is the unit we refer to when describing
the brightness of light reflected from a surface. The different ISO standards regarding
proofing, most of all ISO 3664, specifies that the light intensity in the viewing booth
should be between 1,500 and 2,500Lux.
It is important that printers communicate to their customers the necessity of
evaluating proofs using the correct type of light source at high enough light intensity.
Sometimes the confusion starts at the printer’s side, since the viewing light at, for
example, the press control panel, is often said by the press operators to be similar to
Page 10 © Copyright Pira International Ltd 2006

2
Quality assurance
‘daylight’, which a photographer would probably understand as being D65. At a press or in

a viewing booth, it is more likely to be a light source conforming to D50, not D65. It should
be D50 because all printing standards assume D50 as the reference white point (colour
temperature). D50 is the basis for both ISO 12647 and SWOP (Specifications for Web Offset
Publications), and D50 is also what is assumed in ICC profiles for output devices. So be
precise, do not just say ‘daylight’, rather specify exactly what you mean by this.
Characterisation of According to the ICC standard, in a quality assured colour managed workflow all devices
devices contributing to colour production need to be characterised. The best way to do this is first
to calibrate and linearise the devices, in order to get them into a known and predictable
behavioural state. The next step is to output a test page with known colour content, or
for input devices – capture a test image consisting of colour patches which have been
measured beforehand using a spectrophotometer. The resulting ICC profile consists of an
LUT (Look Up Table), with the device specific colour measurements in one column, and
another column with the corresponding colour values expressed as CIELab. With the help
of the ICC profiles, the CMM (Colour Management Module) in the computer’s operating
system can convert the colours from one device to another, be it a scanner, monitor, colour
printer or printing press.
It may be worthwhile pointing out that the ICC profiles themselves do not correct for
any inaccuracies in the devices. An ICC profile simply describes what colours the device
will produce for a given combination of device-specific colour values. The clever thing
about this is that the CMM still may be able to compute what values are required in order
to obtain the desired colours.
Measure and calculate A lot of the time we express colours by borrowing terms and expressions from nature,
colour deviation – the word ‘orange’ being perhaps the most obvious. But expressions like ‘sky blue’, ‘apple
∆E (Delta E) green’, ‘blood red’, and even ‘orange’ are all very subjective, and therefore quite crude
tools to use for specifying colours. Even a colour which we think is well defined, for
example the process colour cyan, varies in appearance depending on the substrate we
print on, the ink density we apply, the printing technology we use, which ink manufacturer
we buy the ink from and the ink recipes manufacturers use. A patch of 100% cyan can
look very different depending on production, printing and viewing circumstances. To avoid
the problems connected to trying to specify which RGB or CMYK values are relevant for
what device, an ICC-based colour managed workflow defines all colours by referring to
CIELab. Colour definition has been continually developed by the CIE over the years, a
work that started as long ago as 1931. CIElab is not only for the graphic arts industry. It
is also used in colour science and in all the types of industries that need to communicate
and control colours.
To be able to measure colours, and express them in the CIELab colour system,
you need a colorimeter, or even better, a spectrophotometer. Printers have been using

Quality assurance
densitometers for a long time, to measure the ink density on paper, but a densitometer
cannot tell if, for example, the cyan ink really is exactly the expected colour. A
densitometer is actually ‘colour blind’ – it relies on filters inside the device to suggest
that the density values (which in reality are greyscale values) that are measured are to be
connected to the cyan colour.
By contrast a spectrophotometer measures the spectral composition of the reflected
light, and then delivers a precise value, expressed in CIELab, for that particular colour.
By using a special mathematical formula it is possible to then compute any colour
difference, colour error if you like, and express this as ∆E (Delta E).
For quality assurance it is extremely important to learn how to use spectrophotometers
in the print workflow, and to express colour differences as a value of ∆E. It is also important
to build up a sense of what different ∆E values mean in actual appearance. Is ∆E4 a big
colour difference? Is ∆E8? In general, human beings are supposed to be able to detect a
colour difference corresponding to a ∆E value of one, but this requires very good lighting
conditions, and a flawless capacity for colour discrimination. Only about 16% of the human
population has what is called superior colour discrimination capacity, so in reality most of us
do not notice a colour difference until it has reached about ∆E2.
When it comes to a reasonable, or tolerable, colour difference in print production, the
German research institute for the graphic arts, FOGRA, suggests ∆E4 as an acceptable
average colour difference for proofs and print runs. This is quite generous and for specific
spot colours, for example those used in corporate logos, a printer should aim for a colour
difference of at, or below, ∆E2.
If you are not sure about your colour discrimination capacity, you might want to
take the Farnsworth-Munsell 100 Hue Test. It only takes about 10–15 minutes, and the
feedback given after the test informs you of any weaknesses in your colour vision. Scanner
operators, people working with image retouching, designers and press operators, should
actually take this test in order to ensure that they are aware of any weakness in their
capacity for colour discrimination. The Farnsworth-Munsell test can be obtained through
X-Rite (formerly Gretag Macbeth).
Proofing Proofing is perhaps the most fundamental tool for quality control, starting with content
creation and relied upon right up to the production of contract proofs. Once you are
confident that you have no serious flaws in your colour discrimination, it is time to decide
on what type of proofing processes you need in the workflow. Traditionally, films used
to image plates were also used to produce analogue proofs, but the industry is steadily
moving over to direct-to-plate output and with computer-to-plate production (CTP) there
are no films. We need some kind of alternative digital proofing system.
There are many digital proofing systems on the market for both softcopy and
hardcopy proofing, and they differ in capacity in one important aspect. Few of them can
create true screen-accurate proofs. Since the analogue proofing systems used the repro
film as the base for the proofs in systems such as Chromalin and Matchprint, they also

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had exactly the same dot structure in the screen; the same screen resolution. Many digital
proofing systems can also create accurate dot proofs.
Post-digital proofing systems on the market today use high resolution inkjet colour
printers to output the printed proofs, and an inkjet printer normally uses some type of
FM screen (frequency modulated) for output. FM screening is often called stochastic
screening. Because FM screen dots are randomly placed, if there is any risk of moiré in the
final print, inkjet based proofing systems cannot warn you beforehand if moiré is likely
to be present. Nor can all monitor-based softproofing systems predict moiré, so if you are
concerned about moiré in the final print, you need a proofing system that can produce
screen-accurate proofs, often called dot proofers. It is very demanding for a proofing
system to be both colour and screen dot accurate, so be prepared to pay considerably
more for a screen-accurate proofing system.
Most printers and publishers consider moiré to be a minor problem, especially when
using FM screens or high resolution AM screens (Amplitude Modulated) or hybrid screens
combining FM and AM technologies. When using conventional AM screens, higher screen
resolution than about 175lpi (screen lines per inch) is seldom used, and the dot patterns
can easily be noticed by the naked eye.
When using FM screens and hybrid screens the apparent screen resolution is often
much higher than when using conventional AM screens, so there is almost no visible
moiré in the print. In this case it is safe to use an inkjet-based digital proofing system
without needing to worry about moiré in the images.
All output devices need a RIP (raster image processor) to process the page data for
correct image rendering, colour conversion and screening. An RIP is often called the front-
end to, for example a CTP device. In graphic arts production the RIPs need to be able
to handle both Postscript and PDF, since these are without question the most commonly
used PDLs (Page Description Languages) used in high-end production. The three basic
processes in a RIP are interpretation, rendering and screening, but in server-based RIPs,
often called RIP systems, there are commonly several other sub processes possible. This
can be preflight, imposition, colour management, JDF-based automation and OPI, among
others. A single output device, for example a colour printer, can perform very differently
depending on what front-end (RIP) or RIP system it is connected to and driven by.
Connected to one RIP it may not produce accurate colours or print at impressive speeds,
while using another front-end both colour rendering and speed may be much better.
There are several vendors of stand-alone proofing systems including CGS, Colorbus,
Colorgate, Dupont, Efi, Fujifilm, GMG, Kodak and Perfectproof. Most of the modern RIP
systems used as front-ends to CTP devices also offer some sort of proofing module, well
integrated with the system. One benefit of having an integrated proofing solution in the
RIP system is that it will be one and the same Postscript and PDF interpreter used for both
the proofer and the image setter and/or CTP output. This minimises the risk of slightly
different rendering results, which might occur using two different RIPs, each of which use
their own algorithms for calculating the output bitmaps.

Quality assurance
How to verify a proof One of the benefits of the ICC standard is the possibility to simulate the colour output of
one device on another. Typically, this means that you can use either a colour printer or a
monitor to proof the final printed result expected from a press. Of course for the proofs to
be accurate, the device needs to be able to create at least the same colour gamut as the
printing press, and the colour conversion needs to be precise and accurate.
A popular reference test chart for proofers is the FOGRA Media Wedge. It consists
of 46 colour patches of different CMYK combinations and the expected target values,
expressed in CIELab, and it can be used to verify whether a proof is sufficiently accurate.
There are different tolerance thresholds for the paper white value, the primaries, and the
average colour error of all the patches. An acceptable proof should have a paper white
that does not differ from actual stock by more than ∆E3. No single colour patch should
differ by more than ∆E10, and the primary colours CMYK should not differ by more than
∆E5 for a 100% solid patch of colour. On average all of the 46 colour patches on the
FOGRA Media Wedge should not exceed a colour difference of more than ∆E4. Many of
the advanced proofing systems from companies such as Agfa, CGS, Efi, GMG, Kodak and
Perfectproof can produce proofs that have a colour deviation on average of less than ∆E2,
when measuring the FOGRA Media Wedge.
Another commonly used test chart for digital proofing systems is the Altona Test
Suite, designed by the ECI (European Color Initiative) in cooperation with FOGRA and
the German trade association of printers, BVDM. The FOGRA Media Wedge is part of the
Altona Test Suite, but the three different test pages also test a range of functions in the
RIP system used to produce them. The file format for the test pages is PDF/X-3 (more of
which later), and several issues regarding overprint and transparency are covered in the
tests.
Along with the full set of the Altona Test Suite come reference prints, made on all the
five paper types referred to in the ISO 12647 print standard. The Altona Test Suite package
can be ordered via the ECI web site, or directly at the web site www.altonatestsuite.com.
How to verify a In the summer of 2006, FOGRA launched UGRA Display Analysis and Certify Tool
softproof, viewed on (UDACT), a software tool which uses the same set of 46 colour patches as the FOGRA
a monitor Media Wedge to verify a monitor. The problem and challenge for checking a monitor
is that it is difficult to specify a colour on the monitor, and to then try and read that
colour accurately using a spectrophotometer. It is difficult to avoid the effects of the
image editing or page layout software’s automatic colour management. This needs to be
taken into account for quality assurance, so it is best to work as much as possible with
application-specific colour management switched off.
FOGRA and UGRA (the Swiss equivalent of FOGRA) have cooperated with the
German monitor manufacturer Quato to develop dedicated software that can be used to
check a monitor’s calibration and colour accuracy. Based roughly on the same threshold
values as the FOGRA Media Wedge, which is used for verifying hardcopy proofs, UDACT
specifies whether a monitor is colour accurate enough to serve as a high-end softproofing

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device. The monitor in question will be classified for use in one of five categories,
depending how well it scores. The highest quality level is a category called MultiColor,
High Body printing. This means that the monitor can be used to correctly proof the very
large colour gamut of high quality printing, using more than the usual four colours of
CMYK. The second quality level refers to printing on coated stock, using CMYK only.
Meeting the demands for the third level means that the monitor is only suitable for
proofing print on uncoated paper. On the fourth level a monitor is judged to be able to do
proofing for newsprint, and the fifth and lowest level suggests the monitor is to be used
only for non-colour critical work and layout purposes.
For a printer or publisher the UDACT software is a useful tool that can provide an
objective evaluation for checking which monitors in the workflow can be trusted for
quality softproofing. Monitors age, and after about three to four years most of them will
have lost the colour gamut they once had. Such monitors are not suitable for reliable
evaluations of colour-accurate images.
LCD monitors are becoming increasingly popular for on-screen proofing within
a quality controlled production workflow. When purchasing new LCD monitors it is
important to check that the colours on screen do not change at all with the viewing
angle. While the technical specification for a LCD monitor often assures a viewing angle
of around 170° both vertically and horizontally, in reality many LCD monitors show
considerable colour shifts, even with small changes to the viewing angle. This sort of
variance is not acceptable in high-end image and colour analysis, so be prepared to spend
a little more to get consistency. It is worth it.
Unfortunately the UDACT tool does not test a monitor’s performance at different
viewing angles, but it is quite easy to set up your own test image to do this. Create a
series of grey colour patches, starting with black, then make small incremental steps
up to mid grey. Then continue with grey patches through the highlights, ending with a
pure white patch. When looking at those patches, both in shadow areas, mid tones and
highlights, there should be no change of appearance whatever the viewing angle. If there
is any variation in appearance, the monitor cannot be considered suitable for high-end
softproofing, even if it has passed the UDACT certification process. The UDACT tool can
be purchased through FOGRA and UGRA, and through their distributors.
Preflight One of the most important tools for quality assurance is the use of preflight early in the
workflow. The term itself was coined for the graphic arts by the American technical writer
and consultant Chuck Weger in the early 1990s. The term preflight had of course been
used much earlier than that, within aviation, but Chuch Weger applied it to the publishing
industry. It sums up well the requirement for checks on digital documents, in order to
make sure they can be accurately printed.
The Adobe PDF format (Portable Document Format) has become the preferred file
format for document interchange worldwide. However not all PDF-files are suitable for
high-quality printed output, so great effort was put into the development of defining a

Quality assurance
subset of PDF. Over the years, several subsets have been defined and this series ensures
printable PDFs suitable for a range of output applications. We refer to this as the PDF/X
standard, with the X standing for exchangeable. More on the various PDF/X standards
later. First some general words on preflight.
Early preflight While it is important to check incoming files at the prepress department before trying to
output plates, it is even better to check documents for printability throughout the design
and creation phases. There are several ways of doing this, either directly in the layout
software, for example in Adobe InDesign or Quark XPress, or in stand-alone preflight
software.
Although it is possible to detect some errors in documents using the preflight tools
included in InDesign and Quark XPress, a really extensive and full preflight is only possible
using dedicated software from companies like Callas, Enfocus, Markzware and One Vision.
A good preflight software tool helps to alert a designer to errors, such as having forgotten
to add bleed to pictures when placing them at the page borders, or using non-printable,
very thin line widths.
Some of these stand-alone preflight software packages are available in so called
‘light’ or ‘designer’ versions at lower prices, to make them more accessible. It is well
worth the time and effort to persuade and educate designers to use preflight software
on documents before submitting them for print. It ensures quality control early in the
production process which ultimately saves time later on.
Server-based preflight Several of the stand alone preflight solutions are server based and offer a high degree
of automation. Examples of such tools are Enfocus Pitstop Server and Pitstop Automate,
Markzware Flightcheck Online and Flightcheck Workflow and One Vision Asura Enterprise.
Another specialist in preflight and secure file delivery is the former Quickcut, now
Adstream, with software solutions like PageStore and Quickprint.
There are even software solutions to automate file management and preflight, such
as the Switch software from Gradual Software. Switch can automate file management
from different mail servers and FTP, and organise preflight checking based on several
different preflight solutions from some of the vendors mentioned earlier.
Most RIP systems also offer preflight as part of the workflow, either based on their
own developments, or by integrating third-party preflight solutions. One of the most
frequent third-party preflight solutions integrated into RIP systems is the Enfocus Pitstop
Server. Why Pitstop has become so popular in the market is to a great extent down to
the incorporated PDF Certify technology, also developed by Enfocus. In short this means
that a history log is saved inside the PDF file, where for example all changes to a PDF
file are saved. Most importantly, the software keeps track of whether the PDF file has
been successfully preflighted or not, including information about preflight profile used.
So once a PDF file has been successfully preflighted, it does not need to undergo time
consuming preflight again in the workflow, and this is ensured by the server software

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checking the ‘Certify’ tag inside the PDF. The technology improves process efficiency as
well as providing quality management, and a lot of industry organisations have decided
to recommend that their members use the Enfocus Certify PDF technology for safe and
efficient file management.
The X-files It’s impossible to talk about quality assured PDF files and preflight, without explaining
the PDF/X standard. The initiative to develop PDF/X was taken by DDAP (Digital
Distribution of Advertising for Publishing) in the US in 1998. Since then the ongoing work
to redefine and further develop this standard has been transferred to CGATS (Committee
for Graphic Arts Technology Standards. PDF/X is now an ISO standard, and the 2003
revision supports PDF version 1.4 to some extent (except for transparency). While the PDF/
X standard works well in most publishing scenarios, the problem is that Adobe launched
PDF version 1.6 with Adobe Creative Suite 2 in 2005. One of the features of CS2 is the
extended support for using transparency in the document design, and embedding this in
the PDF files. The problem is that Postscript does not support this, and neither does the
present PDF/X standards.
Work is underway, and we can expect a new series of PDF/X in 2007, to fully support
PDF files and embedded transparency settings in version 1.6 of the Adobe PDF file format.
One of the most simple and straightforward ways to test if a RIP correctly processes a
PDF/X file is to use this test file, provided for free by Global Graphics on its website. If the
RIP does not handle overprint correctly a large ‘X’ appears in one or several of the grey
boxes.
Several industry organisations have adopted the PDF/X standard for file delivery.
The UK-based Periodical Publishers Association has published a best practices set it calls
‘pass4press’ as a guideline for how to create printable PDF files. Another initiative inline
with the PPA’s pass4press is the Ghent PDF Workgroup (GWG), set up in 2002. This is a
user group dedicated to present suitable settings for different preflight software solutions,
to correctly create printable PDF according to the PDF/X standard.
Today the most used version of PDF/X is probably PDF/X-1a, which calls for images
in high resolution CMYK, but also allows page elements to be defined as a spot colour.
The second most used version is PDF/X-3 which allows images to be in RGB and/or
CIELab format, as long as an ICC file is embedded to indicate the intended output
conditions for the PDF file. The PDF/X-3 format thereby offers a very flexible workflow,
although one that is slightly more challenging to manage than a workflow based on
PDF/X-1.
An even more flexible workflow is possible when using the PDF/X-2 standard. This
allows for multichannel images and documents, often needed in packaging production.
The use of OPI (Open Prepress Interface), a standard for working on low-resolution images
in the layout and design stage, allowing replacement of the low-res images in the final
output stage, is not allowed in either PDF/X1a or PDF/X-3. This includes using DCS
files (a standard similar to OPI, developed by Quark, to save colour separated images).

Quality assurance
By contrast to PDF/X-1 and 3, the PDF/X-2 format actually does permit the use of
multichannel DCS images in a document, often used in packaging design. Another feature
in the PDF file format that is particularly useful for packaging work is live transparency
and support for multiple layers. Despite being almost ideal for packaging production in
particular, the PDF/2 format is probably the least known and used format in the X-series.
For more information on PDF/X see www.gwg.org.
Adobe PDF Print Postscript made way for the desktop publishing revolution, and has been Adobe’s core
Engine technology for many years. However, the PDF format has slowly taken over as the
preferred format, with its greater flexibility and functionality. It was just a matter of time
before Adobe would proclaim, officially, that PDF is the format that will be developed
further, and Postscript will be, if not abandoned, at least not developed much further. At
IPEX in April 2006, Adobe presented their new RIP architecture, built entirely around PDF.
This new technology is called Adobe PDF Print Engine, and performs native processing
of PDF 1.6 documents without using Postscript at all. The PDF Print Engine also has a
much stronger support of JDF-based job tickets, so should be even more suitable for very
automated workflow scenarios. Full implementation of the Adobe PDF Print Engine is
expected to be demonstrated by many RIP vendors in 2007, even though some vendors
like Fujifilm, for example, have already previewed much of the coming user interface and
functionality of their coming RIP system, called Sentai, based on the PDF Print Engine.
Processing of native PDF 1.6 files goes hand in hand with the coming PDF/X standards,
and will hopefully enhance both functionality and predictability in high-end page
processing.
Microsoft XML Since we have mentioned the coming RIP technology from Adobe, it is appropriate to
Paper Specification briefly describe the new Page Description Language (PDL) from Microsoft, called XML
(XPS) Paper Specification (XPS). It is part of the new print technology to be used in the latest
operating system from Microsoft, called Windows Vista. The first server version of Vista
will be introduced to the market in late 2006, and the consumer version is to be launched
in the spring of 2007.
Microsoft has centred more and more of their technologies around XML, for example
the .NET technology. Microsoft .NET is a programming language similar to that of
Sun Microsystems Java; it uses XML as a natural ingredient. The new page description
language XPS is in line with this, and besides being a PDL, XPS can also act as a
document standard, similar to PDF. This has caused some technical writers to proclaim
that Microsoft with the launch of XPS challenges the Adobe PDF format. Looking closer at
Microsoft XPS it is clear that it is not aiming for the high end of graphic arts production, it
is rather more suitable for technical documentation and office-type documents. Eventually
it will enter the workflows of graphic arts print production and publishing in general, so
we may as well learn more about XPS sooner than later, and prepare to process those files
correctly.

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Quality assurance
Press control systems While this is mainly a study on prepress systems and workflows, it would not be complete
without looking over the border into what happens in modern press control systems.
Colour management, quality assurance and much of the presetting of the presses is now
achieved though a tight cooperation between the modern pressroom and the prepress
department.
While much of the work to produce properly working ICC profiles has traditionally been
the task of the prepress department, it actually can never be fully successful without the
wholehearted participation and engagement of the press operators. A new component
in many of the latest press control systems is the ability to fine tune or even create new
ICC profiles directly in the press control system. If the suggested ICC profile and settings
of the RIP system are found not to create 100% accurate plates in daily production, the
press control system can suggest changes necessary for the accurate imaging of the next
round of plates, so they better match the actual press conditions. This does not necessarily
mean that the profiles used for a certain type of paper, for example a standard ICC profile
according to the ISO 12647-2 printing standard for offset on a certain paper, need to
be changed. The changes made are for internal use only, in the prepress–press control
system, to speed up make-ready even more, and bring the press up to colour even faster.
To be able to measure colours on this level, and to check if the delivered ink conforms
to the requested standard, it is necessary for printers to use spectrophotometers for
quality control, instead of relying solely on densitometers. A quality spectrophotometer
can also function as a densitometer, besides reading spectral values. Vital, for example, for
accurate spot colour measurements. The objective is to have best practice settings for a
given type of paper and job, and improve efficiency on subsequent repeats or similar jobs.
Examples of press Much of a press’s digital presetting can be done using the CIP3 PPF (Print Production
control systems Format) format, launched in 1995. CIP3 is the forerunner of the CIP4 committee,
responsible for the continued development of the JDF standard. A modern print
production system supports a two-way data traffic throughout the workflow using JDF
(Job Definition Format), the successor to the PPF format.
While this is mainly supposed to be a study on prepress workflows, the borders
between prepress operations and what can be done in most of the modern press control
systems are quite blurred today. We therefore present a brief overview here of the
functionality leading press manufacturers offer in their control systems, and how they
interact with both prepress and MIS systems.
Heidelberg Prinect CP2000 Centre is part of the Prinect software portfolio. Prinect
Image Control consists of a spectrophotometer and software modules, working in concert
with the CP2000 press control system via the Prinect Prepress Interface. Heidelberg’s Mini
Spot technology checks colour values for a random and numerous selection of spots, small
areas or colour bars, on the sheet or proof.
A quality monitor control module measures the behaviour of inks on press, to ensure
the press functions to specified tolerances. Corrections can be made during the run and

Quality assurance
data fed back to production, so subsequent plate output is correctly calibrated and colour
profiles adjusted for any deviation from the target Delta E on press. There are tools for
resolving quality issues caused by the interaction of different inks, screen rulings and
substrates, plus tools for checking linearisations and adjusting CTP output. A central data
repository is the basis for creating the same printing characteristics for all output devices,
for faster quality management and process control.
KBA (Koenig & Bauer) Logotronic is the heart of KBA’s press control system and
is available in basic and professional versions. Basic includes all the functions needed
to actually run the press and Logotronic Professional has extended functionality, with
MIS connectivity via JDF. Print measurements are done with KBA’s Densitronic system:
the base version uses conventional densitometric readings, whereas Densitronic S uses
a spectrophotometer. Like the Heidelberg technology, it provides spectral readings for
accurate colour data capture and spot-colour analysis.
KBA CIP Link manages the connections to the press control system, either through
JDF or using PPF/CIP3 data. This data can be used to preset such things as the ink duct
and ink/water balance. The Logotronic Professional module can however preset virtually
all electronically controlled parameters on the press. This includes such things as blower
air parameters, powder spray amount, required printing pressure and so on. KBA also
offers a special module for quality assurance called Qualitronic II. Using a high-resolution
video camera mounted in press (two cameras in a perfecting press), print quality, register
and paper handling can be monitored inline.
The Komori press control system is based on KHS (Komori High-performance System),
designed to achieve fast make-ready with even and high print quality. Komori KHS is
modular, but even in its most basic configuration the print operator can control the press
in a stand-alone environment. Through system extensions, the printer can connect to both
prepress systems and MIS systems, optionally via JDF. A dedicated workstation attached
to the press, the K-station, manages all jobs for the press, preparing them and calculating
pre-settings according to the job requirements. A full duplex connection to both the
prepress and MIS is possible by extending the system with the Komori Management
System. Komori’s High Performance System always plans new jobs in view of the job that
is already printing, thus minimising settings changes. When starting a new job, the press
is not reset to base settings, but instead transforms existing ones as smoothly and quickly
as possible to fit the new job. The goal is to achieve targeted print quality within 30
sheets and according to Komori this is normally achieved.
MAN Roland’s press control and management system is based on separate
modules for colour and job management for individual presses. Printnet Color Pilot for
colour control is integrated into the press control system and can include a scanning
spectrophotometer. MAN has a software suite called Printnet Press Manager within which
are various components for managing data flows, with direct access to the database of
job and colour information.

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Quality assurance
For speeding up make-ready, MAN has introduced several Quick Change options. These
functions drastically reduce make-ready times, by allowing for presetting of virtually any
component on the press that can be electronically controlled. This might be settings for
the order of blanket washing, automatic plate change and other steps, as well as storing
extensive information about such things as blower air parameters, also for original
equipment manufacturer (OEM) devices.
Mitsubishi has a modular press control system called IPC, Intelligent Press Control.
This can be connected to MIS and prepress systems through Mitsubishi MAX Net
(Mitsubishi Accomplished eXtensible Network).
The IPC Server uses a scanning spectrophotometer with a dedicated subsystem
to measure the control strips on a sheet. The system can also generate ICC profiles
based on the measured colour data, plus information such as ink data, taken from the
system’s central database. There are six separate IPC modules which together help the
press operator achieve fast make-ready. The PPC server (PrePress Connection) links to
any prepress system that can deliver JDF and/or CIP3 data. This data is then used for
presettings which are transferred to the Mitsubishi IPC press control system. Maintenance
and support can also be supervised and scheduled here.
JDF Presented in 2000 as the successor to the CIP3 PPF format, JDF (Job Definition Format)
is the obvious tool for managing a 100% digital workflow, including order handling,
scheduling, job instructions, quality assurance and, importantly, correct calculations for
invoicing. As has been suggested earlier, JDF can come into play more or less everywhere
in a modern print production workflow, starting with cost estimates and the initial
planning of jobs. Normally this involves an MIS system, which operates as the central hub
for job-related data.
Since the JDF format, which is based on the XML standard (Extensible Metadata
Language) is fully bidirectional, a JDF-compliant system can send out and receive both
job instructions and data. Minute-by-minute status reports from every device or active
operator can be provided and communicated using the JMF format (Job Messaging
Format), a kind of digital ‘chat’ function for devices, existing within the JDF standard.
For a company working hard to achieve and maintain a high level of quality control,
JDF can work very well and hand-in-hand with quality assurance according to the ISO
9000 standard, the general standard for this type of work, valid for all types of industrial
production. Much of the data measurements needed in the quality control work can be
carried out through the JDF-based stream of production data. Looking at the structure
of the latest version of ISO 9000, revised in 2001, it’s actually mirrored to a large
extent in the logic and structure of the JDF format. Even working with environmental
issues, according to the ISO 14000 series (a series of international standards concerning
environmental management), quality control can be facilitated through extending JDF
into this area as well. It all comes down to what data measurements you want to gather,
route, store and analyse.

Quality assurance
JDF provides tools for electronic job bags and much more. Fully explored, these digital
job bags can be referred to as ‘intelligent electronic forms’, with the ability to suggest
best practices based on analysis using the data in the different databases connected to
the system, and warn or block the operator from selecting options that are not optimal
or could even be erratic in a certain workflow. We will come back to JDF throughout this
study to show how it can come into play on different levels and in different roles in the
workflow.

Automation
3
One of the main factors reducing the time required for a certain type of production, be
it the manufacture of cars, electronics, food or print, is automation. While publishing
and print processes were for a long time regarded as more or less skilled crafts, the print
production part, at least, is fast becoming an automated process. Lean production, Six
Sigma, just in time (JIT) are just a few examples of production terms that are slowly
making their way into the graphic arts industry. All new technologies introduced to this
industry demand a fresh and completely new look at how media production workflows are
organised; to identify and understand the key processes, the necessary subprocesses and,
most importantly, where the bottlenecks are.
Repetitive types of work are often suitable for automation, whereas tasks demanding
creative interventions by an operator are better left for us humans to handle. In between
the two extremes are many sub-processes that can be semi-automated, meaning that
normally they can be preset to execute tasks automatically when possible, and only call
for operator intervention when absolutely necessary.
Since the larger part of the publishing process is performed with the aid of
computers, proper training in the software involved is absolutely key. Many publishers and
printers find that some of the staff would actually benefit the process if they had skills in
programming, or at least the competence to create scripts and macros. Almost all word
processors and design software support the use of macros and scripts, and it is well worth
exploring this fully, in order to get the most out of standard software and to optimise
production processes.
Another way to automate is of course to change to more modern and efficient types
of equipment. But before trying to resolve a bottleneck by just buying new equipment, a
proper analysis of that particular part of the workflow should be performed in order to
identify the precise cause of the problem. Often bottlenecks further downstream in the
workflow can, at least to some extent, be resolved by changes in the workflow upstream.
Macros and Hot Most software provides the user with the tools for automating repetitive tasks. This
Folders requires the user or system administrator to create and use macros, however some
software vendors have another name for it. Adobe has chosen to call this ‘Actions’ in, for
example, Photoshop.
In general the basic idea is to save a series of tasks in one macro, and then link this
macro to a specific keyboard key. Once this is done, the macro is executed by pressing
this key, or a certain combination of keys. A series of tasks can thus be executed with a
single keystroke. Typically you use the function keys first when assigning macros, but there
are some macros that are commonly used across different software. Most computer users
have found and use the key combination for copying and pasting data, for example, ctrl+c
and ctrl+v in Windows, respectively command+c and command+v in Mac OS. Making
your own macros for frequent tasks not only speeds up your work so that you can get
better throughput, but also helps to reduce the risk of errors. Once a macro is successfully

Automation
created for a complex series of operations, it will repeat its tasks in exactly the same way
over and over again, without tiring. Operators who have learnt and use macros and key
commands for shortcuts are significantly faster at work than users who stick to pointing
and clicking, using only the mouse or menu commands.
In parallel to using macros to automate repetitive tasks, many applications have tools
to connect a series of action to a ‘drop’ or ‘hot’ folder. As soon as individual or multiple
files are placed in such a folder, a pre-defined series of actions is executed automatically
and without operator invention. This type of automation is used for many applications in
the graphic arts, such as file delivery and routing.
AppleScript and One of the more commonly used methods to streamline and automate prepress
Automator production is to script repetitive tasks and sub processes. AppleScript, included in the
basic version of the Apple operating system, is not a complete programming language.
It sits somewhere between creating advanced macros and fully fledged programming.
Apple advertises itself as very easy to use, and in its most simple implementations, it is.
However an advanced and experienced AppleScript user can create very sophisticated
solutions that come very close to real programming. The research institute, Gistics, in 2002
found that when analysing the possible payback when investing in AppleScript training,
less than 10% of the publishing houses, service bureaus or prepress companies used
AppleScript regularly. However, when the Gistics consultants dug deeper into the statistics
they discovered that looking at the most profitable and fastest growing companies, 40%
of them had staff knowledgeable in AppleScript, and used it in everyday production.
Apple provides a good introduction of how to use AppleScript on their website, and
among the features worth mentioning are possibilities to achieve batch processing, file
conversion and manipulation, performing tasks at specified times, transferring information
between databases and other applications, and the creation of automated workflows by
linking the actions of multiple applications to perform a series of related tasks.
AppleScripts can be applied to most any computer operation, but this of course
means an Apple computer, and using software that is ‘AppleScript aware’ is most likely
to achieve a high degree of automation. Among the popular layout applications that are
AppleScript compatible are Quark XPress and Adobe InDesign.
More advanced users of AppleScript may want to buy the stand-alone software,
AppleScript Studio. This package can build applications with customised user interfaces
that come close to looking like professionally developed special software.
As an addition to AppleScript, the Mac OS X was complemented with an additional
utility called Automator, introduced with Mac OS X 10.3. Using the Automator software,
repetitive tasks can be performed as linked sub processes, involving several software tools
in the process. For example Automator can pull texts from a database, images from an
image database and initiate an automated layout and page composition process using
InDesign and preset page templates.

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Automation
Visual Basic and For Windows users the software that comes closest to AppleScript in its functionality is
Javascript Visual Basic. As the name indicates, it is a simple programming language with a visual
approach in the programming process. While Visual Basic is supposed to be easy to use,
like Apple Script it comes very close to real programming when used for more advanced
and complex tasks. However, in a prepress department many tasks can and should be
automated. Visual Basic is absolutely one of the options to consider for this.
In parallel to using Visual Basic and/or AppleScript, Javascript may very well be
an equally interesting option. In fact there are even reasons to consider Javascript as a
preferred scripting environment in some cases, since it works across platforms. Javascript
was developed to support independent computing clients and HTML programming.
Javascript has, however, been found to work as a convenient help tool in many other
applications.
Automated One of the most time consuming and complex prepress tasks used to be the stripping
impositioning and correct impositioning of repro films. In a digital workflow, especially when using CTP,
this process today can be very fast and efficient. It still takes a skilled prepress operator
to set up all the parameters for correct impositioning in regard to paper type and binding
method, but once a template is created for a certain type of production, this can be
reused and called upon over and over again.
One of the benefits of storing automated imposition templates in a central place, and
making them accessible for everyone in the workgroup, is the reduced risk of errors and
more predictable results. If every single prepress operator creates their own imposition
templates, the chances are quite high that some of those detailed settings will vary from
operator to operator.
A fairly new development is called JDF-based impositioning, which means that the
imposition template is identified as soon as the electronic job ticket is created. Since
decisions about impositioning ought to be factored into job costing, it is quite logical to
save this information for later when preparing the job. If the imposition templates are
called upon in the electronic job bag/job ticket, an efficient and automated imposition
process can be put in place, using JDF to communicate the data and an appropriately set
up RIP system that of course supports automated imposition.
Presettings As with impositioning, there are many processes in the print preparation process that can
be pre-calculated and defined early on in the workflow. Based on the page information,
to some extent as a part of the imposition data, calculation of ink usage over the sheet
and job can be made. This in turn can be used to preset the ink ducts on the press for
faster make-ready. Such data sharing with the possibility of connecting all sub-processes
over the network is another reason why the borders between the prepress department and
the pressroom are becoming increasingly blurred. Who is doing what is much more fluid
than it used to be and tasks such as remaking plates can very well be done by the press

Automation
operators themselves, if they are equipped with the client software for the RIP system. If
all the necessary data needed for correct plate output is provided in the job ticket that
follows the print order, even less specialised skills are needed to perform correct plate
output.
Besides presetting of the ink ducts on the printing press, there are numerous other
parameters that can be calculated and prepared in advance. This sort of automation
depends on knowing the job parameters (format, the number of pages and colours, and
so on) what paper stock and press that is planned to be used, including requirements
for such things as ink/water balance, air blower parameters, powder spray amount and
required printing pressure among other variables.
Several modern CTP systems have the capacity to store different sizes of plates
online, so plate type and punching systems can be preset beforehand in the job ticket
and called for automatically. In the same way proofing can be automated, by reading the
colour information from the job ticket, and applying the correct ICC profile and imposition
template for that particular proofer, based on the electronic job bag.
More and more devices and tools are wholly electronically controlled today. In most
cases this means that it is possible to prepare and define correct presettings for them.
Doing so not only reduces the risk of errors, but also save precious production time.
Middleware and While most modern RIP systems offer a high degree of automation, there is still room for
help tools many types of specialised software to help automate certain tasks. Preflighting is one
key area where repetitive tasks can be automated, including routing of files from email
software and FTP servers.
Several of the vendors of preflight software also offer server-based, automated
solutions as an option to the stand-alone, more manual versions of the preflighting tools.
Among the vendors to mention are Apago, Callas, Enfocus, Global Graphics, Markzware
and One Vision. Besides these firms there are software vendors offering integration of
preflight and prepress solutions, such as Gradual with their Switch software suite.
Switch can automate many of the processes involved in document preparation, for
example routing of incoming PDF files from different channels. What is quite unique with
Switch is that it can set up and remotely use many different softwares from other vendors.
Typically Switch uses the preflight tools from most of the vendors mentioned above to
check incoming files according to specified preflight profiles. Incoming Postscript files can
automatically be processed to PDFs using, for example, Acrobat Distiller but controlled
by Switch. Cleared and faulty PDF files are then routed differently further on in the
workflow, so that the faulty ones can be corrected manually or returned to the sender with
a message that the file needs to be corrected, and the good files continue in production.
Switch supports scripting, Javascript, Visual Basic and AppleScript.
Other examples of middleware are special software to check things like ink usage
in incoming files and automatically adjust the colour settings to better suit the printing
method or paper stock that is actually used. Instead of printing with unnecessarily high

3
Automation
amounts of ink, or force manual colour editing, these types of software automatically
adjust documents according to the rules that have been previously set up. Solutions like
this can sometimes be found as options from the more well-known vendors of RIP systems
like Agfa, Esko, Fujifilm, Global Graphics, Heidelberg, Kodak and Screen, or from software
developers like Alwan Color, Hamillroad Software and One Vision.
Developments in One of the most important developments in recent years, driving the need for fast and
computer-to-plate efficient prepress, is the evolution of computer-to-plate (CTP) devices and the printing
production plates themselves. CTP is now a mature technology, equipped with second, or even
third-generation imaging technologies. The arguments for CTP are well known – faster
turnaround, improved print quality, tighter registration, savings on consumables and faster
make-ready on press among other benefits. Even the price of CTP plates has dropped,
having been almost double that of conventional analogue plates. In fact several plate
manufacturers complain that price pressure and competition on CTP plates have brought
them to an unnaturally low level, but printers probably disagree with this. As always
there is room for negotiation regarding price, and it is difficult to research what the exact,
worldwide price of a certain plate type really is. In most cases the cost of CTP plates
is well covered by the time saving and quality improvement normally achieved when
switching to CTP.
Processless plates While the move to CTP offers substantial time savings, there is still room for further
improvement. The effort to bring about more or less processless plates, or chemistry-free
platemaking, is an example of this. Of course there is always a process of sorts involved
in platemaking, but the term ‘processless’ most often refers to the fact that those types
of plates do not need to be developed and made ready to go on press using much or
any chemistry. Some processless plates need only to be vacuum cleaned, removing left
over debris from the ablative imaging process, while other plates are ready to use after
a gumming solution has been applied to improve contrast and acting like a wash-out
solution. There are three major imaging technologies, visible light, thermal (IR-based
lasers), and ablation technology. For each imaging technology, you need to use the
relevant type of plates.
The Agfa Azura and Amigo plates are samples of light-sensitive chemistry-free plates,
and the Kodak Thermal Direct plates and Fujifilm offerings are positioned as processless.
Fujifilm has announced both thermal and violet processless plates, with the latter due for
commercial availability next year. For many years Presstek has offered processless plates
both for its own platesetters and more recently for those of third-party developers, as
well as plates for DI presses. The Presstek imaging of plates is mainly based on ablation
technology, basically erasing the non-imaging parts of the plate using high-energy lasers.

Automation
Violet vs thermal Over a long period of time, too long perhaps, there has been an ongoing debate as to
whether thermal or visible light lasers, especially those equipped with blue-violet diodes,
offer the best quality, or possibly the best return on investment (ROI).
It is a well known fact that the thermal based CTP devices have for quite some time
dominated the market, offering stable and high quality imaging of plates. However
imaging systems using violet diodes are increasingly considered to be relatively less
expensive than thermal lasers, they are supposed to last longer, and can apparently
expose plates more quickly than thermal imaging technology.
Thermal imaging systems have their advantages too, offering high resolution,
exposing plates suitable for post-baking for extremely long print runs. Thermal plates also
offer the convenience of being able to be handled in daylight conditions.
It is time to put to rest the debate about whether thermal or violet is the ‘best’ choice,
because there is a whole range of considerations that are more important to take into
account when deciding which CTP device to buy. A balance of exposure speed offered,
plate types supported, length of normal print runs, maximum resolution needed, ink type
to be used and, of course, the price of the system and the plates, are as important aspects
in the calculation as the imaging technology used.
Developments in The fast move towards using CTP has opened up opportunities for making a switch to
screening technology higher resolution screens and to the usage of FM screens. This not only improves print
quality, but can also simplify the prepress production and reduce problems of unwanted
artefacts in the print such as moiré. A high-resolution AM screen reduces visible rosettes
in print, and therefore also reduces the risk of visible moiré. As long as there are rosettes,
there is a risk of moiré, but the second generation FM screens more or less eliminate this
risk and the recently developed hybrid screens sit somewhere in between, hoping to offer
the best of both worlds.
The hybrid screens, as the name indicates, in general use a combination of both AM-
screening technology and FM-screening (stochastic-screening) technology. The idea is that
with FM screens it is possible create smooth gradual tones in both the highlight areas
and in the very dark shadow areas, without losing the screen dot. On the other hand, AM
screens are supposedly doing a better job than most FM screens in the mid-tones, where
the screen dots are bigger and there is less risk that they will disappear on the plate or
press.
In the past couple of years, several of the CTP vendors have introduced either hybrid
screens as an option to their RIP systems, or modified or improved versions of both their
AM-screening technology and the FM screens. Tests that Digital Dots have made with
solutions from many of the CTP and/or RIP vendors show that both second generation
FM screens and hybrid screens offer significantly better print result than when using
conventional AM screens.

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Automation
DI presses A sideline to automated plate production with CTP are direct imaging presses, which take
the idea one step further. DI (direct imaging) presses offer a very automated and fast
print production. Although a DI press is often referred to as a digital press, it is really
more a conventional offset press with built-in CTP. Nevertheless this technology offers fast
make-ready, and several of the second generation DI presses also offer automated colour
control in the press control system.
Among the vendors of sheet-fed DI presses are KBA, Kodak, Ryobi, Presstek and
Screen. The earlier pioneer in this field, Heidelberg, has stopped manufacturing DI presses,
but still dominates the market in terms of the number of machines installed. There are
also web offset DI presses on the market, from MAN-Roland and Wifag.
Often the prepress work is done by the press operator, which requires a very easy-to-
use user interface in the RIP system connected to the DI press. This again illustrates how
the borders between the prepress department and the press room are blurring, and why
tight cooperation between them is essential.
FIGURE 3.1 An example of a fully automated DI press
Source: Screen
The Screen Truepress 344 is a fully automated direct imaging press, including automatic
density control in the press control system.
Tests done on DI presses by Digital Dots have proven that the print quality
today is equal to, and sometimes even surpasses, that of conventional offset presses.
Improvements in press design, plate imaging and plate technology have made this

Automation
possible. Many, but not all of the DI presses, use polyester-based waterless plates, and all
use some kind of processless plates.
Digital presses Digital printing is no longer a novelty, and many printers have a mix of both conventional
presses and digital presses in their fleets. The challenge here for the prepress department
is to streamline and automate the file preparation to suit the different printing method
used. Another challenge is to take full advantage of the possibilities to produce variable
data for personalised print on the digital presses.
A term, ‘unified workflows’, is starting to be used in this context. What it means is
that order handling and file preparation need to be able to handle both pricing and
prepress preparation for a wide range of printing technologies, without necessarily
specifying them. Up until recently it has not been at all certain that you could use one
and the same RIP system for both an offset press, a flexo press, a DI press and/or a
digital press. Work is now underway to make it possible for an MIS system to interact with
several RIP systems, on the one hand, or for a given RIP system to drive several types of
output devices. Whatever route you take, the key question is: Can you make late changes
to where you route the print jobs? It should easily be possible to route a job planned for
a web-offset press to a sheet-fed press if the run length is changed. In the same way it
should be possible to route a job planned for a conventional offset press to a DI press or
digital press if delivery time or run length is changed at the last minute.
FIGURE 3.2 The Kodak VersaMark digital press
Source: Kodak

3
Automation
One of the fastest digital presses on the market is the Kodak VersaMark, which prints
more than 2,000 A4 pages per minute, with variable data content if necessary.
To change from one expected output path to another is not as easy as one might
expect or desire. One digital press may need totally different colour settings (and thereby
ICC profiles) than another digital press, for the exact same type of paper stock. While it
is relatively easy to switch jobs between different offset presses of different makes, new
imposition schemes and fine-tuning of colour settings are probably still needed. This
should be possible in a modern RIP system, or with a well-integrated MIS system that
knows the characteristics of every device and sub system for all the different printing
processes in the company. This is a quite common task today, when many companies have
several locations, and file preparation is often done centrally, or jobs are moved digitally
between locations through the network.
There are several types of digital presses, often using some type of xerographic
imaging technology, but also high volume inkjet imaging systems. We will not go into
details about the different digital printing technologies here, since this is mainly a study
of prepress workflow, but it is worth noting that not all front ends to digital printing
presses are very strong on, for example, colour management. If you want to be able to
reroute jobs efficiently and automatically between different press types, make sure the
front end is really flexible, and particularly strong on automated colour management.
Otherwise rerouting of jobs will be very time consuming, calling for much manual work on
files before they are converted to the new printing conditions.
JDF – the glue in a We have indicated the usefulness, even necessity, of integrating JDF in an automated
complex workflow workflow. This is because the electronic job bag is the natural place to hold all of the
different job related information, needed for both price calculations and scheduling, as
well as during production. All the presettings that it is possible to predict and call upon
during production, based on criteria including press configuration, paper type and size,
can be stored and distributed through JDF files.
While the predecessor to JDF, the CIP3 PPF (Print Production Format) was only a one-
way system, JDF is bidirectional, so status information can be almost instant to and from
devices and processes. In reality this means that fully implemented and explored rerouting
of jobs should be much easier to plan and execute, than it is when using a more manual
approach not using JDF.
The centre in a JDF-compliant workflow is most likely the MIS used. While it is
important to have a modern and JDF-compliant RIP system, press control systems and
post-press control systems, much of the planning and scheduling is done through the
MIS. A list of JDF-compliant MIS can be found at the CIP4 web site, www.cip4.org. The
CIP4 organisation regularly updates what is called the ‘JDF marketplace’, a directory
of JDF-compliant software and systems on the market. Currently there are about 30
MIS listed that claim to be JDF-compliant in this directory, so this is no longer a rare or

Automation
exclusive functionality for this technology. At which level this JDF capability operates, of
course, needs to be checked, as well as which sub-systems are supported and already well
integrated. The MIS you use, or plan to use, must be well integrated with both the RIP
system, and with the press- and post-press control systems. Over time it is also natural
and even necessary to expect JDF support in all the different middleware and help tools
involved in the publishing process, including layout software and editorial systems.

Collaborative workflows
4
Networking, and the rise of the internet especially, have made it very easy and convenient
to exchange documents. Sun founder, Scott McNealy, was correct when he said that,
‘the network is the computer’, however collaborative workflows need more than just
the network. The network supports collaborative working, but it cannot provide the
efficiency required for cooperative, collaborative graphic arts production. Team workers
require additional tools in order to support the very particular demands of collaborative
document production for print output. The different softwares involved for network and
file management need to be adapted to fully support a multi-user environment and the
various tasks those users must perform. The software also needs to provide an easy-to-
use interface with the tools necessary to facilitate a true collaborative, managed digital
production workflow.
Digital asset As with all things digital in all industries, databases play a central role in shared
management (DAM) production models. One of the most obvious areas where a database can be used to
facilitate a collaborative publishing workflow, is in the efficient storage and management
of the various types of documents used throughout the page design process. Digital
images especially must be organised and indexed for fast and easy retrieval, but this sort
of file management is also required for other document types as well. Word processor
files, tables, illustrations, layout files, video clips, logos, music, sound bites, PDFs and so
on, should be stored in a central repository, accessible by everyone involved in production,
both during the process and subsequent to it.
Asset management begins with the simple filing system on a desktop computer, and
rises in complexity to quite dizzying heights. There are hundreds of systems and solutions
on the market to choose from, ranging from relatively limited single-user image databases,
such as Adobe Albums, to modular and quite complex systems like, for example, the IBM
database NICA (networked interactive content management), usd by many large newspapers
and corporate asset management systems, and Picdar Media Mogul. Not all vendors selling
asset-management technologies describe their products as digital asset management or
(DAM) systems. Some prefer instead to call them media asset management (MAM) or even
enterprise resource management (ERP) systems. Whatever name you choose to use for such
a system, there are some essential functions that such technology has to have if it is to
really work well in a demanding cross-media production workflow. Rather than listing and
describing some of the many vendors on the market, some of the features that follow should
be considered when planning to buy or build a DAM solution.
Metadata A key function in an asset management system is the fast and intuitive search and
retrieval of documents. In order to do this an asset management system needs to support
a range of metadata standards. Metadata is often called the ‘information about the
information’, and for an image this could be additional information about who the
photographer is, the camera used, when and where the picture was taken, copyright
information, description of the scene, resolution and so on.

In parallel to adding metadata to documents in the database, it is common to sort image

documents into categories, so it is important that the technology allows you the required
scope and flexibility. For example a photograph of a wide-format inkjet printer may
belong to the main category ‘output devices’, with the sub-category ‘ink jet devices’, which
may have yet another sub-category called ‘wide format printers’. Setting up the categories
needed in a particular production or publishing scenario, requires careful analysis of all
processes involved, and of the usage patterns for all digital files and document formats.
It is important to do this before too many documents have been processed in the asset
management system, because the file management can soon get out of hand, as with any
database application. It is also common to assign keywords to an image, describing key
elements in the picture, like ‘green fields’, ‘blue sky’, ‘children’, so there should also be a
pre-defined lexicon of terms to be used as descriptors.
There are several established standards for metadata. The International Press and
Telecommunications Council’s (IPTC) method for tagging images is one of the oldest
and most widely used, especially in the newspaper industry. Part of the IPTC standard
is supported in the Adobe CS software suite, for example in Photoshop. A DAM system
should be able to read and use this metadata if it is present in an incoming image file.
The IPTC standard is currently under revision in order to align it with Extensible Markup
Language (XML), basically through an adoption of Adobe’s XML Metadata Platform
(XMP). In 2007 the IPTC organisation, together with IDEAlliance (a US publishing industry
organisation, with both user and vendor members) and Adobe, plans to launch the IPTC
Core. This is a formatting schema to use within the XMP framework and it will hopefully
streamline the use of metadata attached to images, and provide much easier transfer of
images, including their metadata, between different DAM systems. As of today there are
many proprietary additions to the original IPTC standard, which can cause halts to file
transfers, and this is what the IPTC Core is intended to correct.
Another important metadata standard for images is Exchangeable Image File
(Exif), first introduced in 1995, by camera vendors in the Japanese Electronic Industry
Development Association (JEIDA), for use with digitally captured images, saved as JPEGs.
The metadata in Exif consists mainly of technical data describing the image capture
details, such as resolution, exposure time, camera make and model, lens used, and if the
flash was fired and other criteria. This kind of metadata is perhaps not of primary interest
for a designer, but for a photographer it is a great help when evaluating images.
There are some more metadata standards that are important in publishing workflows,
for example the Resource Description Framework (RDF), managed by the World Wide
Web Consortium (W3C). W3C is the same organisation that develops and manages the
Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) and XML. Adobe XMP is compatible with, and can
even be called an implementation of, RDF.
There are even more types of metadata, sometimes simply extensions of existing
standards, but also proprietary alternatives. A company big enough to set their own
standards is Microsoft. Documents created with the Microsoft Office software suite

4
contain a lot of metadata. If you look, for example, under the ‘File’ menu and select
‘Properties’ of a Word document, you will find a great range of additional information
about this particular document, embedded inside the file. The format and structure for
this information is stored as ‘Object Linking and Embedding (OLE) Structured Storage’. A
DAM system ought to be able to extract this information as well as update it through its
user interface, without having to open the actual document in the native application, be
it Word, Powerpoint or Excel.
Versioning Closely related to metadata, but worth its own section here, is the need for a DAM
system to keep track of document versions. In some production environments you may
want to delete all of the older versions, in order to keep the volume of data down or
avoid redundancy. However in some types of workflows you may want to keep all older
versions, using a special naming convention to keep track of the current versions and
to be able track their history. The latter is very important in applications with complex
approval cycles such as packaging, or in editorial environments where stories are changing
frequently under very tight deadlines, as is the case in newspaper publishing. Version
management also provides a means of adding electronic signatures to documents, as
a way of controlling the publishing process. Only those documents or pages that carry
approvals signature can be published, preventing them being published without proper
approval from the workgroup member, or members trusted to authorise publication.
Among the technologies offering standardised ways to handle versioning is
Concurrent Versioning System (CVS), which is especially popular among developers. CVS
is an open-source software, which means that it is free because it is in the public domain.
Developers of proprietary, application-specific systems can use CVS as the basis for more
specialised content versioning tools.
Web interface and Since a DAM system needs to support a collaborative workflow across multiple platforms
plug-ins and locations, it is quite natural to expect it to provide an easy-to-use and effective web
interface. An alternative is to write client software in Java to avoid possible problems with
a certain web browser, or use a combination of both a web browser and a Java client.
Besides the connection to a web browser, a DAM system also should be tightly integrated
with the layout software that is used in the publishing workflow, such as Adobe InDesign
and/or Quark XPress.
By using plug-ins for Adobe applications and extensions to Quark applications, the
DAM system’s menus and functions appear in the menu bar inside the design and/or
layout software. In this way searching and retrieving documents can be done directly from
within the layout software, and this can substantially speed up and generally facilitate
the design process. In this context it is worth mentioning another feature that is useful in
a DAM system – the capacity to preview as many file types as possible, without the need
to open or have the actual native software installed on your computer.

Colour management For digital prepress production, a DAM system needs to have some means of supporting
and image processing basic production tasks. A so-called ‘automated repro’ function, automatically manages
colour conversions and image processing so that they do not have to be done manually
further down the production flow, which requires a halt in the workflow and the
associated operator time.
DAM systems typically offer only low-resolution versions of images, or previews of
other types of document when users browse the content in the database. This means
that when a designer assigns a certain image to be included in the layout, the process of
finding and adapting the high-resolution image from the database should be automatic,
and done in the background. Often prepress departments use Open Prepress Interface
(OPI) technology to handle the switching of low resolution images to the relevant high-
resolution version. If an OPI server is used, this can in most cases also perform the
necessary colour conversion and image sampling required. Different print processes put
different demands on images regarding colour separation parameters and resolution,
and this can be managed by applying different ICC profiles when performing the colour
conversion from RGB to CMYK. Because of this, it is normally wise to save all images in
RGB and at fairly high resolution, because this colour space offers the greatest freedom to
later convert the images to the output colour space and resolution of choice. Images to be
published, for example, on the internet, usually do not need to have as high a resolution
as ones printed, say, in a magazine. Besides adjusting the resolution, it is preferable to
convert internet images into a suitable colour gamut, normally to the sRGB colour space.
The capacity of a DAM system to handle this sort of image processing is often a key
differentiator, so it should not be overlooked during system evaluation.
Database support Some of the smaller DAM solutions use their own built-in database, but some do not even
and portability contain a proper database. While such systems might work very well for a small
workgroup, and for a period of time, it might be difficult to expand the system later on
if your needs change. If you expect that the DAM system will be used by many people,
with perhaps hundreds of users logged in at the same time, then you should make sure
that the DAM solution is based on a sturdy database, or that it can be transferred to
one of the more well-known database platforms. Database technologies such as IBM
DB2, Informix, Microsoft SQL. MySQL, Oracle or Sybase are all used in DAM applications.
Ideally, DAM database technologies are Standard Query Language (SQL) compliant, but
at the very least a DAM database should offer connectivity based on the Open DataBase
Connectivity (ODBC) standard.
If you expect the DAM system soon to be used intensively by many users, and across
several databases, you may want to consider using some of the more recent and advanced
database technologies, like Multiple Array databases. These can combine object-oriented
types of databases with ‘conventional’ SQL database technology.
Moving content from one database to another is never easy, but you should make
sure that the DAM system provider has the competence and know-how to do so.

4
Digital Rights One perspective that seems to be easy to overlook when planning for how to implement
Management (DRM) a DAM system is the need to properly and efficiently handle copyright and ownership-
related issues. This is often referred to as Digital Rights Management (DRM) and it is
very important. Just because you have bought the publishing rights for, let us say, an
image to be used in a certain context, printed once in one publication, you cannot then
reuse it elsewhere in another context, for example in an advert, without permission. If
all the images are produced in-house, you should have a policy for managing requests
for their use, if someone wants to buy the publishing rights to one or many of them. The
administration needed to handle ownership and copyright issues can quickly grow into
something close to a nightmare, not to mention the possible costs if the digital rights are
not properly handled, and an image is used without permission.
A well implemented DRM solution handles both copyright issues and billing (as well
as payment) of the assets sold or used in the system. The DAM system should quickly
inform the designer and/or editor what copy and publishing rights are connected to the
document, and who to contact if the publishing rights need to be changed or extended.
A good DRM solution also inserts digital ‘watermarks’ in the images that belong to the
originating company, so that any illegal use can be traced and proven.
Editorial systems The demands on efficient editorial systems are actually quite similar to those of a DAM
system. They both need to facilitate a collaborative workflow, sharing of content and
production schedules and deadlines. A tight integration with design and layout software
is also essential to both, as well as support of versioning (document tracking and
approval). One of the most demanding publishing scenarios is newspaper production,
and not surprisingly it is within this sector of the publishing industry that we find many
advanced editorial systems. While editorial systems from vendors like Atex, Netlink,
CCI, DTI, Saxotech and Tera might be overkill for smaller publishers, the way they are
structured and the functionality they offer might very well serve as an inspiration to what
to look for in a somewhat smaller system.
An advanced editorial system is generally based on some type of database (it could
very well be the same brand as the DAM solution used), and is often tightly integrated
with layout software like Adobe InDesign and/or Quark XPress which also provide the
pagination engine. Other editorial systems have their own pagination engines, although
with Adobe’s introduction of InDesign server, InDesign has become quite popular as a
pagination engine. In fact both Adobe and Quark themselves offer what can be called
editorial systems, or at least advanced word processors well integrated with the layout
software in question. In Adobe’s case the solution is called InCopy, and from Quark we
have the CopyDesk software, to be used in conjunction with the Quark Publishing System.
One important function of an editorial system is to keep track of all documents,
both texts from journalists and editors, but also ordered material from freelancers and
illustrators. Advertisements are booked, managed and produced with a system separate
from the editorial system, but later in the production flow, both editorial material and

adverts need to be merged onto pages according to the schedule. This is the responsibility
of the prepress and RIP systems. Page pairing is done at the last possible moment,
as each page in the newspaper is completed, with the front and back pages and the
headline news processed last of all. An important standard used for production tracking in
the newspaper industry is IFRATrack. This standard is an encoding standard similar to JDF
for production and scheduling data related to newspaper production.
A clear trend in editorial systems is the use of XML. XML facilitates workflow
streamlining, because it can manage the processing of huge volumes of information,
regardless of output path. This makes it especially relevant for cross-media applications.
For a newspaper it is more the rule than an exception that the content is published both
in print and on the internet, and increasingly through even more channels such as mobile
phones. Using XML as the lowest common denominator mark-up language across media
helps in this, but it is important to choose solutions suitable for a given application. For
the average user of a cross-media application, be it a journalist, editor or designer, it
should not be necessary to know about XML coding or programming, any more than a
designer or prepress operator needs to know about Postscript programming. The software
and databases should use XML in the background, gently hidden from the normal user
but offering the power and functionality the production system requires.
Web publishing In parallel to DAM and editorial systems developments, a new group of publishing
systems systems has evolved. Web publishing systems have often been developed by IT companies,
generally working outside the traditional graphic arts industry. Many corporations and
single companies set up their own websites, and these new web publishing systems try
to offer an easy-to-use and efficient way of managing content on web sites, including
providing tools to direct the content to a conventional print production workflow. This
is an interesting development, since advertising agencies, prepress houses and printers
perhaps had hoped to maintain ownership of such services, but now they are increasingly
handled by the content owners themselves.
Whatever we think of this development, there are at least two approaches to take
in relation to the introduction of web publishing systems. One is that we should actually
take a close look and see what those systems have to offer, because perhaps we may
want to include them in our system portfolio. A web publishing system is by nature
programmed to be easy to use, even for an operator who may not be skilled in design
and/or typography. It will also often contain some type of DAM solution, so if a printer or
publisher does not have a proper DAM solution in place, working only a little with web-
related publishing, a web-publishing system might very well serve the company’s needs.
A second reason to welcome the use of web-publishing systems is that they may
provide a connection point between a printer and a publisher, or print buyer, and the
conventional print-on-paper type of production. Many web publishing systems have
limitations with regard to conventional printing, so a printer may provide those types

4
of services to their customers. In order to offer the best services for such customers, the
possibilities of linking an in-house production system to a web publishing system are
worth investigating.
Collaborative A time-consuming but unavoidable part of the publishing production process is proofing,
softproofing systems which can require many cycles. A simple tool that can help early on in the editorial
process, is the ‘Track Changes’ function in MS Word (assuming of course that you use
Word for word processing). But later on in the publishing process, when the design
and layout is more or less finished, you need sophisticated and powerful tools for final
proofreading and approval. Traditionally this has been done by printing out the pages
on paper, then making notes and remarks for correction. Sending those corrected proofs
by mail or courier was a bottleneck in production, and is now obsolete with many
organisations preferring to handle this work electronically, typically via email.
PDF offers a way to insert comments and requests for corrections to pages as
electronic ‘sticky notes’ in a PDF file. However even this can sometimes prove cumbersome
for a content development and production team consisting of several members. To keep
track of which PDF is the latest, and sort out contradicting requests for changes can very
easily turn into a digital quagmire, a horror of its own.
The need for a better solution has obviously been identified by several vendors, since
a range of similar solutions have popped up almost simultaneously over the last few
years, many of them very recently. We call them collaborative softproofing systems, since
there are many softproofing solutions around, but not all offer a network-based solution,
or tools to handle team-based proofing and approval. The goal for those systems is to
reduce or eliminate the need for hardcopy proofs, and instead make much, or all, of the
proofing be done on screen (softproofing), while ensuring the integrity of the process.
There are a number of requirements for an efficient collaborative softproofing and
approvals system. We list them here with a brief explanation of why they might be
important to consider.
Notification tools and A collaborative softproofing system needs to be accessible to all members in the
web interface workgroup, even if they are located outside the local network. So it is necessary to
integrate some kind of web server into the system, and the web interface needs to be
clear and easy to use.
It should be simple to add notifications and insert requests for corrections, however
this is actually a weak point in many of today’s systems. Often you need to insert a ‘sticky
note’ and then write a whole explanation of what needs to be changed. Some vendors
plan to offer support of digitising pens and tablets in their system, to mimic conventional
writing of correction remarks on paper. It is perhaps still a good idea to spend quite a lot
of time on editing and approving the text in the collaborative softproofing system before
it enters the layout stage, so that there are minimal text edits when the document enters
the final proofing stage.

Pixel streaming If you expect the softproofing system to offer the possibility to view high-resolution
versions of the images and documents, the system may seem quite slow to use, even
despite high bandwidth, unless some type of streaming technology is used in the system.
For images this is sometimes called pixel streaming, and although there are different
methods to do this, it is basically a server application that senses the part of the image
or page the user views at the moment, and only transfers those pixels. Instead of, for
example, sending all 200MB of a large image, only the pixels in the viewing window are
transferred at the time. In this way, even high-resolution images of several hundreds of
megabytes open on the user screen instantly, even with low or medium bandwidth on
the network or internet connection. One of the first companies to offer this technology
was Real Time Image, now part of the Kodak softproofing solutions, but several other
softproofing systems offer similar technology.
Preflight Before a document enters the final proofing and approval stage, it is important to check
whether it is a printable document, ready to enter RIP and CTP once it is finally approved.
This normally means that the PDF file needs to be checked using preflight software,
according to a preflight profile suitable for the printing method and paper used. Since
the documents provided in the collaborative softproofing system are often submitted
over the internet, the point at which preflight checking takes place could be just at the
delivery stage. Preflighting incoming files prevents faulty files from wasting precious time
in the final, and often time-limited, proofing and approval stage. Some, but not all of the
softproofing solutions offer this facility.
Colour management A proper softproofing solution worthy of its name should also provide a colour accurate
preview of the document. Using the PDF/X-3 format (see Chapter 1), makes sure
the appropriate ICC profiles are embedded in the PDF, and this can be used by the
softproofing system in the colour setup. In order to be able to view the colours accurately
on the monitor, as they will appear in print, demands a monitor of reasonable quality.
Some of the systems on the market are SWOP certified, and while this may serve as a
guideline for those systems that are able to offer colour-accurate proofing conditions,
the SWOP certification procedure is not very well documented. Better instead to test the
monitors in your organisation to identify those qualified for colour-accurate softproofing.
This can be done using the UGRA/FOGRA software, UDACT, described in Chapter One.
Some softproofing systems offer built-in monitor calibration and some, like the ICS
Remote Director system, even indicate in the user interface if a team member works at
a calibrated monitor or not. So if a collaborative proofing member of the team makes
comments on the colours on a page, and has a marker beside his or her name, indicating
that they work at a non-calibrated monitor, the other team members can more or less
disregard the colour comments from this person. The systems that offer built-in monitor
calibration, and communicate the status of this calibration in the user interface, have
come some distance along the path to providing quality control in a softproofing system.

4
There is, however, still room for improvement regarding colour management in most of the
systems.
IT and security Since the documents in a collaborative softproofing system reside or are at least
accessible on a web server, it is important to have some minimal level of basic security
procedures in place. In most cases a normal login through a defined user ID and password
should suffice, but if the production consists of documents of strategic business-related
nature, the normal security methods on a web server, or through email, may not be secure
enough. Some types of document encryption may be necessary, and again this may be
provided in some systems, but not in the majority of them. One of the few systems that
offer a high level of document security, while maintaining ease of use, is the Norwegian
file transfer system FileFlow. Documents are automatically encrypted and decrypted in
the file transfer process. Another way to increase security is to use the support in the PDF
format to apply password protection for the files, but this may prove quite cumbersome
and time-consuming in the workflow. If you manage confidential documents for your
clients, it may well be worth looking into how to increase security in file handling,
before some malicious hacker manages to break into your server traffic and steal or copy
sensitive documents.
JDF integration All job-related information, such as approval deadlines, job intents and the rest, should
be available to all members of the project team. One obvious place to publish or provide
this information is in the collaborative softproofing system itself. What preflight profile
to use, and what ICC profile to use in the colour setup, plus other criteria, might be
communicated using JDF-based job tickets. Some of the softproofing systems on the
market already support JDF, but this again is an area where there is room for improvement
in several solutions.
Some printing companies, like RR Donnelley, builds its own softproofing systems, but
for most printers and publishers it is probably wiser to turn to some of the RIP system
vendors who offer collaborative softproofing functionality. This includes RIP systems from
Agfa, Esko, Heidelberg, Kodak, Rampage and Screen.
There are also several standalone systems from vendors like Colorbus, Cyansoft,
Dalim, ICS and Web Proof. Even press manufacturers, such as MAN Roland, offer a
collaborative softproofing solution in their prepress interface PrintNet. It is obvious that
collaborative softproofing solutions meet a demand from more and more users.
Quark XPress 7 In this chapter we are focusing on collaborative workflows, so we think it is relevant to
mention the new version of the Quark XPress layout software in this context. The older
versions of both Quark XPress and InDesign had very limited support for team-based
production and design. This has changed dramatically with the introduction of Version
7 of XPress, where Quark has introduced the possibility for the user to share the same
document, or part of a document, with other users. Quark refers to this as working with

‘Composition Zones’. A Composition Zone can also be exported as a separate document,

and when the layout is updated, all linked documents are updated as well, automatically.
As a publishing project is about to be finished, the links to the various Composition Zones
can be locked if necessary so that a dedicated user is the exclusive operator allowed to
perform final changes.
Another feature, and one that seems to be unique to XPress 7, is the possibility of
defining both design rules and production parameters to documents and page templates.
Quark calls this technology ‘Job Jackets’, an electronic version of job bags if you like. With
it, it is possible to define a whole range of parameters, such as which fonts to use, which
preflight profile should be applied when creating PDFs, which ICC profile to use for a
particular type of paper and so on.
The Job Jackets are written in XML, and can be exported to be compliant to the
JDF format. If Job Jackets are implemented in a workgroup, a designer can get started
more quickly and get all the production intents in place early. Many of those production
intents could even be fetched from the MIS system at the printer’s side, since the job,
when it’s started up, has probably already been pre-planned according the estimate sent
by the print buyer or publisher to the printer in question. However, this calls for JDF to be
implemented on the printer’s side, which is why we finish this chapter with an outlook of
what JDF might mean in regard to collaborative publishing workflows.
Adobe Version Cue There is a function in the Adobe Creative Suite that is supposed to offer workgroups the
and WebDAV possibility to both share documents and track versions, mainly over the internet, but it can
also be used in a local network. It is managed by help software called Version Cue, which
uses a technology called Web-based Distributed Authoring and Versioning (WebDAV).
This is a set of extensions to the HTTP protocol, to help manage and edit files on remote
workstations and servers.
While Adobe has tried to make the use of WebDAV somewhat easier through Version
Cue, it is still a little cumbersome to set up and use this technology in the Creative Suite.
The tools are there to explore, and can work quite well, for example in a softproofing
cycle, using PDF files and Acrobat.
JDF and As we have seen, there are at least two common themes when we consider what signifies
collaborative efficient teamwork-based workflows – the use of databases as a natural ingredient, and
workflows the growing use of XML as the common language for both metadata and document
formatting. JDF is based on XML, and is used to create electronic job tickets for publishing
production. In order for a workgroup to share production plans, schedules and deadlines
in real time, JDF is an obvious choice when developing a system to support this.
As we can see with Quark, for example, more and more vendors support JDF when
saving and sharing data that describes the production intents for a certain project. Adobe
supports JDF in Acrobat Pro, where electronic job tickets can be saved as JDF files along
with the PDF files that will be used for the actual print production. It is likely that Adobe,

4
in the coming Creative Suite Version 3, due to be launched in early 2007, will extend
InDesign with similar functionality as we have seen in Quark XPress 7.
Today it is possible to provide a workgroup with the means to describe all production
intents. This includes the production deadlines and rich metadata for all the document
types used in the publishing scenario, using a mix of databases, XML and JDF, and
modern software compatible with those technologies.

Database-driven production
5
Most publishers and printers have established a digital workflow for the majority of their
document production, and today almost every employee has access to a computer and the
internet. Still we have to accept that the use of computers is really still in its infancy. Most
of the software we use is stand-alone, meaning software packages designed for specific
tasks, with most of the files created and stored locally on the user’s own computer hard
disk. Microsoft Word and Adobe Photoshop are examples of stand-alone software. Modern
production depends on shared applications and shared files. Email is one means of
doing this and these tools really should be more and better integrated in the production
workflow. Email software provides the tools for basic file routing. However even if files are
stored centrally on a server accessible to everyone on the network, the operating system
alone does not provide an environment for fast and efficient file search and retrieval.
We need to introduce fast, reliable and efficient database technologies to provide file
management support in the production workflow. It is unlikely that we can use one
database for everything – instead we need to be skilled in connecting and combining
several databases, with easy-to-use interfaces between the different databases in our
production workflow.
Management Most printing projects begin with some type of cost estimate, be it budgeting on the
information systems publisher’s side, or a request for a quote received at the printing house. The calculation
(MIS) of time needed for the project, and its overall cost, has long been done using computers
essentially as advanced calculators. What is happening now is that the software that
was used to calculate the cost of a project, is now also used to plan the details of its
execution. Project planning software can also monitor a project’s progress and help keep
it to schedule. When the project is completed the software can report management
information such as the amount of time the project took to produce and the materials it
used, basing the final invoice on these details. If a preliminary estimate turned out to be
wrong, we can use the statistics gathered from this job and other similar jobs to improve
the accuracy of estimates.
A close analysis of the time used and materials cost for different types of projects
helps to make both tactical and strategic decisions about which jobs are profitable and
which are not. Used to its fullest and implemented to provide accurate data, what used
to be calculation software has turned into a management information system, or MIS. But
in order to be really efficient and reliable, MIS technology needs to have connections into
all the subsidiary processes in a production workflow. Everyone involved in the production
workflow needs to have access to the data regarding the projects they are working on,
and to be able to report on all operations and time spent on those projects.
This is a challenge for all the suppliers of software for graphics arts production at the
moment. It requires that users have the means to interact with tools beyond the specific
application software they are using in order to share data, to access data in the network,
to know what files are associated with a given project, and which version of the file they
should be using. Many companies relying on manual systems solve this problem simply

by being well organised, however it is not easy and such manual systems tend to lack the
flexibility demanded in modern prepress. The solution is to use database technology to
help organise, sort, access and retrieve all the data used in a publishing process.
For a printer there are generally at least four main departments involved in
production. There are the administrative and planning department, the prepress
department, the press room and often a postpress or finishing section of the company. We
also need to distribute the finished products, and either we count this as an independent
department, or we regard it as part of the administration. Assuming that the planning
section is responsible for organising delivery, the production loop is closed. Prepress and
press operators have traditionally had the tools necessary for organising and managing
job orders. If we extend the MIS system to create and manage job orders electronically,
it is logical to store those electronic job orders in one central database accessible to
all departments. If we choose to do this, the prepress and press operators need a user
interface to the MIS system, integrated into the software they normally use for their
daily work, in order to read and comment on the electronic job orders. This causes some
interesting and challenging collisions in the data flow: what if the prepress system
has its own or several integrated databases, for example in a RIP system? How is the
exchange of data handled between the administrative MIS system and the RIP system?
If a digital asset management (DAM) system is used in conjunction with the layout and
design technologies, how is data exchanged between the MIS, the RIP system and the
DAM system, each of which use their own database? We know if these technologies
are smoothly integrated we will benefit, but there are many challenges to successfully
marrying these different systems.
At the moment there is a clear trend towards moving some of the work regarding
imposition planning further upstream in the production workflow. In order to calculate the
cost of a particular print project, we need to know paper size and page size, number of
pages and paper thickness. This in turn means that much of the impositioning parameters
need to be known and defined very early on, even before the order has been accepted.
Now, who should, in this case, be responsible for the impositioning? Is it the project
planner, the customer service administrator, or the prepress operator responsible for
creating the final output to a printing plate or digital press? This is just one example of
where it would be useful to have shared access to job data via a database.
Ideally both the planner and the prepress operator should be able to use the same
imposition template as was used in the planning, and as is referenced in the electronic
job order. The prepress operator can then call for this same imposition template when
it is time to expose the printing plates or send files to the press. There is a whole range
of similar situations in a digital production workflow which need to be considered when
working with an MIS capable of synchronising the dataflows across multiple databases.
Not least of these is business administration which involves a number of subsidiary
processes, such as bookkeeping, customer relations management, quality management
and so on.

5
For a publisher the situation is quite similar to that of a printer. Both need to supervise
the planning of a publishing project, and their administration departments need to
connect, via the digital network, to the design and production departments. Possibly the
publisher should also establish additional electronic connections, in order to integrate
more tightly with selected printers at multiple sites for efficient print management and
distribution.
Printers and publishers of course do not necessarily need to use the exact same MIS.
However within their own workflow, and certainly to exchange data with other companies,
the MIS needs to be able to exchange data across different database platforms.
Cross media Most publishers and print buyers have a wide array of media production, perhaps even
publishing including television and radio advertising. Since much of the information will be used in
more than one media, it is important to try and organise data and files for easy search
and retrieval, and for possible reuse.
Text and images can be printed in a wide variety of different formats, such as
brochures, magazines, books, posters and banners, all of which have different print
parameters. There is an equally diverse array of electronic production formats such as web
publishing, multimedia production distributed via CD or DVD, eBooks, email, SMS and
so on. In order to manage such a huge range of output options there are two important
steps to take. The first is to organise files, their component elements and metadata for
storage in suitable databases. In Chapter Four we presented some criteria for digital asset
management (DAM) systems; another consideration is to try and tag the information in
a standardised manner in order to help facilitate the reformatting of the content. The
eXtensible Meta Language or XML, supported in both Adobe InDesign and Quark XPress,
and many other more specialised applications is one popular means of doing this. It is
important to tag documents with sufficiently rich metadata, to facilitate both efficient
search and retrieval, and help track document versions and the document’s history.
For managing digital images, the colour space in which they are described should be
device independent whenever possible, which typically means some common version
of RGB, such as Adobe RGB 1998. Device independence ensures that the image data
is not constrained for output on a specific device. The image resolution should be as
high as storage capacity allows, for using the images for both print production and web
publishing without restriction.
Tagging the text and design data in XML makes it easier for reformatting later on.
A book that is out of print could then, for example, be offered for customers using an
output format suitable for a digital press. The book could be printed in an extremely short
run, even down to a single copy, specifically for that customer. If this type of workflow is
set up properly, with efficient routines for automatic online ordering, invoicing/payment
and delivery arrangements, the price for this single book should not be unaffordable
for the customer, or unprofitable for the publisher. Alternatively an eBook version of the
publication could be offered to the customer, but anything is better than missing the

opportunity to utilise your company’s assets. The idea of ‘out of print’ is a thing of the
past.
Technical documentation and standardised document design are just two of the areas
where XML encoding can facilitate production processing. It is unlikely that designers will
use XML for everything, not even in the future, but for complex publishing workflows, and
definitely in parallel publishing scenarios, XML is well worth learning about and using.
Personalised print, Digital printing, print on demand, personalised print – for several years there has been
print on demand considerable attention and hype around this not so new technology. Digital presses for
black-and-white printing have been around for 30 years and full-colour digital presses
were launched in the mid 1990s. Some quite distinguished market analysts and technical
journalists have pronounced that, in time, all printing will be digital.
However, digital print grows slowly, at least in the commercial printing market. So
why is it that digital presses are still very far from replacing conventional offset presses?
Or to pose the question in another more pertinent way – is there anything digital presses
offer that cannot be done on a conventional press? The answer to the second question
is easy – digital presses have the unique feature of being able to print new content on
each and every page, so-called variable data printing (VDP). While conventional offset
presses, and for that matter DI presses (see Chapter Three), can produce short runs at
reasonable prices, they are not suitable for the extremely short runs of, say, one copy. And
they definitely cannot produce entirely variable page content, with new images and text
tailored on each page in the print run for one single person or receiver. This capacity, to
personalise a message to an individual, is the unique strength of the true digital presses.
So it should be attractive for a publisher or printer to explore this very special
characteristic, which could very well create opportunities for new and more efficient
marketing campaigns. But there is a range of criteria to meet in order to successfully
implement and use the technologies for personalised print. One of the most obvious
needs is to have a deep and well-established knowledge of database management, plus
the capacity for efficient data mining. Another is an understanding of marketing methods
and customer needs, as well as customer behaviours. Yet another is to have the resources
for creative thinking and imaginative print project development. An example of creative
personalised print that has been widely observed and appreciated by many people, is the
print produced using the software Direct Smile. This company has developed software that
creates letterforms from images, and when you see your own name printed with letters in
the shape of clouds, flowers, birds or bubbles in a bath, it is hard not to stop and wonder
how this ‘magic’ was done. We tend to save this particular piece of print, giving it an
additional value, particularly for advertisers. You can try out the Direct Smile software
yourself at their web site www.directsmile.de.
Actually finding the software and technology for variable data processing is the
smallest problem. There is a whole range of solutions to choose from, often supplied or
at least supported by the digital press manufacturer. There are also several standards

5
to fall back on for variable data production, above all the Personalised Print Mark-up
Language (PPML). This is one more of the many sub-categories of XML implementations,
and the development of PPML is handled by the Print On Demand Initiative (PODI), an
organisation consisting of both users and vendors of this technology. The PODI website
contains lots of case studies describing successful VDP implementations and examples of
best practices.
When using databases for data mining and to support personalised print output, it
is important to check for any legal requirement that might apply in a particular country,
since copyright laws vary a lot. In some countries efficient (from a marketing viewpoint)
data mining is almost blocked by laws installed to protect personal integrity, while those
laws might not be in place in another country, or they might be more generous.
Personalised print and VDP are potentially very powerful tools, but the need
for a strong IT department and some custom tailored programming, should not be
underestimated.
Web to print, print While personalised print is the truly unique feature of digital presses, short run printing is
on demand actually what fills up most digital presses, at least in around 75% of the installed printer
base. In conjunction with offering short-run printing, more and more printers set up
web-based ordering solutions, a phenomenon often called ‘web to print’. This by nature
requires a database combined with an easy to use interface. The objective is to offer users
and clients the possibility of ordering the exact amount of printed material they need at
a given time, and with content that is accurate and up to date. With a proper database
implementation the distribution can also be personalised, so that printed copies are
distributed directly to the different receivers, without the need for any manual addressing.
JDF and databases As we have tried to show in this study of prepress technologies, implementation of JDF
in the workflow cannot be imagined or done without also using one or several interlinked
databases to handle the electronic job data. While job planning and production
management can be handled to some extent in both RIP and press control systems, it is
becoming obvious for more and more printers that it is the expanded MIS system that
is the nucleus, or central brain, for efficient and networked based production and order
management. This is not only true for large publishers and printers, it is relevant even for
fairly small businesses. Actually, medium-sized printers have been responsible for several
successful JDF implementations, at least if we look at the nominated or winning solutions
the CIP4 awards panel has selected. In 2005 one of the nominated companies to receive
an ‘Honourable Mention’ was a print on-demand solution by Lavigne Inc in the US. Within
12 months of implementing JDF, their old solution with three sites was expanded to 40
sites, and the number of users (clients) grew from 150 to 42,000. The number of orders
grew from only 25 to over 700 per month. The cost analysis showed a reduction of 85% in
print costs and a reduction of customer processing costs of 92%. Only two additional staff
had to be taken on.

Among the 2006 CIPPI award winners are again several medium-sized printers, like Köller
+ Nowak, a German printer with 12 employees. The Köller + Novak ‘e-Business Portal’
provides customers with online job tracking, job personalising features, online quotes and
ordering, customer stock management and more, all of it using databases in combination
with MIS and JDF.
Vendors of MIS, prepress workflow systems, press control systems and postpress
control systems have realised the need to synchronise and integrate those systems with
each other, and much work is thrown into this at the moment. The CIP4 work with inter-
operability tests is commonly used to check the compatibility between different JDF-
compliant systems, and the list of systems that can be seamlessly integrated to each other
grows day by day. There is a good chance that JDF can act as the ‘glue’ between different
workflow components.

End-user trends
6
The graphic arts industry as a whole has undergone tremendous changes during the
past 10 to 20 years. With the introduction of first DTP (desktop publishing) and later CTP
(computer to plate), prepress workflows have become highly automated and streamlined.
On the press side, automation has brought down make-ready times (the time it takes to
reach saleable sheets) to less than ten minutes. Further automation is possible, but we
now talk about saving some few minutes more here and there, rather than hours. Our
automation focus is now on more efficient order and process management, helping print
buyers to understand their production and print product options, shorten the time it takes
for approval cycles, and to quality manage their own document production. This includes
colour management, quality assurance and preflight checking among other criteria, and is
relevant throughout the print media supply chain not least for publishers, service providers
and printers.
While sheet-fed offset and web offset, and for that matter even digital print, are
entering into a quite stable and mature phase, packaging production seems to be
expanding and growing significantly. So let us look for a moment at publishing on the
one hand, and packaging print production on the other.
Publishing Never before have publishers and publishing houses had such a large portfolio of
publishing tools and channels to choose from. Cross-media production is both a possibility
and a challenge. While the print production side of the publishing process has generally
become more or less an industrial process, the administrative and creative processes
still show many signs of being very much handicrafts, manually orientated, difficult
to plan and supervise. Of course the time used for creative work, be it for researching
and creative processes, copywriting, editing, illustrations, photography or design, can
never be automated, but the administrative side of things, the project and production
management, can and should be. There is still room for improvement in quality
management of processes for publishing workflows.
Working with well known and proven standards in the publishing process, such as
XML, HTML, PDF and JDF, offers possibilities for automation of some production process
and quality management. Introducing database support in more and more production
processes, for example with DAM systems and project management systems, will facilitate
team-based production, as well as improving the efficiency of cross-media production
workflows. Ideally less work should be spent on administrative work, such as searching for
the correct files, trying to find detailed instructions for production parameters, searching
for the latest production schedule, or filling out paper forms about how much time or
material was used on a project. The introduction of database-driven project management
systems and using electronic order forms should substantially reduce the time spent on
administrative work. The time saved could, for example, be used for more creative work
and enhanced customer relations.
One area for publishers to explore is how to facilitate interaction with printers,
both in regard to the work and time used for cost estimates, but also in regard to order

End-user trends
management. All of the production parameters, including scheduling, can be saved

in electronic job tickets in a modern MIS. Most of this information, if not all, can be
formatted using JDF, and therefore can be used to exchange job intent data between
printers and publishers. The paper type and format to be used is described, and this
defines the ICC profile to be used for colour management purposes, and the preflight
profile to use for quality assurance. The designer no longer needs to guess these
parameters because they can be transferred from the printer to the publisher the moment
the order is placed.
Using collaborative softproofing systems will reduce the need for hardcopy proofs,
and in some cases eliminate them entirely. This saves precious time, often in the delicate
last minute, or slightly after the set deadline. If the documents are pre-flight-checked
according to, say, PDF/X specifications even before they enter the last approval cycle, they
can be automatically imposed and exposed to plates in the digital platesetter, minutes
after the final approval has been given. Most publishers appreciate shortened lead times
and fast delivery, and they can help make this possible by working towards a closer
integration and collaboration with the printer.
It may be well worth the effort for publishers to investigate and even invest in JDF
compliant MIS technologies. Up until now this work seems to be slow, but there should be
great possibilities of both time savings and quality improvements when implementing a
JDF-based workflow management system.
Packaging print While most print technologies have entered into a quite stable and mature stage, there
production are some markets where technology is still under considerable development, and demand
is changing as well as growing. One such expanding and changing print process is
packaging production.
The demands on product packaging are increasing with regard to design complexity,
functionality and the materials used. For marketing reasons products need to stand out
on the shelves, catch the consumer’s attention, as well as help giving the product the
impression of quality and uniqueness. Often this places very high demands on print
quality.
High print quality used to mean offset or rotogravure presses, but improvements in
flexographic print technology have brought it close to, or even above, offset quality. This
is not least due to the introduction of computer-to-flexoplate technology, but also thanks
to new screening technologies, like hybrid screening and concentric screens. Flexo is often
the preferred technology in this sector.
Another important design consideration in modern packaging is to enhance the
functionality of the package. This can often include experiments with new materials and
conversion methods. When testing out new print materials it is important to have both
the knowledge and the tools needed for fast and proper colour management, in order
to reduce the costs of a trial and error type of approach, and instead quickly define the
print parameters needed for new materials. Customers put increasingly higher demands

6
End-user trends
for accurate proofs in the packaging design process, so reliable proofing systems for
multicolour production, ideally on a wide range of substrates, have to be developed and
installed, including the necessary training that follows installation.
While digital printing is making it’ way into packaging printing, the uptake is fairly
slow for several reasons. One is the problems encountered with making digital printing
technologies work well for the huge range of substrates used in packaging production.
Another challenge is to find application scenarios where short run digital printing of
packages makes sense. Yet another is the limitations of the paper size in the digital
presses. Most packages take up a lot of space before they are folded, and digital presses
often have too small a print area to support an efficient imposition of several packages on
the same sheet. Still, digital print is slowly growing in packaging production, despite the
challenges.
The design process has always been very challenging and time consuming in
packaging production. This calls for improved proofing technologies, as well as greater
standardisation of production formats. Document creation is on the move away from
proprietary formats like the Barco GRO (graphic output) and GRS (graphic spline) formats,
towards the use of PDF in the whole prepress workflow chain. The latest version of PDF,
Version 1.6, supports advanced use of both transparency and layers in the document
design, both of which are very common in packaging production. The challenge is then
for the RIP systems to be able to support the processing of Version 1.6 PDFs, but this is
possible in the latest version of RIP systems from vendors like Esko and Artworks. In 2007
we will see the debut of several RIP systems supporting Version 1.6 fully, not least since
they will incorporate the new Adobe PDF Print Engine – a new RIP architecture which
replaces Postscript processing with native PDF processing.
Many brand owners that are big packaging print buyers operate worldwide, and
there is a clear trend to try and move the packaging print production closer to where
the actual product is packaged and sold. However the brand management and brand
design development are still centralised, to maintain and develop brand identity. This
means that packaging printers are challenged to serve and support worldwide production
or distribution. Intense product development and fast approval cycles call for efficient
order and production management. Even if the uptake of JDF has been fairly slow within
packaging production so far, it is likely that the introduction of JDF-compliant MIS as well
as DAM systems will be important considerations for packaging printers, allowing them
to better serve their clients. It is possible to set up efficient order management systems
without heavy use of JDF, but it is likely that such a system will then use XML to a large
extent. Since JDF is an XML application, it should be fairly straightforward to integrate
JDF-compliant software and systems into the workflow later on, when and if this is
considered useful.
Packaging is perhaps the most dynamic and difficult of print applications, however
the fundamentals of packaging workflow are not very different from those of other
forms of print production. Prepress technologies are no longer just about improving the

End-user trends
efficiency of production mechanics. Today’s prepress technologies are concerned with

process efficiency throughout the supply chain, whether it is to produce branded juice
cartons and shampoo or a glossy magazine. Prepress in the information age, is as much
about data management as it is about getting the most out of your press.

Developments in Prepress Technology (PDFDrive)

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List of figures v AppleScript and Automator 24

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Database driven production 45

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CMYK – cyan, magenta, yellow, key (black)

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objective was to offer a framework and procedure to establish a device-independent

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FIGURE 2.1 Poor spectral distribution of office fluorescent light tubes

       

Source: Robin D Meyers, using SpectraShop

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       

Source: Robin D Meyers, using SpectraShop

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‘daylight’, which a photographer would probably understand as being D65. At a press or in

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FIGURE 3.1 An example of a fully automated DI press

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FIGURE 3.2 The Kodak VersaMark digital press

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In parallel to adding metadata to documents in the database, it is common to sort image

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