Print White Ink

Answer: The short answer is that in most cases, you can't print white ink. Most inks used in offset printing are translucent therefore a translucent white ink would not cover a dark color. There is an opaque white ink that could be used but it often requires multiple applications to cover sufficiently and can bump up the cost of a project far too much for the majority of customers. Additionally in order to insure the cleanest white possible requires considerable time on the part of the printshop spent cleaning the printing press to remove all traces of other ink colors that would muddy the white ink. In some applications opaque white ink is typically used as an undercoating before applying other inks on top. However, there are alternatives to offset printing inks and methods that use no ink at all.

A near-white ink effect that would provide adequate coverage could be achieved by mixing silver with opaque white ink. Using white foil stamping or foil blocking is one attractive way to get the white color you want. Foils come in many colors and textures including metallic, gloss, and matte finishes. An opaque white gloss or matte finish mimics the look of paint or white ink. Or you can achieve special effects with pearlescent, off-white, and silvery foils. Talk to your printing about the foil process and any special requirements in preparing your artwork for foil stamping or embossing.

Screen printing and flexography both have opaque white inks. Explore those printing options for your project when you need to print white ink. Screen printing has applications other than just textile printing.

CDs are typically coated with a white ink before other colors are applied on top.

There used to be a desktop printer that used a dry white ink ribbon (ALPS) but it is no longer manufactured. As of this writing, no desktop printers that print white ink are on the market.

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Where can I find Helvetica?

It may be one of the best known and most used fonts around but where is it when you need it? There are many flavors of Helvetica as well as fonts that look like Helvetica but aren't. Several of the major type foundries carry various versions of Helvetica as described below. Answer: The Helvetica Trademark
Helvetica is a registered trademark of Linotype-Hell AG and/or its subsidiaries. (From the Linotype site: "Helvetica is a Trademark of Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG, which may be registered in certain jurisdictions, exclusively licensed through Linotype Library GmbH, a fully owned subsidiary of Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG.") Helvetica was first designed in 1957 by Max Miedinger. The name is derived from Helvetia, the Latin name for Switzerland. New weights were added by the Stempel foundry. Later, Merganthaler Linotype added new versions. See How many Helvetica versions are there? What do the Neue Helvetica numbers mean? for a look at Helvetica names and versions. Linotype, naturally, sells Helvetica including the complete Neue Helvetica collection. Explore the Linotype Library of Fonts to find the one you need.

Monotype also carries many versions of Helvetica. You can purchase individual fonts or volumes containing several weights or complete family packs. Even if you don't want the entire collection, browse these family packs to find the individual fonts you want: Helvetica Complete Family Pack (Buy Direct) Neue Helvetica Complete Family Pack (Buy Direct) Neue Helvetica Pro Complete Family Pack (Buy Direct) Helvetica Com Complete Family Pack (Buy Direct) Neue Helvetica Com Complete Family Pack (Buy Direct) Helvetica Cyrillic Complete Family Pack (Buy Direct) Neue Helvetica Cyrillic Complete Family Pack (Buy Direct) Helvetica CE Complete Family Pack (Buy Direct) Neue Helvetica CE Complete Family Pack (Buy Direct) Helvetica Greek Complete Family Pack (Buy Direct) Helvetica World Complete Family Pack (Buy Direct)

Adobe, Inc. lists several forms of Helvetica and Helvetica Neue in the Adobe Type Library (Buy Direct). Note that they drop the numbers from the Neue fonts. They are available as families or within various CD collections such as Type Basics. All the Adobe Helvetica fonts are available in OpenType and PostScript Type 1 format.

Adobe Type Collection, OpenType Edition (Buy Direct via Fonts.com)

Here's a free download of Coolvetica by Ray Larabie. It's almost like Helvetica but with a few surprises.

Some of the fonts that look like Helvetica or are very similiar are: Arial (Buy Direct; complete family) ARS Region CG Triumvirate Claro Corvus Europa Grotesk (Buy Direct) FF Bau (Buy Direct) FF Schulbuch (Buy Direct; volume of several versions) Geneva 2 Hamilton (Buy Direct; complete family) Helio/II Helv Helvette Holsatia Maxima (Buy Direct EF Maxima 1 Volume or Buy Direct URW Maxima Volume) Megaron/II Nimbus Sans (Buy Direct) Spectra (Buy Direct; New Spectra) Vega (Buy Direct; complete family includes serif, sans serif, rounded sans serif) Sans URW Sonoran Sans Serif Swiss Swiss 721 BT Switzerland Swiss 911 BT (Helvetica Compressed) Impact and Placard Bold and Swiss 921 BT (Helvetica Inserat/Compressed) Arial Narrow (Helvetica Narrow) There are probably many others.

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White Color Meanings

White is purity, cleanliness, and innocence. Like black, white goes well with almost any color.The use of white in familiar phrases can help a designer see how their color of choice might be perceived by others, both the positive and negative aspects.

Good white White as the driven snow - pure, clean, innocent White elephant - rare, valuable but perhaps unwanted White knight - someone who comes to another person's rescue, someone perceived as being good, noble White list - list of good or acceptable items White sale - sale of sheets, towels, other linens Pearly white - teeth, especially very white teeth Bad white Whitewash - cover up, conceal Whiteout - zero visibility White flag - surrender White lightning - moonshine, illegal whiskey White elephant - rare, valuable but perhaps unwanted White knuckle - something that is fast, exciting, or frightening

White Words: These words are synonymous with white or represent various shades of the color white.

Snow, pearl, antique white, ivory, chalk, milk white, lily, smoke, seashell, old lace, cream, linen, ghost white, beige, cornsilk, alabaster, paper, whitewash.

Red | Green | Gold | Turquoise | Blue | Purple | Pink | Black | Orange | Yellow
View Results for Your Favorite Color Poll

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2 Holiday Card Templates

Get a jump on the holidays with these greeting card templates. Just print, sign, & mail.

Take a little bit of stress out of the holidays and save time by using these two free original greeting card templates. Each card is in PDF format ready to print from your color printer. Adjust as needed and print on 8.5x11 paper and fold twice for vertical, side-fold cards. I printed mine at 720dpi on high quality inkjet paper.

The best holidays are shared with friends features two friendly snow people on the cover and Merry Christmas on the inside.
Download friendscard.pdf

The best presents are family and friends has a decorated tree and wrapped present on the cover. The inside greeting says Happy Holidays.
Download treecard.pdf
Note: When folded a piece of the tree is on the crease. That's intentional.

4.5x6 Envelope
The above card templates are designed to print on letter size paper folded in quarters. After making the cards I realized I needed envelopes. I wanted an envelope I could make from a single letter size sheet of paper. The resulting template has been proportioned to meet US Postal requirements for standard letter mail and can be printed on an 8.5" x 11" page. The finished envelope is 4.5" x 6" — just right for homemade cards made from letter size paper.
Download envelope.pdf | Save/Print GIF version of envelope template | Save/Print GIF of envelope construction instructions
Note: Error on template instructions. Last step should read "Fold C Flap down and secure to back of envelope (Flap B) with tape or glue."

Terms of Usage: These PDF files are Copyright Jacci Howard Bear. All rights reserved. The templates are free for your personal use (i.e. printing cards for your friends and family, not for resale.) Files may not be redistributed without written permission.

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Installing downloaded fonts

A frequent question I receive in email is how to make fonts show up in the software font lists, especially after downloading them from the Web. This FAQ shows you step-by-step how to obtain fonts, open archived fonts, and install fonts for Mac and PC so that you can use them in your word processing, desktop publishing, and other software programs.Answer:

Obtain the Font
Fonts come from many locations. They can come with your software. You may have them on a CD. They can be downloaded from the Web.

• When fonts come with your software they are often installed at the same time the software is installed. Usually no further action is required by the user.

• Fonts on CD or other disk need to be installed to your hard drive (unless you plan to always have that disk in the drive). The disk may come with an installation program for the fonts or you can use the methods described further down this page.

• Fonts downloaded from the Web may be ready for installation; but, usually, fonts from the Web are stored in archives that must first be opened. This is where many new font finders run into problems. Occasionally fonts on disk may also be in archives so you'll need to follow step 2 for them. How to Download Fonts From the Web
Free and shareware fonts are offered for download on this site and many others on the Web. If you've never downloaded a file from the Web before, here are the basic instructions to download fonts. How to Expand Font Archives: Windows | Mac
Most free fonts on the Web are in a compressed archive to make them smaller. BIN, HQX, SIT, and especially ZIP are the most common filetypes. Learn how to open them up so you can install your new fonts.

Install the Font
Simply having the font file on your hard drive is only part of the installation process. To make the font available to your software programs requires a few extra steps, especially for Windows users. The installation process also depends on the type of font you have: TrueType or OpenType or PostScript (Type 1). Most fonts downloaded from the Web are Windows TrueType fonts. They are a single file with the .TTF extension. If you use a font manager it may have a font installation option you can use. Otherwise, follow the appropriate instructions shown here:

Occasionally installation will hit a snag. See the answers to I can't use the fonts I just installed. What's wrong?

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Use One Space Between Sente...

Monospaced fonts take up more space, need more space at sentence ends.

Should you put one space or two spaces after a period? The debate over how much space to put between sentences (whether they end with a period or other punctuation) may seem petty, but often it's the little details that make or break a design.

Speaking of little details, despite what some readers may believe, period is the proper term for that little dot at the end of sentence in American English. In some parts of the world it is, however, known as a full stop: Read A Period By Any Other Name...

It is generally accepted that the practice of putting two spaces at the end of a sentence is a carryover from the days of typewriters with monospaced typefaces. Two spaces, it was believed, made it easier to see where one sentence ended and the next began. Most typeset text, both before and after the typewriter, used a single space.

"The only time more than 1 space was used in a line of type was when we had to justify the line to the full margins."
— Madisonhank, describing typesetting before digital type

Today, with the prevalence of proportionally spaced fonts, some believe that the practice is no longer necessary and even detrimental to the appearance of text.

With monospaced typefaces every character takes up the same amount of space on the page. M uses the same amount of space as i. With proportionally spaced fonts, the characters take up an amount of space relative to their actual width - the i needs less space than the M. (as illustrated by the graphic in the sidebar)

"Right and wrong do not exist in graphic design. There is only effective and non-effective communication."
— Peter Bilak - Illegibility

The use of proportionally spaced type makes two spaces at the end of a sentence unnecessary (if they ever were). The extra spacing is often distracting and unattractive. It creates 'holes' in the middle of a block of text — trapped white space on a smaller scale.

View the supporting illustrations for spacing after punctuation for a comparison of type set in proportionally-spaced and monospaced with one space and two spaces. (A smaller version of these images can be found by viewing the mini-gallery at the top of the sidebar in this article.)

Change can be painful

"The double space after period has been drilled into me so strongly that I don't know if I can ever break the habit."
— Tina

"I can't get used to single spaces after periods. Even in proportional-spaced type it looks crowded to me."
— Ted

Exceptions to every rule

"Items (term papers, E-Mails, reports, book manuscripts, magazine articles, business proposals, etc.,) printed in monospaced characters require two spaces and have a lot of other stylistic rules designed to enhance readability. Proportional spaced characters don't benefit from most of those rules."
— Mars_red

"To my mind, a million books and magazines single spaced also qualify as a resource. I once heard an instructor arguing for two spaces in typeset text, completely oblivious to the single-spaced mountain of material that he reads every day. When this was pointed out to him, he quietly dropped his argument. He'd for years been blind to the type that he actually reads."
— John McWade

The Bottom Line: Professional typesetters, designers, and desktop publishers should use one space only. Save the double spaces for typewriting, email, term papers (if prescribed by the style guide you are using), or personal correspondence. For everyone else, do whatever makes you feel good.

POLL: One Space or Two After Punctuation, What's Your Preference?
1) One space, always
2) Two spaces, looks better to me
3) I'll try to convince my boss / clients / co-workers to go with one space

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Pink Color Meanings

Pink is a softer, less violent red. Pink is the sweet side of red. It's cotton candy and bubble gum and babies, especially little girls. The use of pink in familiar phrases can help a designer see how their color of choice might be perceived by others — both the positive and negative aspects.

Good pink In the pink - healthy Tickled pink - happy, content Pink collar - female office worker (sometimes used in a derogatory manner) Bad or neutral pink Pink collar - female office worker (sometimes used in a derogatory manner to imply low person on the office totem pole) Pink - cut, notch, or make a zigzag

Pink Words: These words are synonymous with pink or represent various shades of the color pink.

Salmon, coral, hot pink, fuschia, blush, flesh, flush, fuchsia, rose.

See how many others share the same color favorites.
View Results for Your Favorite Color Poll

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Purple Color Meanings

Purple is royalty. A mysterious color, purple is associated with both nobility and spirituality. The opposites of hot red and cool blue combine to create this intriguing color.

Pantone has selected the color Blue Iris (PANTONE 18-3943) as the 2008 Color of the Year telling us: "Combining the stable and calming aspects of blue with the mystical and spiritual qualities of purple, Blue Iris satisfies the need for reassurance in a complex world, while adding a hint of mystery and excitement."

The use of purple in familiar phrases can help a designer see how their color of choice might be perceived by others, both the positive and negative aspects.

Good purple Purple cow - something remarkable, eye-catching, unusual Purple prose - exaggeration, highly imaginative writing (also has negative connotations) Bad purple Purple speech - profanity, raunchy language Purple prose - exaggeration, colorful lies Purple haze - state of confusion or euphoria, possibly drug-induced, specific type of potent cannabis (marijuana), specific type of LSD

Purple Words: These words are synonymous with purple or represent various shades of the color purple.

Violet, plum, lavender, lilac, puce, thistle, orchid, mauve, magenta, royal, amethyst, wine, pomegranate, eggplant, mulberry.

See how many others share the same color favorites.
View Results for Your Favorite Color Poll

More Color Meanings

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The Meaning of the Color Blue

Blue is calming. It can be strong and steadfast or light and friendly. Almost everyone likes some shade of the color blue.

Pantone has selected the color Blue Iris (PANTONE 18-3943) as the 2008 Color of the Year telling us: "Combining the stable and calming aspects of blue with the mystical and spiritual qualities of purple, Blue Iris satisfies the need for reassurance in a complex world, while adding a hint of mystery and excitement."

In many diverse cultures blue is significant in religious beliefs, brings peace, or is believed to keep the bad spirits away.

Blue conveys importance and confidence without being somber or sinister, hence the blue power suit of the corporate world and the blue uniforms of police officers. Long considered a corporate color, blue, especially darker blue, is associated with intelligence, stability, unity, and conservatism.

Explore more Dark Blue Color Meanings.

Just as seeing red alludes to the strong emotions invoked by the color red, feeling blue or getting the blues represents the extremes of the calm feelings associated with blue, i.e. sadness or depression, lack of strong (violent) emotion. Dark blue is sometimes seen as staid or stodgy — old-fashioned.

In Iran, blue is the color of mourning while in the West the something blue bridal tradition represents love.

People describe How the color blue makes them feel

Mix the color of blue with green for a natural, watery palette. Add gray for understated elegance.

Sky blue and robin's egg blue, especially when combined with neutral light brown, tans, or beige are environmentally friendly color combinations.

Throw in a dash of blue to cool down a hot red or orange scheme. Grab attention with the contrast of blue and yellow.

These blue color palettes feature shades of blue combined with gray, orange, peach, purple, and earthy browns as well as palettes with multiple blues.

This selection of Dark Blue Color Palettes feature 2, 3, 4, and 5 color combinations centered around dark shades of blue such as Navy, Dark Slate Blue, and Dark Cyan.

The use of blue in familiar phrases can help a designer see how their color of choice might be perceived by others, both the positive and negative aspects.

Good blue True blue - someone loyal and faithful Out of the blue - unexpected (could be positive or negative) Blue ribbon - first rate, top prize Blueblood - person of noble birth, royalty Bluestocking - well-read or scholarly woman Bluebook - register of socially prominent people The Blues (capitalized) - popular style of music sometimes characterized by melancholy melodies and words Baby blues - Blue eyes (also see Bad blue words) Bad blue Feeling blue - feeling sad or depressed Blue devils - feelings of depression The blues (not capitalized) - depression, state of sadness Blue Monday - feeling sad Baby blues - post-partum depression Singing the blues - bemoaning one's circumstances Blue laws - laws originally intended to enforce certain moral standards Blue language - profanity Bluenose - puritanical individual Into the blue - entering the unknown or escape to parts unknown Out of the blue - unexpected (could be positive or negative)

Blue Words: These words are synonymous with blue or represent various shades of the color blue.

Sapphire, azure, beryl, cerulean, cobalt, indigo, navy, royal, sky blue, baby blue, robin's egg blue, cyan, cornflower blue, midnight blue, slate, steel blue, Prussian blue.

See how many others share the same color favorites.
View Results for Your Favorite Color Poll

View the original article here

Purple Color Meanings

Purple is royalty. A mysterious color, purple is associated with both nobility and spirituality. The opposites of hot red and cool blue combine to create this intriguing color.

Pantone has selected the color Blue Iris (PANTONE 18-3943) as the 2008 Color of the Year telling us: "Combining the stable and calming aspects of blue with the mystical and spiritual qualities of purple, Blue Iris satisfies the need for reassurance in a complex world, while adding a hint of mystery and excitement."

The use of purple in familiar phrases can help a designer see how their color of choice might be perceived by others, both the positive and negative aspects.

Good purple Purple cow - something remarkable, eye-catching, unusual Purple prose - exaggeration, highly imaginative writing (also has negative connotations) Bad purple Purple speech - profanity, raunchy language Purple prose - exaggeration, colorful lies Purple haze - state of confusion or euphoria, possibly drug-induced, specific type of potent cannabis (marijuana), specific type of LSD

Purple Words: These words are synonymous with purple or represent various shades of the color purple.

Violet, plum, lavender, lilac, puce, thistle, orchid, mauve, magenta, royal, amethyst, wine, pomegranate, eggplant, mulberry.

See how many others share the same color favorites.
View Results for Your Favorite Color Poll

More Color Meanings

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The Meaning of the Color Green

Green is life. Abundant in nature, green signifies growth, renewal, health, and environment. On the flip side, green is jealousy or envy (green-eyed monster) and inexperience.The use of green in familiar phrases can help a designer see how their color of choice might be perceived by others, both the positive and negative aspects.

Good green Green light - go, permission to proceed (with a task) The green room - in theater or televisions it is the room where performers and guests go to relax Green thumb - good with plants Greenback - US dollar bill, money Greener pastures - something newer or better (or perceived to be better), such as a new job Bad green Green-eyed monster - jealosy Green with envy - jealous or envious Green - inexperienced, untested, untrained Greenhorn - novice, trainee, beginner Green around the gills - pale, sickly

Green Words: These words are synonymous with green or represent various shades of the color green.

Emerald, sea green, seafoam, olive, olive drab, pea green, grass green, apple, mint, forest, lawn green, lime, spring green, leaf green, aquamarine, beryl, chartreuse, fir, kelly green, pine, moss, jade, sage, sap, viridian.

See how many others share the same color favorites.
View Results for Your Favorite Color Poll

More Color Meanings

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Yellow Color Meaning

Yellow is sunshine. It is a warm color that, like red, has conflicting symbolism. On the one hand it denotes happiness and joy but on the other hand yellow is the color of cowardice and deceit. The use of yellow in familiar phrases can help a designer see how their color of choice might be perceived by others, both the positive and negative aspects.

Good yellow Yellow ribbon - hope, support, remembrance Mellow yellow - laid back, relaxation Bad yellow Yellow or Yellow streak or Yellow-bellied - cowardice or coward Yellow journalism - irresponsible reporting

Yellow Words: These words are synonymous with yellow or represent various shades of the color yellow.

Lemon, yellow ocher, golden, saffron, cream, topaz, mellow yellow.

See how many others share the same color favorites.
View Results for Your Favorite Color Poll

View the original article here

Color Meanings

Use the color wheel as a starting point for mixing and matching colors.

J. BearColors are more than a combination of red and blue or yellow and black. They are non-verbal communication. Colors have symbolism and color meanings that go beyond ink. As you design brochures, logos, and Web sites, it is helpful to keep in mind how the eye and the mind perceive certain colors and the color meanings we associate with each color.

Physical and Cultural Color Reactions
Sometimes colors create a physical reaction (red has been shown to raise blood pressure) and at other times it is a cultural reaction (in the U.S. white is for weddings, in some Eastern cultures, white is the color for mourning and funerals). Colors follow trends as well. Avocado, a shade of green, is synomous with the 60s and 70s in the minds of some consumers.

Color Relationships
In addition to understanding color meanings, it helps with mixing and matching colors to know the relationship of adjacent, harmonizing, contrasting, and complementary colors. The subject is more fully explained in this Color Basics article. But below is a brief synopis: Adjacent or harmonizing colors appear next to each other on the color wheel. Harmonizing colors often work well together but if too close in value they can appear washed out or not have enough contrast. A harmonizing trio could be something like blue, light blue, and cyan or perhaps red, orange, and yellow. Contrasting colors are separated from each other by other colors -- they come from different segments of the color wheel. The further apart, the more the contrast. Red (from the warm half of the color wheel) contrasts with green and blue (from the cool half of the color wheel). Shades of purple contrast with shades of green. Contrasting colors that are directly opposite each other on the color wheel may be described as clashing colors -- see the description for complementary. Despite the name, colors that clash are not always a bad combination if used carefully. They provide great contrast and high visibility. Complementary colors are on opposite sides of the color wheel -- they are each half of a pair of contrasting colors. For example, blue is a complementary color to yellow. Green is complementary to purple and magenta. A pair of complementary colors printed side by side can sometimes cause visual vibration (clash) making them a less than desirable combination. However, separate them on the page with other colors and they can work together. Note the spelling. These are not complimentary colors. They don't always flatter (compliment) one another but they do complete (complement) each other.

On each of the cool, warm, mixed, and neutral pages are links to profiles of specific groups of colors with descriptions of their nature, cultural color meanings, how to use each color in design work, and which colors work best together.

On the next few pages we'll explore the color meanings of four different groups of colors. Cool Color Meanings (calming): Blue, Green, Turquoise, Silver Warm Color Meanings (exciting): Red, Pink, Yellow, Gold, Orange Mixed Cool/Warm Color Meanings: Purple, Lavender, Green, Turquoise Neutral Color Meanings (unifying): Brown, Beige, Ivory, Gray, Black, WhiteOr, jump directly to each of these colors to explore their nature, cultural color meaning, language, and which colors work well together. See how many others share your color preference.
Red | Green | Gold | Turquoise | Blue | Purple | Pink | Black | Orange | Yellow
View Results for Your Favorite Color Poll

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Funny Print Ads

These are some wonderfully funny (and in some cases just plain silly and/or icky) print ads. Enjoy. 50 Creative and Hilarious Print Ads for Inspiration (found via @nelson_design)

And more fun that's also inspirational: It's Friday and that means Layer Tennis.

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Ugra/Fogra Digital Plate Control Wedge

To work with digital plate setters, better known as computer to plate devices, in a controlled manner, demands for appropriate control tools as all complex systems do to supervise the daily production process and as such allowing a safe production. The complexity of computer to plate systems emerges from the multitude of components, which are involved, like digital data from different applications with different data formats, variable RIP and output parameters, divers printing plate types and treatment parameters and requirements for the tone reproduction of the output device. This  Situation demands high skills of the operators in order to rule the process.

Through a lot of analysis and practical tests a new control method for computer to plate devices was found. It is a further development of the well-known Ugra/Fogra Postscript Wedge, which was acquainted as the standard tool to control Postscript output devices by the industry. Later one doesn’t loose anything of its value for the control of film setters and the digital workflow.

The Ugra/Fogra Digital Plate Control Wedge contains
six functional groups or control fields, which are:

*Information field
*Resolution patches
*Line patches
*Checkerboard patches
*Visual reference steps (VRS)
*Halftone wedge

The novelty is the part with the eleven visual reference steps (VRS). Each VRS consists of two checkerboard fields, which are surrounded by a reference halftone field. There are eleven VRS, which are stepped in 5% increments from 35% to 85% dot areas. Under theoretical ideal conditions and a linear tone reproduction the two fields in VRS 50%should show the same tone value, that means there is visually and in measure no difference. Depending of the plate type, the plate setter calibration, the plate treatment and the tone reproduction this goal is not reachable.The same tone value of the checkerboard and the halftone field will be in a lower or higher VRS. Important for the daily production is that always the VRS is found right, which manufacturing conditions lead to the optimal printing result.

Further patches contain resolution sensible information and a halftone wedge, with which the tone reproduction characteristic can be tested. To eliminate productionrelated unevenness in the block, a full-tone patch was placed adjacent to the checkerboard patches. With the unset block outside the plate wedge, the positions for the densitometric measurement of zero (uncoated substrate), rendering and full tone are immediately adjacent to each other. Nevertheless Ugra promotes to use planimetric measurement methods on printing plates. The resolution patches consists of two star targets, the one generated with negative lines the other with positive lines. The line whit corresponds with the resolution setting of the plate setter. The line and checkerboard patches change their line or dot size with the resolution settings of the plate setter.

What is Bar Code Verification?

QUALITY CONTROL FOR BAR CODES!
Verification measures the printed quality of the bar code to international (ISO) standards. This is the standard used by retailers worldwide. According to international standards, verification is mandatory for all companies either designing or printing their own bar codes, ensuring that an acceptable image is created.

Why Verify?
Bar code quality is vital, as every time a bar code fails to scan, costs are incurred. At best the data is required to be input manually whilst at worst deliveries are rejected.
A recent survey by the e-centre (EAN UK) put the cost of poor quality bar codes at over £500 million. Until recently, many retailers have accepted these costs as a ‘fact of trading life’. However, an ever increasing number of major retailers are now taking a very different approach by passing these costs back to suppliers. Goods are returned and fines imposed. For repeat offenders the ultimate sanction can be, and has been, delisting as a supplier.
Insurance
At its most basic level, verification is an insurance policy helping to assure you that your bar code will scan first time at all levels in the supply chain, thus enhancing your supplier/customer relationship.
But it’s more than that. As part of an effective QA system it can help you win business. Are your competitors using verification? Are they questioning the quality of your bar codes with your customers? Is it affecting your business?
Why Can’t I Just Use A Scanner?
Scanning is no substitute for verification as no two bar code readers are identical. They vary from wands to lasers to cameras, from manually operated to automatic. Ambient light will vary as will the distance of scanning. A bar code that is ‘checked’ with a wand gives no guarantee that it will be readable with another wand, let alone a laser based unit.
A verifier is a scientific device, taking precise measurements of each individual bar and space and the amount of light reflected from each. More advanced units will automatically identify the symbology and magnification, check data structure and validate the content as well as providing diagnostic information. It is all very well knowing that your bar code is incorrect but a verifier must be able to identify the problem to allow you to take the necessary corrective action.
Why was the ISO/CEN/ANSI method introduced?
Prior to the Current ISO standard of verifying printed bar code symbols, only two factors were taken into consideration:
• Dimensional accuracy of the bars and spaces.
• Reflectance values of the bars and the background (PCS).
This traditional method would have been a reasonable way of assessing the print quality, except that there was no agreed way of determining where bar edges actually were or how and where reflectance measurements should be made. As well as this, bar codes were being measured with differing beams of light (apertures). Both of these factors resulted in a wide variation of results between verifiers.
With the variety of uses for bar codes and the wide range of printing techniques used, it was felt that a more scientific approach was needed. In particular it was noted that different scanners and the differing environments in which these were used resulted in some aspects of poor print quality being more significant than others. Simple reflectance measurements were also found not to be helpful when the contrast might vary within the symbol. A definition of where a bar-space transition actually occurred was required as were specific aperture sizes dependent upon the symbology and size of bar code.

Trendsetter NX Imager:High-quality CTP for flexo and Offset

High-quality CTP output for digital flexo and Offset plate making
Building on our success and expertise in thermal CTP technology, the Kodak Trendsetter NX Imager offers exceptional productivity and consistency, as well as a wide tonal range for flexographic printing. The reliable and robust Trendsetter NX Narrow and Mid Imagers offer outstanding imaging technology, semi-automatic operation, process stability, and easy maintenance.
As part of the Kodak Flexcel NX Digital Flexographic System,Trendsetter NX Imagers allow packaging printers to produce highquality results to differentiate their products. They use Kodak squarespot Imaging Technology for outstanding process control and to produce an image dot size as small as 10-micron.Trendsetter NX Imagers expose Kodak Flexcel NX Thermal Imaging Layers at an impressive speed of 9.5 m2 per hour. These layers are then laminated to Kodak Flexcel NX Digital Flexographic Plates for exposure and processing. The result is a digital flexo plate imaging solution that eliminates drop off of highlights and provides exceptional printing results.
Speed and versatility
Trendsetter NX Imagers expose the Kodak Flexcel NX Thermal Imaging Layer at an impressive speed of 9.5 m2 per hour, about half the time it takes to image a digital flexo plate with a laser
ablative mask. Loading and unloading are also faster, because no taping or clamping is required.
Following exposure, the imaging layer is laminated to a Kodak Flexcel NX Digital Flexographic Plate. The result? A digital flexo plate imaging solution that eliminates highlight drop-off and
provides exceptional printing results. The hybrid option for Trendsetter NX Mid and Narrow Imagers
enables imaging of both flexo and offset plates on the same device, maximizing your return on investment as well as image quality across substrates.
INNOVATION
The Flexcel NX System uses unique technology to deliver print quality and
print performance that is a significant step ahead of traditional digital flexo.
Flat-top dots
Unlike traditional digital flexo plate making where oxygen inhibition during UV exposure causes the dot profile to become rounded, especially in highlight areas, the Flexcel NX System eliminates all oxygen during UV exposure to produce full amplitude flat-top dots with sturdy bases and strong shoulders. This dot structure is the key to superior on-press performance, Delivering a consistent, repeatable printing form that is resistant to changes in impression and wear from substrate or cleaning.
High resolution imaging
The third piece in the puzzle is high resolution imaging to ensure maximum tonal range and fine image reproduction. The Trendsetter NX Imagers use squarespot imaging at an effective resolution of 10,000 dpi to enable printing dots as small as 10 microns, allowing subtle highlight detail, vignettes that fade to zero and use of all available grey levels—and because of the one-toone image reproduction and the flat-top dots, none of that detail is lost from the beginning to the end of a print run.
DigiCap NX Screening
DigiCap NX Screening is a softwarebased feature for the Flexcel NX System that enables a major Step forward in ink transfer efficiency through the application of a micro surface texturization pattern to the surface of all elements on the Flexcel NX Plate. Print applications that traditionally struggle with efficient ink transfer can now enjoy higher print densities, smooth solid area ink coverage and expanded color gamut with process printing.