GLOSSARY OF GRAPHIC COMMUNICATIONS TERMS 1

Additive Color Theory - The mixture of red, green, and blue light,
the primary colors of light, to produce white light.
Against the Grain - At right angles to the direction of the grain of
the paper.
Aliasing - A staircase or jagged effect that occurs when display
resolution is too coarse to minimize the broken appearance of certain
electronic design elements. Aliasing is more visually pronounced in
diagonal lines, curves, and circles.
Alteration - Any change made by the customer after copy or artwork
has been given to the service bureau, separator or printer. The change
could be in copy, specifications, or both. Also called AA, author alteration
or customer alteration.
Anti-offset Powder - Finely powdered starch sprayed on the printed
surface of coated paper as sheets leave the press to prevent wet ink from
transferring from the top of one sheet to the bottom of the next sheet.
Aqueous Coating - Water based coating applied like ink by a
printing press to protect and enhance the printed surface.
Artifact - any non-natural feature or structure accidentally introduced
into something being observed or studied.
Ascender - The part of a lower case letter which rises above the
main body, as in b or d.
Automatic Picture Replacement (APR) - Scitexs
implementation of the process in which a low resolution image is
automatically replaced by the high resolution version of the image.
Back Up - In printing: to print the second side of a sheet already
printed on one side. In computers: to make a copy of your work on a
separate disk in case something happens to the original.
Basis Weight - Weight in pounds of a ream (500 sheets) of paper cut
to a given standard size for that grade; example: 500 sheets of 17" x 22"
20 lb. bond paper weighs 20 pounds.
Binders Creep - The slight but cumulative extension of the edges
of each inserted spread or signature beyond the edges of the one that
encloses it in a saddle-stitch bind.
Blanket - In offset printing, a rubber-surfaced fabric that is clamped
around a cylinder. The image is transferred from the plate to the blanket,
and from there, transferred to the paper.
Bleed - Printed image which extends beyond the trim edge of the sheet
or page.
Blind Image - Image that is debossed or embossed, but not printed
with ink or foil.
Blueline - Prepress photographic proof made from stripped negatives
where all colors show as shades of a single color on white paper. Also
called brownline, silverprint.
Bond Paper - A grade of writing or printing paper where strength,
durability and performance are essential requirements; used for
letterheads, business forms, etc. The basic size is 17" x 22".
Book Paper - A general term for coated and uncoated paper.
The basic size is 25" x 38".
Brightness - In paper, the reflectance or brilliance of the paper.
Bristol - Type of board paper used for post cards, business cards and
other heavy-use products. Basic size is 22
1
/2" x 28
1
/2" or 22
1
/2" x 35".
Butt Register - Register where ink colors meet precisely without
overlapping or allowing space between. Also called butt fit and kiss register.
Bump-Ink applied from a fifth or higher plate in four-color process print-
ing, usually to strengthen a specific color; also referred to as a touchplate.
C - The abbreviation for cyan in the four-color process.
Caliper - The thickness of paper, usually expressed in thousandths of
an inch (mils). Also, a device on a sheetfed press that detects double
sheets or on a binding machine that detects missing signatures or inserts.
Case Bind - To bind using glue to hold signatures to a case made
of binder board covered with fabric, plastic or leather. Also called cloth
edition, hard bind or hard cover.
Cast Coated Paper - Paper dried under pressure against a heated,
polished cylinder to produce a high-gloss enamel finish.
CEPS - Computer electronic prepress systems (today largely replaced by
desktop network systems)
Chalking - Refers to improper drying of ink. Pigments dust off because
ink has been absorbed too rapidly into the paper.
Choke - A slight size reduction of an opening into which an image
will print.
Chroma - The attribute of color that specifies its amount of saturation
or strength.
CIM- Computer integrated manufacturing.
CIP4 - The International Cooperation for the Integration of Processes
in Prepress, Press, and Postpress (CIP4) Organization; a not-for-profit
association responsible for JDF.
CMYK- Abbreviation for cyan, magenta, yellow, and key (black), the
four process colors.
Coated Paper - Paper with a coating of clay or other substances that
improves reflectivity and ink holdout.
Color Balance - Maintaining the ratio of cyan, magenta, and yellow
ink to produce a picture with the desired color and without an unwanted
color cast or color bias.
Color Bars - The color strip on proofs that is used as a guide for the
printer in determining the amount and density of ink needed.
Color Calibration - A means or method of setting a computer
monitor, scanner, or color printer to a standard set of color values so as
to ensure that all the colors remain consistent throughout each step of
the imaging process.
Color Cast - Discoloration of an entire image or portion of an image
caused by an overabundance of one color.
2 GLOSSARY OF GRAPHIC COMMUNICATIONS TERMS
Color Electronic Prepress Systems (CEPS) (high-end) -
Dedicated computer workstations and systems designed exclusively for
highest-quality color manipulation and preparation.
Color Management Systems - Electronic characterization,
calibration and control systems that help to assure color consistency
and accuracy throughout the print production process from scanning
through previewing on screen and proofing to reproduction on press.
Color Scanner - An electronic piece of equipment that utilizes a laser
or other high intensity light to make color separation negatives from
either reflective prints or transparencies.
Color Separations - The four-color negatives or positives which are
the result of changing full color photos or art into the four process colors
(yellow, magenta, cyan, and black) by the use of filters.
Color Sequence - The order in which the four-color process inks are
printed on the press.
Colorimeter - An instrument for measuring color the way the eye
sees it.
Comb Bind - To bind by inserting the teeth of a flexible plastic comb
through holes punched along the edge of a stack of paper.
Composite File - A PostScript file that represents color pages
containing picture elements specified in terms of CMYK color space as
opposed to black and white grayscale pages which represent separations.
Composite Proofs - Single test sheet showing position and color of
all elements as stripped up.
Comprehensive - A detailed dummy or sketch of a design, intended
to give a clear sense of how the finished piece should look.
Computer-to-plate (CTP or CtP) - Describes a system in which
the use of desktop publishing software, electronic prepress workstations,
and platesetters allows the imaging of metal plates for any format of
press without the use of film, stripping or traditional platemaking. This
process results in lower costs while shortening the amount of time needed
to get a job on the press. Sometimes also called C2P to distinguish it
from CTP, or computer-to-press.
Computer-to-plate - Producing metal or polyester plates directly
from digital files without producing a set of film negatives.
Computer-to-press - Describes a printing system that includes
desktop publishing software, electronic prepress workstations and a
new type of press which is capable of rapidly changing the images it
is printing without the use of removable plates.
Condensed Type - Type whose width has been reduced without
affecting its height.
Condition - To keep paper in the pressroom for a few hours or days
before printing so that its moisture level and temperature equal that in
the pressroom.
Continuous Tones - An illustrative image that is not composed
of halftone printing dots. Also a bitmapped image.
Continuous-tone Digital Proofing - Producing a proof with
reliable color but no halftone pattern (photorealistic) directly from a
digital file, usually by inkjet or dye sublimination process, without
producing a set of film negatives.
Conventional Dot - A halftone dot with the classic square format:
middle tone dots are square, while the extremely small black dots or
white openings are round.
Copy - Original job material (paste-ups, film, photos, and other
graphics) furnished for the print job.
Coverage - The amount of ink on a page or sheet, usually given
in percentages.
Creep - The shifting position of the page in a saddle-stitched bind.
Creep moves the inside pages or signatures away from the spine.
Crop - To eliminate portions of copy or an image.
Crop Marks - Symbols placed in the margin outside the image area
that indicate to the printer and bindery the area to be printed and/or
trimmed from the image.
Cross Direction - In paper, the direction across the grain.
Paper is stronger across the grain but more sensitive to humidity
against the grain.
Crossover - A reproduction that extends across two facing pages in
a book or magazine and crosses over the binding.
CTP - Computer-to-plate.
Cure - To dry inks, varnishes or other coatings after printing to ensure
good adhesion and prevent set-off.
Curl - The distortion of paper due to differences in structure or coatings
from one side to the other or from absorption of moisture on the press.
Cutoff - Circumference of the impression cylinder of a web press,
therefore, the length of the printed sheet on roll to sheet presses or the
length of the repeat pattern on roll to roll presses.
Cyan - One of the three subtractive primary colors used in process
printing. It is commonly known as process blue.
Dampening System- The mechanism on a press for transferring
fountain solution to the plate.
Data Shift - In process color printing, it describes a shift in one of
the channels of data that comprise the image file and could cause
inconsistent color in some areas in the image.
Deboss - To press an image into paper so it lies below the surface.
Deckel Edge - The untrimmed feathery edges of paper formed where
the pulp flows against the wire of a paper making machine.
Densitometer - Instrument used to measure density. Reflection
densitometers measure light reflected from paper and other surfaces.
Transmission densitometers measure light transmitted through film
and other materials.
GLOSSARY OF GRAPHIC COMMUNICATIONS TERMS 3
Density - The amount an object absorbs or reflects light is called
density level. High-density objects absorb or stop light; low-density
objects reflect or transmit light.
Descender - The part of a lower case letter which extends below the
main body, as in p.
Desktop Publishing Stripping - Electronic assembly of all
elements in final imposition for direct output as composite negative
or plate.
Detail Enhancement - The technique of exaggerating picture
image edges with unsharp masking or peaking, so the observer can
easily see the detail of the original in the final reproduction.
Die - Device for cutting, scoring, stamping, embossing or debossing.
Diecutting - Using sharp steel rules to cut special shapes from printed
sheets. Diecutting can be done on either flatbed or rotary presses.
Digital Asset Management - File or asset storage and retrieval by
a company for its customer.
Digital Photography - Direct electronic capture of an image within
a camera without using film and processing.
Digital Printing - Printing by plateless imaging systems that are
imaged by digital data from prepress systems.
Digital Soft Proof - A color video monitor display of a picture file,
data file or text file.
Dimensional Stability - Ability of a film to hold size throughout its
cycle of use. Polyester-based films are more dimensionally stable than
acetate bases; glass is more stable than polyester.
Direct Digital Color Proof (DDCP) - A proof made directly
from the stored data file onto a substrate using a peripheral device such
as a photographic exposure, dot matrix printer or ink jet printer without
producing intermediate films.
Direct Imaging Press (DI) - Offset press on which plates are
imaged while on press directly from files prepared on a dedicated
electronic prepress workstation. Most models print waterless but one
model with a dampening system has been marketed.
Direct-to-plate - Often used as a synonym for computer-to-plate
but less desirable to use because the acronym DTP can be confused
with desktop publishing, which is also known as DTP (see also
Computer-to-plate).
Dither - To fill the gap between two pixels with another pixel having
an average value of the two to minimize the difference or add detail to
smooth the result.
Dot Area - The size of the dot is indicated by the percentage of the
area it occupies from zero to one hundred percent.
Dot Gain - The increase in the printing dot size from the halftone
film to the printed substrate resulting in darker tones.
Double Black Duotones - Image created from two halftones, one
for highlights and the other for midtones and shadows. Both plates are
inked with black for the most contrast.
Double Burn - Utilizing two or more negatives to expose an image
on a plate or positive print.
Drawdown - Sample of inks specified for a job applied to the substrate
specified for a job.
Dummy - A layout showing the size, shape, form and general style
of a piece of printing.
Duplex (printing) - Two-sided printing or printing on both sides of
a sheet. Typically a digital printing term.
Duotone - A two-color halftone produced by overprinting two halftone
screens made from the same photograph (usually a black and white
photo), as a means of generating a monochromatic image with a full
range of tonal gradations.
Duplex Paper - Paper with a different color or finish on each side.
Dye Sublimation - A process used for color proofing systems
and heat transfer printing. The dye is a colorant that undergoes
sublimation, which is the direct transformation from a solid into a
gas without passing through the liquid phase. When the substance is
cooled, it turns back into a solid again, also without passing through a
liquid stage. In the case of proofing systems, the colorant is a solid wax.
Electronic Dot Generation - Method of producing halftones
electronically on scanners and prepress systems.
Electronic Publishing - A configuration of hardware and software
used for digital page composition. The term includes desktop publishing
and high-end systems.
Electrophotography - Image transfer system used in copiers to
produce images using electrostatic forces.
Elliptical Dot - An elongated or oval halftone dot used to minimize
the midtone jump in dot gain at the point where dots are large enough
to connect.
Emboss - To press an image into paper so it lies above the surface.
Emulsion - The light-sensitive coating on photographic film, plates
or stencils.
End Sheet - Sheet that attaches the inside pages of a case bound
book to its cover.
Engraving - Printing method using a plate, also called a die, with
an image cut into its surface.
Enhanced Multi-color (High-fidelity) Printing -
Full-color printing using six, seven or more process colors instead of
the traditional four.
4 GLOSSARY OF GRAPHIC COMMUNICATIONS TERMS
EPS - An abbreviation for Encapsulated PostScript (most common in
graphic arts); for Electronic Publishing System; and External Page
Storage. Encapsulated PostScript is an Adobe Systems-developed file
format. It is a device-independent PostScript representation of a graphic
or other object. It stores files as vectors and includes a low-resolution
bitmap representation for quick on-screen viewing
Estimate - A statement of what a print job will probably cost based on
specified quantities, materials, and labor.
Etch - To use chemicals to carve an image into plates and film or an
acid solution used to desensitize the non-printing areas of the plate.
Environmentally-friendly Processes - Reduced-chemical,
silver-and VOC-free processes for preparation of printed materials.
Exposure - The quantity of light that is allowed to act on a
photographic material. The product of the intensity and the duration
of the light acting on the emulsions.
Fanout - Distortion of paper on the press due to waviness in the paper
caused by absorption of moisture at the edges of the paper, particularly
across the grain.
Feeder - The part of the press that separates the sheets of paper and
feeds them into position for printing.
Felt Side - The smoother side of the paper.
File Transfer Protocol (FTP) - In networking and telecommuni-
cations, a specific (and eponymously named) file transfer protocol used
for logging into remote computer networks, browsing and searching
directories, and downloading or uploading files without data loss.
Fingerprint - To test a printing press to determine its exact printing
characteristics, such as its dot gain, ink density, and trapping, for the
purpose of customizing color separations for those printing conditions.
Flat - The assembled composite of negatives or positives ready for
platemaking. Also, a term used to describe a photograph that is lacking
in contrast.
Flexography - A printing process that uses a raised surface of flexible
rubber or photopolymer printing plate mounted on a rotary drum and
thin, fast-drying inks to print on almost any roll stock.
Flush Cover - A cover trimmed to the same size as the inside text pages.
Fly Leaf - The half of the end sheets not glued to the front and back
covers of a case bound book.
Flying Paster - An automatic pasting device that splices a new roll
of paper onto an expiring roll without stopping the web press.
Foil Stamp - To press a heated die onto a sheet of foil, releasing the
foil from its backing and adhering it to a substrate.
Folio - In typesetting, the typeset page number. Right hand pages
contain the odd number folios.
Font - A complete set of type characters in one typeface and type size.
Foot - The bottom of a page or book.
Foot Margin - The distance between the bottom edge of the body
of type (text) on a page and the bottom edge of the trimmed page
(see also Tail Margin).
For Position Only (FPO) - Refers to inferior quality copies of
photos or art used on mechanicals to indicate placement and scaling,
but not intended for reproduction.
Form- Each side of a signature.
Form Roller - A roller which comes in contact with the printing plate,
bringing it water or ink.
Fountain Solution - A mixture of water and chemicals that dampens
a printing plate to prevent ink from adhering to the non-image areas.
Four-color Process - Use of cyan, magenta, yellow, and black to
create a full color image.
Free Sheet - Paper made from cooked wood fibers mixed with
chemicals and washed free of impurities.
Frequency-modulated Screening - See stochastic screening.
Front End System- The computer hardware on which application
software used to prepare pages of type and graphics is run.
Fulfillment - The storing of a customers materials until that
customer requests delivery to itself or to a third party. Also, the fulfilling
by a vendor of a request received from a customer by phone, by mail or
by electronic means. Also known as pick and pack.
Full-scale Black - A black printer separation that prints dots in
every part of the picture, from the highlight to the shadow. Also called
full-range black.
Gapless Press - A web press with special blanket cylinders that, with
each rotation, allow more printing per square inch. This larger print
space plus a shorter cutoff point can save a significant amount of paper
on large runs.
Gang - To halftone or separate more than one image in only one
exposure. Also to print two or more finished products on the same sheet
during one press run.
Gather - To assemble folded signatures in proper sequence.
Ghosting - Phenomenon of a faint image on a printed sheet where
it was not intended to appear.
Gradation - The gradual shading of one value of tint into another
lighter or darker tint.
Grain - The direction in which most fibers are aligned.
Gravure - The process of printing from cylinders that contain cells that
hold the ink for transfer to the substrate. In gravure color printing, each
succeeding color is printed on a dry color, rather than one still wet as in
letterpress and offset lithography.
Gray Balance - The proper amount of cyan, magenta, and yellow
printing to produce a gray scale with no apparent dominant hue.
GLOSSARY OF GRAPHIC COMMUNICATIONS TERMS 5
Gray Component Replacement (GCR) - A color separation
process that uses the black printer for the neutral gray portion of any
color. Instead of mixing cyan, magenta, and yellow to produce those
grays, they are replaced with black ink. GCR deepens the shadows in
an image that lacks depth. GCR replaces the grays with process black,
unlike Under Color Removal (UCR) which reduces process colors in
the neutral grays and adds black.
Gray Stabilization - Ability to maintain neutral gray balance during
a color reproduction. The use of GCR helps to stabilize neutrals.
Grindoff - The approximately
1
/8" (3mm) that is removed along the
spine of gathered signatures before perfect binding.
Gripper Edge - The leading edge of a sheet which is held by the
grippers on a printing press.
Gripper Margin - The unprintable area of the paper where it is
gripped as it passes through a printing press. Usually measures a half
inch or less.
Grippers - Metal fingers that clamp onto the paper and control its
flow as it passes through the press.
Gutter - The inside margin of a bound page. The blank space between
two columns of text or image areas is also called gutter.
Hairline Register - Register within plus or minus one-half row of dots.
Halftone - An image composed of tiny dots whose variations in size
create the illusion of variations in tone. Traditionally, a halftone screen
was used to convert a continuous tone image into a halftone; such
screening is currently done electronically.
Hard Copy - A printed paper copy of output in readable form.
It is also a transparency film or photograph of an image displayed on
the monitor.
Hard Dots - Second generation dots or laser-generated dots that have
hard edges without any fringe.
Hard Proof - A color proof made on a substrate from production
films or on a substrate directly from the stored pixel data. The latter is
usually referred to as a digital hard proof, and a video proof as a digital
soft proof.
Head - The top of a page or book.
Heatset - Web printing process whereby non-absorbent paper goes
through the press and the ink is dried by heat.
Hickey - Spot on a printed sheet usually due to dust, lint or bits of paper.
High Fidelity Printing or Hi-Fi Printing - Describes a method
of printing that expands the CMYK gamuts range by adding extra colors
known as extra-trinary colors. Several graphic arts vendors, including
Pantone, have created extra trinary colorants that can be used to
supplement the basic three (CMY) (see also Enhanced Multi-color
Printing).
Highlight - The lightest area of a photograph that has the smallest or
fewest dots when made into a halftone.
Holdout - A property of coated paper with low ink absorption which
allows ink to set on the surface with high gloss. Too much holdout can
cause ink to rub off or mark the next sheet.
House Sheet - Paper kept in stock by a printer and suitable for a wide
variety of printing jobs.
Hue - The attribute of color that designates its dominant wave length
and distinguishes it from other colors.
Imagesetter - A high-resolution laser output device that writes data
on photosensitive paper or film. The data is processed by a RIP and can
record halftones and line images as well as type.
Imposition - Laying out pages in a press form so that when the pages
are printed and folded they will be in proper order.
Impression - One sheet passing once through the press.
Imprinting - To print new copy on a previously printed sheet, such
as imprinting an employees name on business cards.
In-line - Components of a system arranged in a logical production
sequence and in such a way that materials are automatically fed to the
next component. An example would be a coating tower on a press to
apply the lacquer or UV coating on the same pass as the color.
Ink Balance - Relationship of the densities and dot gain of process
inks to each other and to a standard density of neutral gray.
Inkjet - A method of printing images using jets that squirt minuscule
drops of ink onto a variety of surfaces.
Insert - A printed piece prepared for insertion into a publication or
another printed piece.
Intaglio - Method of printing in which the image is etched below the
non-printing surface. Gravure and engraving are the most common forms.
JDF - Job Definition Format, an XML-based specification for process
automation in the printing and publishing industries.
Jog - To align the edges of a pile of paper by hitting or shaking against
a flat surface.
K- Abbreviation for black in four-color process printing.
Kelvin - A unit of measure used to describe the color temperature of
a light source, such as the 5000K standard viewing conditions.
Key Plate - Negative or plate that prints the most detail (usually
black) and to which other plates are aligned.
Kilobyte - K, Kb or KB. A unit of measuring digital information
which equals 1024 bytes.
Kiss Cut - To diecut the top layer but not the backing of
self-adhesive paper.
Kiss Impression - Lightest possible impression that will transfer
ink to a substrate.
6 GLOSSARY OF GRAPHIC COMMUNICATIONS TERMS
Knock Out - To clear an area of absolutely every printing dot; or to
outline an image and drop out all dots surrounding it.
Kraft Paper - Strong paper made with bleached or unbleached long
fiber wood pulp. Used for grocery bags, envelopes, and wrapping paper.
Laminate - To bond a plastic film by heat and/or pressure to a printed
sheet for protection and appearance.
Lap Register - Register where ink colors overlap slightly.
Layout - A drawing that gives the general appearance of the finished
piece and usually indicates the relationship between illustrations and copy.
Leading - (ledd-ing) The linespace, or white space, between lines of
copy measured in points.
Leaf - One sheet of paper in a publication. Each side of a leaf is one page.
Lenticular Printing - Lenticulars are flat images that appear to
display depth, motion, or, in some cases, both. Lenticular printing is a
specialized print process that can show depth, motion or a little of both.
The lenticular material is made up of tiny ridges or lenses (hence the
name "lenticular" printing). The printer takes multiple images and
interlaces or weaves them together. When that woven image is printed to
the back of the lenticular material, the lenses hide all but one image at a
time. As the viewing angle changes, the images shown to your eye rotates
to the next in the series. When a series of images are run before your eyes
it creates animation.
Letterpress - Method of printing where the wrong-reading raised
surface of a printing plate is inked and impressed directly onto paper.
Line Copy - High contrast images or type without shading which
do not require halftone screening.
Lithography - Method of printing using plates whose image areas
attract ink and whose non-image areas repel ink. The images are first
printed onto a rubber blanket and then offset to paper.
Live Matter - The vital parts or elements of a printed piece which
must not be trimmed off.
Loupe - Lens built into a small stand. Used to inspect copy, film, proofs,
plates and printing.
M- The abbreviation for magenta in the four-color process. Also the
abbreviation for one thousand.
Magenta - One of the three subtractive primary colors of process
printing. It is commonly called process red.
Makegood - The rerun of an ad or printed piece by a publisher or
printer because of their error.
Makeready - The process of setting up and adjusting a printing press
for a particular ink, paper, and set of printing conditions prior to a press
run. Also, the paper used during these adjustments.
Margin - The blank space around the image area of a page, also
referred to as a gutter.
Master - To etch pits (tracks) into the Glass Master (acts like a
negative) from which a CD-ROM stamper is made.
Mastering/pressing CD-ROMs - Preparation of compact disc
read-only memory (CD-ROM) discs from customer-supplied materials
as alternative or value-added sales opportunity.
Mechanical - Complete pages, with text, line art, and crop marks in
position, ready to be photographed or output to film.
Megabyte - Mb or MB. A unit of measure for digital data which is
1024 kilobytes or 1,048,576 bytes.
Metameric Colors - Colors that can change their perceived hue
depending on the different lighting conditions.
Midtone - The tonal values of an image that fall midway between the
highlight and shadow dots.
Moir - Objectionable patterns that appear at regular frequencies when
two or more screen patterns are placed over one another. May be caused
by misalignment, incorrect screen angles, slipping or slurring.
Mottle - Spotty or speckled printing.
Negative - The film image of a completed page from which plates will
be burned. The light and dark parts of the image are tonally reversed
from the original copy.
Neutral Gray - Any level of gray from white to black with no apparent
color cast or hue.
Non-heatset - Web printing process whereby porous paper goes
through the press and the ink dries by absorption.
Oblong - A booklet or catalog bound along the shorter dimension.
Off-press Proof - A color proof that is similar in appearance to the
finished printed product but is made without the aid of a printing press.
Offset Printing - Usually refers to offset lithography. The image
prints by transferring ink from a plate to a rubber blanket that deposits
the ink onto the substrate instead of directly from plate to paper.
Opacity - Characteristic of paper or other substrate that prevents
print on one side from showing through to the other side. Also, the
characteristic of ink that prevents the substrate from showing through.
Optical Gain - An effect caused by printing on a paper on which
halftone dots appear larger than actual size, resulting in image
degradation.
Outline Halftone - A photo reproduction in which the background
around the primary subject has been removed.
Overlay Proof - Color proof which simulates the appearance of the
printed piece. It consists of sheets of film dyed or pigmented with the
color and image of each plate to be used in the print run. The film is
stacked so it is in register and in the order the inks will be printed.
Overprint - To print over an area that has previously been printed.
GLOSSARY OF GRAPHIC COMMUNICATIONS TERMS 7
Overrun - Copies printed and/or bound in excess of the specified
quantity.
Packing - Paper used to underlay the image or impression cylinder in
letterpress or the plate or blanket in lithography to get the proper squeeze
and pressure for printing.
Page - One side of a leaf in a publication.
Page Makeup - The assembly of all elements to make up a page.
Pagination - Numbering pages in order. Also, the process of
performing page makeup on a computer.
Palette - The collection of colors or shades available or used in a
project, graphic system or program.
Pallet - a low, portable platform on which materials
are stacked(see also Skid).
Panel - One page of a brochure on one side of the paper. A letter folded
sheet has six panels.
Parallel Fold - A folding succession in which all folds are made
parallel with each other.
Paste-up - Placing graphics and text in a mechanical either manually
or electronically.
PDF - Abbreviation for Portable Document Format, a file format
developed by Adobe Systems. PDF is a universal file format that
preserves the fonts, images, graphics, and layout of any source
document, regardless of the application and platform used to create
it. Adobe PDF files are compact and complete, and can be shared,
viewed, and printed by anyone with free Adobe Reader software. You
can convert any document to Adobe PDF using Adobe Acrobat software
products. There are also other vendors, like Global Graphics, who also
market their own flavor of PDF.
Perfect Binding - Signatures that are folded and collated on top of
one another, as opposed to saddlestitch binding in which the signatures
are folded inside one another.
Perfecting Press - Press that prints on both sides of the paper during
a single pass.
Pica - Unit of measure commonly used in typesetting and design.
A pica is one-sixth of an inch.
Picking - The lifting of the paper surface during printing, leaving
unprinted spots in image areas. This occurs when the pulling force
(tack) of the ink is greater than the surface strength of the paper.
Pigment - The fine, solid particles used to give color, transparency or
opacity to ink.
Piling - The building up or caking of ink on rollers, plates or blankets
which will not transfer readily.
Pixel - Abbreviation for picture element. The separate elements of a
bitmapped image on a video monitor or hardcopy output.
Pixel Swapping - A CEPS technique to exchange pixels from one area
of a picture for pixels in another area. Example: a window may be
removed from a brick building if one area of the brick wall is placed in
that area of the picture. Using this technique, blemishes can be removed
and objects can be added to the reproduction.
PMS - Acronym for Pantone Matching System

, a set of preprinted
color patches used to choose and communicate color so exact matches
can be obtained.
Point - Unit of measurement commonly used to specify type sizes.
There are 12 points in a pica and 72 points in an inch.
Porosity - The property of paper that allows the permeation of air,
an important factor in ink penetration.
Position Proof - A color proof that is made to verify that all the
elements of the reproduction (text, graphics and pictures) are in the
correct position and are in register with each other.
Preflight - Procedures used by a printing company to make sure that
a customers digital files are correctly prepared for production.
Pre-master - To format a data file into the ISO 9660 format (which is
the International Standard for CD-ROM), before the mastering process.
The data file is then provided to the party responsible for the mastering
process (see also Master).
Prepress - Camera work, color separating, stripping, platemaking,
and other functions performed by the printer, separator or service bureau
prior to the actual printing.
Prepress Proof - Any color proof made using inkjet, toner, dyes
or overlays.
Press Check - When a customer is at the printing press in order to
approve the job as it is printed.
Press Proof - A proof made on press using the ink and paper specified
for the job.
Press Run - The actual running of the press to print the job following
makeready. Also, the number of copies of a publication printed.
Price Break - Quantity at which unit cost of paper or printing drops.
Primary Colors - The colorants of a system used to reproduce the
colors for the entire reproduction. Cyan, magenta, and yellow are
subtractive primary colors while red, green, and blue are additive
primary colors.
Printers Spread - Two facing pages in the order they will be printed,
e.g. pages 1 and 4 and also 2 and 3 will be keylined together for a four-
page brochure.
Process Colors - The three colors (cyan, magenta, and yellow) plus
black that are used in full-color printing.
8 GLOSSARY OF GRAPHIC COMMUNICATIONS TERMS
Process Color Separation - In order to print full-color images,
it is necessary to prepare four separate films or file records for each of
the process colors (cyan, magenta, yellow, and black). When the colors
are overprinted, they combine to render a wide range of color. CMYK
produces the widest range of color with the fewest inks when printing.
Process Inks - The ink colors of cyan, magenta, and yellow used to
print color reproductions.
Progressive Proof - A set of proofs made with ink on paper from the
actual plates to show the sequence of printing and the result after each
additional color is applied. Also called progs.
Quadratone - Halftone image created by overprinting four different
halftone screens of the same image with different tonal values.
Quartertone - Those dot percentages that are near the 25 percent
printing dot size.
Quarto - Sheet folded twice, making pages one-fourth the size of
the original sheet. A quarto makes an 8-page signature.
Quotation - Price offered by a printer to produce a specific job.
Ragged - Type that is not justified either on the right or left side.
Rag Paper - Paper containing a minimum of 25 percent rag or cotton
fiber pulp.
Random Proof - A color proof consisting of many images ganged
on one substrate and randomly positioned with no relation to the final
page imposition. This is a cost-effective way to verify the correctness of
completed scans prior to further stripping and color correction work.
Also called scatter proof.
Raster - To convert mathematical and digital information into a
series of dots by an imagesetter or recorder as digital data that will be
used for output.
Readers Spread - Keylines of two facing pages in correct numerical
order, e.g., pages 2 and 3.
Ream- 500 sheets of printing paper. Stacks and skids of paper often
include slips of paper (ream markers) marking the division of the stack
into reams.
Reflective Copy - Any painting, artwork or photograph
(not a transparency) that reflects light off its surface.
Register Marks - Crosses or other designs that are placed outside the
image area of a proof and press sheet to prevent elements of the job from
being misaligned.
Registration - The correct positioning of one color over another
during the printing process.
Relief Printing - Printing method whose image carriers are
surfaces with two levels having inked areas higher than non-inked areas.
Types include block printing, flexography, and letterpress.
Remote proofing - Digital transmission of a proof to a remote office
or customer location for output and evaluation at the remote site.
Replicate - In the manufacturing of a CD-ROM, to mold the actual
disc by injecting molten polycarbonate into the mold cavity (stamper),
then quickly cool the plastic to harden it, a process which takes less than
15 seconds. After replication of the disc, art is printed onto the non-data
side of the disc via screen process or offset printing.
Reprint - An ad which is printed and then sent to a magazine for
insertion. Also refers to a reprint of ads supplied by the publication before
the publication is issued.
Resolution - Sharpness of an image. Also quantification of laser print
quality using number of dots or pixels per inch.
Reverse - Type, graphic or illustration produced by printing ink around
its outline, thus allowing the underlying color or paper to show through
and form the image. The image reverses out of the ink color. Also
called knock out or liftout.
RGB - Red, green, and blue. The additive primaries which are used
in video monitors.
Right-angle Fold - A folding succession in which each succeeding
fold is made at right angles to the preceding one.
Right Reading - Copy that reads correctly in the language in which
it is written. Also describes a photo whose orientation looks like the
original image.
RIP - Abbreviation for raster image processing, a hardware and/or
software system that translates page description commands into
bitmaps for output.
Rosette Pattern - The desirable minute circle of dots that is formed
when two or more process color screens are overprinted at their
appropriate angle, screen ruling, and dot shape.
RRED- Right reading, emulsion side down.
Rule - A straight line of any thickness or a line used as a graphic
element to separate or organize copy.
Run Around - Type that is made to fit around a picture or art.
Run of Paper (ROP) - Printing full color in newspaper but using
the same paper and press as the balance of the newspaper. Or, Run of
Press, which means to print an ad using a color that already appears on
the same signature.
Saddlestitched - A form of binding that uses staple-shaped wires
through the gutter fold; also called saddle-wired.
Sans Serif Type - Any type style that does not have cross strokes
on the ends of the letters.
Scale - Calculate the amount a photo or an image object is to be
reduced or enlarged.
Scanner - Electronic device used to digitize an image.
Score - To compress paper along a straight line so it folds more easily
and accurately.
GLOSSARY OF GRAPHIC COMMUNICATIONS TERMS 9
Screen Angles - Angles at which the halftone screens are placed with
relation to one another to avoid undesirable moir pattern. The most
common angles are black 45, magenta 75, yellow 90 and cyan 105.
Screen Printing - Method of printing by using a squeegee to force ink
through an assembly of mesh fabric and a stencil.
Screen Ruling - Sometimes confused with resolution, screen ruling
is the number of printing dots per inch or per millimeter on the exposed
film. The screen ruling is a critical factor in determining the resolution
need. The finer the screen ruling, the higher the resolution needs to be,
due to the amount of information required to generate the printing dots.
Screen Tint - A halftone screen pattern of all the same size dots that
creates an even tone.
Selective Binding - Placing signatures or inserts in magazines and
catalogs according to demographic or geographic guidelines.
Self Cover - A cover made from the same paper as the inside text pages.
Serif Type - Any type style that has cross strokes on the ends of the letters.
Service Bureau - A business that provides manipulation and output
of digital files, usually to a PostScript imagesetter.
Set-off - Ink from a printed sheet rubs off or marks the next sheet as
it is being delivered. Also called offset.
Shadow - The darkest areas of an image or photograph; represented
as the largest dots in a halftone.
Sharpen - Reducing the dot size in halftones or separations.
Sheetfed Press - A printing press that uses sheets of paper, rather than
a continuous paper roll or web.
Sheetwise - To print one side of a sheet of paper with one form or
plate, then turn the sheet over and print the other side with another
form using the same gripper and side guide.
Shingling - A technique used to compensate for creep. The page width
on a page is gradually narrowed from the outside pages to the middle
pages of the signature.
Show-through - The undesirable condition in which the printing on
the reverse side of a sheet can be seen through the sheet under normal
lighting conditions.
Side Stitch - To bind by stapling through all sheets along one edge.
Signature - A group of pages brought together into proper sequential
order and alignment after it has been folded.
Silhouette Halftone - A halftone with all of the background removed.
Sizing - Treatment of paper which gives it resistance to the penetration
of liquids (particularly water) or vapors.
Skid - Wooden platform that supports piles of paper during shipping
and storage. Skids usually accommodate from 2500 to 4000 pounds of
paper (see also Pallet).
Slit - To cut printed sheets or webs into two or more sections by means
of cutting wheels on a press or folder.
Slur - A smearing of ink that occurs in printing when there isnt enough
pressure on the blanket.
Soft Proof - A proof that is viewed on a color-calibrated video monitor
as opposed to a hard proof on paper.
Solid - Any area of the sheet receiving 100 percent ink coverage.
Spine - The back of a bound book connecting the two covers. Also
called backbone.
Spiral Bind - To bind using a spiral of continuous wire or plastic
looped through holes. Also called coil bind.
Split Run - Different images, such as advertisements, printed or bound
in different editions of a publication. Also, two or more binding methods
used on the same print run.
Spooler - A device by which a computer can store data and feed it
gradually to an external device, such as a printer, which is operating
more slowly than the computer.
Spot Color - Individual color or colors that are utilized to
highlight illustrations or type. Spot color is frequently printed with
non-process color inks, although process inks can be used.
Spot Varnish - Varnish applied only to certain portions of a sheet
to highlight those areas.
Spread - Two facing pages. Also, as part of spreads and chokes,
spread is an image trapping technique meaning a slight photographic
enlargement or spreading of the image that will print within the choked
image. This combination of reducing the opening and enlarging
the image creates a slight overlap when the images ultimately print,
eliminating unwanted white spaces or gaps between the two images or
image and background.
Square Halftone - A halftone that has four right-angle corners.
Standard Viewing Condition - An area surrounded by a
neutral gray and illuminated by a light source of 5000K both for viewing
transparencies and reflection prints. Large format transparencies
should be surrounded by approximately 2-4 inches or 5-10 centimeters
of white surround and should not be viewed with a dark surround.
Step-and-repeat - The procedure of exposing an image repeatedly
in different places on the printing plate.
Stochastic Screening - A digital screening process that converts
images into very small dots (14-40 microns) of equal size and
variable spacing.
Stripping - The process of manually creating composite films and
fully imposed flats for platemaking. Most of this work is now done
electronically, bypassing the traditional artisan.
Substrate - Any surface on which printing is done.
Supercalender - A finishing device consisting of alternate metal
and resilient rollers used to produce a smooth, thin sheet of paper.
10 GLOSSARY OF GRAPHIC COMMUNICATIONS TERMS
SWOP - Abbreviation for the revised Specifications for Web-Offset
Publications; a set of specifications for color separation films, files, and
color proofing to insure the consistency of the printed color.
Tack - The amount of stickiness in printing inks that makes them
adhere to the substrate while minimizing dot gain. Too much tack can
cause surface picking.
Tear Sheet - Actual ad removed from a publication and sent to the
advertiser, often with the invoice.
Terabyte - Tb or TB. Equal to approximately one billion kilobytes
and often used to measure optical disk storage capacity.
Text - The body matter of a page or book as distinguished from
the heading and art.
Thermography - A method of printing in which the image is coated
with a resin which, when heated, results in the image being raised off
the surface of the paper.
TIFF - Tagged Image File Format. A graphics and page layout file
format for desktop computers. Used as an intermediary file format for
both color and black and white images. TIFF is used to transfer
documents between different applications and computer platforms.
Tile - A method used when a page is too large to be output in its
entirety by the output device. The page is divided into pieces that allow
for overlap so that it can be reassembled as a whole.
Tint - A solid color reduced either by screening or by adding white ink.
Also, a halftone of a specified dot percentage, but less than 100%.
Tonal Compression - The reduction of an originals tonal range
to a tonal range achievable though the reproduction process.
Tonal Range - The difference between the darkest shadow and
brightest highlight in an image or printed reproduction.
Tone - The character of a color, its quality or lightness.
Tooth - A characteristic of paper, a slightly rough finish, which
permits it to take ink readily.
Trade Shop - Service bureau, printer or bindery working primarily
for other graphic arts professionals, not for the general public.
Transparency - Positive photographic image on film allowing
light to pass through.
Transparent Ink - A printing ink which does not conceal the
color beneath. Process inks are transparent so that they will blend
to form other colors.
Trapping - A method of overlapping adjoining colors or inks
that helps minimize the possibility of a fine white line appearing
between two colors, caused by misregistration of color negatives.
Also, the ability to print a wet ink film over previously printed ink.
Trim- To cut the excess paper from the edges of a publication
after it has been printed and bound.
Trim Marks - Marks on the outside of a keyline to indicate where
the piece is to be cut.
Undercolor Addition (UCA) - A technique used to add cyan,
magenta, and yellow printing dots in dark neutral areas of the
reproduction to give them more density.
Undercolor Removal (UCR) - The technique of reducing the
cyan, magenta, and yellow content in neutral areas of the reproduction
and replacing them with black ink so the reproduction will appear
normal but will use less ink to facilitate ink trapping.
Unit - One inking, plate, and impression station on a press.
A four-color press has four units.
UV Coating - Liquid applied to a printed sheet, then bonded and
cured with ultraviolet light.
Value - The degree in a color or gray that varies from light to dark.
Variable Data - Any specific data that is not part of a page design and
that varies from form to form or page to page.
Variable Data Printing - Digitally printing a file where each
successive image may be different.
Variable Data Software - In printing, specifically digital printing,
computer applications (either standalone or incorporated into prepress
or printing systems) used to customize output. In other words, such
software allows different data to be printed on successive pages utilizing
a common page layout format.
Varnish - A thin, protective liquid coating applied to the printed sheet
for protection or appearance.
Vignette - An illustration in which the background fades gradually
away until it blends into the unprinted paper.
Virgin Paper - Paper made exclusively of new pulp from trees or
cotton. No recycled materials are included.
Waterless Lithography - Water-free offset lithographic capability on
a sheetfed or web press that allows ultrafine reproduction and improved,
almost continuous-looking halftones.
Watermark - Translucent image in paper created during manufacture
by slight embossing while paper is still approximately 90 percent water.
Web Press - A printing press that prints on paper from a continuous
roll (web) and outputs it onto another roll, as a folded signature or as
cut sheets.
Work and Tumble - To print one side of a sheet of paper, then turn
the sheet over from gripper to back using the same side guide and plate
to print the second side.
Work and Turn - To print one side of a sheet of paper, then turn the
sheet over from left to right and print the second side. The same gripper
and plate are used for printing both sides.