DIGITAL/ MECHANICAL/ HAND

PRINTING
By Jessica Curtis
PHOTOCOPYING
 A photocopier (also known as a copier or copy machine) is a
machine that makes paper copies of documents and other visual
images quickly and cheaply. Most current photocopiers use a
technology called xerography, a dry process using heat. (Copiers can
also use other output technologies such as ink jet, but xerography is
standard for office copying.)Xerographic office photocopying was
introduced by Xerox in 1959, and it gradually replaced copies made by
Verifax, Photostat, carbon paper, mimeograph machines, and other
duplicating machines. The prevalence of its use is one of the factors
that prevented the development of the paperless office heralded early
in the digital revolution[ citation needed].Photocopying is widely used
in business, education, and government. There have been many
predictions that photocopiers will eventually become obsolete as
information workers continue to increase their digital document
creation and distribution, and rely less on distributing actual pieces of
paper.
LASER PRINTING
 A laser printer is a common type of computer printer
that rapidly produces high quality text and graphics
on plain paper. As with digital photocopiers and
multifunction printers (MFPs), laser printers employ
a xerographic printing process but differ from analog
photocopiers in that the image is produced by the
direct scanning of a laser beam across the printer's
photoreceptor.
INKJET
 An inkjet printer is a type of computer printer that reproduces
a digital image by propelling variably-sized droplets of liquid
material (ink) onto a page. Inkjet printers are the most
common type of printer and range from small inexpensive
consumer models to very large and expensive professional
machines. The concept of inkjet printing dates back to the 19th
century and the technology was first developed in the early
1950s. Starting in the late 1970s inkjet printers that could
reproduce digital images generated by computers were
developed, mainly by Epson, Hewlett-Packard and Canon. In
the worldwide consumer market, four manufacturers account
for the majority of inkjet printer sales: Canon, Hewlett-
Packard, Epson, and Lexmark. The emerging ink jet material
deposition market also uses ink jet technologies, typically
piezoelectric crystals, to deposit materials directly on substrates.
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DESKTOP PUBLISHING
 Desktop publishing (also known as DTP) combines a
personal computer and WYSIWYG page layout
software to create publication documents on a
computer for either large scale publishing or small
scale local multifunction peripheral output and
distribution.The term "desktop publishing" is
commonly used to describe page layout skills.
However, the skills and software are not limited to
paper and book publishing. The same skills and
software are often used to create graphics for point of
sale displays, promotional items, trade show exhibits,
retail package designs and outdoor signs.
MECHANICAL
PRINTING
LETTERPRESS PRINTING
 Letterpress printing is a term for the relief printing of text
and image using a press with a ”type-high bed" printing
press and movable type, in which a reversed, raised
surface is inked and then pressed into a sheet of paper to
obtain a positive right-reading image. It was the normal
form of printing text from its invention by Johannes
Gutenberg in the mid-15th century until the 19th century
and remained in wide use for books and other uses until
the second half of the 20th century. In addition to the
direct impression of inked movable type onto paper or
another receptive surface, the term Letterpress can also
refer to the direct impression of inked printmaking blocks
such as photo-etched zinc "cuts" (plates), linoleum blocks,
wood engravings, etc., using such a press.
 MANUFACTURING:
NEWSPAPER PRINTING
Newsprint is generally made by a mechanical milling
process, without the chemical processes that are often
used to remove lignin from the pulp. The lignin causes
the paper to rapidly become brittle and yellow when
exposed to air and/or sunlight. Traditionally, newsprint
was made from fibers extracted from various softwood
species of trees (most commonly, spruce, fir, balsam or
pine). However, an increasing percentage of the world’s
newsprint is made with recycled fibers.
 OFFSET PRESS :
MAGAZINE PRINTING
 Offset press article:
Offset printing is a widely used printing technique where
the inked image is transferred (or "offset") from a
plate to a rubber blanket, then to the printing surface.
When used in combination with the lithographic
process, which is based on the repulsion of oil and
water, the offset technique employs a flat
(planographic) image carrier on which the image to be
printed obtains ink from ink rollers, while the non-
printing area attracts a film of water, keeping the non-
printing areas ink-free.
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GRAVURE
 Rotogravure (roto or gravure for short) is a type of intaglio
printing process, that is, it involves engraving the image onto
an image carrier. In gravure printing, the image is engraved
onto a copper cylinder because, like offset and flexography, it
uses a rotary printing press. The vast majority of gravure
presses print on rolls (also known as webs) of paper, rather
than sheets of paper. (Sheetfed gravure is a small, specialty
market.) Rotary gravure presses are the fastest and widest
presses in operation, printing everything from narrow labels
to 12 feet (4 m)-wide rolls of vinyl flooring. Additional
operations may be in-line with a gravure press, such as saddle
stitching facilities for magazine/brochure work. Once a staple
of newspaper photo features, the rotogravure process is still
used for commercial printing of magazines, postcards, and
corrugated (cardboard) product packaging.
HAND PRINTING

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ETCHING
 Etching is the process of using strong acid or mordant
to cut into the unprotected parts of a metal surface to
create a design in intaglio in the metal (the original
process—in modern manufacturing other chemicals
may be used on other types of material). As an
intaglio method of printmaking it is, along with
engraving, the most important technique for old
master prints, and remains widely used today.
LINOCUT
 Linocut is a printmaking technique, a variant of
woodcut in which a sheet of linoleum (sometimes
mounted on a wooden block) is used for the relief
surface. A design is cut into the linoleum surface with
a sharp knife, V-shaped chisel or gouge, with the
raised (uncarved) areas representing a reversal
(mirror image) of the parts to show printed. The
linoleum sheet is inked with a roller (called a brayer),
and then impressed onto paper or fabric. The actual
printing can be done by hand or with a press.
SCREEN PRINTING
 Screen printing is a printing technique that uses a
woven mesh to support an ink-blocking stencil. The
attached stencil forms open areas of mesh that
transfer ink as a sharp-edged image onto a substrate.
A roller or squeegee is moved across the screen
stencil, forcing or pumping ink past the threads of the
woven mesh in the open areas. Screen printing is also
a stencil method of print making in which a design is
imposed on a screen of silk or other fine mesh, with
blank areas coated with an impermeable substance,
and ink is forced through the mesh onto the printing
surface. It is also known as Screen Printing,
silkscreen, seriography, and serigraph.
WOODCUT
 Woodcut—formally known as xylography—is a relief
printing artistic technique in printmaking in which
an image is carved into the surface of a block of
wood, with the printing parts remaining level with
the surface while the non-printing parts are removed,
typically with gouges. The areas to show 'white' are
cut away with a knife or chisel, leaving the characters
or image to show in 'black' at the original surface
level. The block is cut along the grain of the wood
(unlike wood engraving where the block is cut in the
end-grain). In Europe beechwood was most
commonly used; in Japan, a special type of cherry
wood was used
LITHOGRAPHY
 Lithography (from Greek λίθος - lithos, 'stone' +
γράφω - graphο, 'to write') is a method for printing
using a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate
with a completely smooth surface. Invented in 1796 by
Bavarian author Alois Senefelder as a low-cost method
of publishing theatrical works, lithography can be used
to print text or artwork onto paper or another suitable
material.