by JimRaffel on February 17, 2007
I recently read a post over on the Printmode printing industry blog about the computer tools Adam uses on a daily basis. So, here goes my attempt to share the same information.
My main computer for the past year or so has been an IBM ThinkPad Z60t running Windows XP Pro (SP2). The extra screen real estate I get with the wide screen is nice. Overall, it has been a great machine for what I do, and I really like the finger print scanner (vs. typing passwords).
As far as software tools, the list could get pretty long so I will try to focus on the highlights. To manage my email I use Outlook, but with an awesome plug-in called Agendus. Not only does Agendus add functionality I really need from a sales perspective, but it also synchronizes perfectly with my Treo650 cell phone.
I always seem to have a Firefox window open (I will use IE7 when forced by the web-site I might be visiting). As a company we use a CRM system called Sugar, that I have running on a Fedora Linux box, and we all access via a web-browser. Both Fedora and Sugar are open source, so the price is right.
For documents I still use MS Word, and I also make frequent use of PowerPoint for sales presentations. For straight up text editing I have I have gone back to Notepad mostly because I can’t seem to find the cool little text editor I had on my old machine.
For ssh terminal access to Linux boxes I use Putty, and for sftp access to said same boxes I use CoreFTP.
Finally, I installed Google Desktop, and let it index my whole hard drive…there is no faster way to search for anything on your computer. I guess Microsoft has improved search in Vista, but I have not plans to go there anytime soon.
Who’s next?
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by JimRaffel on February 16, 2007
Since #45 in December we have been discussing resolutions to improve the quality of your proofs. In order to gain the full benefit of this installment one should have read and implemented the suggestions in #46 & #47.
Proceeding forward it does not matter if you are utilizing a methodology like GRACoL G7, or a more traditional color management approach. In either case you will include a target on each print job with the same color bar swatches that you output on the proof (#46). This will allow you to measure the press ok sheets and compare them to the proofs, thus building even a larger statistical database to call upon.
When utilizing software like our ColorMetrix and ProofPass.com products for process control and print certification purposes it does not matter if you are using a methodology like G7 or traditional color management. While there are some new formulas out there to run the collected data through the tried and true colorimetric data (L*a*b* and derivatives along with some version of Delta E), do a great job comparing two similar or dissimilar imaging systems.
Unlike density and dot gain values which must be used with pigment sets designed for 4/color process printing, L*a*b* values allow the comparison of an inkjet proof and an offset press sheet. This is possible because we are looking at the actual colors, not values derived from a formula which assumes a certain pigment set.
Not only will you be comparing the measurements of the proof to the press sheet, but you will be building a history of what is a “normal” print condition of each press and paper combination. Some refer to this as finding the “sweet spot” of the printing press.
Overall, as your volume of collected data grows you will be able to refine the system in small steps by reviewing the proofing and press information both independently and together. Using numeric results, charts, and graphs you will be able to see small differences in color that can be adjusted for over time. No system is stable over time, so continuous monitoring is a must in order to maintain stable color.
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