Printing Terms
The most
complete
reference
source
available
What is a drum scanner, and how is it different than a CCD
scanner? Why do you mean by a text delimited file? What is
ASCII? Technology moves fast, and so does the vocabulary in
the printing industry. Trying to keep up can be a real
headache. So we have put together a dictionary to make it
easier.
Any additions, comments or suggestions are greatly
appreciated.
Printing Dictionary ©1984-2000 David Groth
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Printing Terms Dictionary - A
A/D er : Analog to Digital er. Generic term for any device that changes
continuous wave (analog) activity to binary (digital) codes, or vice versa.
Abend: Abnormal End. Also called system crash. Usually caused by input or data presented to
a computer which is beyond its ability to cope. If an abend happens in a single-task program
(like DOS), the machine will cease to take input (lock up) and must be restarted (re-booted).
Multitasking operating systems (like UNIX) allows other programs to continue running while
only stopping the one causing trouble.
Aberration: In lenses, it is a failure to form a perfect image. Two important types of aberration
in photography to avoid are spherical and chromatic.
Ablate: To remove. Used in reference to the formation of laser-readable pits in the recording
layer of optical disks.
Abort: The unintentional premature termination of a process or program in an electronic
environment caused by operator, software, or system error or miscommunication.
Absorption: In optics, it is the property which causes the partial suppression of light through a
transparent or translucent material. In paper, the ability to take up liquids (ink and water) in
contact with it. In filters, the ability to absorb part of the spectrum of white light and transmit or
absorb other parts of the spectrum.
Abstract: A brief restatement of the contents of a file or document.
Accelerator board: A printed circuit board added to a PC to increase its performance speeds.
For example, if you have a Macintosh containing a Motorola 68000 CPU, you can purchase an
accelerator board containing the faster 68030 CPU.
Access: The process of obtaining data from, or transfereing data to a storage device, register
or RAM.
Access Method: The technique or the program code in the operating system that provides
input/output services. It defines where a group of data will be stored on a medium. By including
the access method in the basic operating system, computer makers have made the
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programmers job much easier.
Access Time: The amount of time it takes a computer to locate an area of memory for data
storage or retrieval.
Achromatic: Without color. A lens which refracts light of all colors equally is said to be
achromatic.
Acid Paper: Non-permanent papers (PH below 7.0).
Actinic: The chemical change violet or ultraviolet light produces in certain photosensitive film.
Active Display Area: The portion of an image that falls inside the viewing area of a computer
monitor.
Actuator: Mechanism that moves an object for example, the read/write head on a disk drive.
ADB: Apple Desktop Bus. The Macintosh plug-in port where the keyboard, mouse, trackball,
graphics tablet, etc. are connected.
Additive Color Theory:
White light contains equal parts of red, blue
and green. If three lights were to project through the colored filters of red, blue and green to the
same intensities on a white screen, where they overlap all 3 colors would be white. Where only
2 colors overlap the subtractive colors of cyan, magenta or yellow would be formed. (See
Subtractive Color Theory.)
Additive Litho Plate: A substance is added to a plate surface in order to develop the image.
Additive Primaries: Are red, blue and green. In color reproduction, equal parts of red, blue,
and green light give us the sensation of white light. These colors are used in the form of filters
in order to the complementary colors, cyan, yellow and magenta.
Address: (1) Disks and other storage devices have numbers that identify locations by sector
and by byte. Retrieval software searches for the address assigned to the desired information in
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order to locate it. (2) Used as a verb, it means what a computer can access: This Mac can
address 5 megs of RAM.
Address Mark: Two byte address at the beginning of both the ID field and the data field of the
track format on a disk drive. The first byte is the A1 data pattern, the second byte is used to
specify either an ID field or a data field.
Addressable Capacity: The number of locations on an image that are addressable. To
calculate, multiply the addressable vertical positions (row) by the addressable horizontal
positions (column). Think of a matrix of dots, 8 across by 16 down. The addressable capacity of
this matrix is 128.
Adhesives: In paper, glues that bind coated paper ingredients together.
Adobe Type Manager: Software from Adobe Systems for Macintosh and IBM PCs that
eliminates jagged edges on screen fonts and allows inexpensive laser printers to reproduce
post fonts accurately and clearly. 1-800-64-ADOBE
ADSTAR: Automated Document Storage And Retrieval. Generic term for systems that identify,
and display images that have been previously electronically stored.
Advanced Research Project Agency (ARPA): The agency resposible for the formation of the
forerunner of the Internet. See also Defense Advanced Research Project Agency.
Affinity: Natural attraction for, as salt for moisture.
AFP: AppleTalk Filing Protocol. The protocol that non-Apple networks need to use in order to
access data in an AppleTalk server.
AFS: Andrew File System. Named after Andrew Carnagie by its inventors at Carnegie-Mellon
University, AFS is a distributed file system available for UNIX and other operating systems.
AI: Artificial Intelligence, the field of computer science dedicated to developing computers that
mimic the complex relational functions of the human brain.
AIIM: Association for Information and Image Management. Trade association and professional
society for the micrographics, optical disk and electronic image management markets. 1100
Wayne Ave., Suite 1100, Silver Spring, MD 20910. (301)587-8202.
Air Knife Coating: In paper, coating method wherein a thin blade of air is used to apply coating
to the sheet uniformily.
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Algorithm: Set of mathematical steps used to solve a problem or conduct an operation.
Alias: a computer system name that points to another name, instead of an underlying object.
Most Web URLs are either whholly or partly aliases (to protect the underlying file system on the
Web server they point at).
Aliasing: Condition when graphics, either constructed with lines (vectored) or dots
(bitmapped), show jagged edges under magnification.
Alkaline Paper: Permanent papers (PH of 7.5 - 8.2).
Allocate: To reserve the required amounts of a resource, such as memory.
Alpha Testing: Testing conducted internally by the manufacturer, alpha testing takes a new
product through a protocol of testing procedures to verify product functionality and capability.
Alum: Aluminum sulfate (an acid salt) used in the paper making process.
America Online: An online information provider, usually known by its initials (AOL), which got
its start as a dial up service off the Internet and which has become the largest Internet Service
Provider in the world.
Angstrom Unit: A unit of measurement of the length of light waves. It is equal to 1/10 of a
millimicron, or one ten-millionth of a millimeter. There are approximately 254,000,000 Angstrom
units in an inch.
Animated Graphics: Moving diagrams or cartoons. Often found in the computer-based
courseware, animated graphics take up far less disk space than video images.
Annotation: The ability to attach notes to graphics or images by typing them in, using a light
pen or digitizing tablet. Useful for clarifying documents or editing images.
Anodized: In paper, refers to grained.
ANSI: American National Standards Institute. A standards-setting, non-government
organization which develops standards for voluntary use in the United States. Standards set
are accepted by vendors in that country. ANSI is located at 1430 Broadway, New York NY
10018, (212)642-4900
Antihalation: The property of a film or plate, usually with an opaque backing, which prevents
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halation.
Antioffset Powder: Powder which s a gap between sheets of paper to aid in the ink
drying process.
Antique Finish: In paper, a toothy, open texture, usually giving a hand-crafted look.
Aperture: A small opening in a plate or sheet. In cameras, the aperture is usually variable in
the form of an iris diaphragm and regulates the amount of light which passes through the lens
to the film.
API: Application Program Interface. Generic term for any language and format used by one
program to help it communicate with another program.
APR: Automatic Picture Replacement. A Scitex term describing a feature in their systems
which allows a low resolution F.P.O. image to be automatically replaced by its high resolution
scan when being output.
Apple: Apple Computer, Inc., Cupertino, CA. Manufacturer of personal computers. Heavy
penetration in the graphics/desktop publishing business.
Apple: Apples ing launguage for the Macintosh OS, which is commonly used to
program CGIs for Macintosh-based Web servers.
AppleTalk: The Apple networking protocol used to connect Macintosh computers with each
other, or with shared devices. AppleTalk, with the appropriate interface card, can also be used
to connect to DOS-based platform com
