Publishing Resources

As part of our client-oriented approach, we like to help you reach your print and marketing goals whenever we can.

Our Prepress gurus prefer to receive your files in Adobe InDesign, however we will work with your team to get the most out of any publishing product.

Your client representative can assist you with advice and resources for printing, marketing, or design at any time. But you might also consider freeware and shareware resources that already exist on the web, including.

Graphic Design/Desktop Publishing Software

• Adobe - Acrobat, InDesign, Illustrator, Pagemaker, Photoshop, and more.
• Apple - AppleWorks, iMovie, iTunes, and Final Cut Pro
• Corel Corporation - CorelDRAW, PhotoPaint, KPT Photoshop Plugins, and Ventura
• Microsoft - Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Publisher, and more
• Quark - QuarkXPress, QuarkWrapture, and XTensions

Fonts & Typography

• Fonts.com
• Microsoft Typography

General Technology

• CNET.com - Software and hardware reviews, price comparisons, purchasing recommendations, and technology news.
• Download.com - Download freeware, shareware, and commercial demonstration software.
• ZDnet - Computer, printer, scanner, monitor, handhelds, and digital camera news and reviews.

How-Tos

To help our clients succeed, Quartier has written and gathered a series of How-To articles to give you a better understanding of the processes we use and to save you time and resources.

Remember, if you need specific advice about any part of a print or marketing project, contact a Quartier client representative.

Create your Piece

Writing Effective E-Mail Copy
Developing an Effective Brochure
How To Use Fonts (and Why You Should Care)
Raster Images vs. Vector Graphics

Setup your Files for Success

A Quick Guide to File Compression
Know Your PDF
Scanning for Different Media

Print Tips

Tips on Paper Selection

General Tips

Understanding Viruses

Note: Guides are in PDF format.

FAQ

Printing is a complex industry full of jargon that can refer to ancient processes dating back to Gutenberg or to innovations on the cutting edge. In other words, don't be afraid to ask questions!

Always feel free ask questions of your client representative, but here are some common inquiries we printers receive:

How do I go about getting an estimate from you?

To use our online estimate request form, click here. or call us direct at (315) 449-0900 (Dial "0" for faster service). You can also email your request to estimator@quartiermarketing.com.

How long does it take to complete an order?

Some jobs can be produced in minutes and some jobs may take days. Let us know when you need your job completed, and we will work with you on your options. We go to great lengths to meet your most stringent demands.

What is a "proof"?

A proof is a close representation of the printed product in the last step before it goes to press. The proof is produced to ensure a final review of what the printed product will look like. This is the opportunity to make corrections to items such as color, page count, page order and typographical errors. The proof is the final step of approvals before plates are made and sent to the press. This proof can be reviewed online or can be provided in a hard copy format.

Why do I need to look at a proof if I've already given you everything I need to have done?

Signing off on a proof is assurance that you have looked over every aspect of your product and deem it accurate. It benefits everyone if errors are caught in proofing rather than after the job is completed and delivered. As with any custom product creation process, errors can occur - therefore we need you to accept the representation of the finished look. Things can be interpreted differently, things can happen to your file in the upload process (e.g. corruption). Therefore, we are providing you with a custom product that we output and return in order to make sure your expectatons have been met.

Do I still need to approve a proof if I bring my work in on disk?

It may seem like a proof wouldn't be needed in this case but it really is. Output devices process digital information using a variety of processing languages. Your approval of the proof we provide assures that the output device used has correctly interpreted and processed the information in your files.

Glossary of Printing Terms

Acid-free Paper

This paper does not deteriorate with age because it is made from pulp that contains little or no acid.

Aqueous Coating

An offset press option that is an alternative to varnish. It dries quickly, creates a sheen on the paper, and adds to it's durability.

Binding

A finishing process to join paper sheets together with glue, staples, or other means. Typical binding styles includes: saddlestitch, comb, wire, folding, die cut, scorring, lamination, or perfect bind.

Bleed

A bleed refers to printing that goes beyond the edge of the sheet after trimming. The bleed gives the printer a small amount of space to account for movement of the paper, and design inconsistencies. Bleed ensures that no unprinted edges occur in the final trimmed document.

Body

The body, or "body text" consists of the main paragraphs within a document. The body excludes headlines, footnotes, and, captions.

Camera-Ready File

All the materials needed for a printer to run a piece of work on a press, including images, writing, plates, etc.

CMYK

CMYK is a subtractive color model. The term is also used to describe the printing process itself. CMYK is an abbreviation of Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Key Black. These are the four process colors used in "color separation" printing.

Coated Paper

Treated sheet of paper that gives either a gloss, dull, or matte finish.

Crop Marks

Lines outside of the print area marking where paper is to be trimmed after printing.

Die Cut

When shapes are perforated, scored or cut from paper or card using a die.

DPI (Dots-Per-Inch)

A measurement of resolution for digital photos and images. Typically the higher the DPI the crisper the image. Small images viewed on computer screens typically reproduce at 72 dpi; good quality print images typically must be no smaller than 300 dpi.

EPS

Stands for "Encapsulated Post Script," a versatile file format used to transfer postscript information from one program to another. If you have a graphic that will be used for many things (e.g. a logo), EPS format enables placement into a number of applications that can use the graphic in a layout. EPS files can hold bitmap, graphics (e.g. photographs) and vector graphics (e.g. logos and fonts). Vector graphics can be scaled without any loss of quality or resolution and can be edited by applications such as Adobe Illustrator.

Gray Scale

The pixels in gray scale images contain image intensity information, allowing, between the extremes of black and white, many shades of gray to be reproduced.

PDF

Stands for "Portable Document Format," a file format that combines images and text and is not intended to be altered. As PDFs can be read by most operating systems and software, they are a useful way to transfer documents and images.

Perfect Bind

Sheets that are held together at the spine and glued to the cover. A binding common in magazines, journals, and paperback books.

PMS Color

PMS is an abbreviation for Pantone Matching System. The PMS color is an industry standard for shades of color created by specificying proportions and densities of primary color. A customer may request a specific color using a PMS identifying number taken from a PMS color chart.

Prepress

All work done prior to a print run, including file handling, color correction, proofing, and platemaking.

Press Check

When a client checks work coming off a press prior to a full run. A client must specify that a press check is required.

Resolution

The sharpness of an image, usually expressed as DPI or "dots-per-inch".

Right-Left Justified

Text that is flush to the margins, either left justifed, right justified, or fully justified (flush to both the left and right margins).

Saddle Stitch

Sheets bound together with a staple through the spine fold.

Screen Angles

In "CMYK" or "color separation" printing screens are set at different angles to avoid "moire" interference patterns.

Signature

A printed sheet that has been folded ready for binding.

Soy-Based Inks

Inks that use soy or other vegetable oils as part of their recipe, safer for the environment than inks made with petroleum-based products.

Spiral Bind

Sheets that are bound together with wire or plastic looped through holes.

Spot Color

A general term that either refers to the solid colors of CMYK color separation; or any solid color used in printing (especially those added to the CMYK four-color process to create five-color processes or more); or colors from custom sources such as specific PMS color, silver, gold, flourescent inks, etc.

Spread

In document design, two pages that face each other to make one design unit i.e. a four-page brochure contains one spread (pages 2 and 3), in addition to the front (page 1) and back (page 4) covers.

Substrate

Any surface or material that is printed on.

TIFF

Stands for "Tagged Image File Format," a file format that is a commonly used by digitial cameras and other devices to store images.

Trim Size

The size of a document once it has been printed and finished/cut down to size, used in addition to "bleed" area and "live area" in print specifications.