1. Select the [Media Group] in which you want to add the new media, or click the button next to the [Media Group] drop-down to add a new Media Group. Choose or type a name for your new Media Group that will help you organize your media effectively, such as UV, Dye or a Media Manufacturer name.
2. Enter a new name for your Media. This should be a name that will help you identify your media easily, such as Glossy Photo-Grade Film. [Media Names] can be up to 57 characters including spaces.

Basic Media Settings

1. Ink Configuration represents the ink set in your printer, and which inks are used. Click the gear () icon to enable/disable additional Ink Configurations.
2. Select your Process ColorsThe four ink colors used in four-color process printing: Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black. from the list. The Process Colors available to you are printer specific and reflect the color sets that will be used for the purposes of processing. Click the gear () icon to enable/disable additional Processing Options.

 

NOTE: If both the Process Colors and Spot Colors are included in the inks defined by the [Ink Configuration] then color output will be performed, otherwise the printed output will be made using separations.

 

Spot ColorA specific color or type applied to individual graphic items. Setup allows you to specify spot colors that will be used for the purposes of processing. Normally, the number of spot colors will be automatically set up based on the [Ink Configuration] you selected. To further refine those settings or manually define your own spot colors, click [Spot ColorThe attribute of visual experience that can be described using the dimensions of Hue1. A tint or color specified by an angle on the HSV Color Wheel. Going counter-clockwise around the wheel, hues shift from red to yellow to green to cyan to blue to magenta and finally back to red. 2. The attribute of a color that permits it to be identified as a specific color. Hue combined with Saturation and Value fully defines a color., Saturation, and Brightness. Setup] button. Another dialog will open that will allow you to insert, edit and delete spot colors, and arrange the order in which they appear.

3. Define the printer settings for the media.

Select the page sizes that will be available for your media.

Basic Mode Settings

1. Enter a name for your mode. This should be a name that will help you identify your Mode easily. A typical Mode Name format is ResolutionThe number of dots available to represent graphic detail in a given area. On a computer screen, resolution is usually measured in pixels per inch (ppi). On a printer, the resolution is measured in dots per inch, or dpi. Halftone1. An image in which continuous tones are simulated by regular patterns (screens) of small dots. 2. A process for creating images. Screening can be done at different angles and the line density varies over a wide range (50 – 500 lines per inch). Printing a black & white photograph on a press or printer requires the creation of a single halftone. Four color process printing requires a separate halftone for each of the process colors. See also Continuous ToneDegree of luminosity or amount of white in color represented by the L axis in the L*a*b* color space. See also Luminance., Screen Angle. resolution measurements are in lines per inch, or LPI. See also Screen Ruling., DotA single element in the halftone printing process. In traditional halftone generation, dots vary in size to control the intensity of the printed color. In digital printing, the dot size is fixed by the print mechanism. Pattern (e. g. 600, Stochastic)

2. Click the down arrow and select your Resolution. [ Resolution] determines the quality or speed of the image output (e. g. higher resolution means higher quality, lower resolution means higher speed). Click the gear () icon to enable/disable additional resolutions.

[Use Legacy Ink Restriction] enables the legacy (manual) method of setting Ink Restrictions.

3. Click the down arrow to select from the available Dot Patterns. Click the gear () icon to enable/disable additional Dot Patterns. The available dot patterns may vary depending upon Ink Configuration and resolution.

4. Define the printer settings for this mode.

• Click [Mode Options] to view the printer specific options for the selected resolution.
• Click [ScaleTo enlarge or reduce an image by increasing or decreasing the number of scanned pixels, or the sampling rate, relative to the number of samples per inch needed by the printer or other output device. Adjust] to adjust your print width or height. If your measured output is different from your desired output, you can use the [Scale Adjust] tool to scale your print to the calculated scale factor. Type in the desired width or height for the test image then enter the measured values to calculate the scale factor.

The [Ink Restriction] is the process of determining maximum amount of “usable ink” per individual printer channel that a media coating can accommodate without print problems. Print problems can consist of wet ink, bleed, mottling, cracking, smudging or flaking. The [Ink Restriction] also can set the maximum available ink from which to achieve an ink and media’s potential gamut. Keep in mind that by maximizing individual channels, two or more combined channels may also result in artifacts. The [Ink Limit] of profiling step is used to address these combinations of ink channels (See Ink Limit).

 

Automatic Ink Restrictions (Halftone Only)

The simple process of “Print, Read, Next…” is recommended in order to save time. This method takes the guess work out of ink restricting for the novice by using swatch measurements and preset targets to determine optimum settings, allowing the user to quickly profile.

 

The user is encouraged to initially just follow this simple process. As the user becomes more familiar with the profiling process then it might be desirable to use the improved advanced user tools (found in the Black Diamond areas). Click button to fine tune these to achieve an optimized starting point while still preserving the transitions, particularly when transitioning between light and dark inks sets..

Automatic Ink Restrictions (Print, Read, Next)

1. Click [Print] to open the "Print Ink Restriction SwatchStandard print image used by RIP-Queue for profile generation. A swatch contains multiple patches." dialog. Select your color device and page size and click [Print]. See Print Ink Restriction Swatch for a detailed description of the dialog.

2. Read the Ink Restriction Swatch.

 

The "Read Swatch" dialog gives instruction for and feedback on patch measurements. It also allows for device specific features.

Ink Restriction values are displayed as a graph after reading the Ink Restriction Swatch. Click button and the values for each channel and a plot of the Ink Restrictions will be displayed.

Legacy Ink Restrictions (manual ink restriction selection)

NOTE: Some printers may not support Assisted Ink Restrictions.

1. Print the Ink Restriction Swatch.
2. After reviewing the swatch for artifacts, select the patch (%) that best represents the maximum amount of ink before artifacts. Click the appropriate patch (Basic), or enter the appropriate value (Advanced).

 

White Ink Verification Swatch 

Printing a white ink verification swatch is an optional step shown only for configurations containing a spot channel (such as white or varnish). White ink verification swatch allows you to visually evaluate white ink both individually and in combination with other colors. It can be used to determine the percentage of ink to use in a flood fill.

The variable dot control for this swatch is the same as for the Print Ink Restriction Swatch.

 

NOTE: If you plan on making changes to the Variable Dot Configuration, you should do it in this step. Changes performed here will affect all ink levels.

 

To print the white ink verification swatch, simply press the first [Print] button and a" Basic Print" dialog for that swatch will be displayed.

 

Changes to the print dialogs for other swatches

After printing the white ink verification swatch, you can continue the profiling process as usual. The difference will be seen when you select [Print] for your swatches. In each "Print Swatch" dialog, you will be able to choose whether you want to print and measure spot inks, or print a flood fill with them. In the" Print Ink Restriction Swatch" dialog, you will also have the ability to restrict the amount of white ink to use. This value would be based on your evaluation of the white ink verification swatch printed in the previous step. The value set here will become your ink restriction setting for the spot color.

Calibration is the process of establishing a baseline of how your printer uses ink when specific demands for each color are given. The readings in calibration are based on the settings in the [Ink Restriction] step (if it was performed). [Target densities] are used to define the desired tone of the printed output, and represent the desired known condition of the printer and media. As time passes, environmental, hardware and ink changes can be adjusted for by performing a recalibration to try to return the printed output to those target conditions.

 

1. [Print Swatch] creates a swatch representative of how the printer is currently printing. This is initially defined by the [Ink Restrictions] step (if it was performed). Measurement of the calibration swatch is used to capture the current condition of the printer and media.
2. The readings from the swatch represent the current condition of your printer and media. Having this information allows for the possibility of getting back to the current condition, relative to changes in print environment, ink, and condition of the print heads (See Recalibrate)

 

Clicking on [Advanced] opens the "Tweak Linearization" dialog. Advanced users may choose to evaluate and make adjustments to the target densities used to define the mode’s linearization. It is recommended to click [Next].

For more information, see Calibration and Recalibration.

One might wonder about the need for an Ink Limit when an Ink Restriction has been performed. While the [Ink Restriction] step establishes the maximum ink available for each individual process channel in a print mode, the [Ink LimitsInk Limits prevent oversaturation of three and four color combinations. Ink Limiting is the process of restricting the total amount of ink applied to a media by adjusting the maximum percentage of the color values in a processed image.] step sets the maximum ink levels allowed for printing with more than one process channel at the same time in order to eliminate artifacts.

 

 

1. Select the [ICC ProfileAn international standard for describing color transformations. Also known as ICM (.icm). See also Color Profile and Profile Library.] yo want to use or create a new ICC profile by clicking the icon. Click Import ICC to add a different ICC profile.

2. Click [Print Swatch] button to configure and print the ICC Swatch. It is recommended to use the "Ultra Accuracy swatch".

 

Click the down arrow to select from the available color engines (ONYX Build Engine – ONYX Graphics, Inc.; LOGO Build Engine– GretagMacbeth)

 

3. After the swatch has dried, click [Read Swatch] button to measure the ICC Swatch.

4. An appropriate set of options is generally preselected based on your printer’s Ink Configuration. For most users it is recommended that you click [Build ICC Profile] button to complete the profiling process.

 

Advanced users can access the [Build Options] by clicking [Edit]. The down arrow on the [Edit] button allows users to configure and save custom setups. These will appear in the [Predefined Build Options] drop-down menu.

 

NOTE: Custom built option presets are not auto selected based on the Ink Configuration of the printer.