How are you going to lay out the piece?

Hard-copy mechanicals? Electronic files ("electronic mechanicals")? Discuss the options with your prepress service provider and printer.

What kind of fonts are you going to use?

TrueType? PostScript? If you give electronic mechanicals to your prepress service provider or printer for output, fonts can be a deciding factor in whether your job turns out as you designed it. Ask your prepress service provider and printer what fonts they'd prefer you to use.

What about small type and hairline rules?

Avoid type smaller than 6 points.

Hairline defaults on some desk- top publishing systems produce a line width that varies with the resolution of the output device. The higher the resolution, the thinner the line appears in final output. Default hairlines can disappear altogether when output at high resolution.

Will you be using any reverse type?

To make sure your reverse type is readable. Avoid using type that is too small or delicate. Don't use type smaller than 6-pt or type that's less than 0.007 in. at the thinnest part of a character or rule. San serif and bold typefaces are the best choices for reverse type.

Use a dominant color of at least 70% for the shape of the type.

If you're outputting to film, spread or swell subordinate colors (called trapping) to assist registration and increase readability.Too much trapping, however, can adversely affect the appearance.

What about using EPS (Encapsulated PostScript) files?

When possible, convert type to a graphic (vector objects) in EPS files. Common problems for prepress service providers are font substitution or PostScript errors caused by type in imported EPS graphics.

Avoid "nested' EPS files. EPS files embedded inside other EPS files can cause output errors or substantially increase output time. This can often be eliminated by copying and pasting elements from one EPS file to another instead of using import or place functions.

What kind of artwork are you going to give the printer?

• Transparencies
• Reflective
* Digital photography
* Drawings
* Line art

Discuss all of these options with your prepress service provider and printer. Let them know how you plan to supply your artwork: in hard copy, electronic files, or both.If you plan to provide electronic files ("electronic mechanicals"), ask about the file format that your prepress service provider and printer prefer.

Do you have the necessary permissions?

You are responsible for ensuring that all copyrights have been acquired for your work. You should either own the copyright on your text, graphics, photographs, stock photographs, drawings, computer art, and other content sources, or you should be able to clearly demonstrate that you have legally secured permission from copyright holders to reproduce their content for the purpose of the printed job.

Does your prepress provider or printer support OPI (Open Press Interface) or APR (Automatic Picture Replacement)? OPI or APR is the most exact way of positioning images in your page layout. If your prepress service provider supports OPI or APR, they'll scan your images for you and give you low-resolution files to use as placeholders in your page layout file. When you send your job to the prepress service provider, their software will automatically match and replace the low-resolution images with high-resolution versions. This workflow should give you a better quality product and at also reduce the size of your ownfiles. See the Page Layout section for more information on working with OPI and APR files.

How does binding and finishing affect your layout?

Work with your printer or binder to decide:
* Postal regulations and mailing costs.
* The maximum spine width of the finished piece. This determines margin size for binding.
• How to allow for changing trim on pages when binding thick publications.
• What cover material to use.
• How to handle special effects such as foil stamping, embossing. screen printing, coatings, etc.Remember, finishing steps such as these make binding more difficult and may require special protection to get them through the remaining steps. Varnish or coatings not only add gloss, but help Protect a cover from rubbing.

Will your job contain any bleeds?

Don't assume that you know how much extra space to allow for bleeds. Ask your printer for specifications. Bleeds extend into the area that will be trimmed in the binding process. Requirements for a bleed may make the default page sizes such as "letter" or "tabloid"
inappropriate for your project.

What's the most efficient way to lay out your piece?

Your printer can help you make decisions that will not only be cost effective for you, but will also ensure a high-quality product. Among the factors to consider are:

What size of signature to fold. This is limited by the weight of the paper you've chosen. Heavier paper permits fewer pages per signature. Also, the direction of the paper's grain governs the arrangement of the pages in a signature.
• Optimizing pages per signature to avoid paper wastage.
• Whether or not to use printer spreads. To avoid potential page processing problems, consult with   your printer about the use of printer spreads. Not all printing processes use the same page   imposition configuration.
* Where and how to place special illustrative material, such as crossovers.
• Will there will be inserts or tabs where they go.

DESIGN TIPS

1. If you want to use type that is 6 points or smaller, talk to your prepress service provider or printer.

2. For the best output results, use PostScript Type I fonts. If you want to use a TrueType or    specialized font, consult with your prepress service provider and printer first. Do not mix TrueType    with PostScript Type I fonts.

3. Always specify line thickness. Never use a default hairline.

4. Convert type to graphics in EPS files.

5. Avoid "nested" EPS files. Copy and paste elements from one EPS file to another instead of using     import or place functions.

6. You won't know all the possible variations involved in finishing and binding, but keep a list of the     steps for each project and go back to them every time you change your design.

7. The area outside the trim area depends on signature size, folds, and imposition—information that     you get only from your printer.

You've finished your design, captured your images, completed the page layout, checked and rechecked the output, and now it's time to roll the presses. This section discusses some of the things that you can do to make the printer's presswork flow more smoothly. First and foremost, you'll want to make sure your printer fully understands the nature of the job. Be sure to provide the printer with a comprehensive dummy of your job. You'll also want to double check your specifications to make sure that they don't introduce any last ‘minute pressroom or bindery problems.