The alignment of the different colours in the printing of coloured materials; see CMYK. Registration marks are printed for alignment purposes outside the area of the finished publication. Most DTP and page layout programmes have inclusion of registration marks as an option on their print menus.
Repro
Prepress camerawork, scanning and film make-up. Also, origination.
Resolution
Measurement of image fineness stated in lines per inch (lpi), dots per inch (dpi), or pixels per inch (ppi) as created by an output device such as a scanner, imagesetter, laser typesetter, or laser printer. Low resolution laser printers output typically at 300 dpi, medium resolution at 400 dpi, high resolution of 600 dpi.
Rounding and backing
Shaping a book so that the back is convex.
Saddle stitching
Binding inset books with wire staples through the middle fold of sheets.
Sans Serif Type (Sanserif is an alternative spelling)
A category of type in which there are no serifs, eg. Futura, Helvetica, Univers. Sans serif type tends to be used for display and for headings but less often for text. There is some argument as to which is better for use in electronics publishing, ie. in on-screen applications, but the balance is probably the same as for paper publications: more formal documents use serif typefaces, while less formal docments are more likely to use sans serif faces.
Screen ruling
The number of lines or dots per inch on a screen. The conventional screen rulings in common use for bookwork are 100, 120, 133, 150, 175, 200 lines per inch.
Screen tint
Film with dots in one of a grade of percentages (10% - 90%) used for printing a shade of a colour rather than its full strength.
Score
To impress paper with a rule to ease folding.
Second cover
Inside front cover.
The terminal stroke at the end of a line making up part of a character. Thus the characters in serif typefaces (such as the one used for this glossary) carry serifs, while characters in sans serif typefaces do not.
Set-off
The transfer of wet ink to another sheet. Typically occurs at the delivery end of the printing press. Precautions can include the use of an anti set-off spray.
Sheet
The full-size piece of paper for printing, before any folding or cutting.
Short grain
Sheet of paper in which the grain is parallel to the short edge of the sheet.
Shrink wrap
Plastic film wrapping.
Side wire-stitching
Binding by stapling through the back margin of sections.
Side-sewing
Binding by sewing through the sides of the gathered sections. Also known as McCain sewing.
Signature
1. The letters of the alphabet or numerals printed at the bottom left-hand corner of sections to show the correct sequence of sections.
2. Synonym for section.
Size (paper)
Rosin, starch and other chemicals used in papermaking to control the water and ink absorbency of the paper.
Slip case
Cardboard case for book which displays the spine.
Special colour
A printing ink colour mixed specially for a job rather than made up out of the process colour set. Means an extra printing working.
Spot colour
Colour that is usually specified in a document as a particular, often Pantone, colour, say for text or graphical features. This is in contrast to process colour.
Spot varnish
Varnish applied to selected parts of a printed sheet. Often used to enhance the sheen of photographs.
Spread
Pair of facing pages.
Proofreader's instruction meaning ignore marked correction, i.e. let it stand as it was.
Swatch
Colour specimen printed on paper or a set of such specimens.
Thread stitching
Securing inset books by stitching through the spine with threads.
Three-quarter bound
Method in which the majority of the case of a book is covered in leather or cloth and the remaider in a different material.
Tip in
To fix or give a single leaf inside a section.
Transparent inks
Inks such as process inks which permit other colours to show through when over-printed and so produce subsequent mixed colours.
Trap, trapping
The overlap between two colours used in printing to ensure that there is no white appearing between them as a result of paper move-ment or poor registration. Gives a slightly less clear impression than kiss-fit, but allows for variation in printing conditions.
Two-colour press
Two-unit machine which can print two colours on a sheet in a single pass.
Unbacked
Printed one side only.
Uncoated paper
Paper with no coating and therefore not suitable for high-quality illustrated work.
Unsewn binding
See perfect binding
Up
1. Running (in the case of equipment).
2. Several at once: two-up means two copies the same out of one sheet.
UV varnish
Ultraviolet varnish. Sometimes installed inline with a printing machine, a UV varnish unit deposits a high-gloss varnish dried by exposure to UV light.