Avoiding the Output Blues: A Digital Publishing Primer [Paperback]

Taz Tally (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 24, 1999

With today's electronic publishing tools, it's all too easy for graphics arts professionals to waste thousands of dollars and miss crucial print deadlines due to minuscule errors that aren't caught until too late. In this book, top graphic design consultant Dr. Taz Tally addresses every risk area in electronic publishing -- with specific techniques and solutions that will keep this from happening to you! Start with the fundamentals: a practical explanation of how electronic publishing works -- and why it often doesn't work. Understand the entire digital prepress landscape, from the key characteristics of bitmapped and object- oriented images, to essential techniques for preparing vector and contone EPS files, to how electronic files are constructed for output. Discover 100 essential tips every digital publisher should know -- and learn in-depth techniques for avoiding Postscript RIPing errors. Entertaining and accessible, this is required reading for anyone who must understand digital imaging in the Postscript age.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Get perfect digital output—first time, every time!

STOP! It's a crime to waste time and money on digital output problems, when Dr. Taz Tally can show you exactly how to prevent them. Avoiding the Output Blues is the most complete, practical guide to making sure your digital files output right the first time—every time.

* Why output problems happen—and exactly how to prevent them
* Let 'er RIP with “never-fail” PostScript file prep techniques
* 100 tips and techniques every digital publisher should know
* “Gotchas” and proven solutions for bitmapped, vector, and contone files
* Making sure you get the color and trapping you're looking for
* Top solutions for checking your files in advance
* What you need to know about digital output equipment
* File Formats_Which ones, TIFF, EPS, JPEG, PCX, WMF
* Fonts and type management secrets you should know
* How to set your scanning/image resolution for great output results

Tally romps through the entire digital pre-press landscape, showing you exactly how electronic files are constructed for output, what can go wrong with virtually every type of file—and how to keep it from happening to you. Whether you're a graphic designer, production specialist or pre-press professional, one of these days this book's gonna save your hide.

About the Author

Taz Tally, Ph.D. is a nationally known electronic publishing consultant who has designed, installed, and troubleshot electronic publishing systems for companies across North America, from one-person shops to the Fortune 500. Founder of Taz Tally Seminars, he is legendary for entertaining, content-rich seminars on a wide range of electronic publishing topics, including scanning, Photoshop, prepress, and preparing files for print.

Product Details

• Paperback: 340 pages
• Publisher: Prentice Hall PTR; 1st edition (June 24, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 013084876X
• ISBN-13: 978-0130848765
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.9 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,506,983 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Taz Tally tells it like it is!, March 8, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Avoiding the Output Blues: A Digital Publishing Primer (Paperback)

I've been in printing for a while -- let's just say I know how to strip color negs by hand, and leave it at that. I now, of course, prepare all my files for print electronically. The thing that bugs me about most electronic publishing documentation is that the writer always assumes that the reader knows stuff that he doesn't! The reader comes away with incomplete advice and information that he can't possibly apply successfully to his daily work. Taz Tally explains EVERYTHING, but I don't think you'll find many readers saying, "Ya, ya, ya..." Even an electronically-experienced reader can benefit. Sometimes Tally's explanations are just a bit differnt from those of other writers, or he includes just a bit more information...and suddenly you notice the light is dawning and things are falling together!