For hundreds of years, the art of printing remained fairly stable. Factors such as type fonts, paper size, ink quality, and color absorption were the domain of either book collectors or the very few who possessed printing machinery and were only peripherally of interest to the general public. This has all changed in the past two decades as computers have become ubiquitous throughout society and have given all of us the power of the press. As word processing and desktop publishing have grown in popularity, the need for information on printing concepts has also increased. The GATF Encyclopedia of Graphic Communication will meet those needs.
Published by the Graphic Arts Technical Foundation, this work is a comprehensive dictionary of technical terms and concepts. Ranging from the earliest times to today's modern technologies, it provides readers with a clear and concise overview of more than 10,000 terms. Entries range from a single sentence to several pages, with most approximately one paragraph in length. Longer entries, such as color and paper, cover more than 10 pages. Information is provided on printing techniques, people, companies, hardware, and software packages, including many entries for brand names of popular products. As would be expected in a work covering graphics, illustrations are used liberally and effectively throughout, including 16 pages of color inserts. The illustrations enhance the text and provide clear examples of the printing process. In addition to the main body of the work, a communications history time line, an essay on the history of printing, and a bibliography are also provided. There is no index, but cross-referencing is extensive.
Many reference sources on printing have been published in the past, most of which have remained valuable despite their age. Until the 1980s, a printing dictionary from the early 1900s could suffice as a current tool in most libraries. However, the rapid change in technology has now made most of the older titles obsolete. Although future software and hardware developments will require it to be updated, for now this new publication will be the standard work in the field. Recommended for large public and academic libraries. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
