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Help & Tips 

This page should give you all the information you need
We can accept digital files created on your computer. You will get the best, high-quality results if you follow our simple guidelines when you prepare your work and give it to us.

  

Writing a design breif
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A good design brief will help you meet your objectives at minimum cost. Initially, the designer needs to know as much as possible about three things: the nature of your business, the message you want to communicate, and the audience you want to reach. You should also provide any information on house style, corporate identity guidelines and company logos, fonts and house colours where they exist. Indicate the budget available, and specify exactly what the designer is expected to do: detail what you will supply and what you expect from them (and when). If they are expected to undertake or source any copywriting, photography or original illustrations this should be clearly indicated.

If you have a definite idea of what the finished item should look like, by all means include this in the brief. Otherwise, you will often find that it is better to avoid being too prescriptive and allow the designer some leeway to suggest creative ways of meeting your needs.

Before writing a detailed brief it is often useful to provide the initial information and then talk through the different options with the designer. You will be able to explore the options available and the associated costs and timescales.

  

Writing a print specification
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The print specification lets the printer know exactly what you want in the finished job.

First, give the job a unique name to distinguish it from other work, and then describe the end product you want. Detail the quantity, finished size, number of pages (and separate covers if any), colours to be used, and the type and weight of paper. Describe how the job is to be finished (folding, cutting, binding etc), and include any special finishes such as varnishing or lamination.

In a separate section describe how you will supply the job. This should include a list of the elements you will supply (eg artwork, photographs, copy, illustrations) and any work that will need to be carried out on them. Let us know what media you will supply on (eg hard copy, disc, e-mail) and in the case of electronic files what file format they will be in. List the stages at which you will want to see a proof, and if possible say how long you will need before you can return it. Finally, specify when the job is required by, how you would like it to be packed, and if you are intending to put it on account if you have one. If not how and who will be collecting and paying for the work.

  

Choosing the right paper
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The paper you use has a big impact on the look and feel of your printed materials. The most important choices are the weight and finish of the paper.

Weight
It's particularly important to avoid using a paper that seems too flimsy for its purpose. Heavier weights give more of a feel of prestige, but may also be needed to give durability to items like wallets and covers.

  • Lighter weights (85gsm and under) are mainly used for forms, general purpose copying and printing.
  • Papers between 90 and 160gsm have a wide range of uses in stationery, newsletter and promotional materials, with the heavier weights used where greater substance or rigidity is needed.
  • Boards (170gsm and above) are typically used for covers, wallets and packaging.

Finish
Papers can be given a surface coating, which is especially good for colour print.Papers for copying, stationery and some general purpose printing are normally uncoated, while most promotional materials will use a coated paper.

Coatings can be gloss or matt, or somewhere in between. These intermediate gloss levels are known as silk, satin and velvet.

Speciality papers may also be textured, coloured, or have special surface coatings such as adhesives and glazes.

  

Guidelines
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We suggest that you read the answers to each of these questions before you start work on your files. You should check that you have followed our recommendations before you hand your files over to your DigiPrint Centre for output.

  

What software application are you using to create your file?
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At DigiPrint we can accept files created in the most common business and graphics software applications. There is a wide range of applications nowadays in many different versions so we recommend you check whether your DigiPrint Centre also has the software you are using.

Some applications are better suited to some kinds of work than others so before you start work find out whether you are using the appropriate software for the job.

To eliminate possible conflictions with software, including fonts and images, all files should be converted into PDF format before given to print.

  

What computer are you using?
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We can accept files created on any PCs using the Microsoft Windows operating system or some files from any Apple Macintosh computer.

We use PCs for graphic design and usually run professional design applications such as CorelDraw X3. If you have originated your work in other microsoft packages we can still open your files and print from them but there are a few known printing problems with these packages.

We strongly advise that you supply a printed proof copy of any work you give us to output so that any differences which might arise due to these incompatibilities can be corrected.

The best way to avoid all problems when transferring files from PCs to Macs and vice versa is to convert them to Portable Document Format (PDF).

  

How will the job be printed?
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Our DigiPrint Centre operates a range of printing machines. The machine we use depends on the page size, run length and whether or not the work is to be printed in colour. It is very important to ask your local Centre about the machine they will use especially if it is to be digitally printed or involves colour. Potential problems that arise when printing your files on a different printer can be reduced if you use the correct printer driver when creating your file. Your DigiPrint Centre can supply you with the appropriate printer driver.

If your job is in colour it is essential that you discuss the printing method that will be used with your DigiPrint Centre. Digital colour printing is suitable for short print runs but traditional offset-litho is far more economical for longer runs. If the software application you are using is a word processing or a business graphics application it may not be suitable for creating professional high quality output in colour even though it allows you to use colour on screen. What is the best way to save your work?
You can save your file in three different ways: in an original application's format such as Microsoft Word or CorelDraw X3, in the PostScript format or the Portable Document Format (PDF). Each method has pros and cons, but we recommend that the best method is to use PDF.

Original Application Format is best if you want the DigiPrint Centre to be able to edit or enhance your file before printing.

PostScript Format is ok, but the DigiPrint Centre will not be able to view or edit your file before printing.

Portable Document Format (PDF) is the preferred file format to use because it has been specially designed to transfer files from one computer to another whilst accurately retaining all of the formatting information in the original document.

  

What typefaces are you using?
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It is very important that your DigiPrint Centre knows the typefaces that are used in your files. If you have not been able to embed the typefaces in the file the DigiPrint Centre must have exactly the same typefaces otherwise your job will not print correctly.
You can be certain that they will have the standard set of typefaces that are supplied with Windows or Macintosh operating systems and the common applications from Adobe and Microsoft.

If you are using unusual typefaces the DigiPrint Centre may not have them. You may supply the typefaces with the file, but if the DigiPrint Centre does not have them it may have to purchase them and charge you extra. This is because typeface licenses are normally not transferable and it is illegal to use them on computers for which they are not licensed.

We recommend that you save files in PostScript or PDF format as these enable you to embed all of the typefaces in your files. Alternatively, some applications give you the option of embedding fonts directly in an original application file format.

  

Does your design use colour?
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If your design uses colour it is essential that you discuss with the DigiPrint Centre how the job will be printed in order that they can achieve the closest colour match to your design.

Printing processes use a different method of rendering colour than your computer screen. Your screen works like a television and makes colour through a combination of adding red, green and blue light in different amounts. Printing achieves a similar result but uses the complementary colours: cyan, magenta, yellow and black.

It is not always possible to match the colours you see on screen exactly to printed colours. This can be due to many factors such as how your monitor is calibrated, the ambient lighting in which you are viewing it and the printing process itself.

If your job uses full colour photographs and images and is going to be offset litho printed, the DigiPrint Centre needs to separate the colours into cyan, magenta, yellow and black (CMYK) to makes printing plates. If you are using a professional graphics layout application such as CorelDraw or Adobe PageMaker the application can convert the colours to CMYK separations. Most business applications such as Microsoft Office cannot do this and the DigiPrint Centre must use special techniques to separate the colours for which you may be charged extra. If the files are to be digitally printed this is not normally a problem, so it is important that you choose the right application for the job or seek advice from your DigiPrint Centre beforehand.

  

How will you send the files to us?
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We can accept files on disk or via the Internet with broad band. up to 10MB in size

Disk
Our DigiPrint Centre can read files compressed in .zip formats for the PC. If you have a CD-Writer, CD-ROM is an ideal medium because of the low cost of the media, or DVD and Flash drives.

Internet
Most files can be transferred via the Internet as attachments to E-mails. Ask your local DigiPrint Centre for their E-mail address. When sending large files via the Internet you can save time by compressing them. We recommend conversion of files to PDF format because they are automatically compressed. Otherwise convert to .zip files.
If you are sending a file by E-mail you should also telephone the DigiPrint Centre to let them know to expect it and request an acknowledgement by E-mail that they have received it ok. You should use the body text of the E-mail to give the DigiPrint Centre full information about the job as advised in our guidelines.

What else should you give us with the file?

If you are sending a file on disk or by e-mail to a DigiPrint Centre for printing there is some essential information about the file that we need to know. You should add this to the other details about the size and type of paper, length of run, required delivery date and any other important information that we need to know to print your job. If you are posting the disk to us or sending it by e-mail, telephone us to tell us to expect it. The customer service representative should confirm to you that it has been received. Make sure the disk is clearly labeled with your name and the name of the job. Do not forget to keep your own copy of the file. This is what you should specifically tell us about the contents of the disk or e-mail containing the file.

What disk format are you using - PC or Mac?

If it is none of these check with us beforehand that we can accept your disk.
Is there just one file one or more? How many are there? What size are they?

What applications have you used to create each file?

Tell us the version number of the application too. eg Word 2003 or CorelDraw X3.

What file formats have you saved your work in?
Which fonts are you using? Are they PostScript or TrueType fonts? List them all.

Have you supplied any fonts?
Are they embedded in the file or have you copied them on to the disk. If you have supplied them we will need to make sure we also have the license to legally use the same font. You may be charged extra if we do not.

Are there any pictures in separate files? If so how many and in what format have you saved them?

Have you supplied a printed proof copy with the file? We strongly recommend that you do so that we can check our proof copy against yours before we run the job.

  

Do you need to get more help?
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Computer technology can help us all to produce better documents with more colour and graphics, more quickly and cost effectively than ever before. But there can be pitfalls. Today's computersand software applications are very sophisticated and most people are not experts. We do not expect you to be an expert but there are certain things you need to know and do to help us to print your job accurately and efficiently.

We hope that we have covered everything you need to know within these guidelines, but if you need any technical assistance your Customer Service Representative at your DigiPrint Centre is on hand to answer your questions and give you any help and advice you need. Telephone the Centre, drop in or make an appointment to have a Sales Advisor visit you.

It is far better, if you can, to discuss the job in detail beforehand with someone from your DigiPrint Centre who can give you expert guidance, than to leave it until the last minute when you are right up against that all important deadline. Our aim is to get it right first time.