Workflow
Workflow
Workflow Examples
© 2008 Electronics for Imaging, Inc. The information in this publication is covered
under Legal Notices for this product.
45076542
16 July 2008
CONTENTS 3
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION 5
MIXED MEDIA 7
IMPOSITION 11
What is imposition? 11
What is FreeForm and how is it used with variable data print jobs? 20
What is FreeForm 2 and how is it used with variable data print jobs? 24
What is Mixed Media and how can it be used in variable data print jobs? 24
HOT FOLDERS 29
What is Compose? 33
TERMS 39
INDEX 41
INTRODUCTION 5
INTRODUCTION
This document provides examples of complex printing scenarios and an overview of the
Fiery PRO80 features used in the examples. The example workflows illustrate how you can
combine features to create jobs. Each workflow includes cross-references to help you locate
more information about performing each task.
For information about supported operating systems and system requirements, see Welcome.
Important information
MIXED MEDIA
This chapter provides an overview of Mixed Media and an example workflow that includes
Mixed Media.
The professor sends her request, along with the book file in PDF (Portable Document
Format) ([Link] ), to the university’s in-house production department.
MIXED MEDIA 8
Back cover
printed
on heavy
media
Chapter dividers
on heavy media
Chapters
printed on
plain media
Front cover
printed on
heavy media
N OTE : The Fiery PRO80 supports PDF versions 1.2 through 1.7.
MIXED MEDIA 9
2 3 4
Fiery PRO80
8 7 6 5
Fiery PRO80
1 The professor creates the PDF and sends the file to the
university’s in-house production department.
a) From New Page Range, the operator types 2, 32, 64, 98,
124 for the page range (the pages that divide the chapters),
specifies a heavy media, indicates which tray contains the
heavy media, clicks Add Definition, and clicks Close.
4 The operator processes and holds the job. Command WorkStation Help
To use Mixed Media in Command WorkStation, your downloaded file must be a non-raster
file. To remove raster information from a file in Command WorkStation, right-click the file
and select Remove Raster Data.
You can duplicate this workflow with a PostScript file instead of a PDF.
IMPOSITION 11
IMPOSITION
This chapter provides an overview of imposition and an example workflow using imposition.
What is imposition?
Imposition is the process of arranging individual pages of a book, booklet, or brochure on a
large sheet. The pages are laid out such that when the sheet is printed, folded, and cut, the
pages are in the correct orientation and order.
The Fiery PRO80 supports Impose. Impose is a server-based imposition application that allows
you to edit and assemble entire documents on the Fiery PRO80 before you process the files.
She has sent out a request to a local print shop to print 600 cards.
The print shop imposes her business cards on an 11 x 17 page. Since the card design
incorporates text on the back, the job must be duplexed. Company ABC’s standard business
card size is 2 x 3.25. The print shop calculates that they can impose 25 cards on one 11 x 17
page.
IMPOSITION 12
The following graphic illustrates how the business cards are imposed.
5 columns
{
5 rows
N OTE : The Fiery PRO80 supports PDF versions 1.2 through 1.7.
IMPOSITION 13
Imposition workflow
2 3 4
8 7 6 5
Fiery PRO80
1 Company ABC creates the 2 x 3.25 business card, saves Printing from Windows
it as [Link], and then sends the file to the print shop.
Printing from Mac OS
2 The operator at the print shop downloads the file Command WorkStation Help
to Command WorkStation.
IMPOSITION 14
b) From the Layout bar, the operator specifies five rows and
five columns, turns on printer’s marks, and sets the offset
horizontal and vertical printer’s marks to 0.125 pt.
When you use Impose, your downloaded file must be a non-raster file. To remove raster
information from a file with Command WorkStation, right-click the file and select
Remove Raster Data.
PPML WITH IMPOSITION 15
You can create the master and variable elements of a job as a PPML file in a variable data
printing application, such as Pageflex Persona, and then print the job to the Fiery PRO80.
Impose PPML as you would any other job (see page 11). Impose the PPML job on a sheet to
print the pieces in a particular order so that when the job is printed, it is cut and stacked in
the correct order.
Dr. Jones sends his order to a print shop along with the PDF of his mailer and the Microsoft
Excel file database, including address information about his customers and neighborhood
residents.
The print shop creates the merged master and variable document in Pageflex Persona to create
the [Link] file.
For more information about Pageflex Persona, see the documentation that accompanies the
application.
PPML WITH IMPOSITION 16
To save time and money, four cards are printed on both sides of a single 11 x 17 page. To
expedite the mailings and reduce costly postage charges, the cards are imposed so that after the
pages are cut, the cards easily stack with the zip codes in the correct sort order.
The following diagram illustrates how the job is imposed and sorted.
1 2 3
6 5 4
Fiery PRO80
1 The operator at the print shop creates the merged master For more information about Pageflex Persona, see the
and variable document in Pageflex Persona to create the documentation that accompanies the application.
[Link] file.
2 The operator at the print shop downloads the file Command WorkStation Help
to Command WorkStation.
PPML WITH IMPOSITION 18
7 The operator checks the Impose Control Strip Command WorkStation Help.
to match the set information.
Check the Impose Control Strip to match the set information. This is useful if certain pages
of your job do not print correctly and you must reprint specific pages.
Print one document to verify that the master and variable information matches.
Make sure that the scale size in Impose is set to 100%, otherwise the cards do not print with
the specified 5 x 8 size and are adjusted to print to the scale value entered.
VARIABLE DATA PRINTING WITH FREEFORM 19
For more information about how to send variable data printing to the Fiery PRO80, see
Variable Data Printing.
VARIABLE DATA PRINTING WITH FREEFORM 20
What is FreeForm and how is it used with variable data print jobs?
FreeForm allows you to use print options to define and store master-element documents,
called FreeForm masters, on the Fiery PRO80. You can send a variable-element job to the
Fiery PRO80 with instructions to combine the job with a particular FreeForm master.
To create this mail piece, the in-house production department decides to use the caching
capabilities of FreeForm. FreeForm allows them to store a rasterized version of the graphic
intensive layout in memory, since these elements are common to all pages (send and process
once). The variable text (address, name, and web link) is printed separately and merged with
the layout at the Fiery PRO80.
The production department creates the master document with all the common elements and
saves the file in PDF format (College_Master.pdf ). Next, they create the variable document in
Microsoft Word (College_Variable.doc) and link the variable information to their database
file (College_data.xls).
N OTE : No specialized variable printing software is used to build this job. You can use any page
layout application to create the FreeForm master and any mail merge function, such as
Microsoft Word Mail Merge, to build and print the variable data.
For more information about how to use the Mail Merge feature in Microsoft Word, see the
documentation that accompanies Microsoft Word.
VARIABLE DATA PRINTING WITH FREEFORM 21
Master file
Database file
1 2
Fiery PRO80
5 4 3
Fiery PRO80
2 The operator prints the file to the Fiery PRO80, specifying Printing from Windows
11 x 17 and duplex, and choosing 1 for Create Master in
the printer driver.
VARIABLE DATA PRINTING WITH FREEFORM 23
4 The operator prints the file to the Fiery PRO80, Printing from Windows
specifying 11 x 17 and duplex, and choosing 1 for
Use Master in the printer driver.
The master file and variable file are combined on the
Fiery PRO80.
Certain elements of the master and variable information must match. For example, the page
size and orientation must match. For a complete list, see Variable Data Printing.
If Two-Way Communication is enabled in the printer driver, the printer driver detects what
masters already reside on the Fiery PRO80. Use stored FreeForm masters as often as needed
with multiple sets of variable elements. For more information about Two-Way
Communication, see Printing from Windows.
If the administrator clears the Fiery PRO80, all FreeForm masters are deleted. For more
information about administrator functions, see Configuration and Setup.
VARIABLE DATA PRINTING WITH FREEFORM 2 AND MIXED MEDIA 24
What is FreeForm 2 and how is it used with variable data print jobs?
FreeForm 2 extends the functionality of FreeForm (see “Variable Data Printing with
FreeForm” on page 19). FreeForm 2 requires a third-party variable data printing application
that supports FreeForm 2 technology, such as Atlas PrintShop Mail. Using the third-party
printing application and FreeForm 2, you can create multiple page masters, allowing more
customization to your documents. You can still use any master created in another application,
and then use a third-party application that supports FreeForm 2, such as PrintShop Mail, to
combine the design and database information.
Multiple masters allow you to define more than one master file for your job, while drawing
from the same database of variable information. For example, if you own a movie rental
company, you may maintain a database of customer names, addresses, and the last five movies
the customer rented, categorized by genre. As a promotion, you want to send a coupon
booklet with a new movie rental release pictured on the front cover. You want to customize
your mailer with a movie of a similar genre as the last movie the customer rented. The variable
information, such as the customer names and addresses, is always drawn from the database.
However, the different movie images are defined by the multiple masters.
Variable data printing links a copier to databases that contain the content for printed
documents. For more information, see “Variable Data Printing with FreeForm” on page 19.
Use variable data print jobs with Mixed Media to create custom jobs, such as mailers. For
example, use the variable information to create booklet mailers that greet customers by name,
and print the booklet cover on a different medium than the body of the mailer.
The Mixed Media you specify for your job is applied for every record, relative to the record
start. For example, if Mixed Media is set to print Page 1 with cover stock, the first page of
every record is printed on cover stock.
VARIABLE DATA PRINTING WITH FREEFORM 2 AND MIXED MEDIA 25
Each promotional mailer includes a cover sheet with the customer’s name and a discount
coupon. The Banana Rama girls’ clothing line is more extensive, so the mailer targeting girls
includes additional pages advertising the girls’ fashions.
Since the promotional mailer may vary in length, depending on whether it is targeted toward
a boy or a girl, a blank page is added between each mailer to indicate when a new mailer starts.
The print shop that received Banana Rama’s mailer request uses Atlas PrintShop Mail to create
the master and variable document as a .psm project file. For more information about
PrintShop Mail, see the documentation that accompanies the application.
VARIABLE DATA PRINTING WITH FREEFORM 2 AND MIXED MEDIA 26
Girls template
Boys template
Letter/coupon template
Graphics
Database
2 3 4
Fiery PRO80
8 7 6 5
Fiery PRO80
1 The print shop operator opens the [Link] file in Variable Data Printing
PrintShop Mail, specifies FreeForm 2, and prints the file the
For more information about PrintShop Mail, see the
Fiery PRO80.
documentation that accompanies the application.
In the Print dialog box, the operator sends both the master
and variable data. The Fiery PRO80 receives a master and
variable PostScript document.
2 The operator selects the BanaRama_V.ps file from Command WorkStation Help
Command WorkStation.
VARIABLE DATA PRINTING WITH FREEFORM 2 AND MIXED MEDIA 28
3 The operator chooses Properties from the Actions menu, clicks Utilities
the Media icon on the Job Properties toolbar, and scrolls down
to Mixed Media. The operator applies the following settings:
4 The operator processes and holds the job. Command WorkStation Help
Certain elements of the master and variable information must match. For example, the page
size and orientation must match. For a complete list, see Variable Data Printing.
HOT FOLDERS 29
HOT FOLDERS
This chapter provides an overview of Hot Folders and an example workflow using
Hot Folders.
To print a document, drag and drop the file onto the Hot Folder. You can create multiple
Hot Folders, each with different settings and different Fiery PRO80 connections. Depending
on the configuration of the Hot Folder, jobs are routed to a Fiery PRO80 with settings that you
have configured.
Hot Folder software runs as a background utility, continuously monitoring Hot Folders for
new jobs.
For more information about Hot Folders, see Utilities and Hot Folders Help.
Company ABC has configured a network Hot Folder called “BusinessCards,” so that their
employees can drop their business card .pdf file directly onto the Hot Folder for printing.
Greg creates his business cards using the required company business card template, and saves
the file as [Link]. The business card template ensures that the cards are printed
optimally, using the imposition settings specified in the BusinessCards Hot Folder.
After the cards are printed, an operator in the company print shop cuts the cards and places
them in interoffice mail for the employee.
The following graphic illustrates how the business cards are imposed.
5 columns
{
5 rows
{
Items required for this example
2 x 3.25 business card
11 x 17 page
• [Link]
• Fiery PRO80
• Hot Folder configured on the network
• 8.5 x 11 heavy media, such as card stock
For information about supported media types, see Print Options.
• Paper cutter
N OTE : The Fiery PRO80 supports PDF versions 1.2 through 1.7.
HOT FOLDERS 31
Imposition workflow
2 3 4
Fiery PRO80
7 6 5
2, 3 Greg drops the file [Link] on the BusinessCards Hot Folders Help
Hot Folder.
What is Compose?
Compose is a software application available with the Production Printing Package. It allows
you to prepare a job (spooled or held in Command WorkStation) for printing.
Compose is a dynamic application that displays and enables options based on the Fiery PRO80
selected for the job. For example, if a job contains mixed media settings that were set in the
printer driver or Command WorkStation, these settings appear when you view the job in
Compose.
For more information about Compose, see Utilities and Compose Help.
For more information about the Production Printing Package, see Utilities.
COMPOSE WITH PAPER CATALOG 34
The Paper Catalog database resides on the Fiery PRO80 and is not affected when you restart or
clear the Fiery PRO80.
Once the administrator defines the Paper Catalog, the operator chooses the media for the job
from Compose. When the operator views the job with Compose thumbnails, the operator
clearly sees the settings applied for that paper catalog entry, such as the color of the media.
For more information about Paper Catalog and additional ways to access it, see Utilities and
Paper Catalog Help.
COMPOSE WITH PAPER CATALOG 35
The Human Resources Manager sends her request, with the attached book file in PDF format
([Link] ), to the company’s in-house production department.
The production department uses Compose to reformat the book, adding front and back
covers and designating chapter starts.
Gold is Company ABC’s signature color. All published company documentation must have
gold covers. The production department administrator has already added gold covers to the
Paper Catalog.
Completed handbook
COMPOSE WITH PAPER CATALOG 36
1 2
4 5 6
9 8 7
Fiery PRO80
COMPOSE WITH PAPER CATALOG 38
4 The operator right-clicks the job, chooses Properties, specifies Command WorkStation Help
that the job prints duplex and indicated that the job is stapled.
a) The operator selects all the pages of the job, clicks the
Paper tab, and selects letter-size media.
d) The operator selects the first page of the first chapter and
clicks Chapter Start. She repeats this for each chapter in
the handbook.
8 The job is printed with gold front and back covers, as specified
from Paper Catalog, and the first page of each chapter prints
on a right-hand page.
TERMS 39
TERMS
Authoring tool
A software application used to create text or images, or to define layouts for documents.
Component
In variable data printing, an element such as text, a graphic, or a photograph that is printed
on a page.
FreeForm
A variable data printing technology that works with variable-data printing solutions from EFI.
It allows data that is used many times in a variable-data printing job to be processed just once,
enabling a copier to run at or near rated speed.
FreeForm 2
FreeForm 2 expands FreeForm technology by allowing you to determine page conditions and
rules for printing a job containing multiple master pages. Unlike FreeForm, FreeForm 2
requires a variable data printing application that specifically supports FreeForm 2.
Master elements
Used in variable data printing with variable elements. Reusable data that is common across
copies of a document.
Mixed Media
A feature that allows you to print ranges of pages on different types of media.
PostScript
A device-independent page description language that is used to print and display pictures and
text. PostScript 3 includes many enhancements to older versions of PostScript, including
improved image quality and color.
Raster image
Electronic representation of a page or image using a grid of points called pixels.
TERMS 40
Rasterization
The process of converting code that describes text and graphics into the format that is
understood by a printer’s “print engine” to print them on a page.
Variable elements
Used in variable data printing with master elements. Data that changes across copies of a
document.
INDEX 41
INDEX
A L
Atlas PrintShop Mail 24 Layout 14
Authoring tool 39
M
C master elements 39
component 39 mixed media
Creo VPS 39 accessing from Command WorkStation 38
defined 39
D example workflow 7
downloading files 9, 13, 17, 38 example workflow with FreeForm 2 25
overview 7
E with variable data printing 24
Encapsulated PostScript (EPS) 39
P
F PDF 39
Finishing 14 PostScript 39
FreeForm PPML 15
defined 39 example workflow 15
example workflow 20 with imposition 15
FreeForm 2 Preview job 28
defined 24, 39 from Command WorkStation 10
example workflow 25
with mixed media 25 R
raster image 39
H rasterization 40
Hot Folder
example workflow 29 S
Scale 14
I Sheet 14
Impose
Finishing 14 T
Layout 14 terminology 5
Scale 14
Sheet 14 V
Impose Control Strip 18 variable data printing
imposition defined 40
example workflow 11 example workflow 20
overview 11 languages 19
with PPML 15 with mixed media 25
variable elements 40