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Glossary

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Saddle Stitch
Metal stitch binding method used in magazine and catalog printing.

Safelight
The special darkroom lamp used for illuminiation without fogging sensitized materials.

Sans Serif
Type style characterized by vertical letter stress, uniform strokes and the absence of serifs.

Scaling
Determining the proper size of an image to be reduced or enlarged to fit an area.

Scan-A-Web
A rotating mirror arrangement where speed can be varied to match the speed of a press so the image on the paper can be examined during printing.

Scanner
Device that measures an image point by point and generates a signal related to the amount and type of light reflected from, or transmitted through, the original. This signal is often sampled and digitized by the scanner.

Score
Finishing operation that creases paper to enhance folding and reduce cracking.

Screen Angles
Angles at which the halftone screens are placed in relation to one another, to avoid undesirable moire patterns. A set of angles often used is: black 45 °, magenta 75 °, yellow 90 °, cyan 105 °.

Screen Ruling
The number of lines or dots per inch on a halftone screen.

Screened Print
A print with a halftone screen made from a halftone negative negative or by diffusion transfer.

Script
Type style characterized by a design that attempts to duplicate handwriting.

SCSI (Small Computer Systems Interface)
Pronounced skuzzy, SCSI is an interface used to transmit digital data and to connect computers to periphals. An industry-standard interface for hard drives and other storage devices that allows for very fast transfers of information.

Scum
A film of ink printing in the non-image areas of a plate where it should not print.

Scumming
Offset press condition in which non-image areas of the plate accept ink.

Self Cover
Cover produced from the same paper as the body of a book.

Semi-chemical Pulp
A combination of of chemical and mechanical pulping with properties similar to wood pulp.

Sensitivity Guide
A continuous tone gray scale with numbered steps used to control exposures in platemaking and lithfilm photography.

Series
Variations within a family of type; common series are bold, extra bold, condensed, think, expanded and italic.

Serifs
One of three variables in alphabet design; refers to small strokes that project from top or bottom of main character strokes.

Server
A file server provides the data interchange between compatible peripheral devices on a local area network. Servers are identified by the type of resource they provide(e.g. disk server, file server, printer server, communication server)

Set
Ability of ink to stick to paper; properly set ink can be handled without smearing.

Set-Off
Transfer of excess ink from one sheet to another when press in overinked; also referred to as off-set.

SFI
Voluntary third-party forest certification began in the 1990s in response to market concerns about forest management and illegal logging, primarily in developing countries. The SFI program was launched in 1994 as one of the U.S. forest sector’s contributions to the vision of sustainable development established by the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development. Its original principles and implementation guidelines began in 1995, and it evolved as the first SFI national standard backed by third-party audits in 1998. Today, SFI Inc. is an independent, non-profit organization responsible for maintaining, overseeing and improving a sustainable forestry certification program that is internationally recognized and is the largest single forest standard in the world. The SFI 2010-2014 Standard is based on principles and measures that promote sustainable forest management and consider all forest values. It includes unique fiber sourcing requirements to promote responsible forest management on all forest lands in North America. SFI certification also extends to the market. When they see the SFI label on a product, consumers can be confident they are buying wood or paper from responsible sources – whether it is reams of paper, packaging or two-by-fours.

SGML (Standardized Generalized Mark-Up Language)
SGML is one of the newer languages for marking text for a variety of purposes, including typesetting and disk publishing. A well-designed SGML scheme enables the publisher to mark text just once for multiple uses.

Shadow Area
Dark area of a continuous-tone image or its halftone reproduction.

Sharpen
To decrease in color strength, as when halftone dots become smaller.

Sheet-Fed Press
Press that prints on individual sheets of paper rather than on paper from a roll.

Sheetwise
To print one side of a sheet of paper with one plate, then turn the sheet over and print the other side with another plate using the same gripper and opposite side guide.

Shingling
For large signatures the center or gutter margin is varied according to the position of the page in the signature and the bulk of the paper.

Short Ink
An ink that is buttery and does not flow freely.

Show-through
The undesirable condition is which the printing on the reverse side of the sheet can be seen through the sheet under normal lighting conditions.

Side Guide
A guide on the feed board to position as it feeds into the front guides before entering the impression cylinder.

Signature
A large printed sheet or form after it has been printed, folded and trimmed down to page size.

Silhouette Halftone
A halftone of a subject with all of the background removed.

Sizing
The treatment of paper which gives it resistance to the penetration of liquids or vapors.

Skid
A platform support for a pile of cut sheets of paper.

Slitting
Cutting printed sheets or webs into two or more sections by means of cutting wheels on a press or folder.

Small Caps
An alphabet of SMALL CAPITAL LETTERS available in most roman typefaces approximately the size of lower-case letters. Used in combination with larger capital letters.

Smoothness
Measure of paper surface irregularities; affects the appearance of printing by affecting how the ink lays on the surface of the sheet.

Soft Dot
Halftone dot with considerable fringe which causes dot gain or sharpening in printing or photography.

Soft Ink
Descriptive of the consistency of paste inks.

Spectrophotometer
Instrument for measuring color for CIE color spaces. It is more accurate than most color colorimeters.

Spectrum
The Spectrum digital halftone proofing system provides consistently accurate proofs. Its Squarespot thermal imaging produces solid density, tone curves and color that are consistent from proof to proof. Spectrum proofing delivers the highest proof-to-plate consistency in the industry by imaging proofs using the same input file, resolution line screen, screen angle, spot function and thermal imaging system used to image plates. The Spectrum allows you to select the receiver onto which the color media is imaged to enable you to see how the paper on which you will print affects the appearance of the printed piece. The Spectrum is superior to a matchprint in quality and accuracy.

Spiral Binding
A book bound with wires in spiral form inserted through holes punched along the binding side.

Spot
Smallest visible point that can be displayed or printed. The smallest diameter of light that a scanner can detect, or an imagesetter or printer can image. Dot should not be confused with spot.

Spot Color
Printed color other than black, but not one of the three process colors.

Static Neutralizer
An Aattachement designed to remove the static electricity from the paper to avoid ink set-odd and trouble with feeding the paper.

Step and Repeat
The procedure of mulitple exposure using the same image by stepping it in position according to a predetermined layout or program.

Stet
A profreader's mark, written in the margin, signifying that copy was marked for correction should remain as it was.

Stochastic Screening
A digital screening process that converts images into very small dots (14-40 microns) of equal size and variable spacing. Second order screened images have variable size dots and variable spacing. Also called Frequency Modulation Screening.

Stock
Paper or other material to be printed.

Stone
In lithography formerly used as the plate material and present used by artists as an art medium. In letterpress, the bed on which metal type is leveled and locked up.

Stress
One of three variables in alphabet design; refers to distribution of visual "heaviness" or "slant" of the character.

Strike-on Composition
Type set on typewriter composing machines.

Strike-Through Varnish
Strike-through varnish is a technique in which a dull or matte varnish is applied on all areas of a coated sheet except for the areas that are intended to be glossy. Then, a high-gloss aqueous coating is flooded over the sheet. As it cures, the varnish strikes through the aqueous coating to achieve a dull finish wherever varnish was applied and the areas where the varnish was not applied appears glossy. This process is more cost-effective than a dry-trap varnish, but it does not achieve the same contrast.

Stripping
Process of assembling pieces of film containing images that will be carried on the same plate and securing them on a masking sheet that will hold them in position during the platemaking process; much of the function is now being performed by computers.

Stripping
In image assembly the positioning of negatives (or positives) on a flat to compose a page or layout for platemaking. In printing ink stripping on ink rollers prevented by plastic or copper coated steel rollers in the ink roller train.

Stroke
One of the three variables in alphabet design; refers to thickness of lines that form each character.

Substance
The weight in pounds of a ream (500 Sheets) of paper cut to the standard size ("17" x "22") for business papers( bond and ledger). e.g. 20 pounds. Similar to basis weight of other grades of paper.;

Substrate
Any material that can be printed on, such as paper, plastic and fabric.

Subtractive Primaries
Yello, magenta and cyan, the hues used for prcoess color printing inks.

Sulphate Pulp
Paper pulp made from wood chips cooked under pressure in a solution of bisulphite of lime (calcuim bisulphate)

Supercalender
In papermaking a calendar stack, seperate from the papermaking machine, with alternate metal and resilient rolls, used to produce a high finish on paper.

Supercell
In digital halftone imaging a combination of subgroups of halftones dots that are handled as a single group.

Surprint
Exposure from a second negative or superimposed on an exposed image of a previous negative or flat.

Sustainable Forestry Initiative
Voluntary third-party forest certification began in the 1990s in response to market concerns about forest management and illegal logging, primarily in developing countries. The SFI program was launched in 1994 as one of the U.S. forest sector's contributions to the vision of sustainable development established by the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development. Its original principles and implementation guidelines began in 1995, and it evolved as the first SFI national standard backed by third-party audits in 1998. Today, SFI Inc. is an independent, non-profit organization responsible for maintaining, overseeing and improving a sustainable forestry certification program that is internationally recognized and is the largest single forest standard in the world. The SFI 2010-2014 Standard is based on principles and measures that promote sustainable forest management and consider all forest values. It includes unique fiber sourcing requirements to promote responsible forest management on all forest lands in North America. SFI certification also extends to the market. When they see the SFI label on a product, consumers can be confident they are buying wood or paper from responsible sources – whether it is reams of paper, packaging or two-by-fours.

SWOP
Specifications for Web Offset Publication