Over at the Markzware’s Group on Linkedin.com, the popular professional social networking site, we posted an interesting topic and question- please join in!
How do you use preflighting in your workflow?
Here is a video interview of a graphic designer and for a large part he goes over how he preflights and the tools he uses (FlightCheck, PitStop, etc): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDcH8HXZhS4
Valentin from OCHEDA Graphic Creatives recently called in with a small support question. In assisting him, I learned of his great zeal for using FlightCheck Professional on every job that he produces in QuarkXPress or Adobe InDesign. SO much so that we asked if we could interview him to learn more about his graphic design workflow and how he works with preflighting, PDF and DTP layout applications. Watch the English interview here:
If embedded video does not show up, click here. Continues below…
Earlier today we conducted a very interesting interview with a designer, which we will post tomorrow or in any event soon. He swore by FlightCheck throughout the graphic design process and always delivers to the printers an Enfocus Certified PDF- using some of the Enfocus kit to produce standards based PDFs which his customers (record labels) require… more on that story later, but it fits in with this news below nicely… (And a few simple questions for YOU at the end!)
Exciting news below for preflight operators whom use Markzware’s FlightCheck Professional or Designer (Or those that want to buy a copy.); see the announcement below…
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Markzware Releases Free Update To Popular
Preflighting Software, FlightCheck
Markzware’s FlightCheck v6.12 provides the most up-to-date enhancements for greater productivity.
SANTA ANA, California, September 16, 2008 — Markzware, the leading developer of preflighting, data extraction and conversion software, announced a free update for its preflighting solution, FlightCheck v6.12.
“Markzware continues to provide the level of support to our customer base to ensure efficiency, flexibility and ease of use of our popular and award-winning preflighting solution,” said Mary Gay Marchese, public relations director of Markzware.
Markzware, the leader in file conversion and preflight software, has a Twitter account! This popular social networking and micro blogging site has proven very useful for designers and you can “follow” people and companies by signing up for a free account. Follow us today on Twitter: http://twitter.com/Markzware
Dave Matthews heads up the prepress department at Progressive Printing, a Martinsburg, WV commercial printing facility. Long plagued by Microsoft Publisher files submitted by a typical (in the commercial print world) customer base that’s ill-equipped and uneducated in the process of preparing digital content for print, Matthews discovered Markzware’s PUB2ID plug-in.
Markzware followed up with Matthews some months later to find out how the application had helped solve some of the conversion problems he’d been facing when dealing with Microsoft Publisher files, and he was gracious to share his thoughts:
Back when I wrote the Quark for InDesign Users articles, I was approached by Markzware, a company that makes several Quark and InDesign plugins. I know the folks over at InDesign Secrets love plugins, but I’ve never used any myself. Markzware kindly agreed to give me a copy of their plugin to try out and I thought I’d share with you some of my thoughts!
Install and Activation
For reference, I tested the Q2ID plugin on Windows XP SP2 with QuarkXpress 7.3 (Passport) and InDesign CS3.
Spotted by Brian Regan of Semper International LLC.
A random, likely graphic commuincations worker, walking down the nostalgic streets of Boston (Near Portland St.), Massachusetts, wearing his Markzware preflighting (Are you printing or still fixing bad PDF files) t-shirt loud and proud! Spotted by Mr. Brian Regan of Semper International, the producers of the PIA/GATF supported Printalution exhibit and training facility within Second Life, a popular virtual world for Mac and Windows users, which Markzware also is a part of! You can learn more on Printalution here: http://printalution.ning.com/ (And visit Semper International in Second Life, where Printulation and Markzware are just a short walk away here- if you are a member of Second Life, which is free…)
If I am going to preflight, how do I do it? What criteria will I use, and where in the workflow should preflight occur? The answer: At every stage of the workflow. Native files should be verified before a document is converted to PDF. That file should subsequently be verified before it is sent to the supplier, and the supplier may want to verify it yet again before the file is imposed and plates are set.
