PDF Ground Controls Sets – Set Menu Set List Group

The Set List Group is in the Set Menu of the PDF Ground Controls Sets in FlightCheck by Markzware. This group houses all the installed Sets, plus any new sets you may create or add to the list. You can choose a pre-installed setting to ensure best practices based upon the desired output. Since you are using your layout applications to create the PDF file and submit that PDF, the Set is used to ensure that all the necessary pieces (ex. Embedded Fonts, page size information, etc.) are included within that PDF.

Ghent WG – The Ghent Workgroup is an International panel of of graphic arts experts who developed best practices and publishing workflows. The goal is to choose a Set that matches the output instead of trying to create your own set and manually select options for each of the six categories. Each specification in the Ghent Sets is built upon the PDF/X ISO standards. Choose one that fits:
Ads
Specific Press
Color Models
Output choices
Note: These Sets look for PDF/X compliancy, view job options, PDF profiles, and set ink coverage for elements, removal of additional non-print items such as form fields or article threads and bookmarks.

Advertising Sets – These two Sets are used for creation of Advertising for either magazine or newspaper workflows:
Ghent WG – MagazineAds 1v2
Ghent WG – NewspaperAds 1v2

Commercial Sheet Offset Printing – These three Sets describe the components for Sheetfed Offset printing:
Ghent WG – SheetCmyk 1v2
Ghent WG – SheetSpotHiRes 1v2
Ghent WG – SheetSpotLoRes 1v2

Commerical Web Offset Printing – The last four Sets describe the necessary components of Web Offset printing:
Ghent WG – WebCmykHiRes 1v2
Ghent WG – WebCmykNews 1v2
Ghent WG – WebSpotHiRes 1v2
Ghent WG – WebSpotNews 1v2

Pass4Press – This set of criteria was created in the 90’s by the PPA (association for publishers and providers of consumer, customer and business media in the UK) as a method to supply documents for digital advertising. Flightcheck Pass4Press Set will test the PDF for the included list of needed features, and will report when additional items are found that do not fall within these guidelines. (ex. It will report if a password is needed to review the PDF, preventing the document from being checked.)

PDF/X versions – The Committee for Graphic Arts Technologies Standards (CGATS) created a PDF subset called X, designed to be eXchangeable for print providers. The goal is to choose one option that will then select ALL the settings to ensure that the PDF has the right information. (ex. Color, trapping, fonts, etc.) PDF/X is an ISO standard and will remain locked with a password.

PDF/X-1a (CMYK/Spots) (2001 or 2003) – Again, this is a subset of PDF and a version of PDF/X that manages the color data into CMYK/Spot, embeds the fonts, includes the maximum quality of images, trap status, includes the PDF key, and sets the page boxes. The PDF is created with compatibility of Acrobat 4 1.3 or Acrobat 5 1.4 depending on the year of the PDF/X chosen.
Note: If you use Color Managed profiles, choose PDF/X-3 instead!

PDF/X-3 (CMYK/Spots) (2002 or 2003) – This subset performs equally to PDF/X-1a with the addition of managing RGB colors to CMYK.

PDF/X-3 (Lab/ICC Allowed) – This set is similar to the PDF/X-3. It allows both Lab color (a large gamut of color spaces used in color editing) and ICC – International Color Consortium. ICC profiles are used to describe various output devices and must be present in this Set. Not a supported format for Flightcheck yet, however, in case you run into this.

PDF/X-4 (CMYK/Spots) (2008) (Live Transparency) – This format, unlike other versions of PDF/X, does not flatten the transparency, but allows it to reside without breaking it into regions.

PDF/X-4p (CMYK/Spots) (2008) (Live Transparency) – This is the same as PDF/X-4 with transparency live. It requires an ICC profile for Color Management.

There are six categories within the PDF Ground Control Sets. Once you determine the criteria you want to use to test your document, you can save the Set and reuse it.