At 08:28 PM 4/30/2002 +0200, Louis JOURDAN wrote: >Jim, just for my information, what is a Kinko-style duplicator? Never >heard about it!
Sorry, it's a bit of jargon I should have defined. Bill's description was certainly a reasonable one, but not exactly what I meant. There are three types of processes here: photocopier: uses dry toner, prints on pre-cut sheets, generally black, but of course color is now available. duplicator: a low-end type of printing press, in that it uses wet ink and a printing plate, but you feed it pre-cut sheets. Usually only one color of ink (any color you want to pick), but a "T" head can allow some models to print two colors of ink. About the size of an office desk. Frequently use printing plates made from paper rather than aluminum. Frequently found in Alphagraphics or Kinko type stores. printing press: a full-blown press, uses oversized sheets, printing plates, wet inks, etc. High end presses are very large, can run up to six colors of ink, use sheets upwards of 1 x 1 m (or even rolls), and cost $500k or more. I think "duplicator" is actually a term of derision used by printers with full-size printing presses. But, that should help you understand my discussion of types of paper used. FWIW, I have never seen a decent halftone (photograph) printed on a duplicator. If you want decent halftones, as far as my experience goes, you have to pay to go to a real printing press. Jim Elwell Electrical Engineer Industrial manufacturing manager Salt Lake City, Utah, USA www.qsicorp.com
