CAD (Computer-Aided Drafting or Design) In graphics, the production of drawings and plans for architecture and engineering systems. CAD systems are specialized workstations or very high-performance personal computers that employ CAD software packages and input devices such as graphic tablets and scanners.

Calender rolls In papermaking, a set or stack of horizontal cast-steel rolls with polished ground surfaces at the end of a paper machine. The paper is passed between the rolls to increase the smoothness and gloss of its surface.

Caliper The thickness of paper, in thousandths of an inch (mils). In board, however, it is expressed as "points."

Camera-ready Copy that is ready to be photographed.

Caps and small caps Two sizes of capital letters made in one size of type, commonly used in most roman typefaces.

Case The covers of a hardbound book.

Cast coated Coated paper dried under pressure against a polished drum to produce a high-gloss enamel finish.

CCD (Charge Coupled Device) A semiconductor light-sensitive electronic device that emits an electrical signal proportional to the amount of light striking it. Used in scanners and video cameras.

CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read Only Memory) In digital prepress, a laser-encoded optical storage disk that can store 650 megabytes to more than 1 gigabyte of data on a disk about the size of a traditional 51/4-inch floppy disk. CDs are being replaced by DVDs.

Cell A small etched or engraved depression in a gravure cylinder or flexo anilox that carries the ink.

Cells per inch (cpi) The number of cells per inch on a flexo anilox or gravure cylinder.

Cell volume A measure of a flexo or gravure cell's capacity to carry ink; calculated as theoretical volume, liquid volume.

CEPS (Color Electronic Prepress System) In digital prepress, a high-end, computer-based system that is used to color correct scanner images and assemble image elements into final pages. They are device-dependent systems.

Chalking In printing, a term that refers to improper drying of ink. Pigment dusts off because the vehicle has been absorbed too rapidly into the paper.

Chemical pulp In papermaking, treatment of groundwood chips with chemicals to remove impurities such as lignin, resins, and gums. There are two types: sulfite and sulfate.

Chemistry In photography and platemaking, a term used to describe the composition of processing solutions.

Chokes and spreads Overlap of overprinting images to avoid color or white fringes or borders around image detail. Called trapping in digital imaging systems.

CIE color spaces These are three-dimensional color mapping systems such as CIELab, CIEL*a*b*, and CIELUV that are used to plot the three color attributes, X, Y, Z. These systems are not discussed in this book, but are an integral part of color management systems and color workflows.

CIP4 Cooperation for the Integration of Processes in Prepress, Press, and Postpress. CIP4 is the committee responsible for turning JDF (Job Definition Format) into a workable specification. CIP4, and its predecessor CIP3, define a set of protocols for automated workflows for printing.

Choke Used if the overlapping image is darker than the background. If you put a dark letter over a light background, the knockout in the background would be choked, or reduced slightly so the dark letter would overlap the background a little.

Closed loop system A completely automatic control system that can adjust itself. For example, a densitometer in a digital printer may feedback data for color adjustment.

CMY (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow) Subtractive primary colors, each of which is a combination of two additive primary colors (RGB).

CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black) The subtractive process colors used in color printing. Black (K) is added to enhance color and contrast.

Co-mail Combine titles of publications on a pallet going to same destination to save you money when mailing. Typically used for Periodicals.

Co-palletize Combine different companies' trays of letter-size mail onto a pallet going to same destination. Saves you money. Must be done via an authorized consolidation company.

Coated paper Paper having a surface coating that produces a smooth finish. Surface appearances may vary from eggshell to glossy.

Coating An emulsion, varnish, or lacquer applied over a printed surface to protect it.

Cold color A color with a bluish cast.

Collate In binding, the gathering of sheets and signatures.

Collotype A screenless printing process of the planographic ink-water type in which the plates are precoated with bichromated gelatin, exposed to continuous-tone negatives, and printed on litho­graphic presses with special dampening.

Color balance The correct combination of cyan, magenta, and yellow to (1) reproduce a photograph without a color cast, (2) produce a neutral gray, or (3) reproduce the colors in the original scene or object.

Color correction Any method such as masking, dot-etching, re-etching, and scanning, used to improve color.

Color filter A sheet of dyed glass, gelatin or plastic, or dyed gelatin cemented between glass plates, used in photography to absorb certain colors and transmit others. The filters used for color separation are red, green, and blue (RGB).

Colorimeter An instrument for measuring color the way the eye sees color.

Color management is broadly defined as a system of hardware, software, and procedures that are calibrated to best ensure color accuracy and repeatability throughout the design and production process. See ICC.

Color proofs Simulations of the eventual output of a reproduction device. Because it is costly to proof on a press, a number of methods are used to proof off-line. In digital printing, a proof is a run of one. See analog color proof and direct digital color proof.

Color separation The process of separating color originals into the primary printing color components in negative or positive form using RGB filters. Today, color separation is totally electronic.

Commercial register Color printing on which the misregister allowable is within ± one row of halftone dots.

Common impression cylinder press In flexography, letterpress, lithography, and digital printing, a press with a number of printing units around a large impression cylinder.

Commingled mailing Combined mailing of magazines of the same size to the same address to save costs.)

Computer-to-plate See CTP.

Condensed type A narrow or slender typeface.

Conductivity A property of fountain solutions that must be controlled along with pH.

Continuous tone An image that contains gradient tones from black to white.

Contone Abbreviation for continuous tone.

Contract proof A color proof of the job representing an agreement between the printer and the customer regarding how the printed product will look.

Contrast The tonal gradation between the highlights, middle tones, and shadows in an original or reproduction.

Copy Any furnished material (files, typewritten manuscript, pictures, artwork, etc.) to be used in the production of printing.

Copy preparation Directions for, and checking of, desired size and other details for illustrations, and the arrangement into proper position of various parts of the page to be photographed or electronically processed for reproduction.

Cover paper A term applied to papers mostly used for the covers of catalogs, brochures, booklets, and similar pieces.

Creep Sometimes called "push out," it is the distance margins shift when paper is folded and/or inserted during finishing. The amount of creep will vary depending on both the number and thickness of the sheets and must be compensated for during layout and imposition. See shingling.

Crop To eliminate portions of the copy, usually on a photograph, indicated on the original by cropmarks. Today, it is accomplished by positioning the image in a picture box.

Cross direction In paper, the direction across the grain. Paper is weaker and more sensitive to changes in relative humidity in the cross direction than the grain direction.

Crossmarks Register marks.

CSR - Customer Service Rep. Works for a printing company. Often, you'll deal with the CSR, not your sales rep, once you give a printer a job.

CTP (Computer-to-Plate) Computer-to-Plate systems or platesetters eliminate the need for having a separate film-to-plate exposure system.

Curl The distortion of a sheet due to differences in structure or coatings from one side to the other, or to absorption of moisture on an offset press.

Cutoff In web printing, the cut or print length.

Cutscore In diecutting, a sharp-edged knife, several thousandths of an inch lower than the cutting rules in a die, made to cut part way into the paper or board for folding purposes. Scoring reduces paper cracking.

Cyan Hue of a subtractive primary and a 4-color process ink. It reflects or transmits blue and green light and absorbs red light.

Cylinder gap In printing presses, the gap or space in the cylinders of a press where the mechanism for plate (or blanket), clamps, and grippers (sheetfed) is housed.