Clipboard on Steriods
November 12, 2008
OK, this is simple, cool, and best of all free. It’s a Macintosh utility that expands your clipboard into cubbyholes. Each time you copy to the clipboard, you fill a new cubby without overwriting your last clipboard copy.
Using a menu bar item, or keyboard shortcut, you simply select the content you need and paste it wherever you want. Simple and elegant.
It’s called Jumpcut. Download it from the author’s Sourceforge page.
The social side of printing!
November 5, 2008
As many years as we’ve been printing, it’s still tough to remember all of the envelopes sizes that can be used for invitations and announcements. Here’s a quick rundown, just in case your next holiday card is on tap:
Where cost is an issue, Baronial style envelopes have a great price point, but they’re usually only available in white or ivory.
Baronial (i.e. pointy-flap) Style Envelopes
4 Bar
5.125 x 3.625
5 Bar
5.625 x 4.125
5 ½ Bar
5.625 x 4.375
6 Bar
6.5 x 4.75
Lee
7.25 x 5.25
A lot of folks prefer the the more up to date square flap style Announcement envelope. Indeed, they’re available in a wider range of colors and finishes:
Announcement Envelope: square flap style
A-2
4.375″ x 5.75″
A-6
4.75″ x 6.5″
A-7
5.25″ x 7.25″
A-8
5.5″ x 8.125
A-9
5.75″ x 8.75″
A-10
6″ x 9.5″
Just two more things to remember:
1. Not every size/color/finish combo is available, so check before you start your design
2. These are the envelope sizes, the enclosures should be designed about 1/4″ smaller in each dimension.
Questions: just give us a call or visit our contact page.
In the market for some custom printed folders or announcements? Check out our current specials!
InDesign Workshop Followup Links
October 15, 2008
For those that attended our InDesign© workshop (and for those who couldn’t) Adobe Systems’ presenter Kelly McCathran offers these additional resources.
Kelly’s Extra Handouts
http://idisk.mac.com/kmccathran-Public
Adobe Design Center
Step-by-Step Lessons, Guides and Tutorials for CS2 & CS3 also access to User Forums & Feature Requests
http://adobe.com/designcenter/
Adobe Design Center Video Workshop
Flash Movies on all Creative Suite 3 Products and many new features
http://adobe.com/designcenter/video_workshop
Adobe Print Resource Center
Transparency guides and PDF Print Production Information and a wealth of print related resources
http://adobe.com/go/print
Adobe Events
Find Adobe Certified Trainers and Training Centers in your area, on-demand and live eClasses as well as road show events
http://www.adobe.com/events
Adobe Education
Educational resources for K-12 and higher education, free curriculum and more
http://www.adobe.com/education
The Holy Grail of Graphics
September 2, 2008
Not all file formats are created equal. For maximum quality and flexibility, true vector format files such as EPS or AI are often your best choice. Need a logo or drawing in your brochure or business card? Use Adobe Illustrator, Freehand or Corel Draw for the job. Or ask your graphic artist/designer to do the same.
Better yet, these EPS items (also called paths/shapes) can now be freely and directly placed and edited in Adobe InDesign. Here’s how, according to David Watterson, art director of the Graphic Arts Technical Foundation.
Simply copy the item(s) from the source application and paste into you InDesign document via the clipboard. To copy paths from Illustrator 10 and up, be sure that AICB is checked and the “Preserve Paths” button is selected in Illustrator’s file handling and clipboard preferences.
And speaking of Adobe InDesign, be sure to sign up for our latest Copies&Ink event, sponsored by the nice folks at Adobe Systems.
A software pick that pops out!
July 17, 2008
I have no clue as to all the things you can do with FinderPop for the Macintosh. But if you just use it to sort your way through a messy desktop or to switch between applications, you should get it. Best of all, it’s free. Donations will be accepted by the publisher.
Free Font Utility from Linotype
June 26, 2008
OK, it may not be terribly original to build a font manager that looks almost identical to ITunes (including a built-in font store), but the venerable type founder, Linotype was shrewd to do so. There’s got to be a boatload of overlap between graphic designers and ITunes customers. I cut my teeth growing up with Linotype equipment, and the company’s entry into digital typography is long overdue.
I’m imagining that the market for font management software isn’t exactly vast. Hence there hasn’t much new to consider, certainly not from Adobe. Yet the need to organize your fonts remains as important as ever. So a FREE font manager that really works is a great addition to the Mac arsenal. (PC version out soon!)
Linotype is betting on the convenience factor here: click and buy. After all, Adobe isn’t the only game in town. I bet someone in San Jose got chewed out for not thinking of this first.
BTW, the ability to switch your fonts on and off as needed, helps your computer run faster. Thanks to Copies&Ink Graphics Manager, Dave McPherson for pointing out this find!
Free download from Linotype Corp.
How to build a better PDF
May 28, 2008
It’s amazing how many ills can be cured by the simple PDF. It’s like the aspirin of desktop graphics. Still, aspirin can’t cure the common cold. Similarly, pumping a dozen fuzzy snapshots into a Word file before converting it to PDF won’t give your annual report that National Geographic look you’re going for.
So, as many a pizza chain will remind you, your final result is no better than the ingredients. With that in mind (from Adobe’s Lonn Lorenz and researcher Dov Isaacs) here’s The Perfect PDF: Best Practices for Preparing PDF Files.
What’s on (Adobe) TV?
May 27, 2008
If you’re tired of Reality TV and have already seen the season finale of LOST, why not check out some programming that’s actually useful?
In recent years Adobe has bolstered its product support with a lot of online options, including its newest addition, Adobe TV. There are a number of “channels” including a lot of programming about photography, video, graphic and web design.
Check out the “most popular” link, and follow it to episode 1 of Caffe Fibonacci. The fireplace and country background are “Photoshopped” in, but the actual show has a number of useful and interesting tips. And don’t let the Apple logos put you off; this information is useful for Windows too!
Have any tips you’d like to share? Drop us a note!
