Prior to version 1.9.0, when configuring the Adobe Illustrator Plug–in, you first had to connect to the Workflow and ZuniComm. The Workflow must be accessible via an IP address and port 8081 and ZuniComm must be accessible via an IP address and port 8989 to check out and check in data. Also Barcodes, QR codes and variable data can only be generated if a connection with ZuniComm via port 8989 has been enabled.

As of this release, ZuniComm and the service to generate QR codes and Barcodes is now controlled by the Workflow. This allows a more secure or discrete data transfer via POST method without a direct call to ZuniComm via port 8989. Therefore, defining port 8989 in the Plug–in is no longer necessary. Only the connection with the Workflow IP [1] must be enabled.

Figure 1: The Settings dialog of the Adobe Illustrator Plug–in.

After the entire user interface of the Impose Editor was revised and redesigned in version 1.8.2, further details were standardized and improved in version 1.9.0. Among other things, the preview images of SVG Marks in their respective selection menus have been adapted to the dark theme and sub–panels of the settings areas are more distinguishable from other areas by using colored lines.

Figure 2: The Lines option shows the new UI update to the settings sub–panels in the Impose Editor.

With version 1.8.2 the ability to add multiple Dielines was implemented. Dielines can be applied to either the ImageBox or the ImageBox + Bleed.

With version 1.9.0, it is now also possible to set the Origin [2] per Dieline as well as Per Print Item, for all Print Items or the Artboard. Therefore, any number of Dielines can be added and applied to different positions and origins in the imposition.

Figure 3: The Finishing tab showing the new Origin option when a Dieline is added.

Two new Caption placeholders are available in the Impose Editor with version 1.9.0. These are:

• Current Page Number [3] – This can be used to display the current page number from a multipage imposition.
• Total Number of Pages [4] – This can be used to display the total number of pages on the sheet.

You can now combine both placeholders to create sheet numbering, e.g.: page 5 of 10 in the imposition.

Figure 4: The Caption Placeholder Select dialog showing two new placeholders.

Since version 1.8.0, DeviceN Spot Colors can be created and used system–wide in the Workflow. Until now, DeviceN Spot Colors were bound to a specific Channel Configuration. This meant that, if necessary, the same Spot Color definition had to be created multiple times (per Channel Configuration). To ensure that Spot Color definitions are output correctly DeviceN Spot Colors, the Workflow automatically creates a Lab fallback Spot Color definition, which is then used if no DeviceN Spot Color definition has been created for a particular Channel Configuration.

As of version 1.9.0, this method is no longer necessary, as DeviceN Spot Colors can also be used across multiple Channel Configurations ( provided certain conditions are met). Follow the instructions below to create a DeviceN Spot Color:

1. Go to Color > Manage Spot Colors > Spot Color Definitions tab.
2. Click +New in the footer of the desired panel, i.e., System–wide, Substrate specific, etc.
3. Enter a Name for the color.
4. Select »DeviceN« using the Color Mode drop–down.
5. Then select a Color Policy. Note that the selection of the Color Policy only determines the Channel Configuration or the number of Color Channels [5]. Furthermore, the selected Color Policy is used to calculate a preview for the color chip preview.
6. Define the desired color values for the DeviceN Spot Color.
7. Click on Save.

Figure 5: The Create Spot Color Definition dialog when creating a System–wide DeviceN Spot Color in the Workflow.

When the dialog is saved, the DeviceN Spot Color is created in the Workflow. In addition, another Spot Color is generated as a Lab fallback. The system uses the following logic to determine which Spot Color is used:

If the color values or color channels [6] defined in the DeviceN Spot Color exist in the selected Output Configuration, then the DeviceN Spot Color is used as it is defined.

Example: The DeviceN Spot Color "My Red" is defined using C=0; M=100; Y=100; K=0; O=0; B=0 system–wide. A Print Item contains the Spot Color "My Red" and is used in a Production Job that is output in CMYK.

Result: The DeviceN Spot Color can be used as defined in the system.

If the color values or color channels [6] defined in the DeviceN Spot Color do not exist in the selected Output Configuration, then the Lab fallback is used.

Example: The DeviceN Spot Color "My Red" is defined in C=0; M=100; Y=100; K=0; O=50; B=0 system–wide. A Print Item contains the Spot Color "My Red" and is used in a Production Job which is output in CMYK.

Result: The Lab fallback value is used because no »O« separation is available in the output.

In addition to the functional aspects of how DeviceN Spot Colors are handled, predefined DeviceN Spot Color definitions are available in the Workflow as of version 1.9.0. The following DeviceN Spot Colors are automatically created after this update or after installation and can be used for Jobs:

• DeviceCyan – 100% Cyan
• DeviceMagenta – 100% Magenta
• DeviceYellow – 100% Yellow
• DeviceBlack – 100% Black
• DeviceOrange – 100% Orange
• DeviceViolet – 100% Violet
• DeviceGreen – 100% Green
• DeviceRed – 100% Red
• DeviceBlue – 100% Blue

Figure 6: The System–wide Spot Colors panel showing pre-defined DeviceN Spot Color definitions.

In order for these DeviceN Spot Colors to be used or output in Orders, the name of the Spot Color must exist in the respective Print Item or Article. If the Spot Color name matches, the respective DeviceN Spot Color is used for output. Furthermore, new objects can also be created in the Impose Editor, such as Marks, Lines, Captions, Grommets, etc. , using these colors.

It is important to note that these DeviceN Spot Colors have no LAB fallback definitions. This means that these DeviceN Spot Colors are always treated the same and are output as pure, calibrated process colors. This also means that if this color channel does not exist in the output of the job or in the Color Policy, then this Spot Color is not rendered and will be ignored.

When sending data to the printer, the DeviceN Spot Color is only adjusted by the color management using the following profiles:

• Total Color Limit Profile (Ink Limit) – If the set color value of the DeviceN Spot Color should be higher, than the total color value specified in the Ink Limit (which will never be the case for a color), this would still limit the color value.
• Linearization Profile – If a color channel limit was defined when creating the Linearization Profile, the DeviceN Spot Color value will still be clipped by this Profile.
• Transition Profiles (if Light Inks are used) – If a value was selected when creating the Linearization Profile, which also uses a light color of the process color for a 100% color value, then of course this portion of light color will also be used for the DeviceN color.
• Pre–linearization Profile (if activated) – Since a color that is 100% cannot be changed by Pre–Linearization, the DeviceN color value will not be changed further by this Profile.

You can use DeviceN Spot Color definitions for the following applications in practice or they will be used for certain projects in production in the future:

• Spitting Bars – Creates thin lines in the defined DeviceN process color on the edge of the imposition via the line function, so that when printing a sheet, the print heads are used at least briefly to prevent clogging of the nozzles.
• Measurement Patches for Process Colors – Create Marks in the defined DeviceN process colors to be able to measure the calibrated color value of the process color on the printed sheet.
• Register Marks – Create a test pattern for your printing system in a graphics program and create Spot Colors for individual colors using the DeviceN process color definitions. This can be used to quickly check the register accuracy of the printheads.
• Crop or Registration Marks – Uses DeviceN process color Spot Colors for Crop or Registration Marks to ensure that they are kept pure in the output.

As of version 1.9.0, creating a simulation in advance can now be omitted. From this version on, the desired simulation can be configured in advance as part of an Output Configuration template. The calculation of all necessary profiles takes place only when rendering to the printer. Proceed as follows if you want to create or apply a print simulation:

1. Select the Job menu item and open an existing Production Job from the list.
2. Open the Output Settings tab in the Production Job.
3. Select your desired Output Settings for the Production Job by selecting the following parameters:
   • Printer
   • Print Configuration
   • Substrate
   • Substrate Definition
   • Color Policy
4. Open the Simulation options by pressing the down arrow [12].
5. Select one of the following options:
   • No Simulation [10] – No simulation will be generated when rendering.
   • Working or Output Color Space [11] – By activating this option you will be prompted to select one of the existing Working or Output Color Space Profiles listed under Administration > Settings > Color Management tab in the drop–down menu [14] below. When configuring this section, a summary [9] is created in the header, so that the selected settings are immediately visible even when minimized.
   • Color strategy [13] – By activating this option, you will be prompted to select a Color Policy in the drop-down [15] below. By selecting a Printer, Print Configuration and Substrate, you can narrow down the selection. You will then be provided with all Color Policies available in the Workflow. During configuration, a summary [9] is created in the header, so that the selected settings are immediately visible even when minimized.
6. Complete the Output Settings and save them in a template if necessary, and proceed with production.

Figure 7: Configuring the print simulation in the Output Settings tab of a Production Job.

During the rendering process, all necessary profiles for applying the print simulation are generated and applied. If the same configuration is used a second time for rendering, existing profiles are reused without generating new profiles.

Once created, Simulation Profiles are saved with the selected Color Policy, which is the Color Policy selected for rendering in a Production Job. This also allows them to be displayed, downloaded or deleted in the corresponding Profile. The following description shows you how to access generated Simulation Profiles:

1. Render a Production Job which uses a Print Simulation.
2. Make a note of the Color Policy (in this case the ID number of the Color Policy) that was used to render the Production Job.
3. Navigate to Color > Color Setup.
4. Open the Color Setup that contains the Color Policy from step 2.

Figure 8: After opening a Color Setup, the user can see the Simulation Profiles that are calculated for specific Color Policies.

In the Color Policies List, the created Simulation Profiles [16] are displayed with an indent for each individual Color Policy. The name of the Simulation Profile reveals how the Print Simulation was defined.

• If a Color Policy was used for the Simulation, a Printer, Print Configuration, Substrate and Color Policy are included in the name.
• If a Working or Output Color Space was used for the Simulation, the name of the Output or Working Color Space is used in the name.

In this list, the respective Simulation Profiles can be deleted [17]. Note that Simulation Profiles are automatically deleted when the associated Color Policy is deleted.

5. You can open a Simulation Profile to see additional information by clicking on the Simulation Profile name.
6. The Simulation Profile with the label CMYK to Simulation DeviceLink can be downloaded [18] if you want to apply or analyze the Simulation using 3rd party software such as Adobe Photoshop for example.

Figure 9: The available ICC Profiles for a Print Simulation.

Before the Summa Vinyl S–Class Cutter can be used in the Workflow for Production Jobs, the cutter must be created in the Workflow. To do this, following these four steps.

The target directory of the cutting device must first be made available for the Workflow. To do this, a Host and Share must be created under Administration > File Management. You can find more information on this topic here Manage Shares and Folders.

1. Switch to Administration > Cutter Devices.
2. Click on + New to open the Add Cutter dialog.

Figure 12: The Add Cutter dialog with the necessary values for creating the Summa Vinyl S–Class Cutter.

3. In the dialog, select the following parameters:
   • Device type – Select Summa Vinyl Cutter (S–Class).
   • Name – Enter a unique name for the cutter. If you have two identical devices, you should also add the device two separate times with different names to have unique names and destination directories in the Workflow for each device.
   • Serial number – Optionally enter the Serial Number of the device, this is only needed when two cutters from the same manufacturer are used.
   • Host – Select the Host, as defined in step 1.
   • Destination – Select the Destination (directory), as defined in step 1.
4. Finalize the addition of the cutter by clicking Save.

After creating the cutter, the default configuration Vinyl (S–Class) is available in the Parameter Sets [20] panel. This default Parameter Set should be used.

The following settings are available for the Parameter Set in the Parameters [21] panel:

• Write Marks into Cutfile – Defines whether the coordinates of the Marks must be written to the cutfile. When the Marks should be automatically recognized by the cutter, this parameter must be set to true.
• File Type – Defines the cutfile file type. For this cutter only PLT is available at the moment.
• Write Barcode Content into Filename – Determines where (by default at the beginning of the filename) the name of the cutfile is written in the Barcode – if any.
• Mirror Cutdata Horizontally – Can be activated if the cut paths are to be mirrored horizontally.
• Mirror Registration Marks – Can be enabled if the cutting marks need to be mirrored together with the cutting data.
• Mirror Cutdata Vertically – Can be activated if the cutting paths should be mirrored vertically.
• Rotate Cutdata – Optionally the cutting file can be rotated by 90°, 180° or 270° (0° is set by default).

Additional Parameter settings can be entered and saved in the Impose Editor. If necessary, user–defined templates can be created and applied. More on this topic can be found in the sections Using a Cutter in a Production Job and Cutter Device configuration settings and saving.

Figure 13: The Administration > Cutter Devices menu item with the Summa Vinyl Cutter S–Class correctly configured.

Before the Summa Vinyl Cutter S–Class can be used for cutting, system–wide Technical Colors in the Workflow must be assigned to the cutting tools (Pen Types). Proceed as follows:

1. Select the Summa Vinyl Cutter S–Class in the Devices panel
2. In the Pen Types [22] panel, which is located below the Devices panel,  all Pen Types (cutting tools) for the cutter are listed.

Figure 14: The Pen Types panel displaying available cutting tools for the Summa Vinyl Cutter S–Class.

3. Select a cutting tool [23] from the list.
4. Then click on Edit [24] in the footer of the panel, which will open the Edit Cutter Pen Type dialog.

Figure 15: The Edit Cutter Pen Type dialog, where system–wide Technical Colors can be mapped to specific cutting tools.

5. In the dialog, select a Technical Color from the Available Technical Colors [27] drop-down menu which which should be mapped to the selected cutting tool [25]. If multiple Technical Colors should be mapped to a cutting tool, repeat the step just performed. Technical Colors that have already been mapped to a cutting tool are displayed in the list but are dimmed. Cutting tools that have already been mapped are listed in the Mapped Colors [26] area.
6. Once you have mapped all necessary Technical Colors to a cutting tool, click on Save.

You can read how cutters can be used for Production Jobs in the Release Notes for 1.7.6.

If you do not like the default Parameter Settings, you can create and save user–defined template in the Impose Editor. More information regarding this topic can be found here Cutter Device configuration settings and saving.

Figure 16: The Registration Marks panel in the Impose Editor when a Summa Vinyl S–Class Cutter is chosen.

Check out 2.5.1 New placement method for Marks for detailed information concerning Marks and their use when adding a cutter to an imposition in the Impose Editor.

In version 1.9.0 a new Fixup, which was requested by many customers in the label and large format environment, has been implemented.

In version 1.9.0 some newer Fixups have been improved and/or revised.

With version 1.9.0 two new SDK versions are available, in which engine errors that occurred on the manufacturers' side were repaired. The following updates were added:

• Callas – PDF ToolBox Version 12.1
• Color Logic Version 1.16.7

In this version, we've removed a function in the Hotfolder settings because it is now obsolete. The option Process Multipage PDF [28] has been removed. This option was only intended for Durst TAU printing systems and was used to transfer DCF files to the printer instead of TIFF files. Starting with this version, Production Jobs when using a Durst TAU printing systems are rendered to the printer using the DCF format by default. Due to this reason, this option has been removed from the Hotfolder settings.

Figure 31: The Hotfolder Setup dialog previous version 1.9.0.

As of version 1.9.0, Output Templates can also be configured and/or selected in the Hotfolder Setup and Create a Production Job dialog. For this purpose, both the »Finishing« and »Advanced« tabs have been removed from the Hotfolder Setup dialog, since these options are already included in the Output Template.

Figure 32: Selecting and/or configuring an Output Template in the Hotfolder Setup dialog.