Find out in this article,
- which requirements must be met for this Fixup and
- how to apply the Fixup.
1. Introduction
The Fixup Rename, Convert or Delete Spot Colors is available in the Workflow. The aim of this Fixup is to rename selected Spot Colors or Technical Colors, convert them to another alternative color space or delete them.
2. General
The Fixup Rename, Convert or Delete Spot Colors can be used to rename or delete selected Spot Colors. Furthermore, it is possible to convert the Spot Color or Technical Color to another alternative color space - CMYK, LAB or RGB.
Find the Fixup in the Data Preparation tab of an Article, Order, or Production Job by
- entering the name of the Fixup in the Filter area,
- activating the Color option in the Category area,
- activating the Rename or Delete in the Action area,
- activating the Spot Colors, Pantone, HKS or RAL in the Search area.
3. Description
Use this Fixup to rename Spot Colors or Technical Colors, delete them or convert them to another alternative color space. To do this, select the desired Spot Color and the desired operation.
3.1. Requirements and Functionality
For the Fixup to do what it promises, the following requirements must be met:
- there are Spot Colors or Technical Colors in the file.
Depending on whether the selected Spot Color or Technical Color should be renamed, deleted, the alternate color space changed, or converted to CMYK, the dialog offers different options. The individual options are described in detail below.
3.1.1. Rename Spot Color
To change the name of a Spot Color, first select the Rename [1] radio button. Then rename the desired Spot Color.
Figure 1: The dialog of the Fixup Rename, Convert or Remove Spot Colors with activated radio button Rename
The following options are available for renaming a Spot Color:
- Spot Color Name – Source [2] – select the Spot Color that should be renamed from the drop-down menu. All Spot Colors available in the Print Item can be selected.
- Spot Color Name – Target [3] – Enter the new name for the Spot Color here. If you select a name that already exists system-wide or in the Print Item, all objects colored with the source Spot Color will automatically be converted to the target Spot Color.
3.1.2. Delete Spot Color
To delete a selected Spot Color, select the Delete [4] radio button.
Figure 2: The dialog of the Fixup Rename, Convert or Remove Spot Colors with activated radio button Delete
To delete i.e. remove a Spot Color, the following option is available:
- Spot Color Name – Source [5] – select the Spot Color that should be deleted from the drop-down menu. All Spot Colors available in the Print Item can be selected.
3.1.3. Change Alternate Color
To Alternate the Color Space and the alternative color values of a selected Spot Color, select the radio button Change Alternate Color [6].
Figure 3: The dialog of the Fixup Rename, Convert or Remove Spot Colors with the activated radio button for Change Alternate Color
To change the alternate color of a Spot Color, the following options are available:
- Spot Color Name – Source [7] – use the drop-down menu to select the Spot Color for which you want to change the alternate color. All Spot Colors available in the Print Item are available for selection.
-
Color Space [8] – use the drop-down menu to select the color space that you want to use as the new alternate color space. The following options are available to the user here:
- RGB – the alternate color values must be entered in RGB.
- CMYK – the alternate color values must be entered in CMYK.
- LAB – the alternate color values must be entered in LAB.
- Color Values [9] – enter the new alternate color values here. If you only want to change the alternate color space, the color values will be automatically converted to the new color space.
3.1.4. Convert to CMYK
To convert a selected Spot Color to CMYK, select the radio button Convert to CMYK [10].
Figure 4: The dialog of the Fixup Rename, Convert or Remove Spot Colors with activated radio button Convert to CMYK
To convert a Spot Color to CYMK, use the following option:
- Spot Color Name – Source [11] – use the drop-down menu to select the Spot Color you want to convert to CMYK. All Spot Colors available in the Print Item can be selected.
3.2. Before/After
Use the sample file "Sample_Rename, Convert or Remove Spot.pdf" to test this function. The following Spot Colors are included in the file: Spot Black, Spot Gray, Spot Brown and Spot Blue. The Spot Black Spot Color should be renamed to Black_New. The Spot Gray Spot Color should be deleted. The alternate color space of the Spot Color Spot Brown should be converted to Lab. The Spot Color Spot Blue should be converted to CMYK.
After applying the Fixup, the resulting file is "Sample_Rename, Convert or Remove Spot_End.pdf". The values from Figure 1, Figure 2, Figure 3, and Figure 4 were used.
Figure 2: Left: initial file; Right: edited file wherein Spot Colors were renamed, removed, and converted
Article update: Workflow 1.19.0 – 11/2024