We are running a Xerox700 and frequently have customers supply art that has been created in MS Word or Powerpoint etc and converted to PDF using Adobe. This is fine for alot of aplications, but we frequently have files that have a few grayscale pages and a couple color pages scattered in the document. Is there a way to convert the CMYK grayscale to screened black only, so that the Xerox machine doesnt charge the color click charge? We have tried using PitStop but the images usually end up with gray shaddowing if the original jpg images are not excellent quality. Ive asked other operators and so far the only solution is to run all the grayscale seperatly from the color and colate them together on an offline collator. Is this the best solution to this problem or is there a software solution I dont know about yet? Thanks for the help in advance!
Convert to BW from CMYK file to save click charges...
- Thread starter jaywille
- Start date
TigerPress
Active member
mattbeals
Well-known member
Callas pdfToolbox can properly convert the colors. They have a special button just for Office documents. Part of the logic is that they have developed will find TGB gray images and vector objects and put them in Separation Black. Plus they can find the RGB equivalents of the primaries in vector objects and convert them to their proper values. Those things don't happen in PitStop.
check out this video of how pdfToolbox does it's magic.
Created by Camtasia Studio 6
check out this video of how pdfToolbox does it's magic.
Created by Camtasia Studio 6
Ill have to look into that mattbeals. Unfortunately for me it means even more work. I am supposed to be a designer that helps out with this new press but the company hired a "press operator" that barely has basic computer skills and has no clue about the print industry. Anyone need a designer with press experience in St. Louis? haha
michaelejahn
Well-known member
That video was not very impressive !
That video was not very impressive !
Hi Matt,
Did you actually watch this video yourself ? If you have, I am very surprised that you would suggest using this tool to convert greyscale RGB images into greyscale - the result is FAR to light to actually be in any way useable. I can't imagine any customer accepting the result.
I work with a company (IoFlex) that uses a algorithmic approach to convert RGB scans of documents which have color and black and wite images into the appropriate color space - that is, the software detects when it should segment and convert to CMYK or Greyscale or 1 bit tiff.
I took a moment to ask a Xerox filed rep and buddy what he suggests.
"If they have a FFPS on the 700 they can do page exception and set color mode to greyscale for just that page. Note that in greyscale mode you lose the grey gamma control that you get when printing greyscale INPUT in NORMAL color mode.
Conversion to grey in Pitstop can work if you have Pitstop color management set up right. I found a hack online that has you making a custom greyscale profile from, say, a GRACoL CMYK profile and loading that into Pitstop. I'll look it up. "
-load your favorite CMYK profile (GRACoL) then make a greyscale profile out of it, then load this in Pitstop color Mgt (have to figure out where to put it so Pitstop can see it..I forget..see what pitstop sees then search your HD for those....PC vs. Mac is different)
John Nate: How to color manage in a black-and-white world
not sure what they mean below "grey shadowing"....a bad JPEG is a bad JPEG...but the operative control point here is Gamma. note also that if you convert to greyscale upstream like this, then the "grey gamma" control on FFPS in Normal mode is in play for greyscale inputs and can further tweak greyscale appearance.
What DFE do they have on the 700? "
I will provide more details and build an example file this weekend and post it as a Google Doc
That video was not very impressive !
Hi Matt,
Did you actually watch this video yourself ? If you have, I am very surprised that you would suggest using this tool to convert greyscale RGB images into greyscale - the result is FAR to light to actually be in any way useable. I can't imagine any customer accepting the result.
I work with a company (IoFlex) that uses a algorithmic approach to convert RGB scans of documents which have color and black and wite images into the appropriate color space - that is, the software detects when it should segment and convert to CMYK or Greyscale or 1 bit tiff.
I took a moment to ask a Xerox filed rep and buddy what he suggests.
"If they have a FFPS on the 700 they can do page exception and set color mode to greyscale for just that page. Note that in greyscale mode you lose the grey gamma control that you get when printing greyscale INPUT in NORMAL color mode.
Conversion to grey in Pitstop can work if you have Pitstop color management set up right. I found a hack online that has you making a custom greyscale profile from, say, a GRACoL CMYK profile and loading that into Pitstop. I'll look it up. "
-load your favorite CMYK profile (GRACoL) then make a greyscale profile out of it, then load this in Pitstop color Mgt (have to figure out where to put it so Pitstop can see it..I forget..see what pitstop sees then search your HD for those....PC vs. Mac is different)
John Nate: How to color manage in a black-and-white world
not sure what they mean below "grey shadowing"....a bad JPEG is a bad JPEG...but the operative control point here is Gamma. note also that if you convert to greyscale upstream like this, then the "grey gamma" control on FFPS in Normal mode is in play for greyscale inputs and can further tweak greyscale appearance.
What DFE do they have on the 700? "
I will provide more details and build an example file this weekend and post it as a Google Doc
rich apollo
Well-known member
Acrobat Preflight
Acrobat Preflight
You can very easily set up an Acrobat Preflight Profile to do this. I'm finding that I have to start Acrobat without PitStop to have the Acrobat color conversion tools work. This is with Acrobat 8 & 9 under OSX.4.11. I don't know if there is something unique about my system.
Acrobat Preflight
You can very easily set up an Acrobat Preflight Profile to do this. I'm finding that I have to start Acrobat without PitStop to have the Acrobat color conversion tools work. This is with Acrobat 8 & 9 under OSX.4.11. I don't know if there is something unique about my system.
UberTech
Well-known member
Not sure what RIP you have and to be honest I have not used a X700 but on the C6500 Fiery under mixed media you can select what pages you want b&w or colour.
These other methods explained here seem extremeley complicated when all you need to do is select what pages you want black on the rip. You can use page ranges or individual pages i.e 1,3,5-10,13,45. This 100% effective to force the machine colour or b&w.
If you have a creo (on the km anyway) under exceptions you select the black only output profile for a similar result.
These other methods explained here seem extremeley complicated when all you need to do is select what pages you want black on the rip. You can use page ranges or individual pages i.e 1,3,5-10,13,45. This 100% effective to force the machine colour or b&w.
If you have a creo (on the km anyway) under exceptions you select the black only output profile for a similar result.
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