Workflows\ Stages | Design Software | Prinergy Refine Process | Prinergy RIP |
|---|---|---|---|
Workflow 1 | Acrobat 1.3 or earlier | Flatten to 1.3 or leave as is | CPSI or APPE |
Workflow 2 | Acrobat 1.4 or later | Flatten to 1.3 | CPSI or APPE |
Workflow 3 | Acrobat 1.4 or later | Leave as is | CPSI |
Workflow 4 | Acrobat 1.4 or later | Leave as is | APPE |
Note: CPSI—Configurable PostScript Software interpreter; APPE—Adobe PDF Print Engine
- PDF 1.3 Input > Refine to PDF 1.3 digital master > Output with CPSI or APPE RIP
Flattening occurs at the input creation step (from the design software). Sites that receive PostScript, EPS, DCS, PDF 1.3, or PDF/X:1-a input use this. This workflow is useful for people who need PDF 1.3, PDF/X-1a, or PostScript for downstream processing, and want to put the responsibility for flattening on the 1-up artwork creator. - PDF 1.4 Input > Refine to PDF 1.3 digital master > Output with CPSI or APPE RIP
Sites that receive PDF 1.4 or higher can use this. Flattening occurs when Prinergy refines the input file. This workflow is useful for people who need PDF 1.3, PDF/X-1a, or PostScript for downstream processing, but want Prinergy to perform the flattening. (Prinergy's flattening assumes the highest quality output, so there is no possibility of the file being flattened with quality settings that are too low.) - PDF 1.4 Input > Refine to PDF 1.4 digital master > Output with CPSI RIP
Sites that receive PDF 1.4 or higher can use this. Flattening occurs only when Prinergy's CPSI RIP processes the PDF digital master file. This workflow is useful for people who want the benefit of native transparency workflow, and prefer the file not to be flattened during the refine process.
Drawbacks to this is that CPSI's flattening can slow output—flattening can take time on complex files, so not flattening on input means you are deferring flattening to the output stage. Additionally, when artworks have text below transparent images, low-resolution proofs might still have text that looks fat, for example.
When flattening is done by CPSI RIP, you should make and carefully check imposed proofs to ensure quality. - PDF 1.4 Input > Refine to PDF 1.4 digital master > Output with Adobe PDF Print Engine RIP
Sites that receive PDF 1.4 or higher can use this. Flattening does not occur anywhere in this workflow. This workflow is useful for people who want the benefit of native transparency workflow, and prefer the file not to be flattened.
Note: Workflow 4 is the preferred workflow for most jobs.