# Presentation: 477185

## Large-Format Printing at Geological AgenciesFewer Trials and Tribulations, More Successes

## Introduction

- The Illinois State Geological Survey formed a Plotter Support Technical Team in May, 2003.
- Comprised of staff from IT, GIS, public outreach, mapping, and publications sections
- Prompted a discussion session at DMT ’04
- Plotting Trials, Tribulations, and Successes
- Presentation by, and Q&A with, HP representative.
- 5-year product retirement schedule

## Introduction

- Goals of the ISGS Plotter Support Technical Team
- Develop a system to produce best possible output
- Derive quick and easy plot submission methods
- Educate staff and provide reference materials
- Encourage software RIP
- ‘Field of Dreams’ strategy.
- Discourage plotter hardware RIP
- Introduces challenges to load balancing and trouble-shooting.

## Introduction

- Over the past two years, the team has addressed the stated goals and answered these questions:
- Hardware and Software
- What do we have?
- What do we buy next?
- When can we drop hardware maintenance?
- Media
- Stocking priorities, work allocation between plotters.
- Legacy Plots
- File format compatibility with new plotters and software.
- Page dimensions.
- Only one wide-format ISGS publication produced.

## Introduction

- Hardware Overview
- Large-format printers
- Related hardware
- Supplies
- Media
- Dye-based vs. UV-resistant inks
- Raster Image Processing (RIP)
- Other Related Discussions
- Successes and Future Planning

## Hardware Trials and Tribulations

- Large-format printers

## Hardware at the ISGS

- Agency-wide use
- HP5500, 42-inch (HP750c  =  HP trade-in)
- Without onboard RIP.
- HP1055cm, 36-inch
- HP3500cp, 54-inch wide
- HP750c+, 36-inch wide
- Section-specific use
- HP750c+ (Publications Section, drafts)
- HP DesignJet 488ca (Southern field office, drafts)

## Hardware at (11) Other Agencies

- Illinois State Geological Survey
- Kansas Geological Survey *
- Kentucky Geological Survey
- University of Minnesota
- Ohio DNR - Division of Geological Survey
- Oregon Department of Geology
- Pennsylvania DCNR - Bureau of Topographic and Geologic Survey
- Virginia DMME - Division of Mineral Resources
- Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey *
- Natural Resources Canada - Earth Sciences Sector
- The Geologic Mapping Institute

## Hardware at Other Agencies

- HP5500 – 42 inch or 60 inch
- Canada   (60)
- Illinois (42)
- Ohio (ps)
- Oregon (ps)
- Pennsylvania (ps)
- HP5000 – 42 inch or 60 inch
- Canada (60)
- Canada (42)

## Hardware at Other Agencies

- HP1055ps - 36 inch
- Canada
- Canada
- Illinois
- Ohio
- Oregon
- Virginia
- Virginia

## Hardware at Other Agencies

- HP800 -  42 inch
- Kentucky (ps)
- Kentucky (ps)
- HP2500cp or 3500cp – 42 inch or 60 inch
- Illinois (ps)
- Oregon (ps)
- Virginia

## Hardware at Other Agencies

- HP750c+
- Illinois (trade-in fodder)
- Epson 9600 - 42-inch
- Geologic Mapping Institute

## Hardware at Other Agencies

- 1 - Epson
- 7 - HP5500 or HP5000
- 7 - HP1055
- 2 - HP800
- 3 - HP2500 or 3500
- 1 - HP750c

- 20 HP Plotters

## Hardware Discussion

- Paul Staub, Oregon Department of Geology
- HP 1055cm - our workhorse
- HP 5500ps - just purchased, not much use yet
- HP 3500ps - now basically a boat anchor

## Hardware Discussion

- Maintenance discontinued for older plotters. – ISGS
- Future hardware purchases. - ISGS
- Photo-based media for 1055 identified.
- Opted not to purchase another 1055cm.
- 3500CP never fully utilized.
- Maximum width not first-priority.
- 5500 recently purchased, hope to get another.

## Hardware Discussion

- HP plotters are popular at the geological surveys
- With the HP time horizon, is it possible to buy identical models?
- Is your agency planning a hardware purchase?
- Canada - recently purchased a RAID box for archives and a large format scanner to scan all our legacy maps.
- Illinois - purchased a dedicated computer for RIP software
- Illinois – want to acquire hardware for color calibration

## Supplies,Trials and Tribulations

- Large-format printers

## Supplies

- Stocking supplies for ISGS plotters less tricky.
- One plotter, 1055cm, became the favorite.
- Popular plotter burns through plain paper.
- Other supplies sit on shelves.
- Older plotters side idle almost all the time.
- HP3500cp, HP750c
- Newer 5500 slowly attracting users.

## Supplies – Print Media

- Criteria for selecting media.
- Illinois
- Media that does not smudge easily, and is resistant to smudging in humid conditions.
- Sufficient thickness, paper should not feel weak or flimsy.
- Canada
- How well it held the inks (without bleeding).
- A poundage that would be easy to fold.

## Supplies – Print Media

- Canada
- 27 pound bond paper
- Small company that gets their paper from the same manufacturer as HP.
- Clear film, Semi-Gloss Photo, and Tyvek.
- Illinois
- 98 gram Presentation Grade Matte (Magic)
- PSDRY8 Photo-Dry Satin Photo Paper.
- Clear film, Tyvek, and Waterproof paper.
- Kentucky
- Coated bond paper.
- Heavyweight or Photo-based paper.

## Supplies – Print Media

- Oregon
- We're satisfied with Oce media.
- Pennsylvania
- HP heavyweight paper.
- Virginia
- 3M 6060 Waterproof paper used on rare occasions.
- Does have another source for waterproof paper?

## Supplies - Ink

- Standard dye inks
- Illinois
- Kentucky
- Oregon
- Virginia
- Canada (posters, displays)
- UV-resistant inks
- Ohio
- Pennsylvania
- Minnesota
- Canada (field maps)

## Supplies - Ink

- Kentucky - Dye
- We are using dye-based ink, so the plots do fade quicker than UV and are sensitive to water. Lamination is an answer to this drawback.
- Virginia - Dye ink
- We typically use the dye ink and warn people that it is not UV resistant.
- We do stock some UV-resistant ink.  However, we don't keep much in stock as we find it doesn't keep well.  It tends to separate and clog up.

## Supplies - Ink

- Minnesota- UV
- We don't buy any maps from anyone who uses dye ink.  We find that the dye ink prints are washed out and unusable after 6 months because deterioration.
- Canada - UV
- We find the UV to be lighter in saturation then the Dye, but we thought the UV was more important.
- We have test plots of UV and Dye based inks that were taken into the field for 4 weeks.

## Supplies - Ink

- Canada
- We have test plots of UV and Dye based inks.
- Set 1 – samples plotted last week.
- Set 2 – samples that spent 4 weeks in the field.

## Software Trials and Tribulations

- File output and RIP

## Software at the ISGS

- 2 Operating systems (UNIX and PC)
- 9 software packages to generate for-plot files
- 15 to 20 file formats within production paths
- 5 methods to RIP (Raster Image Processor) files
- 6 custom programs to ‘streamline’ plot submissions
- 9 common plot file production paths
- (not to bad, considering variables multiply to 256)

## Software at the ISGS

- All these choices got overwhelming for users.
- Oldest method you know, for as long as possible.
- Send any file direct to plotter, keep fingers crossed.
- Onboard RIP on 1055cm became very popular.

## RIP Options at the ISGS

- Onyx became RIP choice focus for ISGS team.
- It the industry leading RIP.
- Were disappointed with out-of-the-box trial version.
- Spent time with Onyx software consultants.
- Sophisticated installation and set up.
- “Plotting with Onyx” seminars offered early 2005.

## RIP Options at Other Agencies

- Oregon - Internal RIP, which we're happy with.
- Pennsylvania - Internal RIP
- Kentucky - 800ps onboard RIP.
- Print directly out of various software programs.
- Print PDF's distilled in Adobe Acrobat from exported EPS files or PS files.
- print to file using a PS print driver.

## RIP Options at Other Agencies

- Geologic Mapping Institute
- Designated plotter as a Windows printer; it does not have an on-board RIP.  It prints quite well this way.
- Does not take advantage of ArcPress, so we are considering a software RIP.

## RIP Options at Other Agencies

- Virginia
- ArcGIS 9 using ArcPress
- If it is very large, we save it as a tif file and RIP it using a separate program.
- Canada - software RIP, Zeh
- Illinois – software RIP, Onyx

## RIP Options at Other Agencies

- Canada - Zeh RIPware met our criteria.
- Able to rip postscripts from ArcInfo software
- Able to track accounting stats
- user, footage of paper and inks used, etc
- Have a web based interface for submitting files.
- Bonus: all code was sent to us, allowing us to modify the interface specifically for our needs.
- Collecting project numbers to charge, etc.

## Software Discussion

- Onyx at ISGS (after custom set up)
- Fast and consistent
- Pretty good color adjustment tools
- Good file management display
- Control over scaling, rotation, output device, etc.
- Accepts .ps, tiff, pdf, jpg and other file formats
- Best format is a device independent postscript file.
- Can be used with any plotter.
- Contains the color model, profile and rendering intent.

## Software Discussion

- File creation and submission process documented for ISGS staff.
- PDF file creation, for archival purposes.
- Postscript (PS) file creation, device independent.
- Submission of PS file for plotting via Onyx.
- Layout orientation, desired media, target plotter.
- Hard Copy output from plotter.
- Onyx will hold plot until specified media is loaded on target plotter.

## Software Discussion

## Software Discussion

## Software Discussion

## Discussions

- Other Trials and Tribulations

## Other Discussion Topics

- Canada
- Tracking who is using our plotters and charging back the cost to them. We have:
- Cross-Canada sales outlets plot orders from the public
- Production cartographers creating check plots
- Geologists making plots for their field studies
-  Basic "walk-in" services.
- It gets a little nuts keeping track.

## Other Discussion Topics

- Canada
- In the midst of creating an accounting system.
- Trying to link up a cross-Canada on-demand plot archive for regional sales outlets.
-  A RIPped file is pulled from an archive in Ottawa which can be plotted at any of our sales outlet plotters.

## Discussion Topics What other issues will your agency be facing? 

- Ohio
- We have had IT problems with print drivers.
- Our Survey is lacking an expert in this field.
- We have one person trying to figure out the printing; he seems to have given up on this issue.
- Oregon
- We had many "out of memory" errors when sending large files to the 3500ps.  We're hoping the 5500ps solves this.

## Successes

- Short Term Solutions and
- Long Term Planning

## ISGS Short Term Solutions

- Monetary priorities for Hardware and Software
- First priority, new HP5500 plotter.
- Second priority, Onyx and a robust PC.
- Discontinue maintenance for older plotters.
- Logistical priorities for Media and Ink
- Last priority, ordering supplies for older plotters.
- Stock special media only for newer plotters.
- Stock only draft (cheaper) media for older plotters.

## ISGS Long Term Planning

- 15 to 20 file formats within past production paths.
- 12 legacy file formats in ‘plot on demand’ archive.
- With respect to Onyx compatibility.
- We have legacy files that need to be re-constructed.
- Ultimately want files that specify plotting parameters.
- Device independent PS file with embedded color profile.

## ISGS Long Term Planning

- Purchase second HP 5500 if monies available.
- Keep popular RIP options until Onyx wins.
- Allow hardware RIP on 1055 to continue.
- Refrain from buying plotters with hardware RIP.