[Scribus] Spot colors

[Craig Bradney]

On Tuesday 28 December 2004 15:58, Louis Desjardins wrote:
> >At 06:25 28/12/2004, you wrote:
> >>Its not about the code, its about the fee/royalties/large sums of cash
> >> that need to be paid to use the systems.
> >
> >Craig
> >
> >I don't know of how much money we are talking about, but what if
> >someone comes with a commercial plugin to support those features in
> >Scribus?
> >It could be a welcomed option for many Scribus potential users may be.
> >
> >Gabriel
>
> Hi,
>
> [I changed the subject line to reflect more the discussion.] ;-)
>
> Spot color support is a feature we need. No questions on that.
>
> Support for "Pantone" or for any other "color match system" raises
> the royalty/fee issue like Craig points out.
>
> And we can't offer "Pantone" under GPL in Scribus, obviously, unless
> Pantone releases its own system under GPL.
>
> Now, tell me if I am wrong, but "spot color support" does not implies
> Scribus needs, in an absolute manner, Pantone or the like color
> matching systems. At least not in all cases.
>
> On top of the royalty issue, I see 3 other issues related with color
> matching systems like Pantone.
> 1. The color (plate) name that appears in the Postscript file and
> ultimately on the film or plate.
> 2. Onscreen rendering of the spot color
> 3. Printed rendering on digital printers of the spot color (not
> offset presses because it's up the pressmen to put the right ink...
> and then, there is no other issue at the software end than being able
> to output a plate for the extra color).
>
> Solutions
> 1. Scribus lets users put any color name in the color creation dialog.
> 2. Scribus lets users put any combination of cmyk inks to produce a
> color in the dialog box.
> 3. Most digital printers have their own rips and are all getting more
> and more "Pantone certified"...
>
> Basically, the only fundamental issue here is Scribus not being able
> to output that spot color plate, so far. To my knowledge, the idea of
> "spot color" itself is not copyrighted, or is it?
>
> As you know, I am not an expert at "under the hood" software
> mechanics but from what I've seen so far with various printers is
> they render Pantone colors in many ways due to the printing engine,
> the quality/type/number of the toners/inks they use in each
> particular printer AND to the algorithm for Pantone matching built
> into their rips - each vendor has its own solution based on the
> printer's gamut (and the paper used). Some printer vendors claim to
> be able to reproduce up to 85% of the Pantone palette on their
> machine. I never seen such a claim in any DTP app.
>
> All this to say, and again you tell me if I'm wrong, what Scribus
> needs to send the printer is a color name it will recognize. The
> critical info which is asked from the source app is that color name.
> How this particular color is printed is up to the printer. Right?
>
> When you want more control it must be done at the printer's rip,
> where you can tweak the values for any spot color you want until you
> get the desired result from your printer for that particular color
> (provided of course you have access to these settings, which is not
> the case for many if not all low-end printers/rips - you are then
> tied to your printer's capabilities).
>
>  From what I know, the only control Quark has over Pantone rendering
> is screen related. The GUI offers an onscreen palette (the printed
> equivalent on paper can be bought in graphic art supplies stores).
> It's easier to work with a palette you can pick color from, I agree.
> At that point, I think the vast majority of Scribus users, even
> profesionnals, will be able to get along with a basic and usable
> "spot color support" that will allow them to enter a color name such
> as "Pantone 185 C" (or any other name), specify a decent screen
> rendering of that color, and output the plate.
>
> The idea of having an extra "commercial" plug-in for anyone of us who
> absolutely need the Pantone palette for their work may be the
> preferred solution. Unless we come up with an open source solution of
> which I can't think of right now.
>
> Coffee time!
>
> Louis
>
> P.S. The copyright aknowledgment about Pantone on the Quark splash
> screen clearly say that onscreen color might differ from the actual
> Pantone specs. Users are asked to refer to the printed material for
> accurate color reference...

And for those who asked the question, Louis has mentioned things we plan to do 
(given he has been part of those plans)

Craig
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