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Software Glossary
From Jacci Howard Bear, About.com Guide
Take a look at the terminology of software, especially as it applies to desktop publishing. Get definitions, examples, and tutorials related to all desktop publishing software and specific software packages.
All the Glossaries: Full Glossary | Layout & Design | Prepress | Printing & Finishing | Graphics | Type & Fonts | Business | Paper
Take a look at the terminology of software, especially as it applies to desktop publishing. Get definitions, examples, and tutorials related to all desktop publishing software and specific software packages.
All the Glossaries: Full Glossary | Layout & Design | Prepress | Printing & Finishing | Graphics | Type & Fonts | Business | Paper
Acrobat Reader
Software for reading PDF files created with Adobe Acrobat or other programs...
Adobe
Publisher of InDesign, Photoshop, and more software...
Adobe Acrobat
Software used to create, edit, and work with PDF files...
Adobe Acrobat Distiller
Software to turn PostScript files into PDF format...
Adobe InDesign
Page layout software from Adobe...
Aliasing (Jaggies)
Jagged edges on curves and diagonal lines in a bitmap image...
Alpha Channels
Bitmap masks with transparency used in photo compositing and converted to clipping paths for hiding backgrounds...
Anti-Aliasing
The process of getting rid of the jagged edges on fonts and bitmap images...
App
Software and other programs by a shorter name...
Auto Leading
Leading done, automatically...
Beta
Testing phase...
Bitmap
A graphic composed of pixels in a grid...
Blend
Blend - Colors that change gradually from one color to the next...
Center Marks
Center marks indicate where to fold...
Certification
Getting a certificate saying you have specific skills...
Character Spacing (Kerning)
Space between letters (Also see Tracking
Character Style
Formatting options for text...
Chart
Symbolic representation of data...
Clip Art
graphics term
Clipping Paths
graphics and page layout term
CMYK
printing term
Color Separations
prepress and printing term
Column Dividers (Downrules)
layout term
Column Guides
page layout tool
Computer Crafting (Creative Printing)
desktop publishing term
Convert to Curves
Turning text into graphics...
Corner Marks (Crop Marks)
layout and printing term
Creative Printing
desktop publishing term
Crop Marks
layout and printing term
DCS
Desktop color separations - an enhanced EPS file format...
Desktop Publishing
Publishing from your desktop...
Drag and Drop
How the mouse moves objects on the computer...
Drawing Software
Software for drawing illustrations...
Electronic Publishing
The process of creating and disseminating information via electronic means including email and via the Web...
Embedded Paths
Hard-edged outline objects within an image that isolate portions of an image and are embedded in the graphics file to be read by some types of desktop publishing programs...
Encapsulated PostScript (EPS)
A vector format designed for printing to PostScript printers and imagesetters...
EPS
A vector format designed for printing to PostScript printers and imagesetters...
Expert Characters
Special characters, symbols, and styles of fonts used in fine typography...
Font Smoothing (Anti-Aliasing)
type term
GIF
Low-resolution graphics format...
Graph
graphics term
Graphics Software
Software for drawing, painting, photo editing, and image management...
Greeking
layout and type term
Guidelines or Guide Lines (Guides)
page layout term
Guides
page layout tool
Illustration Software
Software for drawing illustrations...
Image Editor
Software for editing images...
IND
InDesign file extension...
InDesign
Adobe page layout software...
Jaggies
Jagged edges on some types of fonts or images...
Job Jacket
Job Jacket - a QuarkXPress feature for insuring consistency and proper file handling...
Job Ticket
Job Ticket - a QuarkXPress feature for insuring consistency and proper file handling...
JPEG or JPG
A popular graphics format...
Kerning
Adjusting space between pairs of letters...
Laser
desktop printing
Letterspacing (Kerning)
Adjusting space between letters... (also see Tracking
Linked Text Frame
Linked Text Frame - allows text to flow from one frame to another...
Local Guides
Lines that assist in layout that aren't on the master pages...
Lorem Ipsum
Lorem ipsum dolor placeholder text for layouts...
Magnification (Zoom)
In desktop publishing software, the tool that changes the view of the document on screen (enlarging or making smaller)...
Margin Guides
Dotted lines that represent the page margins of a document...
Master Guides
Non-printing guides on master pages...
Non-Printing Guides or Guide Lines
Lines used to align page elements...
Open Source
A development method for some software...
OpenType Fonts
An extension of the TrueType font format but it also can contain PostScript data...
Overset Text
Overset text - excess text you can't see in a text frame or table cell...
Page Layout
It's what you do with desktop publishing software...
Page Layout Software
Desktop publishing software for composing type and images...
Pasteboard
The holding area for documents, text, and graphics...
A file format for screen display and print...
Photo Editor
Software for editing photos...
Pictograph (Graph)
graphics term
Portable Document Format (PDF)
A file format for screen and print...
PostScript Fonts (Type 1 Fonts)
digital type technology
PUB
A page layout document format created by Microsoft Publisher, learn how to create, open, edit, and share Microsoft Publisher .pub files with others.
Quark
The company, not the software...
QuarkXPress
Desktop publishing software from Quark, Inc. ...
QXB
QuarkXPress book file...
QXD
Older QuarkXPress file...
QXP
QuarkXPress file...
QXT
QuarkXPress template file...
Raster (Bitmap)
A type of graphic composed of pixels (picture element) in a grid...
RGB
Red, Green, Blue color mode...
Separations
Where each ink color prints...
Spot Color
Design and printing term
Template
layout term
Text Composition
typography and page layout
Text Frame
Where text is in a page layout application...
Threaded Text Frame
Threaded Text Frame - allows text to flow from one frame to another...
Trapping
An automated process in some software to deal with color gaps...
TrueType Fonts
A digital type technology...
Type 1 Fonts
digital type technology
Type Composition (Text Composition)
typography and page layout
Typesetting
Putting the words in the right type...
Vector
A resolution-independent, scalable graphics format...
Vector Drawing Software
Software for drawing vector illustrations...
Web Application
Publishing off your desktop...
Web Design
The art and process of creating a single Web page or entire Web sites...
WYSIWYG
A program where what you see displayed on the screen is more or less what you'll get when you print the page...
XTension
Plug-ins for QuarkXPress...