Software Glossary

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
Gradient and layer blends change colors...

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)
Jagginess removal...

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
Overflowing 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...

PDF
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...

Shear Tool
A transformation tool...

Spot Color
Design and printing term

Text Composition
Arranging and formatting text...

Template
layout term

Text Frame
Where text is in a page layout application...

Threaded Text Frame
Allows text to flow from one frame to another...

Total Ink Coverage or TIC
Layers of CMYK inks...

Trapping
An automated process in some software to deal with color gaps...

TrueType Fonts
A digital type technology...

Type Composition (Text Composition)
Arranging and formatting text...

Type 1 Fonts
digital type technology

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...

Glossary Index


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Specialty Glossaries
Graphics | Layout & Design
Prepress | Printing & Finishing
Software | Type & Fonts
Business | Paper