NOTE: This feature is available in the Professional and Enterprise versions of both Spectra and myStratus Desktop.

Spectra and myStratus Desktop can print images directly to any printer that has a Windows driver! 

This topic gives you a visual overview of the printing workflow and then goes on to highlight some key points for the individual components of the printing workflow. It is designed to show how it all fits together. There are links to additional information and specific instructions related to each component. Print this page and refer to it as you set up your printing workflow. See also: Setting up the Printing Workflow

Printing Workflow Flowchart

Key Components of the Printing Workflow

The printing process starts with a client's order. This can be represented by either an invoice or a production order. Simple orders can be handled with an invoice, but more complex workflows require the use of production orders. 

Invoices

• Each invoice represents an order a customer has placed with you.

• An invoice includes multiple detail lines that represent all the images and products the customer has ordered.

• An image may be a single image file or a custom composite.

• Invoice detail lines may also be in the form of a package.

• Each detail line contains all the necessary information to produce the images, including:

  • Cropping - Order crop vs. display crop???

  • Image Adjustments - Color, brightness, exposure, Perfectly Clear, etc.)

  • Image Colorizations - Color, b/w, sepia, custom colorizations)

Production Orders

• Each production order represents an order you are placing with a vendor to fulfill an order you received from a client.

• A vendor can be a lab, framer, album company or, in this case, your own in-house printing department.

• Each production order includes just the line items from the client's order that are related to this particular vendor, in this case, just the items that need to be printed in-house. 

• The vendor property of each price list item determines how items from an invoice are split up into separate production orders.

Price List Items 

• Maintenance > Price List > Price Lists

• Each price list item can be linked to a separate Layout Template. Layout templates are used to take one image and lay it out multiple times on a single sheet for printing (i.e., a sheet of wallets). See also: Designing Layout Templates

• Each price list item can be linked to a separate Render Profile. Render profiles are used to group similar items that can be rendered with the same set of instructions. See also: Render Profiles

• Each price list item can have different Height and Width settings. These settings are used by the cropping tool to prepare correct crops. See also: Cropping

Layout Templates 

• Tools > Design Tools > Digital Template Builder   Designing Layout Templates

• Layouts are used to take a single image and lay it out multiple times on a single sheet (e.g., four 4x5s, two 5x7s, or a set of wallets on an 8x10 sheet).

• Layout templates are designed with the software's Digital Template Builder.

• Each node in a layout must contain the same image. You cannot mix and match different images in a single layout. To do this, build a standard composite template where you can mix and match images. See also: Designing Composite Templates

• If the aspect ratio of the image doesn't match the aspect ration of a zone on the layout, the software will center-crop the image to fit.

• You can use a single image or a composite image with layout templates.

Render Profiles 

• Maintenance > Digital > Render Profiles  Render Profiles

• Render profiles are used to group similar items that can be rendered with the same set of instructions (e.g., items for a large format printer, items for a small photo printer, items for electronic delivery, etc.).

• Each render profile contains instructions on how to produce a batch of images, including:

  • DPI

  • Image Bleed

  • Printer/Printer Pool

  • Destination Folder

 

Printer Pools 

• Maintenance > Digital > Render Printer Pools   Render Printer Pools

• Use printer pools to group multiple printers together to be used as a "pool" of printers. 

• May contain one or more printers.

• Optional.

• Make it easier for Enterprise clients to manage print settings because the settings can be defined at the Enterprise (or Corporate) level.

• A render profile can be linked to a single printer pool.

• Printer pools have the following settings:

  • Job Split (Y/N) - Allows a job to be split between printers in the pool. 

  • Allocation Method - Can choose Round Robin (first available) or Priority allocation (each printer in the pool can be assigned a priority code).

Printers 

• Maintenance > Digital > Render Printers    Render Printers

• Render printer settings are used to define the actual printers available for printing.

• Each Spectra/myStratus "printer" will be linked to a Windows "printer."

• The software can only print to printers that have a Windows printer driver.

• You can:

  • Inactive - Take a printer offline by making it inactive.

  • Priority Code - The priority code determines how jobs are allocated in a printer pool.

  • Allowable Sizes - This optional feature can be used in cases where different print sizes are sent to the same printer using different print drivers.
    
    

• For Enterprise clients, the individual printer settings are the only settings that must be set up at each location. All other settings can be maintained at the corporate office.

StudioPlus Finale 

NOTE: This feature is available in the Professional and Enterprise versions of both Spectra and myStratus Desktop.

• StudioPlus Finale is a render and printer server.

• StudioPlus Finale can take sessions, invoices, or production orders that reach a specific status and automatically render out the images and (optionally) print them.

• See StudioPlus Finale for more information!