|
This sort of thing becomes clear when on visiting the printers, I see engineering measuring instruments in use such as Micrometers and Vernier Calipers.
I produce the newsletter as an A4 page, which is then reduced electronically to go to the printers. When working on the pages I can expand details to about eight times the size actually printed in the final newsletter. To give some idea of this, the candle on the front cover is too large to display at maximum zoom, the flame being over 5 inches high. The minimum distance I can move things of 0.5mm appears quite a long way at this maximum zoom level.
I can now provide the printers with a computer floppy disk, which they can use without any changes. The process of preparing the computer file from the one I use involves a few electronic changes. This does make some minor changes to the layout of the newsletter. I was very pleased to be actually able to see on my own computer the newsletter with these "errors", as produced by the printers on a draft copy. I can now convert the computer file into a format the printers can use and then view errors that this conversion has produced. Being able to see these "errors" means I can now correct them, using the copy I have printed out as a reference.
I receive computer files and floppy disks from people with articles and advertisements on them and then provide a commercial printing company with a computer file so they can print the newsletter. I have to be careful about computer viruses; I have been given floppy disks with a virus on them. Fortunately I have the necessary software on my computer both to detect and remove a computer virus before it is copied onto my computer and does any harm. Even though my computer checks disks when in use, I still check the disk I take to the printers before I give it to them.
Since I started producing the newsletter, I can fully appreciate and understand just why, when you see the television pictures of a national newspaper office; there are dozens of people all hard at work. It takes many hours to produce a newsletter three times a year. A national newspaper must be an incredible exercise in logistics.
Finally I'd like to thank my wife and daughter for their patience in allowing me to spend so much time producing the newsletter(s) without complaint.
Ceri Sheeran
|
|