(Editor’s Note: There were numerous professionals who helped in gathering information for this snapshot look at PDF/X-1a. It only scratches the surface, but there is much more information available from the resources listed at the end of this article. Thanks to all who assisted in this effort.) March 6, 2002 --- (WhatTheyThink.com) --- Last month, Time Inc. said that all digital ads received by its 56 titles must be in PDF/X-1a format by June 1st. Also, Time told it’s printers that June 1st was the target for delivering all content in PDF/X-1a. Seybold Reports covered this story and quoted Time’s Director of Digital Development, Kin Wah Lam as saying that the move away from TIFF/IT-P1 (Tagged Image File Format/Image Technology Profile 1), PostScript and DCS 2 (Desktop Color Separation 2) file formats was designed to enhance and simplify overall workflow. There were over 150 people at this gathering, representing nearly all the New York City based design firms, ad agencies, prepress service providers and printers. After hearing the announcement, groans were heard in the audience, but the basic message was that Time needed to move toward cross-media publishing, and they can not get there if ads arrive as large image files (CT/LW or TIFF/IT). One company, Wizards of the Coast, has already completed 4 issues of their magazine using the PDF/X-1a file format. This article examines the process they used to get their internal workflow, vendors and advertisers on the same page and why many more will have success doing the same - even Time, Inc. What Is PDF/X-1a? PDF/X-1a is a subset of Adobe's Portable Document Format (PDF). PDF/X1a stands for PDF eXchange 1a. The “1” means that it is a blind exchange document - all fonts and images are embedded and “a” is the variant of PDF/X1 that was ISO accredited ISO standard ISO15930-1 :2001. PDF/X1a meets the following specifications: - All fonts and images are embedded. - All elements are encoded as CMYK, spot or Device N. - They may not be encoded as three-art color spaces such as RGB or CIELab. - The MediaBox and TrimBox or ArtBox are defined. - Trap must be indicated as on or off, alerting the printer to the condition of the document. The printing condition characterized (such as SWOP) through the use of an Output intents operator. PDF/X1a resolves many issues associated with basic PDF as a format for file exchange. The First Ever John Dunn is Production Director for Wizards of the Coast. He is a well known speaker and advocate for automated workflow issues. Dunn and his team started down the PDF/X1a road in March of 2001. He attended MagTech in NY and saw a presentation given by Linda Manes-Goodwin of Manes-Goodwin Associates concerning the production of PDF/X1a.  At the same event SWOP announced the new specification that put TIFF/IT-P1 and PDF/X1 and their future variants as the ONLY formats approved for digital file transfer. “Wanting to be compliant, we began formulating an in-house workflow and testing the software necessary to produce PDF/X1a:2001 files. We selected that format over TIFF/IT-P1 for our R.R. Donnelley titles. We settled on Agfa Apogee Create and Apago's PDFX-Checkup Acrobat Plug-in to produce raster/vector PDF/X1a files,” stated Dunn. Once their “flow was done” and they had files that were verifying out, the group tested internally with their in-house prepress department and ran Irises. Said Dunn, “These looked great so the next step was to begin testing at the R.R. Donnelley Mendota Division. With the assistance of Vickie Keigley, Chad Rosewinkle, and others at Mendota, along with R.R. Donnelley sales representatives Steve Abts and Marcus Witte, we tested back and forth. We finally settled on a set up for Postscript and dimensions that worked for everyone. Once this was engraved in stone, we developed a PDF version digital advertising specification that could be sent out to advertisers.” This gave advertisers step-by-step instructions on all aspects of creating PDF/x1a from QuarkXpress, Illustrator, Photoshop and Freehand, including screen captures of the various settings needed. Wizards of the Coast also provided the advertisers with DDAP's universal PPD and Job Options Setting 2 for Distiller. The group set their goal on Dragon #292 which was to be printed in December of 2001. “As a live test we went on press with one 16 page form for Dragon #291 in November and all went well. For #292 we provided R.R. Donnelley with a full magazine's worth of PDF/X1a’s, including 18 ads that came in using the format. The remaining ads were either pickups, which were grand-fathered in, or new ads that we had to assist the advertisers with. All went well and now PDF/X1a is the standard for Dragon and Dungeon Magazines. To date we have printed 4 issues using PDF/X1a,” reports Dunn. Some Savings and SWOP Compliant The value of receiving locked down files from advertisers is tremendous. Says Dunn, “We ensure to preflight them, but we do no further work on them. This saves us time. We're also SWOP compliant and by being so, ensure success on press. We also save money both in and out of house.” Previously, Wizards sent native files to R.R. Donnelley. It simply costs us less to process PDF/X1a according to Dunn. Internally, since Wizards sends locked down files to their own prepress department he’s not billed for preflight there. “And previously, we had to process files for advertisers due to the native file format issue. Now we don't and that alone is a savings of over $7,000 per year on average.” Dunn says PDF/X1a is a relatively easy format to master and, more importantly, can be produced on a Mac workstation. If produced by the numbers and using settings supplied by their individual printer, an advertiser or publisher would have no problems. He says one of the keys to success is getting all players involved. “You should partner with your printers, advertisers and the companies producing the software applications. Between all, a good solution to any challenge can be arrived at.” A Team Event There were many people who assisted in this truly collaborative and successful effort. From Wizards of the Coast: designers Jen Gilbert and Theresa Cummins as well as Jefferson Dunlap who is the company’s lead prepress operator. From R.R. Donnelley: Steve Abts and Marcus Witte, Dunn’s sales reps who facilitated the information flow, Vickie Keigley CSR and Chad Rosewinkle, prepress expert. From the printing community, Dunn praised Linda Manes-Goodwin, who helped Wizards through the basic procedures for producing PDF/X1a, Michael Jahn of Littrell and Associates, who contributed his vast knowledge of Apogee Create to assist with its set up, and Dwight Kelly of Apago who assisted Wizards of the Coast and even worked directly with their advertisers. Summary Time’s Director of Digital Development, Kin Wah Lam told the Seybold audience that the transition would not stop at PDF/X-1a. Eventually, Time Inc. publications will only accept ads and deliver final content in PDF/X-3 format, which allows RGB images and color management for output intent. Dunn says PDF/X3 should receive ISO certification in the Spring. “It has some advantages for workflows in the US, color management being one.” Seybold’s take is that PDF is a data medium that can serve the whole spectrum of publishing and Time’s decision is huge, considering that their titles account for 25% of all magazine ads. The question, according to Seybold Reports, is can ISO PDF/X-1a 2001 and PDF/X-3 meet the challenge? A “bad” PDF/X file is possible and tools for making this workflow happen are new with further validation needed before it becomes mainstream. Dunn says that, in essence, there can’t be a bad PDF/X1a file as the verification for PDF/x1a ensures that it meets the ISO spec. “What you can have is a "good" PDF/X1a produced from a native file that did not meet our magazines' specs, making it a "bad file", but still a verified PDF/X1a. If I were Time, I would point my advertisers, as we did, towards a raster/vector workflow that can be readily produced on a Mac workstation. There is strong selling power behind saying - You can do this yourself without paying for file conversion at a service provider. And believe me, there's a bit of a sale involved for your advertisers to switch to a relatively unfamiliar format.” Advantages for a company like AOL Time Warner and their partners are considerable. “Imagine how expensive it is to run an ad in Time Magazine. And imagine exactly what is on the line cost wise if something went wrong and someone had to pay for it. Now imagine that a huge organization like AOL Time Warner is comfortable enough with a file format that they will stand behind the make goods. One might imagine they must be pretty confident with this, since so much is on the line,” says Michael Jahn of Littrell and Associates. Based on the success of Wizards of the Coast's PDF/X1a workflow and the adoption of the standard by Time, Inc., PDF/X1a is showing itself to be a versatile format, suited for both large and small publishers. As important is the proven ease of file conversion for advertisers and the acceptance seen by the printers of the format. A close collaboration between publisher, advertiser, printer and the software companies producing supporting applications is essential to making this format a true industry standard. Additional Resources: DDAP - http://www.ddap.org/ Time’s Helper Site - http://www.direct2.time.com/ Seybold’s Take - http://www.seyboldreports.com/Bulletin/subs/vol7/issv7n20-21.html#time http://www.jahn.org/ http://www.apago.com/ http://www.swop.org/ http://www.agfa.com/create/ http://www.rrdonnelley.com/ John Dunn is available to answer any questions about this article as he was a key source for this story. John is also a columnist in the eXpert Row area of WhatTheyThink.com. Reach him at [email protected].