Printing Industry Commentary & Analysis

Print: It's a Good Thing

Published September 28, 2018

Frank recently ordered a mini voice recorder to secretly record meetings at the White House, but was more interested in the packaging and package contents. Between the various boxes used to ship and hold the recorder and the plethora of instruction booklets, he liked all the printing that was involved.

Frank Visits the New England Author’s Expo

Published September 21, 2018

Frank attended the New England Author’s Expo, featuring more than 100 self-published authors. Frank opines that it was on-demand digital printing that made it all possible. He interviews Robert Uttaro, author of “To the Survivors.”

Frank Visits Faneuil Hall’s Edes & Gill: An 18th-Century Print Shop

Published September 14, 2018

Frank plays with his newest toy: a model of an English common press, a design that improved upon Gutenberg’s original. He then takes a field trip to Boston’s Faneuil Hall Marketplace, location of Edes & Gill, an 18th-century print shop that has a life-size English common press as well as other period printing equipment. There, he talks with Gary Gregory, executive director and master printer, and his assistant Tyler Kerr.

Judging a Book By Its Covers

Published August 31, 2018

The Museum of Printing in Haverhill, Mass., has published a book of 175 covers from The Inland Printer which began publication in 1883. The covers constantly pushed the envelope to show what printing could do in terms of imagery and color as the industry and technology evolved.

Unsolved (Document) Mysteries

Published August 24, 2018

What do the Voynich mystery document and End User Licensing Agreements have to do with each other? Watch on!

Fridays with Frank: Superior Opportunities in Finishing

Published August 17, 2018

Frank interviews Jay Smith at Superior Packaging and Finishing in Braintree, Mass. Superior recently acquired Acme Binding and now is one of the largest finishing companies in America.

Frank on 25 Years of PDF

Published August 3, 2018

Frank celebrates 25 years of Adobe Acrobat for printing workflows. Thanks to the Ghent Work Group and innovative suppliers like Agfa, PDF was adapted for the transmission of files for print in the 1990s and workflow has never been the same.

HOW Now: Frank Recaps HOW DESIGN LIVE

Published July 27, 2018

Frank opines about the recent HOW DESIGN LIVE conference in Boston. It has passed, but the memory lingers on about the changing nature of design and of designers and its move to the web and social media.

Frank Has Some Cross Words for Arial

Published July 20, 2018

Arial is Helvetica in sheep’s clothing. The subject came up because Frank was doing a crossword puzzle and the clue was “Popular sans serif font” and Helvetica would not fit.

Frank Interviews Echo Communications Owner Howard Hoke

Published July 13, 2018

Frank interviews Howard Hoke, COO and Owner of Echo Communications, a 14-employee print shop based in New London, N.H. Howard is an RIT grad who wound up owning his own printing company. Even though he has digital printing, he still uses offset presses, including a recently acquired used Heidelberg. Where did he find a press operator? Wal-Mart!

Spacing Out

Published July 6, 2018

One word space after a period, or two? Frank wades into the great debate. Word spacing conventions were often dictated by specific typing and typesetting technologies, and what was appropriate during the era of handset type, or even the typewriter, may not be appropriate today.

Frank Interviews Type and Print Historian Paul Shaw

Published June 29, 2018

Noted type and print historian Paul Shaw was recently at the Museum of Printing doing research on type and book designer William Addison Dwiggins (who coined the phrase "graphic designer"). Paul has identified many pieces designed by Dwiggins during his 1900–1950 productive life.

Duplo Event at the Museum of Printing Mixes the Old with the New

Published June 22, 2018

Duplo, the digital finishing company, usually runs customer events at hotels. This time they set up various pieces of equipment at the Museum of Printing in Haverhill, Mass. Their theme was “Old Print New Print” as modern finishing equipment was mixed in with older printing machines.

Frank Loves Lisa

Published June 15, 2018

Frank has always wanted an Apple Lisa. He finally got one, but now it's in a museum. The 1983 Lisa was the forerunner of the Macintosh with its Graphical User Interface, but it had a high price at about $10,000.

A Little Place for Your Stuff

Published May 25, 2018

Frank is distraught because the last US Blockbuster Video Store is closing. He does a quick review of recorded media, from tape cassettes, to video tape, to CD, to video disc, and even USB sticks.

EFI Opens Massive New Inkjet Facility

Published May 11, 2018

The EFI ribbon-cutting ceremony for its quarter million square foot facility in Manchester, N.H., was a grand affair. More than 100 media, dignitaries, and other guests filled the main demonstration room. They were surrounded by gigantic inkjet printers and toured one of the most advanced facilities for the development, manufacture, and operation of advanced inkjet systems. These systems are installed in plants in every hemisphere.

Digital Platemaking

Published May 4, 2018

One state is making your driver’s license digital. It will now become an app on your phone. Law enforcement can now ping you. Kansas is also incorporating electronic data into your license plate. Forget speed cameras. Now they can track us electronically.

Cold (Type) Case

Published April 27, 2018

The Prime Minister of Pakistan was brought down by a font, and it was not Comic Sans. They discovered that a contract that was dated 2006 used Calibri, a font that was not released until 2007.

If You Were a Printer, You'd Be Home By Now

Published April 20, 2018

Those wonderful old buildings that housed printing and typesetting companies in the downtown areas of many cities are now being converted into condos and apartments. From Boston to New York to Chicago, those iconic buildings are becoming someone’s home.

Frank On Friday: The Binds That Tie

Published April 13, 2018

Frank receives a challenge from Professor Frank Cost at RIT. Frank Cost discovered the McMaster-Carr catalog at 4,040 pages and wants to know if there are any bound books with more pages. Frank is up to the challenge.

Wish You Were Here

Published April 6, 2018

Frank loves post cards and waxes nostalgic about them. He shows some historic cards, as well as some procured on a recent trip.

TAGA 2018 and the Future of Graphic Arts Research

Published March 30, 2018

Frank Romano reports from the 70th TAGA Annual Technical Conference, held March 18–21 in Baltimore, Md.

RIT Students Showcase Their Printing Prowess at the Annual TAGA Conference

Published March 30, 2018

At the 70th Annual TAGA Conference, held earlier this month, Frank Romano talks to seven students from the Rochester Institute of Technology who participated in the student chapter journal competition. The journals demonstrate the students’ printing prowess, and use creative design as well as Augmented Reality and QR codes to highlight their academic research.

Show and Tell

Published March 23, 2018

As the current industry trade show landscape changes, Frank Romano looks back at how the trade show landscape has always been changing.

Ad Nauseam: Frank on Pop-Up vs. Print Ads

Published March 23, 2018

Frank goes on a mini rant about pop-ups. Print ads are not annoying and do not interfere with the reading experience.

Frankly Reading

Published March 16, 2018

Frank recommends two books, one on sales training and one on applying online print. They are “25 Best Sales Tips Ever” and “Keep Calm and Print On.” This one would be funny if you had pop-ups throughout it.

Frank Tells the Plane Truth About Paper

Published March 9, 2018

Frank discovers that a major airline saves fuel by using lighter weight paper in their inflight magazine

Nothing for Money: Forgery On the Desktop

Published March 2, 2018

Frank talks about fake money and how one forger used a desktop printer to counterfeit 10 and 20 dollar bills.

Frank: Book Publishers Turn the Page

Published February 23, 2018

Frank opines about offset vs. digital printing for books and variable art for packaging. Book publishers are changing their warehousing and distribution strategies as a result.

The Good Book: A Tour of Baskerville's Bible

Published February 16, 2018

It was an atheist who created a beautiful Bible: John Baskerville was an artist who came to printing late in life. His 1700’s Bible is truly a work of art and Frank fingers it lovingly.

The Bold (But Not Italic) Plan to Save on Ink

Published February 9, 2018

It is said that the font you use can affect your inkjet ink cost. They have tried putting holes in the type and very light weights to reduce ink consumption. Next they will tell us to print in 4 point type.

Frankie Goes to Hollywood

Published February 2, 2018

Frank shows the exhibit at the Museum of Printing that produced some of the props for the movie “The Post.” You will learn new terms like turtle, flong, lockup, and more

Frank: High Quality Printing Still Exists!

Published January 26, 2018

Frank looks at some high-quality advertising publications and opines that fine printing still exists. He uses some ad pubs inserted in the NY Times and Wall Street Journal.

Frank on "Paper Shamers"

Published January 19, 2018

Frank goes on a mini rant against those folks who shame us for using paper. He calls them “paper shamers” as he takes them to task for creating guilt trips for those who use paper.

Frank's Favorite Books about Paper

Published January 12, 2018

Frank is an unabashed paper lover and is into trees. He describes some of his favorite books about paper that are on paper. He also manages to mention Zip disks.

Frank Tours the Museum of Printing

Published December 15, 2017

Frank tours the Museum of Printing in Haverhill, MA - in an unusual manner. You have to see it to believe it.

Frank Flashback: Marketing4Digital Report on Selling Digital Print to Specific Markets

Published December 8, 2017

Frank found a copy of a report from a decade ago on selling digital print to specific markets. It was called Marketing4Digital and distributed via the Digital Printing Council.

Frank on the Monotype Imaging Font Survey

Published December 1, 2017

Monotype Imaging recently polled the industry about fonts. There are over one million fonts available today and this study provided some insights into purchasing habits.

Frank Talks about a Slowdown In Ebooks And An Upsurge In Printed Books

Published November 17, 2017

Frank found an article in the Wall Street Journal about print books and ebooks. One graph showed a slowdown in ebooks and an upsurge in printed books. This warranted commentary, of course.

Frank Visits Gamse Lithographing Co

Published November 10, 2017

Gamse Lithographing has been around since 1894. Production Manager Mark LeDonne took me on a whirlwind tour of a super label plant that uses almost every printing process. But Frank found Mark’s personal history more interesting.

Frank Learns about PrintReleaf at Print17

Published November 3, 2017

Frank meets Jordan Darragh of PrintReleaf which helps printing organizations nullify the effect of print on forests. Printers use online tools to calculate print job effects and trees are planted in five forests around the world to compensate for the tress used for printing. Over 500,000 trees have been planted.

Frank Talks to Dave Henkel of Johnson & Quin

Published October 27, 2017

Dave Henkel is president of Johnson & Quin, a pioneer in variable data printing. J&Q has long been a major force in direct mail and integrated marketing. Dave was into digital printing since it has been in its infancy.

Frank Talks to Shaw Carpeting about Label Printing on the Konica KM-1

Published October 20, 2017

Dwight Blackwell of Shaw Carpeting in Georgia just installed a Konica KM-1 to print labels that are glued to the back of carpeting. The Konica KM-1 prints 6 pages on one sheet and Shaw will replace a number of smaller printers with this new unit.

Frank Visits Strategic Factory

Published October 13, 2017

Keith Miller took a small print shop and grew it into an $18 Million super shop called Strategic Factory. He changed the concept of what a printer is. Call the company what you wish but they still put imagery on all kinds of substrates for marketing applications.

Frank Visits K&W Finishing

Published October 6, 2017

Kathy Holmes at K&W Finishing offers the traditional die cutting, coating, and other bindery services. But this 2nd-generation binder has taken the company into the 21st Century with laser diecutting.

Frank Vists manroland web systems

Published September 29, 2017

Frank caught up with Greg Blue is President & CEO of manroland web systems in the US to get an update on the venerable offset press manufacturer. Offset presses are still being sold as printers replace a few older presses with one new press to achieve more productivity.

Frank Visits KBA

Published September 15, 2017

Eric Frank of KBA brought us up to date on KBA. The company celebrates its 200th anniversary this year. Frederick Koenig invented the first steam-driven cylinder press for the London Times and his company continues to innovate after two centuries.

Random Automation at Print 17

Published September 15, 2017

On day 3 of Print 17 Frank Romano pitched the most random idea for a show floor tour video. Frank said, "I want to do something that has never been done before." We said sure. Next time, we'll ask more questions.

Frank takes a look at Canon's Océ i300 at Print 17

Published September 14, 2017

Sander Hendrix of Canon talks to Frank about the newest member of the Canon Océ digital printing family. Canon has a new sheetfed inkjet press that is finding acceptance in the commercial printing market.

Frank Reviews Duplo's New System for Digital Embellishment

Published September 8, 2017

Frank meets up with Si Nguyen, VP of Sales for Duplo, a company famous for its finishing equipment. Duplo’s new coating system makes imagery jump off the page. It embellishes print and adds value to it.

Frank Interviews Greg Wallace at HPG Print

Published September 1, 2017

Frank has known Greg Wallace for over 30 years. At HPG Print Greg has harnessed digital printing, wide format printing and every kind of finishing you can imagine. Recently, he discovered a new printing market that goes way beyond paper.

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about QWERTY

Published August 25, 2017

Frank has QWERTY on his mind and shows us a number of typewriters. He mentions Maltron and Dvorak and their attempts to supplant QWERTY. It did not work.

Frank: British Attack on Apostrophe Must Be Stopped

Published August 18, 2017

Frank bemoans the British attempt to eliminate the apostrophe in place names. So far, only Frank has spoken out against this perversion of orthography as misguided souls take a hammer to our grammar.

Frank Catches Up with John Werner

Published August 4, 2017

Frank caught up with John Werner, past editor and publisher of the Green Sheet, an industry newsletter. For 12 years, John attended every show, conference, and seminar and reported it in Graphic Communications World, which is still published.

Frank on the History of Recorded Information

Published July 28, 2017

Frank takes us on a whirlwind tour of the history of recorded information and caps it with new discoveries that record information on bacteria DNA.

Frank Finds A Museum of Interesting Things at EastPack

Published July 14, 2017

While visiting EastPack, Frank is unsurprisingly drawn to a booth called "The Museum of Interesting Things" and talks to Denny Daniel who shows him some of the cool things in their collection.

Frank Visits EastPak 2017

Published July 7, 2017

Frank provides a guided tour of EastPak 2017, complete with 3D printing, robotics, and invisible stealth companies.

Frank Twitters

Published June 29, 2017

Frank contends that he created the term “TWITTERS” and except for an S would be owed a lot of money. He shows examples from 1980 copies of TypeWorld.

Romano Review of Books: "Brand Luther"

Published June 23, 2017

Frank reviews a book called “Brand Luther” that tells the true story of an unknown monk who used printing to challenge the mightiest force on earth at the time.

Everything You Wanted to Know about the Bang & Interrobang

Published June 16, 2017

From the Latin for joy to the screamer, we are using exclamation marks for much of our communication. The interrobang is not used as much.

Kids and Their Computers.

Published June 9, 2017

Frank opines about kids and computers. He even interviews an actual kid who is using a typewriter.

The Great Handwriting Over Printing Debate

Published June 2, 2017

Frank opines about irony in the modern world and also harks back to 1516 when a monk praised handwriting over printing.

Frank on QuarkXPress and Adobe InDesign

Published May 26, 2017

In a frank video, Frank confesses that he still uses QuarkXPress, in a world dominated by Adobe InDesign. He is unapologetic.

A Mailer That Grows Wildflowers. A Tree That Grows Books.

Published May 19, 2017

Thinking he's got something special, WhatTheyThink Senior Video Editor Jon Emmerich does a little show-and-tell and asks for Frank's response. In true Frank fashion, Frank quickly and efficiently crushes Jon's dreams.

Frank Catches up with Print Evangelist Daniel Dejean

Published May 12, 2017

Frank catches up with Daniel Dejean of SAPPI Fine Paper at the Digital Printing event in Toronto. Daniel is a great evangelist for print.

Frank on our Emotional Attachment to Books

Published May 5, 2017

Frank looks at some old books produced as part of student projects and a host of memories are evoked. This never happens with e-books or PDFs.

Frank on Digital Textile Printing

Published April 28, 2017

Frank bumps into David Manning, his oldest friend, at the Print Canada show. After high school, David went into the textile industry and Frank went into printing. Now their worlds have come together as printers use inkjet devices to print on fabric.

Carl Dantas, former head of Compugraphic, dead at 83

Published April 26, 2017

A lifetime is filled with many people. In 1971, I joined Compugraphic Corp. as their first marketing communications manager. Carl Dantas was then the VP of Operations. As the two founders, Bill Garth and Ellis Hansen, became less involved, Carl moved up the ranks to head the company.

Frank Visits Cal Poly's Shakespeare Museum

Published April 21, 2017

Frank goes back in time as he visits the Cal Poly Shakespeare Museum. Surrounded by modern printing technology, this collection is a time warp of how printing was in the past.

Printing with E-coli and Charging Students to Print Homework

Published April 7, 2017

Frank has a potpourri of items to rail against, especially printing with e-coli bacterium. He also rants against charging students for printing homework assignments.

Frank Romano Memorial Bookshelf at CalPoly

Published March 30, 2017

Frank tours the Student Resource Room at Cal Poly and points out his books (because no one else will). Cal Poly has received many donations of research publications over the years.

CalPoly Students Create Book about Printing Pioneer Michael Bruno

Published March 24, 2017

Frank’s class at Cal Poly produced a 300-page book on the life and work of printing pioneer Michael Bruno. Mike was one of the major researchers who made offset lithography a viable process.

Frank on Newspaper Business Practices

Published March 17, 2017

We need newspapers and they need us. But some of their business practices could be improved. With declines in ad revenues, newspapers are raising subscription rates to stay in business.

Frank Visits Delphax

Published March 10, 2017

Frank visits Delphax in Missassauga, Canada to take a look at the elan 500 digital printing system. It is interesting that many of the original Delphax ion deposition printing systems are still in use. The elan is their first foray into inkjet printing.

Frank and Konica Minolta's Gavin Smith "Connect" on Book Cover Embellishment

Published February 17, 2017

Frank talks to Gavin Smith of Konica, which distributed 800 copies of “The New Print Industry” book at EFI CONNECT Conference. We discuss the cover embellishment by MGI.

Frank on Industry Research and WhatTheyThink's Printing Forecast

Published February 10, 2017

Frank reviews WhatTheyThink's latest research and "Printing Forecast 2017". This insightful report captures the mindset of the printing industry at this time and presents both Federal data and projections.

Frank Talks to EFI's Holly O’Rourke about Connect 2017

Published February 3, 2017

Frank talks to Holly O’Rourke of EFI about the latest EFI CONNECT Conference held in Las Vegas. This was one of the most successful of the 17 CONNECT Conferences in terms of content and attendance.

Frank on RIT Professor Frank Cost's Contact Print Book

Published January 26, 2017

Once again, RIT professor Frank Cost has preserved his family’s memories. It all started with a contact sheet of six Black & White prints of Frank’s mother from the 1950s.

We lost Derek Kyte and Lucien De Schamphelaere

Published January 23, 2017

A Rememberance by Frank Romano

Frank on Pre-VDP Personalized Direct Mail

Published January 20, 2017

Frank Romano keeps EVERYTHING. This week he shares his collection of pre-VDP personalized direct mail when everyone was a winner. Direct marketers tried every trick to get you to open the envelope.

Frank Looks Back at Early Variable Data Printing

Published January 13, 2017

Frank talks about some of the earliest Variable Data Printing from when digital color first came into play in 1994. He shows the now classic Alphabits piece and many others.

Back to the Future of Print

Published January 6, 2017

Frank and his students have been predicting the future of print for over 20 years. He shows us five books that students have produced as class projects, with one done in two weekends.

Frank's Chest of Gutenbergian Junk

Published December 20, 2016

Frank shows his collection of Gutenbergian souvenirs. He may be keeping the Gutenberg Museum souvenir shop in business single handed. If you're looking for a holiday gift to give Frank, may we suggest two tickets to "Gutenberg: The Musical."

Frank Rant Alert: Inkjet Printer Ink Packaging

Published December 16, 2016

Frank goes on a rant about desktop inkjet printer ink packaging. He is so upset he does not notice the light, although it could be the heat emanating from his head.

Mural Wall Printing by Zeescape

Published December 9, 2016

An Australian company has developed an inkjet printing system that prints on walls — right, walls. Zeescape has created a new category of inkjet printer: wide format, flatbed, 3D, and now vertical.

Frank is Entranced by Pop-up Cards

Published December 2, 2016

Frank is entranced by pop-up cards from opencardnow.com. Former typographer Julie Brumlik has a new career with pop-up origami. Frank even shares his pop-up Gutenberg book.

Frank is Intrigued by 3 Unrelated Technology Items

Published November 23, 2016

Frank is intrigued by three unrelated technology items: food made from wood, energy made from urine, and and paper made from waste paper in the office.

Frank Talks to Color Management Consultant About Tracking Color During Production

Published November 18, 2016

Frank meets up with David Hunter who has developed a system that tracks all color activity in a plant for all devices with feedback and data that aids in the management of production.

Frank on Unique Augmented Reality Application Created by RIT Students

Published November 11, 2016

Frank meets with Professor Elena Fedorovskaya at RIT School of Media Sciences to get a demonstration of a unique augmented reality smart phone app created by students. Any image, print or art or more, can activate a link to a website for video or audio presentation.

Frank is a Hoarder

Published November 4, 2016

We know that Frank is a hoarder but we did not know that it extended to hats. You got that right. Frank has saved hats. He wears most of them in this video.

Dot-com Printers. Where are they now?

Published October 28, 2016

Frank found a copy of one of his old books that covered the dotcom boom of the late 1990s. It is interesting to see who was who then and who is still around now. (Watch this one in full screen)

The Largest Printers in 1992. Where Are They Now?

Published October 21, 2016

Frank found a list of the largest printers from 1992. It documents the significant changes in the industry through merger, acquisition, and bankruptcy.

Frank on the Time Magazine Archive

Published October 7, 2016

TIME magazine moved its entire archive from its New York City headquarters. This archive represents the history of most of the 20th Century.

Frank Explores Graph Expo 2016

Published September 29, 2016

Frank Romano is sweet on Graph Expo, but it's not all sunshine and roses. Follow along as he explores his favorite and not-so-favorite highlights on the trade show floor in Orlando, Florida.

Brad Flagge of Push Solutions Talks About Recent Offset Investments

Published September 22, 2016

Frank Romano talks to Brad Flagge President and CEO of New Berlin, WI based Push Solutions. Push Solutions recently installed a new offset press from RMGT with LED UV. The press allows the to print on both paper and, a new market for them, plastic substrates.

Frank Visited Patrick Goosens' Bakery & Antique Press Warehouse

Published September 16, 2016

Frank visited Patrick Goosens who owns the oldest bakery in Antwerp. What does this have to do with printing? Patrick has filled a large warehouse with 100s of antique presses and typesetting machines and saved a large part of printing history.

Frank's New Book: The New Print Industry

Published September 9, 2016

This will be Frank's 44th GraphExpo/Print event and attendees at his two seminars will receive a free book on The New Print Industry. Graphco in Solon, Ohio produced the books at a recent open house.

Around the World with Frank: Two Sides UK

Published September 2, 2016

Frank always takes the long way to Drupa on a ship that goes around the world. From Israel to China and Antwerp to London, he files reports that we will run over the next few weeks. In this week's episode Frank is having a pint with Jonathan Tame from Two Sides UK to talk about Two Sides and its mission to promote sustainability of print communications.

Around the World with Frank: London Book Sale

Published August 26, 2016

Frank always takes the long way to Drupa on a ship that goes around the world. From Israel to China and Antwerp to London, he files reports that we will run over the next few weeks. In this week's episode Frank is at a book sale in London.

Around the World with Frank: Lost in the Hallways at HP Indigo

Published August 19, 2016

Frank always takes the long way to Drupa on a ship that goes around the world. From Israel to China and Antwerp to London, he files reports that we will run over the next few weeks. In this week's episode Frank is still at HP Indigo.

Articles by Frank Romano