New York - December 10, 2007 - Executives from Integrated Color Solutions (ICS), developers of the industry's leading soft proofing solution, Remote Director, explain why major printers, prepress providers, publishers, designers, agencies, brand owners and their workflow partners have no reservations about certain types of soft proofing at two important industry conferences taking place this week and in January.
"Soft proofing is a hotbed of controversy, and it doesn't need to be," says Dan Caldwell, vice president of operations for ICS. "The problem is that there are so many definitions of soft proofing, and people need to adjust their expectations so that they match a solution's capabilities."
Caldwell explains that people consider any display- or monitor-based proofing as soft, or remote, proofing. Obviously, though, the content and quality, especially relevant to color, can vary dramatically depending on the file type, monitor type and many other conditions.
"The reason why Remote Director, the ICS product, is embraced by so many," Mike DiCosola, vice president of technology at Chromaticity, says, "is because it offers the best functionality at every level of soft proofing, from content and copy agreement through to color contract-quality requirements." Chromaticity is a recognized leader in distribution and deployment of color management and digital imaging technologies.
Even if you are only taking a first look at a mock up in PDF - arguably the "least sensitive" level of proofing in a job - Remote Director's open architecture and sophisticated collaboration capabilities come into play and afford all the viewers, or stakeholders, instant and simultaneous, matching views of the file - no matter what system they are using. "So even at this level, you can save time and money and impress clients with a solution that is fast, and slick," DiCosola says. "No file duplication via email attachments and waiting for everyone to get on the phone, asking 'did you get it yet?', and 'mine doesn't look like that' - and worrying about how they will display."
"The range of soft proofing requirements, on all different workflows, is tremendous," says Vicki Blake, vice president of business development at ICS. "At one extreme you have people sharing simple PDFs to check copy placement; and at the other you've got Fortune 100 companies doing contract-quality checks with their agency, printer, and designer; each in a separate corner of the world, and each knowing that what they are looking at is precisely the same as what everyone else is looking at - and most importantly, that the color is perfect."
DiCosola says that a solution like Remote Director represents the best at every level, through to the highest-end soft proofing, and is accepted by the world's most demanding customers.
Blake explains that the reasons why Remote Director satisfies the most demanding clientele are exclusive capabilities such as:
- Simultaneous (truly real time) collaboration on any number of monitors
- Matching, accurate color across all displays
- Open architecture permitting integration with any workflow
Blake and Caldwell, both esteemed industry veterans on workflow and color science, respectively, are speaking at the G7 training event and PIA/GATF Color Management Conference in Phoenix, beginning the 7th and going through the 11th. ICS is a sponsor of both events, and has an exhibit and literature on hand at the vendor expo area.  Blake will serve as ICS representative at the GAA Premedia Conference being held January 14-16 in Naples, Florida; where the company is a sponsor via an on-site exhibit.