Lab Software Tips: Adobe Photoshop
This page provides tips for using software in the SCS
Computer Labs. Because of our dynamic lab environment, not all software packages work
exactly the same as they do on an personal computer. With this in mind, we
provide documentation regarding configuration settings, printing instructions,
file saving, and other popular topics. These pages are not intended as manuals
or tutorials - those are installed on lab computers along with the software.
For further assistance with these or any other software
related questions or issues, please see an SCS lab consultant.
Photoshop does not reliably recognize
the quota limits on user accounts and may try to save a document even if
there is not enough room in the account to store the entire file. The user
does not receive an error message at the time of saving, but only part
of the file is stored in the user's account.
This problem can result in an "unexpected end-of-file" error
when the file is reopened. Because only part of the file was successfully
saved, the file cannot be recovered.Users working in Photoshop who are near
their quota storage limits or are working with very large files should save
backup copies of their work in a folder with their name on it on the Temporary_Storage
volumes of the computers. If the user happens to hit her or her limit while
saving, a backup copy of the file will still be properly saved. Users who
are interested in raising their quota limit can place a request through to
a consultant.
For the fastest print times, we recommend
flattening documents and setting their resolution to a value of 150 dpi or
lower.
Remember to save your document before completing
the following steps. Flattening a document's layers and/or adjusting its resolution
can result in the loss of digital image information. This is ok for printing,
but may be undesireable if you intend to continue working with the image in
the future.
- To flatten a document, choose "Flatten Image" from
the Layers menu. This will compress all layers into the background layer.
Do not save your document after flattening if you want to continue working
with layers.
- To check or adjust your resolution, choose "Image
size" from the Image menu. In the Image
Size dialog box make sure that your resolution is set to 200 pixels/inch
or lower.
Recent upgrades allow the lab printers to
handle most print jobs and encoding methods without a problem. This means that
fewer print settings need to be checked or changed before sending jobs from
Adobe Applications.
If, however, documents you are trying to
print are coming out as pages of gibberish or are being flushed before they
are printed, you may want to try a different encoding method. Select Print
from the File menu. From the menu in the upper right corner of the Print window,
select Output, then look for the Encoding menu below it. The Encoding method
should be set to ASCII85 (see
example).
Once you have sent your print job, be patient.
Printing from Photoshop can take several minutes, especially if your document
is large.
For more information about printing or obtaining
refunds,
please read our Printing Tips. If you have
a problem or with printing, please ask for help from the consultant on duty.
Do not send your print job more than once, as doing so may only complicate
the problem and create a longer delay for you and other users of the lab.
We recommend scanning documents by opening
Photoshop and selecting Import from the File menu. Select the brand of scanner
you are using from the pop-out menu beside the Import command. Our flatbed
scanners are made by Epson and our slide/negative scanners are made by Nikon.
The resolution of an image describes the
number of blocks of color per inch of the graphic. Resolution is typically
measured in pixels-per-inch (ppi) for image data or dots-per-inch (dpi) for
printers and monitors. Images with low resolution may be blurry or indistinct,
while images with high resolution will be clearer and more crisp. Image resolution
is also associated with the file size of the image; higher resolution files
take up more room on your disk or in your account.
When you scan, keep in mind the size of the
original image in relation to the final image. For instance, if you are scanning
a very small object and you want to enlarge it, you should scan it at a high
resolution. If you will be scanning a large object and reducing it, you can
scan at a lower resolution. For the average user, working with images scanned
and manipulated at 300ppi and reduced to 200ppi to print should be sufficient.
If you are a graphic design artist or if you are doing a great deal of image
manipulation, you may want to work at a higher resolution.
As you edit your work, save your image as
a Photoshop file (.psd). This file type will preserve your resolution, layers,
and all other Photoshop information. When you are finished, you can export
your file as a JPEG, GIF, TIFF, bitmap, or other file type. These file types
will compress your image to shrink the file size, but you will also lose your
layers and some image quality. If you plan to continue editing the original
image, save one copy as a .psd file and other copies as compressed file types.
For more information about the various file types and what they are used for,
read the "Saving and Exporting Images" chapter of the Photoshop help
manual, available from the Help menu in the Photoshop application.
The standard resolution for images on the
internet is 72 ppi. The standard file types used on the internet are GIFs,
JPEGs, and TIFFs.You can use Photoshop's Save for Web option under the File
menu to optimize your images for the internet.
The black and white lab printers print at
2400x600 dpi and the color printers print at 1200x1200 dpi. Printing at 200ppi
is about the maximum resolution necessary to get a good print. (Keep in mind
ppi and dpi are not the same thing. See this
document and chart for more info.) A full page of graphics may take several
minutes to print.