Industry Glossary
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AA
Author’s alterations; changes or corrections made by the customer after type has been set, altering the original copy.
Absorption
In paper, the property that causes it to take up liquids or vapors in contact with it. In optics, the partial suppression of light through a transparent or translucent material.
Accordion Fold
Two or more parallel folds that open like an accordion.
Acetate
Thin, flexible sheet of transparent plastic used to make overlays.
Acid-Free Paper
Paper with a pH of 7 or slightly above seven, and no residual acid-producing chemicals.
Acre
a unit of land area measurement equal to 43,560 square feet.
Additive Primaries
In color reproduction, red, green, and blue. When lights of these colors are added together, they produce the sensation of white light.
Against the Grain
At right angles to the grain direction of paper.
Agricultural Byproduct
Agricultural byproducts are fibrous byproducts, such as cereal straws and corn stalks, which were previously treated as a waste stream. These materials are routinely burned or flooded from fields, wasting resources and damaging the environment. Research is being conducted to transform agricultural byproducts as a waste stream into a resource.
Airbrush
A small pressure gun, shaped like a pencil, that sprays watercolor pigment by means of compressed air. Used to create original illustrations and to correct and obtain tone or graduated tone effects. In platemaking, used with an abrasive-like pumice to remove spots or other unwanted areas.
Alkaline-Sized Paper
Paper internally sized with a synthetic sizing material and containing a mildly alkaline filler. The pH of alkaline-sized paper is above 7.5.
Alteration
Change in copy or specifications made after production has begun.
Amberlith
Trade name for orange masking material manufactured by Ulano.
American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA)
The trade association for the U.S. pulp, paper and forest products industry. Certification is the means of auditing a process or operation to determine if it conforms to acceptable standards. Examples are sustainable forest management, procurement and chain-of-custody certification. For instance, International Paper’s procurement and environmental management systems are certified.
American Tree Farm System (ATFS)
The Tree Farm System provides conservation education to non-industrial private forestland owners in the United States. The American Tree Farm System has approximately 65,000 Tree Farms totaling almost 26 million acres of non-industrial private forestland certified in the program.
Annual Growth
The increase in volume per year of a tree or group of trees, often expressed in cubic feet or board feet.
Annual Harvest
The volume of timber removed from the forest in a year, often expressed in cubic feet or board feet.
Annual Mortality
The volume, number, or percentage of trees that die per year.
Antique Finish
A term describing the surface, usually on book and cover papers, that has a natural rough finish.
Aperture
In photography, lens opening or lens stop expressed as an F/stop number such as F/22.
Artboard
Alternate term for mechanical.
Artwork
Original images, including type, illustrations and photos.
Ascender
That part of a lower case letter which rises above the main body, as in the letters b, h, and d.
ASCII
Acronym for American Standard Code for Information Interchange, a standard code used to help interface digital equipment.