Photograph Printing Without The PC

FOURTH EDITION
Photograph Printing
Without The PC
IT’S WHAT’S INSIDE
THAT COUNTS:
Unique Printing
Technologies
DURABrite INK
Photographs on
Plain Paper
contents
NEWS & PRODUCTS
2
4
2
EPSON Environment
Making positive moves for the environment
4
News
Take a look at what EPSON is doing across the globe
6
New Products
The latest EPSON printers, scanners and projectors
10
11
10 Colour Shifting Logo
Making sure you get what you paid for
11 Photograph Papers
Finding the right paper for your print job
27 Dave’s Diary
Back and better than ever
CASE STUDIES
16 16 Mark Johnston
25 Marshall White
An amateur photographer printing
professional photographs
20 Urban Roots
The real estate company exploiting its
EPSON AcuLaser colour laser printer
44 Windflower
A landscaping company benefiting
from an EPSON STYLUS CX5100
THE EPSON EDGE
12
22
Printers playing a role in craft
12 DURABrite INK
It’s the ink with all the advantages
18 Multi-Function Printers
The all-in-one solutions for the small or home office
22 It’s What’s Inside That Counts
A behind-the-scenes look at what makes your printer tick
30
32
28 EPSON Colour AcuLaser... Totally Distinctive
Why EPSON’s AcuLasers are a cut above the rest
30 Get Scanned — Part Two
A helping hand in optimising your scanning efforts
32 Before You Buy That Projector
Uncovering what to look for when purchasing a projector
USING EPSON
14
14 PC-Free Photo Printing
Print your photographs without
even touching the PC
35 Projectors in Business
How to grow your business with an
EPSON projector
EPSON ONLINE
38
40
42 EPSON in Marketing
How to market your small business
on a budget with EPSON
46 Hands-On with EPSON
You too can use EPSON printers for
your children’s birthday party fun
38 Surfing with EPSON
A quick look at an expanding Web site and how it helps
40 Club EPSON
Join the club and get the most out of your printer
editorial
Welcome
Bruno Turcato, Managing Director
EPSON Australia Limited
Welcome to the fourth edition of EPSONow. The preparation of this
issue coincides with significant changes within EPSON Australia,
most noticeable of which is the return to Seiko EPSON Corporation
in Japan of Mr Hiroki Yamamoto, our local managing director of
six years.
I would like to take this opportunity to
express my personal thanks and those of the
entire EPSON Australia organisation to Hiroki.
During his six years tenure as managing director,
Hiroki presided over the company during times
of enormous change and even turmoil in the
printer market. The fact that EPSON remains
one of this country’s most reputable and
recognisable brand names is due in no
small amount to his efforts.
Among Hiroki’s many initiatives was the
publication you are now reading; and it is an
initiative we intend to continue well into the
future.
If you are familiar with previous issues of
EPSONow then you are bound to notice the
magazine has undergone some fairly major
changes. Aside from a new design, we have
made the decision to ensure EPSONow reflects
more accurately the needs of our customers.
For this reason the magazine’s staff has
developed articles that demonstrate ways in
which EPSON printers, scanners and projectors
can be used to make relaxation time more
enjoyable and work time more profitable.
This issue is also the first to feature an
exciting new range of products — the
EPSON STYLUS CX series of multi-function
printers. In capitalising on EPSON’s world
leadership in colour printing and scanning, our
product developers have created multi-function
devices that have already captured the attention
and accolades of users and the media.
I strongly encourage each of you to let us
know how we can make EPSONow a more
appropriate and useful product. Whether you
own an EPSON printer, scanner or projector,
we believe that along with the EPSON Australia
Web site, this magazine is one of the most
important information resources we provide.
EPSONow | 1
NEWS & PRODUCTS
EPSON Environment
In every issue of EPSONow, space has been allocated to one of the most
important resources available to everyone — the environment. From EPSON
Australia’s most visible person, Terri, who handles the switchboard and staffs
the front desk, right through to Mr Turcato, the company’s new managing
director, a strong part of the work ethic is environmental responsibility.
ONE OF THE MAIN ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS to be addressed over
the years by EPSON is landfill; and in a positive move, the company
has become a foundation sponsor for the Cartridges 4 Planet Ark
campaign. This is an environmental program initiated to reduce, the
amount of cartridges going to landfill. With support from leading
printer manufacturers, such as EPSON, Planet Ark is working in
conjunction with recycling company Close The Loop® to achieve an
ambitious zero waste to landfill goal.
According to EPSON Australia’s Human Resources and
Administration Manager, Garry Pearce, the company is committed
to conserving raw materials and resources and minimising waste.
“Cartridges 4 Planet Ark,” he said,“ helps in both ways by recycling
the inkjet and toner cartridges and in turn preventing them from
going to landfill.
“The environmental theme at EPSON is Co-existence and
it has been a management priority within the company since it
was established. We regularly review processes in order to reduce
their environmental impact; globally, our products are designed to
minimise resource consumption; and promote the recovery and
recycling of used products. Cartridges 4 Planet Ark is just one of
the many results of these reviews.”
O
The New Cartridge Lifecycle
Close The Loop’s ‘Green Machine’ separating the materials
of the ink and toner cartridges
2 | EPSONow
Under the new program, all EPSON cartridges are sent to Close The
Loop® for recycling. The cartridges are put through an advanced
process that recovers materials such as aluminium, steel and plastics which are then on-sold to manufacturers who use recycled
materials in their products. Laser toner cartridges and inkjet cartridges are processed by separate machines, but both operating on
roughly the same principle.
First, the cartridges are sorted into batches to go through the
machines, which reduce the cartridges to smaller particles that
can be more easily separated. Given that materials used to make
cartridges have a wide range of physical and chemical properties,
Close the Loop® developed state-of-the-art processes for material
separation. These even include sophisticated magnets that are used
for specific metals.
Recycled cartridge materials are used for purposes such as steel
that will be used for structural beams for buildings, or foam that is
rebonded and used for carpet underlay and matting.
The leftover materials have plenty of uses right down to the
plastics that are granulated and made into park benches. Every
little bit helps.
Your Contribution
While Planet Ark, Close The Loop®, EPSON and other companies
provide the means to eliminate printer cartridges going to landfill,
there’s little that can be achieved without the public’s contribution.
It really is a case of “we want your rubbish”.
All cartridges can be disposed of in specially marked collection boxes found in participating Australia Post offices or Harvey
Norman stores. Also, if you work in an organisation with a number
of printers, fax machines and copiers, chances are that you produce
a significant amount of used cartridges. Just bringing this article to
the attention of your environmental officer, human resources manager or even the managing director can make a major difference.
For more information about Cartridges 4 Planet Ark visit:
www.planetark.com/cartridges
To become a Program Participant call the Cartridges 4 Planet
Ark hotline on 1800 24 24 73.
Other Initiatives
In early 2003, EPSON Australia moved to new premises at North
Ryde. Making sure it started off on the right foot, the company
ensured the environmental initiatives introduced successfully at its
previous office complex lost no ground.
“One of the first things we did was to partner with the NSW
Sustainable Energy Development Authority [SEDA] to minimise
our use of electricity,” Pearce said.“With SEDA’s assistance we have
identified a range of projects to decrease significantly our use of
electricity. These projects range from installing sensor lighting to
the installation of energy-save units.”
Product packaging is another issue to have come to the attention
of EPSON Australia’s internal environmental watchdog committee.
Rather than head off to landfill, all the cardboard, paper and shrinkwrap is sorted and then picked up by recycling companies. To help
reduce landfill even further, EPSON Australia has offered to pay
for the disposal of all EPSON product packaging material that is
delivered to its North Ryde offices.
Regardless of these initiatives, a main concern within EPSON
is the recycling of end-of-life printers and scanners. According to
Pearce, the company is currently reviewing a pilot program with the
Australian Information Industry Association (AIIA) and Resource
NSW on the recycling of computers and computer peripherals such
as printers and scanners.“If the program meets the strict guidelines
that it has been set, consumers will be able to drop off their old
computers and peripherals and know that they will go to a good
cause such as a charity or third world country,” he said.
Recognition
In designing all its products
EPSON strives to achieve high
levels of energy efficiency.
All EPSON printers are
eligible to carry the
all-important Energy Star logo
EPSON Australia’s efforts in minimising environmental impact
have gained recognition from abroad as well as within Australia.
In early 2003, SEIKO EPSON Corporation (SEC) in Japan awarded
EPSON Australia a President’s Award for Promotion of Sustainable
Development. This award was in recognition of activities that led to
a 20 per cent reduction in electricity use and an almost 50 per cent
reduction in waste-to-landfill.
For more information on EPSON’s environmental policy, go to:
www.epson.com.au/corporate/enviro_policy.html
EPSONow | 3
NEWS & PRODUCTS
EPSON Puts Best Image Top 10 Teen Stars to Snap Up an EPSON Printer
Forward at the Oscars AMERICAN IDOL CAME to US television last summer and became an overnight success.
RUNNING FOR OVER 75 YEARS, the
Academy Awards® Ceremony has built a
reputation as being the most prestigious
awards show in the entertainment industry.
To help maintain such prestige, officials of
the Ceremony selected the best name in
image quality for their printing needs… for
the fourth year in a row!
The EPSON STYLUS PHOTO 890 printer
was used for on-site production of photo
identification badges for every person given
access to, or involved in the production of,
the famed Oscars telecast operations.
According to officials from the Academy
of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the
STYLUS PHOTO 890 was selected based
on the need for a high-quality printer that
would print photographs quickly and
efficiently in the credentialling process.
“We wanted to put forth our best image
and wanted everyone involved with the Oscars
to have a positive experience, starting with
the process of getting their credentials,”
said John Pavlik, Communications Director
for the Academy. “Having the ability to
quickly and efficiently print high-quality
photo credentials onsite is critical to what
is a rather complex operation. The EPSON
printers gave us the control, quality and
convenience that we needed to make this
aspect of the production successful.”
With two shows each week, the audience grew to the point where over 30 million viewers
tuned in for the finale. Awarded for their success in reaching the finals, the top ten
finalists, judges and other officials involved with the hit show snapped up an EPSON
STYLUS PHOTO series inkjet printer. These innovative printers were chosen over dozens of
other high-tech gadgets and gifts due to stylish looks and superior photo-quality output.
The STYLUS PHOTO incorporates the latest in technology — the EPSON Advanced
Micro Piezo print head; and a six-colour photo ink system that creates incredible detail,
beautiful skin tones, sharper contrast and an ultra-wide colour range designed specifically
to enhance the printer’s photograph printing capabilities.
EPSON’s New UK Inkjet Open Laboratory
WELL KNOWN THROUGHOUT the world for its high-quality photo printers, EPSON has built
a new laboratory at Cambridge in the UK. Established to research greater applications
for inkjet technology, the new laboratory is the second to be built after the Inkjet Open
Laboratory, which was opened in July at Seiko EPSON’s Suwa Minami Plant in Japan.
EPSON has spent many years developing revolutionary micro liquid processes that
form the basis of its inkjet technology. It is a process that involves the high-precision
placement of ink droplets measured in picolitres (1,000 billionths of a litre) and
nanograms (1,000 millionths of a gram) to draw patterns directly and make films of
uniform thickness. Already, researchers are proposing that future applications of the
micro liquid process exist in the areas of genetic science and molecular factories.
In particular, EPSON believes that inkjet technology could be used to reduce the
large number of photolithographic processes used in the manufacture of semiconductors
to between one and three processes. This would reduce the environmental burden by
reducing the materials discarded during photolithography by more than 90 per cent.
As with the Suwa Minami Inkjet Open Laboratory, the new laboratory will be
used to validate the possibility for production and reliability of inkjet technology
in addition to testing other uses for the technology. Results of the research will be
used by laboratory users in the development of their joint business and for progressing
into new business fields.
EPSON Awarded APC Editor’s
Choice for the CX3100
THE EPSON STYLUS CX3100 was recently awarded the Editor’s
Choice Award in Australian Personal Computer (APC), one of
Australia’s leading computer magazines.
4 | EPSONow
David Lin, an APC journalist,
compared seven of the latest
multi-function printer (MFP) models
through the APC Labs, fleshing out
product lines to cover the relevant
functionality and price points.
Comparing the EPSON STYLUS CX3100
against products from other vendors, the
STYLUS CX3100 trumped its competitors to win the June 2003
Editor’s Choice.
Lin complimented the multiple features of this innovative
product saying: “Images were outstanding on plain or coated
paper… Flesh tones were accurate and the scan from the
CX3100 gave the best interpretation of the fluoro lettering
on a magazine cover.”
Overall, the review by Lin was glowing, stating that this
new printer “offers the best economy”.
Editor’s Choice Awards are given to the best value
IT products and services appearing in the On Test reviews,
Labs Challenge comparisons and, as relevant, features in
APC every month.
EPSON for the Airports
WITH 45 MILLION BUSINESS travellers each year flying to
thousands of destinations across the US, many of these
travellers need printing services while on the road for such things
as last-minute revisions to presentations or handouts, printouts
of sales materials or just printing their e-mails. The problem
faced by most is that they generally do not carry printers and
thus have difficulty printing while away from the office.
EPSON has teamed up with Electronics for Imaging at
Wayport’s Laptop Lane airport business centres, giving
business travellers the ability to quickly and easily print
high-quality full-colour documents at numerous airports
across the US through a trial program.
EPSON is providing a range of AcuLaser printing/copying
stations and/or EPSON STYLUS multi-function printers similar
to the CX5300 to 15 Laptop Lane airport business centres
powered by Wayport in nine major metropolitan airports
across the US.
These centres will also be equipped with EFI’s PrintMe™ mobile
and Internet printing solution, enabling business travellers to
print from Laptop Lane computers and their own laptops,
PDAs, cell phones or other mobile devices without having to
install software drivers or undergo a complex setup process.
EPSON Unplugged
Caring for the environment with EPSON
EPSON CONTINUES TO BE at the forefront of
peripheral innovation with the introduction
of Bluetooth technology to its EPSON
STYLUS PHOTO 935 printer.
By pairing a Bluetooth-enabled camera
to the STYLUS PHOTO 935, obtrusive wires
or juggling multiple connections is a thing
of the past.
As long as the camera and printer are
within 10 metres of each other, they can
communicate easily.
“With its Bluetooth functionality, the
new STYLUS PHOTO 935 is a leader in the
camera-to-printer digital photograph printing
market,” commented Mike Pleasants,
EPSON Australia’s Marketing and e-Business
Manager. “EPSON and Bluetooth technology
redefine the very way we experience digital
photograph printing.”
IN ITS CONTINUAL PURSUIT to preserve the environment, EPSON (US) has launched a
recycling program enabling customers to help protect the Earth’s resources.
The Web-based EPSON Recycle Program was created for people who do not have
convenient locations to drop off electronics for recycling. Participants pay US$10 per
product to cover the cost of shipping and recycling eligible EPSON hardware. In return,
the customer will receive a US$5 electronic coupon that can be used on a future purchase
at the EPSON Store.
Most EPSON products, including printers, scanners, cameras, laptops, computers and
projectors, are eligible for this program.
On the local front, EPSON has implemented motion detectors to reduce electricity
usage in its head office in Sydney.
When the motion detector system determines a meeting room is unoccupied,
it will automatically switch off the room’s lights.
The company also recycles all paper, cardboard and plastic shrink wrap from
peripheral boxes and if customers have any EPSON packaging to dispose, EPSON has
stated its readiness to include it in its own
recycling processes if delivered to EPSON’s
North Ryde complex.
EPSON has also recently finished a pilot
program with the Australian Information
Industry Association (AIIA) and other IT
vendors, whereby computers and peripherals are collected from designated drop-off points
for component recycling.
Currently, data is being analysed to determine the effectiveness of this program and if
successful, it will be launched in the near future.
Lastly, EPSON, with other computer and peripheral vendors, has partnered with
Planet Ark to have print cartridges recycled for zero waste to landfill. Close the Loop®,
an Australian hi-tech recycling company, receives these cartridges, which are
broken down and recycled.
“EPSON is committed to doing its part to preserve the environment,”
said Garry Pearce, EPSON Australia’s Human Resources and Administration Manager.
“We want to make it easy and affordable for customers to recycle their used
EPSON products. By helping cover part of that cost, together we can reduce the burden
on our environment.”
EPSONow | 5
NEWS & PRODUCTS
INKJET PRINTERS
Incorporating EPSON’s award winning Micro Piezo
technology, the EPSON PerfectPicture Imaging System
allows EPSON STYLUS inkjets to deliver Photo Quality
output and resolution up to 5760 Optimised dpi using
Resolution Performance Management Technology.
Designed to make life easier and more colourful, at a
price that is affordable, EPSON has a STYLUS inkjet printer
to suit users’ needs for either at home, in the office,
at work or at play.
EPSON STYLUS C63
EPSON STYLUS PHOTO 830U
The EPSON STYLUS C63 is the high quality
printer with outstanding performance ideally
suited for the home user.
Key Benefits
With print speeds of up to
17 pages per minute (ppm) in
black and 9ppm in colour, the
STYLUS C63 delivers outstanding
print performance. Even a full
8 x 10-inch colour photograph
takes only 287 seconds.
Utilising EPSON’s 5760 Optimised dpi resolution, DURABrite INK
and new EPSON DURABrite photo papers, the STYLUS C63 brings
high quality photograph printing to printing. For the real photo lab
finish, the printer also features true edge-to-edge
border-free printing on photo-size standard 100 x 150mm papers.
Whether in the home or office, the STYLUS C63 does more
than “do the job”, it “looks the part”. A stylish, silver case design
that can withstand the rigours of harsh environments protects the
printer’s components to ensure your printer provides you with
years of trouble-free printing enjoyment.
The EPSON STYLUS PHOTO 830U is the perfect printing
companion to your digital camera and a great photo printer
for the whole family.
Key Benefits
The EPSON STYLUS PHOTO 830U is ideal for digital camera owners
who want amazing photo printing results, along with standard text
printing. Create borderless prints and enlargements from a roll —
it’s like having your own digital mini lab at home. Right from the
printer, your images are ready to frame, place in
your album, or give to family and friends.
With the STYLUS PHOTO 830U, printing
high quality photos is easier than you may
have thought. The printer’s front/rear USB
port has been designed to make direct
DSC-to-printer connectivity incredibly
simple and hassle-free.
In addition to superb photographic quality
printing, the EPSON STYLUS PHOTO 830U also produces
high quality professional business documents. With clean crisp text
and vibrant colours, this is also the ideal versatile business printer.
EPSON STYLUS C83
The EPSON STYLUS C83, with its new generation DURABrite INK
for photograph quality prints on plain and specialty photographic
papers, combines the essential features of a small and home office
inkjet printers — quality, versatility, speed and reliability.
Key Benefits
Business documents require the highest possible quality in text,
graphic and photograph printing; and in most cases, they need to
be printed quickly. Whether it’s a tender document, invoice, letter
or even an invitation, the STYLUS C83’s combination of speed,
5760 Optimised dpi with Resolution Performance
Management Technology and new DURABrite INK deliver
documents of outstanding quality… fast.
Photograph printing on plain and specialty photographic
papers is a matter-of-course. Its
combination of 5760 Optimised dpi
resolution, Ultra Micro Dots and
DURABrite INK ensures incredible
quality photograph, graphic and
text prints. And, with its true
edge-to-edge border-free
printing, full A4-size photographs
can be printed in a matter of
minutes.
6 | EPSONow
EPSON STYLUS PHOTO 935
The EPSON STYLUS PHOTO 935 is a major breakthrough in
desktop photo printing and is perfect for the user who wants it all
in a single inkjet printer. Enjoy the personal digital photo-lab
experience at your home or at your office.
Key Benefits
The STYLUS PHOTO 935 is the perfect digital camera
companion that is easy-to-use, offering
high quality and simple photo printing with
card slots for Memory Stick,
Smart Media, Secure Digital,
MultiMedia, Compact Flash and
IBM Microdrive cards as well as an
auto-cutter for roll paper.
Have total access to images with
features like Bluetooth connectivity
through Bluetooth compatible digital cameras. It also supports
direct printing from USB Direct Print compatible digital cameras
via the USB port.
Experience True BorderFree results with images printed
right to the edges of the paper — on all 4 sides and up to A4 size.
View and gain full control over images stored in the digital
camera memory card. Select a photo, choose paper,
resolution and layout, then print. You can even crop and
frame images before printing.
MULTI-FUNCTION PRINTERS
EPSON Multi-Function Printers have been designed and built
to exploit EPSON’s world leadership in digital imaging and
EPSON STYLUS CX5300
The EPSON STYLUS CX5300 is a fast multi-functional
printer that delivers high quality, durable, plain
paper colour copying and scanning — perfect for
the home office and small business.
Key Benefits
Whether printing documents and photographs from
your computer or in standalone copy mode, the EPSON
STYLUS CX5300’s printing technologies will deliver the
outstanding print quality that you get only from the recognised world
colour technologies. They deliver all-in-one printing, colour
copying and scanning.
leader in colour inkjet printing. With a document print speed
of up to 22 pages per minute (for A4 black economy mode),
the STYLUS CX5300 output rate is perfectly suited to the
high printing demands that exist in the small business
environment. This impressive performance has been
achieved by incorporating many of the unique and leadingedge EPSON printing technologies that are found in
EPSON’s highly acclaimed range of STYLUS inkjet printers.
Featured in this new machine is EPSON DURABrite INK,
delivering high levels of lightfastness, gasfastness, smudge- and
even water-resistance.
SCANNERS
A high quality scanner is a powerful tool, adding impact
and colour to a wide range of home, education and
EPSON PERFECTION 1670 PHOTO
Sleek, stylish and loaded with features, the EPSON PERFECTION
1670 and PERFECTION 1670 PHOTO have been designed to
make it easy-to-use and deliver the best results
for the most demanding of home, SOHO and
small business users.
Key Benefits
Consistent high speed scanning of
film (PERFECTION 1670 PHOTO only)
and reflective documents means that you will
have your valuable information in seconds. Another great benefit is
that the PERFECTION 1670 utilises its own dedicated memory to
process images.
Adding even further to the scanner’s speed capabilities is its
standard USB 2.0 Hi-Speed interface for faster data transfer.
Experience amazing depth of colour with the scanner’s high
gradation capabilities.
As a result of its newly designed interface, the EPSON Smart
Panel software offers powerful and user-friendly scanning to file,
OCR, business card, Web and even PDAs, and it is little more than
a mouse click away.
EPSON PERFECTION 3170 PHOTO
The EPSON PERFECTION 3170 gives you high performance photo,
film and document scanning. This is a professional scanning
solution designed for professionals.
Key Benefits
Through a unique combination of
EPSON’s advanced technologies
and applications, this scanner delivers
amazing results — with incredible ease.
Whether you’re scanning photographs, print
business activities. The range of EPSON scanners offers
outstanding results and ease-of-use.
images or film, the EPSON PERFECTION 3170 will provide every
detail and colour nuance with absolute fidelity thanks to the
revolutionary MatrixCCD technology.
Professional photographers, archivists and anyone else
requiring high performance film scanning can rely fully on the
professional film scanning capabilities of the PERFECTION 3170.
With its integrated Transparency Unit (TPU), which features new
powerful lamps for faster scanning speeds, this scanner delivers
absolute perfection in slide and film negative scanning.
EPSON PERFECTION 3200 PHOTO
The EPSON PERFECTION 3200 PHOTO
scanner is the world’s first
3200 x 6400dpi consumer flatbed
scanner, and suitable for all levels of
users — from the novice right through to
the professional film scanner.
Key Benefits
You can enjoy premium quality scanning, plus professional quality
software, enabling you to take control of colour for a complete digital
imaging solution. With image quality and features comparable to that
of more expensive scanners, this high value performer produces sharp,
high quality results at lightning-fast speeds. Scan everything from
negatives, photos, and slides to transparencies, graphics and text.
Delivering astounding 3200 x 6400 dpi resolution, the EPSON
PERFECTION 3200 offers phenomenal clarity and detail, whatever
your task. With EPSON’s SilverFast® SE6 Professional scan and
imaging software, your scanner will consistently deliver vivid,
true-to-life colours, adjust to correct highlights, shadows and
midtones, and even restore old, faded photos to their former glory.
Fast data transfer and increased productivity is a breeze thanks
to the Hi-Speed USB 2.0 connectivity, plus a convenient built-in
4” x 9” transparency unit adapter.
EPSONow | 7
NEWS & PRODUCTS
LASER PRINTERS
The EPSON laser range has been designed to suit the
demands of a wide variety of printing environments —
from stand-alone personal printing for the home and
small office to business workstations and fully-networked
EPSON AcuLaser C900
With the EPSON AcuLaser C900, a single and extremely
cost-effective printer can provide your small office/home office
or workgroup with full colour and monochrome laser printing.
Key Benefits
With a monochrome print speed of 16ppm and colour at 4ppm,
the EPSON AcuLaser C900 is the complete printing solution for
small office/home office and workgroup environments. As your
business or workgroup grows, the AcuLaser C900 can grow to
meet increased demand.
The AcuLaser C900’s combined monochrome
and colour high quality printing capabilities are
surprisingly cost-effective. In fact, the AcuLaser
C900’s monochrome running costs are the same
as a standard monochrome-only laser printer.
The result is a high quality printer that gives your
business all the advantages of professional colour
printing at a very affordable price.
The EPSON AcuLaser C900 brings together a
host of technologies, each adding its own unique
value to the printer’s quality differentiation. EPSON AcuLaser
MicroPolymer Toner, for example, for smaller toner particles that
improve print stability and toner coverage uniformity. Then there is
EPSON AcuLaser Colour 2400 RIT (Resolution Improvement
Technology), for superior 2400dpi photo-like print quality.
These are only two of the “quality” technologies, which also
include EPSON AcuLaser PhotoEnhance 4, AcuLaser Fine Dot
Control technology and many others.
EPSON AcuLaser C1900
When it comes to professional laser printing in small business,
workgroups and the small-to-medium enterprise, EPSON has
achieved this with the AcuLaser C1900 colour laser printer.
Key Benefits
A powerful 300MHz processor coupled with a unique
EPSON-designed AcuLaser Colour ASIC (Application-Specific
Integrated Circuit) is where the AcuLaser C1900 powers ahead
of the rest. Regardless of a print job’s complexity, this technology
combination ensures it’s processed quickly and delivers on the
need for maximum throughput.
High quality and high performance in a
colour laser printer are only two of the
AcuLaser C1900’s versatility factors.
A small footprint for minimal impact on
office/desk space, an intuitive front control
panel and LCD for easy changing of
settings, support for a wide range of media
from envelopes, labels and transparencies
8 | EPSONow
office groups. By utilising the latest laser printing technology,
the EPSON range of lasers offer speed and quality, advanced
connectivity solutions and the flexibility to upgrade as your
business needs grow.
through to paper up to 163gsm, extensive network
and standalone connectivity features, and support for all common
operating systems — everything that makes the AcuLaser C1900 a
versatile business printer.
Quality, performance and versatility aside, the value of the
AcuLaser C1900 is remarkable. It has been designed for easy
maintenance, with colour-coded consumables located behind one
easily accessed front panel.
Print speeds of 4ppm colour and 16ppm monochrome mean
you save costs by using one printer for both monochrome and
colour print jobs. An optional duplex unit gives you two-sided
printing for even further cost savings.
In its own class, the EPSON AcuLaser C1900 leads the field
in quality, performance, versatility and value.
EPSON AcuLaser C4100
The EPSON AcuLaser C4100 is a
cost-effective, high-speed colour laser printer
suitable for all types of businesses.
Key Benefits
Create and produce professional standard full
colour documents and 2-sided printing, all in house.
The EPSON AcuLaser C4100 is a high-speed, economical
printer that is easy to network and easy to use.
Enjoy high quality monochrome and colour printing thanks
to the MicroPolymer Toner technology, thus providing rich, vivid
colour to all your documents.
Additionally, conserve valuable office space with the compact
size of this printer.
The EPSON AcuLaser C4100 is a versatile, cost-effective
resource for producing high quality business documents.
Just as with its predecessor, the EPSON AcuLaser C4000
colour laser printer, the EPSON AcuLaser C4100’s
high-performance Tandem Print engine uses a 4-beam
laser diode to expose all four of the photoconductor
drums simultaneously.
As a result, the
AcuLaser C4100
is four times faster
than conventional
colour laser colour
printers, and can
produce full-colour
output at speeds
up to 21.6 ppm.
PROJECTORS
The EPSON EMP range of portable multimedia projectors
enable users to project screen images directly from the
computer and incorporate graphics, animated sequences,
even live video — all with stereo sound.
Whatever the requirements, EPSON has a fully-featured
data and video projector to suit different users’ needs and
brings a new dimension to the art of professional presentation,
mobility and personal entertainment experience.
EPSON EMP-S1
EPSON EMP 7800
The new and powerful shining light of portable projectors,
the EPSON EMP-S1 is designed specifically as the projector for
anyone, anywhere and anytime.
Key Benefits
The EPSON EMP-S1 is a
feature-packed projector at an
extremely affordable price. Enjoy
high quality DVD entertainment, to
experiencing the big-screen at home, to gaming
(console or PC) for total game involvement… plus much more.
This is the first EPSON projector to include the new Smart
Presentation Remote Control that delivers incredible ease of
operation; giving you additional presentation functionality,
including page up/down, mouse functions and audio-visual mute.
A lightweight small form factor means true portability, yet
the EMP-S1 has a projection power of an impressive 1200 ANSI
lumens — perfect for taking full advantage of the projector’s five
pre-programmed picture modes: Dynamic, Presentation, Theatre,
Living Room, and sRGB.
The EMP-S1 delivers a level of versatility that you would
expect and demand in a modern, high-performance presentation
projector.
Whether in a classroom, boardroom or lecture theatre,
the EPSON EMP 7800 is an incredibly high quality presentation
projector designed to suit all presentation situations, needs
and locations.
Key Benefits
The EMP 7800’s automatic keystone correction feature
is one of the most advanced of its kind in the world.
Capable of automatic horizontal correction of +/-20 degrees
(a full 40 degree arc) and vertical
correction of +/-40 degrees
(a full 80 degree arc),
the EMP 7800 has been
designed for incredibly easy
installation and fine tuning.
Wall Shot Technology detects
automatically the colour of the projection
screen, and then simply adjust the projected image colours to
ensure optimum colour projection.
With its 3,500 ANSI lumens rating, the EMP-7800 delivers
brilliant presentation quality, even in the largest of conference
rooms or concert halls.
EMP TW-10
The EPSON EMP TW-10 is a high performance home theatre
projector that lets you sit back, enjoy and really immerse yourself
in the real home theatre experience.
Key Benefits
With the EPSON TW-10, you’ll get beautiful, true colour reproduction
that delivers the best colour space and purity thanks to EPSON
incorporating the ColorReality Technology — a technology that
was previously only available in high-end
projectors. Now, rich colour
expression and smooth gradation
are yours for the taking.
The EPSON projector delivers
the big screen experience without
the big cost. By utilising technologies
already developed for high-end projectors and capitalising on its
position as the largest producer of LCD projector componentry,
EPSON achieved with the TW-10 what the home theatre enthusiast
has been waiting for — incredible and affordable performance.
When people talk about the home theatre, then it’s the “big
screen” that immediately comes to mind. With the EPSON TW-10,
the big screen is what you get — up to an amazing 11.65 metres.
If you thought plasma screen televisions had big screens, then wait
to you sit down for the TW-10’s perfect view.
EPSON EMP 8300
For businesses that demand flexibility, control, along with powerful
display technology, the EMP 8300 is a powerful, brilliant and
feature packed projector that will light up the auditorium and
dazzle your audience.
Key Benefits
With its incredibly high
5,200 ANSI lumens rating,
the EMP 8300 delivers
brilliant presentation
quality, even in the largest
of conference rooms or
concert halls.
The higher the contrast the
more vivid and sharp the projected image — which is precisely
what the EMP 8300 delivers.
Its high contrast of 1200:1 means the entire colour gamut is
projected with incredible precision, ensuring your presentations
have maximum impact.
The EMP 8300’s automatic keystone correction feature is one
of the most advanced of its kind in the world.
Capable of automatic horizontal correction of +/-40 degrees
(a full 80 degree arc) and vertical correction of +/-45 degrees
(a full 90 degree arc), the EMP 8300 has been designed for
incredibly easy installation and fine tuning.
EPSONow | 9
NEWS & PRODUCTS
Colour Shifting...
Authenticity Is Shifting
Counterfeiting is something that has been around for a long
time and seems to have little chance of disappearing in
the near future. Even as far back as 540 BC it was a
problem for the Spartans who were besieging the people
on the Greek island of Samos. It is said that in order to
persuade the Spartans to leave, Polycrates, the ruler of
Samos, paid them off with lead coins covered in gold.
I
IN THE 21ST CENTURY, the issues of counterfeiting, forgery and piracy of high-value
brand name products are now global
concerns of immense proportion. In fact,
according to DNA Australia, a leading
provider of anti-counterfeiting, antidivergent security products, the cost to US
business alone is about US$200 billion in
lost revenues and more than 750,000 lost
jobs each year.
For users of EPSON printers who recognise the vital importance of using only
genuine EPSON inks in their printers,
counterfeiting has been a problem for quite
a while. Counterfeiters have proven quite
adept at creating look-alike ink cartridges,
but unfortunately, that’s where it stops.
While the packaging may appear authentic,
The Colour Shifting Logo, shown here on the packaging as it’s shifted back and forth
in the light, alternates from bronze to green
10 | EPSONow
it’s the ink that proves to be the problem
— the lead within the gold.
To help users of EPSON products protect their investment, EPSON has taken a
major step forward by introducing a new
anti-counterfeit measure — the Colour
Shifting Label. Gradually replacing the
familiar EPSON hologram sticker, the
Colour Shifting Label is a security measure
used within a number of industries and
even with currency in the US, China and
other countries.
Identify the Genuine Article
There are only a couple of guidelines that
relate to identifying genuine EPSON products that have the new Colour Shifting
Label. First, look at the label and by shifting the packaging slightly, the colour of
the label should shift between bronze
and green. These two colours have been
reserved exclusively for EPSON under a
special products category and no other
colours should be seen at all.
The next point to note is that at no time
will a genuine EPSON product feature both
the familiar hologram and newly introduced
Colour Shifting Label. For this reason, even
though the label is already being used, purchasers will likely come across a number of
products with the hologram until such time
as stock runs out.
When EPSONow spoke to EPSON’s
Consumables Business Manager, Molly
McHugh, about the new label, she commented: “We have seen survey results that
show us over 90 per cent of users will not
buy a product if they know it’s a counterfeit. The vast majority of our inkjet printer
users understand the importance of using
genuine EPSON inks to improve overall performance and significantly extend
printer life.”
“While we have invested heavily in
introducing this anti-counterfeiting technology, we believe that it is in the best
interests of our users as well as those
organisations that sell and support EPSON
products.”
NEWS & PRODUCTS
Photograph Papers
Take just a moment to examine the paper on which this
article is printed. Sure, it’s just a piece of paper but it’s
the culmination of over 2,000 years of development and
refinement. It’s a piece of paper developed specifically
for magazines, which is precisely the reason we choose
to use it. It has all the right properties — weight, colour,
density and the list goes on.
T
THEN OF COURSE, there is the
ink used to print the very
words you’re reading right
now. The printers have chosen
to use this ink because it is the
best match for the magazine’s
paper. It really is all about
making the right choices in
ink and paper to achieve the
best possible result.
Paper for
Photographs
The range of inkjet printer photographic
paper currently on the market is phenomenal; but there is an important caveat
attached to this ready supply — even in
photographic paper, it’s important to bear
in mind that not all are created equal. Just
as the manufacturers of this magazine’s
paper created a product best suited to
use in magazine printing, EPSON has
invested enormous resources in creating a
range of photographic papers specifically
for photograph printing.
EPSON Matte Paper — Heavyweight:
Available in A4 and A3, this paper provides
a non-glare surface and is ideal for high
Colourlife Photo Paper is great for your
high quality photograph prints
Matte Paper — Heavyweight
is well suited to your
photographs, whether they
be full A4 size or on a
certificate or invitation
quality photographs and images
with a matte photo-like finish.
Another paper great for
perfect colour reproduction is
the EPSON Colorlife™ Photo
Paper, which is also available
in both A4 or A3.
Ideal for professional images, it’s
a high quality photo paper with a
smooth finish for fade-resistant
photos.
With the A3 and A4 EPSON
Photo Quality Glossy Paper,
the paper-backed glossy surface
is ideal for flyers and presentation
When you’re enlarging
photographs, Premium Glossy
Photo Paper is the paper for you
If you’re creating your own photo albums,
brochures or even school projects,
Double-Sided Matte Paper is ideal
folders where vibrant and colourful graphics
are a must.
The most recent to hit the market are
EPSON’s new Premium Glossy Photo
Paper 100x150mm and Premium Semigloss
Photo Paper 100x150mm, which open the
door to what is literally a new dimension
of EPSON photograph printing. Take a few
minutes to read about these innovative
papers elsewhere on this page to discover
their amazing versatility.
To find out the best
EPSON paper — and ink
— to match up with your
EPSON STYLUS printer,
visit
www.epson.com.au,
select your printer and then
click on the consumables
link. Then, to make life even
easier, you can shop on-line
at www.epson.com.au for the
full range of inks and papers.
THE RIGHT SIZE
With EPSON’s Premium Glossy and Semigloss Photo Papers 100x150mm, it’s
about size, affordability, borderfree printing, durability, and looking the part.
Designed to deliver all the features and benefits of a traditional silver-halide
photograph, these new papers give you total control for the perfect photograph finish.
EPSON Photo Size Papers are the perfect size; pre-cut and delivered in
100 x 150mm sheets, which is precisely the size of traditional photographs.
With these papers and an EPSON STYLUS PHOTO printer, true BorderFree
edge-to-edge photograph printing without the need to trim the paper is par
for the course. A perfect border every time! Add to this its brilliant colour, print
lightfastness* rating of over 10 years, and you have the best possible paper
for brilliant colour and long-life photograph prints.
* This lightfastness test is a simulation of colour fading in an indoor preservation
condition under fluorescent light with glass mount. However, display life may vary
depending on the conditions that you display your prints. Factors, other than light,
such as ozone, temperature and humidity can affect the print life.
EPSONow | 11
THE EPSON EDGE
DURABrite INK
S
SERIOUS DOCUMENT and photograph printing calls for a lot more than exceptional
hardware and software. It demands total
excellence at every level, including the ink
itself, which is why EPSON devotes enormous efforts to the research and development of inks that continually exceed the
print quality demands of its customers.
In the last edition of EPSONow, we
touched briefly on a new ink that was a
direct result of that research and development — EPSON DURABrite. This innovative ink was designed for incredible print
durability, with even plain paper prints
featuring up to 70 years lightfastness* as
well as amazingly high levels of gasfastness
and water- and smudge-resistance. Added
to this is the brilliance and depth of colour
12 | EPSONow
for which EPSON inks are famous. Much of
this is due to every DURABrite INK particle
being encapsulated by a protective resin
coating, which provides a smooth, hard and
uniform surface to all printed output.
Since its introduction with the EPSON
STYLUS C82 printer, DURABrite INK has
proven to be so popular with users that
EPSON has extended its use into a growing number of new printer models, which
now include:
• STYLUS C63
• STYLUS C82/83
• STYLUS CX5100/5300
So just what is it about DURABrite INK
that’s causing so many users to applaud
its print quality? To answer this question,
let’s break it down and look at each of
DURABrite INK’s main features.
Brilliant Colour
When inks are absorbed by the paper’s
fibres, which happens frequently with plain
and recycled papers, light has less chance to
reflect the colour. The fibres actually diffuse
light and result in prints that lack brightness,
definition and colour range. DURABrite INK
has been designed in such a way as to reduce
dramatically the amount of absorption by
the paper and thereby result in greater light
reflection from the colour particles.
Durability
Durability is one of the most important features of DURABrite INK and is achieved by
utilising polymer and resin technologies in all
colours. This is in stark contrast to many other
inks on the market that deliver durability in
only black ink. With DURABrite INK’s all-colour durability on plain, recycled and specialty
papers, the entire print is smudge-resistant,
lightfast, gasfast and water-resistant.
Lightfastness
EPSON’s accelerated tests have shown
that business documents and photographs
printed with DURABrite INK last up to 70
years* on plain paper and up to 80 years*
on specialty matte papers. Because the colour agent is contained within the very core
INK pigment resin coating is insoluble and
develops a protective surface, prints on all
types of paper have extremely high waterand smudge-resistance characteristics.
Gasfastness
Airborne contaminants have been shown
to have severe impact on the life of photos
and other prints. Just as DURABrite INK’s
formulation technology ensures extended
lightfastness, it also resists the effects of
airborne contaminants and gases for up
70 years on plain paper and up to 80 years
on specialty matte papers before noticeable
fading occurs.
Anti-Feathering
The unique colour core ink particle and
its resin coating that make up EPSON’s
DURABrite INK
of each ink particle, it is protected against
the destructive effects of ultra violet light
year after year and decade after decade.
Water- and
Smudge-Resistant
DURABrite INK’s resin coating brings
with it an enormous step forward in prints
that are water- and smudge-resistant.
Typically, documents with the ability to
resist water and rough handling without
smearing/smudging had to be printed on
specially coated papers. As the DURABrite
DURABrite INK print,
prior to exposure to light
Feathering (also known as bleeding) occurs
when ink is absorbed into and across the
fibres of the paper; and is particularly prevalent when printing on plain and recycled
papers. The result is a loss in definition of
text, and colours that bleed into each other
when printing photographs and graphics.
DURABrite INK’s technologies help avoid
the colouring particles being absorbed by
the paper, keeping them closer to the surface and thereby virtually eliminating the
feathering effect.
A comparison of the wide scope of colours
available when printing with EPSON’s
DURABrite INK as opposed to another ink
The Best Media
with DURABrite INK and have as their four
main characteristics: glossiness, image quality,
high resistance and quick dry colour stability.
DURABrite INK is much more than just
a new ink — it’s a printing innovation that
is forming the foundation for new home
and business printing applications.
To achieve the best possible inkjet printing results, there must be an ideal balance
between printer, ink, application and paper.
With the printers mentioned earlier in this
article along with DURABrite INK and photograph printing, the paper balances are the
newly introduced EPSON DURABrite INK
Photo Paper and DURABrite INK Glossy
Photo Paper.
These two new papers are specifically
designed to extend the benefits of printing
* Light-resistance rating based on accelerated
testing of prints, displayed indoors, under
glass. Actual print stability will vary according
to image, display conditions, light intensity,
paper, humidity and atmospheric conditions.
Ratings based on ink only; some papers
may discolour over time. EPSON does not
guarantee the longevity of prints.
For maximum print life, display all prints under
glass or lamination and properly store them.
DURABrite INK print,
after exposure to light
Dye Ink print,
prior to exposure to light
Dye Ink print,
after exposure to light
EPSONow | 13
USING EPSON
Photograph Printing
Without the PC
If you’re like most of us and the appeal of printing your
own photographs is fairly strong, then this article may
well make it even stronger. Normally, printing your
photographs requires a personal computer to manage
the layout, paper selection and print number details.
All this is fine — and quite powerful — but sometimes
it can be a bit of overkill, especially when you don’t
even need to have a PC attached to your printer in
order to create great photographic prints.
T
THIS IS WHERE EPSON headed several years
ago when it released the STYLUS PHOTO
895, which featured an LCD control panel,
memory card slot, and optional LCD preview monitor.
All of a sudden, having access to a PC
in order to print your photographs became
a thing of the past. Since the PHOTO 895,
things have moved even further forward,
especially with the recently released STYLUS
PHOTO 935. Along with everything featured with its predecessor, the PHOTO 935
also boasts BlueTooth and CD/R and Zip
drive support.
The Control
The printer’s control panel is the ‘key to the
lock’, so to speak, when it comes to PC-free
printing. It allows you to select options on
the printer that normally would need to be
set via software on the PC. Through the
control panel, the available options include:
print mode, paper type, paper size, page
layout, number of copies, print quality,
photo enhancement and most importantly,
which images to print.
With printers, such as the STYLUS
PHOTO 935, the control panel offers all
the options to print on photo, matte or
plain paper, A4 through to 100x150mm
photographic paper, and select the type of
filter or brightness level you want applied
to the photograph print.
The level of photograph manipulation functionality built in to many of the
STYLUS PHOTO printers is such that even
making a sepia print of a colour photograph can be achieved with barely a few
button presses.
This combination of control features
ensures the highest quality photograph
printing with total ease and simplicity, making the new generation EPSON
STYLUS PHOTO printers more versatile
than you may have thought.
The Visual —
Seeing Is Believing
An essential tool for PC-free photograph
printing is the optional Liquid Crystal
Display (LCD) preview monitor; a feature
on all the latest EPSON STYLUS PHOTO
printers. Connected to the printer within
a matter of seconds, the LCD preview
monitor provides the user with a 2.5-inch
colour preview of images stored on either a
digital camera memory card or, if connected
directly, the camera’s internal memory.
Used in conjunction with the printer’s
control panel, the LCD preview monitor
delivers visual feedback on many of the
in-built functions for photograph printing
and layout. Even the creation of an index
of photographs contained on the memory
card or the digital camera can be achieved
with the control panel and previewed using
the monitor.
The Connection
EPSON’s STYLUS PHOTO 935’s LCD control panel and optional preview monitor
14 | EPSONow
There is a variety of connections available
when it comes to EPSON PC-free printing
depending on the model and capabilities of
your camera and STYLUS PHOTO printer.
USB Direct Print
For those people already somewhat experienced in using a digital camera, then the USB
camera-to-PC connection is probably quite
familiar. With the STYLUS PHOTO 935, this
was taken a step further with the introduction
of USB Direct Printing (camera-to-printer).
USB Direct Printing allows the many
USB Direct Print-enabled digital cameras
(refer to the EPSON Web site for details
of the compatible digital cameras) to print
directly to the printer and bypass the computer. All that’s required is to plug in the
USB cable from the camera to the printer
and your images can be accessed directly
from the printer’s control panel. Of course,
with the LCD preview monitor, the images
can be displayed for greater flexibility.
Bluetooth® (Wireless)
Another EPSON PC-free printing connectivity feature first introduced with the
STYLUS PHOTO 935 is Bluetooth wireless technology. With an optional adapter
for the printer, the PHOTO 935 can access
photos on certain Bluetooth-enabled digital
cameras without even the need for a cable
connection.
Memory Card
The memory card slot option, which varies according to printer model, allows
you to slip your memory card, with your
photographs stored on it, straight in to
1
2
3
By slipping your memory card straight into the STYLUS PHOTO printer,
the hassle of starting up your PC and uploading your photographs is avoided
the printer. Depending on the STYLUS
PHOTO model, there is support for:
■ Compact Flash Card Type I and II
■ Smart Media Memory Card
■ Memory Stick
■ Secure Digital (SD)
■ MultiMedia
■ IBM MicroDrive
The beauty of being able to just slip
your memory card into the printer is that
photograph printing has really become a
simple plug-and-print operation.
ZIP Drive & CD-R Support
The capabilities of EPSON’s STYLUS
PHOTO PC-free photographic printing
extend now — with the STYLUS PHOTO
935 — to ZIP drive and CD-R support.
This new printer can store data directly to
100MB and 250MB USB-powered Iomega
Zip drives without a computer attached.
Making the printer even more of a newage photo lab, it is able to print directly from
compatible external CD-R drives (refer to
EPSON’s Web site for compatible CD-R
drives) as well as being able to download
images from the printer's card slots and
burn them directly onto a CD-R.
What it all comes down to is the ability
to print high quality photographs without
the need for a personal computer. The
absence of the computer no longer means
compromising on quality.
4
The USB connection available with EPSON’s STYLUS PHOTO 935 allows you to plug
your camera directly into the printer and print the images direct from the camera
EPSONow | 15
CASE STUDY
Amateur Photographer:
Professional Photographs
A
A PROFESSIONAL RADIOGRAPHER by trade
and amateur photographer in his spare
time, Mark Johnston has moved away
from traditional silver-halide photography
in favour of more versatile digital photograph technologies. Living in the New
South Wales town of Dubbo, Johnston
takes full advantage of these technologies
to create photographic prints that deliver
incredible reproduction of colour in the
nature photographs he prefers.
On one of his occasional trips to
Sydney, Johnston dropped in to a nearby
printer reseller and explained to one of the
staff members his needs for photograph
quality prints.“I had been using an EPSON
STYLUS COLOR 760 for several years; and
while it was an incredibly good and reliable
printer, it simply didn’t have the photograph printing capabilities I was after,” he
said. “As soon as I started talking about
photographic quality, the reseller took
me straight over to an EPSON STYLUS
PHOTO 915 that was on display.”
Aside from the six-colour inkjet system
and Optimised 5760dpi (dots per inch)
resolution using Resolution Performance
Management Technology, Johnston quickly
saw the advantages the printer would
bring him with photo lab features such as
the roll paper support, PC-free printing
capabilities and true border-free photograph printing.
Barely two months after purchasing the
STYLUS PHOTO 915, Johnston entered
three of his photographs in a competition
run by the Wellington Show Society. “I live
on a property that has magnificent views of
the surrounding nature,” he said, “so I used
this as the subject of the photographs.”
The three photographs, which Johnston
printed on the STYLUS PHOTO 915 using
EPSON Photo Quality Glossy Paper, were
so impressive they won him first prize in
the competition’s Landscape Section as
well as overall champion in the Combined
Landscape/Seascape section.
Brilliant Colour Quality
Johnston’s photographs received high
praise for their composition, subject and
quality throughout the course of the
competition. This came in particular from
Competition Judge, John Sunderland. “The
true-to-life reproduction of nature’s colours in Mark’s photographs helped make
this a brilliant series,” he said. “When I
was told that the photographs had been
printed on a desktop printer I was amazed.
These photographs really stood out and
the quality of the paper certainly had a
part to play in this.”
Lasting Impression
Taken at sunrise in the town of Maryvale, near Wellington, Johnston calls this
photograph ‘Maryvale Dawn’
16 | EPSONow
In exploring the photograph quality printing capabilities of the STYLUS PHOTO
915, Johnston combined imagination and
technology to create a unique gift for his
father on his 80th birthday. After scanning
old family photographs, he created a montage of memories which he then printed
on EPSON Archival Matte Photo Paper. “I
wanted to give the montage a special look
and feel,” he said.
“The Archival paper had the right texture and with a lightfastness rating of over
25 years*, I knew that the quality would be
long-lasting.”
IN THIS STORY
Premium Glossy Photo Paper
Ideal for
photographs
and framed
photographic
prints. Features a
new resin coating
that provides a feel
and texture almost identical to
that of photographic media
This sunset is one of the three images Johnston entered in the Wellington Show Society’s
Photography Competition that won him the overall Landscape/Seascape Division
I now use only genuine EPSON papers,
simply because I want true photographic
quality prints.”
Given that Johnston lives in the country, he has a strong preference for purchasing products on-line rather than travelling
into town. For his genuine EPSON inks and
papers, he joined Club EPSON; EPSON
Australia’s Web-based service that offers
users a wealth of resources along with
full on-line purchasing. “It saves me an
enormous amount of time from having to
travel into town to purchase consumables,”
Johnston commented. “Also, I know that
the products I receive are genuine EPSON
products and for me, that’s important.”
Going Forward
Photographed on ANZAC Day, this is the photograph that won Johnston first prize for an
individual photograph in the Landscape section of the competition
According to Johnston, when his
father received the montage his immediate response was: “Since when do you have
your own photo lab?”
Regardless of the enormous number
of technologies brought together in the
STYLUS PHOTO 915, ease of operation
and set-up has long been one of its most
appealing features for users. “With my old
printer I was forever having to adjust colour settings to get optimum quality prints,”
Johnston said.
“But with the STYLUS PHOTO 915 I’ve
had no need at all to adjust the settings. All
that’s needed is to use the printer control
panel to specify the type of print I’m creating
and the type of paper on which I’m printing
and the software takes care of the rest.”
When Johnston first began using the
STYLUS PHOTO 915, he experimented
with different brands of paper — it was an
experiment that was as short as it was dramatic. “I bought a well-known photo paper
and ran it through the STYLUS PHOTO
915,” he explained. “The result was disappointing to say the least. All I can really
say about it is that it was definitely not the
‘photo quality’ paper it was claimed to be.
For Johnston, the combination of his digital
still camera and EPSON STYLUS PHOTO
915 has opened up an entirely new world
in photography. Already, he is planning
the purchase of an LCD Preview Monitor
to experiment with PC-free printing; and
with the printer’s photographic paper roll
features, full landscape photograph prints
are on the agenda. “With the ability to
print border-free on the roll paper, I’ll be
able to create landscape photographs that
I’ve never been able to achieve,” he said.
“I suppose my father’s question about
whether I had my own photo lab was
pretty well on the mark, after all.”
* Light-resistance rating based on accelerated
testing of prints, displayed indoors, under
glass. Actual print stability will vary according
to image, display conditions, light intensity,
paper, humidity and atmospheric conditions.
Ratings based on ink only; some papers may
discolour over time. EPSON does not
guarantee the longevity of prints.
For maximum print life, display all prints under
glass or lamination and properly store them.
EPSONow | 17
THE EPSON EDGE
Multi-Function Printers
When it comes to buying new technology for small or home
offices, you probably wince at the thought of its cost, desk
space and the effort involved in learning how to operate it
effectively. However with a Multi-Function Printer (MFP),
this is far from being true.
THERE’S NOTHING ALL that new about MFPs,
but when EPSON recently came to market
with its EPSON STYLUS CX3100 and
CX5100 models, it was MFP quality that
took a sudden leap forward. Now if MFPs
happen to be a new concept to you, then
there’s nothing to be alarmed about.
Essentially, they are the combination of
printing and scanning technologies in a
single device that can perform the multifunctional purposes of printing, scanning,
copying and faxing.
The big advantage is that they cost a
fraction of what it would be to purchase each
T
item separately and… you get the added
benefit of colour copying. In this article, we’ll
take a look at the advantages of using an
MFP within the small and home office and
discuss some of the issues worth considering
before making an MFP purchase.
Keeping It Small
One of the most quickly apparent benefits
of an MFP is size. Having a single device
on the desktop as opposed to two or even
three or four is an incredible space saver,
especially in light of the fact that most people have limited working space.
Most home and small offices have
scanners, printers, a fax machine and
possibly a photocopier. Quite aside from
the power consumption of these four
machines, it’s space that is often the main
issue. With a single MFP, such as the
EPSON STYLUS CX3100 or the newly
released STYLUS CX5300 and a personal
computer, all the functionality of the four
machines is right on the desktop.
Yet, while small is often better, reliability can sometimes be an issue. In order
to minimise space, some third-party MFPs
have been designed with technologies
unable to withstand the constant rigours
of performing multiple functions. After
all, if only a single component of the MFP
fails, then your scanner, printer, fax and
photocopier are out of action. Reliability,
therefore, is critical.
In order to establish the reliability of an
MFP you should:
■ Examine the machine itself for sturdiness. There is a lot of technology in an
MFP and a solid casing to protect it is
essential.
■ Consider the manufacturer. Take time
to investigate the support offerings of the
manufacturer. This should encompass both
telephone- and Web-based support along
with a network of qualified service agents.
■ Evaluate the technologies. An MFP
should deliver leading technology in scanning and printing. If the technologies have
a proven track record of reliability in standalone scanners and printers, then you’re
well on your way to a positive purchase.
Control, Control and Control
EPSON’s STYLUS CX5300 is the Multi-Function Printer offering you print,
scan and copy capabilities all with DURABrite INK
18 | EPSONow
Office equipment, whether it’s a fax
machine, photocopier, printer or scanner,
really should be easy to use. Most of us
have probably seen high end photocopiers with control panels that look as if the
user needs to pass a test before using
the machine. Certainly they look quite
impressive, but apart from certain collation functions — found mainly in very
expensive photocopiers — it boils down
to controlling:
■ Number of copies
■ Size (reduce and increase)
■ Paper size
One touch copying with an EPSON Multi-Function Printer
■ Quality
■ Type of copy (colour or black and white)
Interestingly, all these functions are
incorporated with the MFP software and in
a much easier and more intuitive form. As
you can see in the picture of the STYLUS
CX3100’s photocopy control panel, the MFP
software brings with it the benefit of being
able to use larger screens to display all the
options, rather than stepping through small
and often cryptic photocopier machine
control screens.
Print Durability
It helps to look back a little bit in history
to appreciate further the potential benefits
of MFPs.
One of the major complaints about
many facsimile machines was (and is)
that thermal printing technology delivers prints that cannot withstand the test
of time and environment. Thermal prints
fade very quickly and when exposed
to sunlight, fading is even more pronounced. This is why facsimile machine
manufacturers have moved to using
inkjet technologies and others that provide longer lasting prints.
A screen-shot of the Copy Utility and
all of the settings available for alterations
With the vast majority of PCs now configured with built-in fax/modems the need
for dedicated fax machines — particularly
in the small and home office environments
— is virtually non-existent. And, with
MFPs gaining such great popularity, they
are adding even further to the decline in
need for fax machines. After all, the combination of scanning and printing (MFP)
and transmission/receipt (PC) provides the
majority of users with a total faxing solution
perfectly suited to their needs. But the issue
of print durability still remains.
In business, small or large, fax documents often need to be retained for many
years. During that time they are likely to be
subjected to constant handling, sunlight,
airborne contaminants and even moisture.
So even though the use of inkjet technology in MFPs is an enormous step forward
in fax document durability, it can remain an
important issue to consider.
When EPSON released the STYLUS
CX5100, it was the first MFP worldwide to
feature print durability based on the unique
EPSON DURABrite INK. The results of this
ink are prints that can in fact withstand
extensive exposure to airborne contaminants, ultra-violet light (the Sun) and even
water.
As mentioned earlier in the article,
MFPs deliver the additional and very real
benefit of colour. Unfortunately, just as
there is an enormous disparity of colour
quality between the inkjet printer offerings of various companies, so too is there
in the MFP market. Just because an MFP
can be significantly less expensive than
even a single dedicated fax machine, you
shouldn’t have to compromise on print and
colour quality.
This is precisely why EPSON has
incorporated DURABrite INK with its new
MFPs. (See article on page 12 for more
information on DURABrite INK.)
Right at Home
Although the MFP is finding particular
favour in the small and home office, it is
also ideally suited for the cost-conscious
home user.
For example, you could be the manager
of a sporting team and find that you have
to copy the team’s game times every week
for each player. Instead of going to your
local copy shop every week and paying
a set amount per page, you can use your
MFP instead. This is both cost-effective and
time-efficient.
You might be on a committee of some
sort where photocopying, faxing, printing
and scanning are all part of the regular
administrative requirements. In these situations an MFP represents the perfect solution. Running costs can be minimised, the
functions are there whenever needed, and
even cash-poor committees have it within
their resources to purchase it.
The Final Word
The subjects we’ve dealt with in this article
on MFPs have barely scratched the surface.
People everywhere are discovering the benefits of these devices either as a replacement
or even to complement existing individual
machines. Just as the world of printers and
scanners continues to experience major
leaps forward in technology and functionality, so too is the world of MFPs.
If printing and scanning play any part at
all in your home or office, then consider the
benefits of an MFP.
EPSONow | 19
CASE STUDY
Multi-Function Printers
URBAN ROOTS
20 | EPSONow
IN THIS STORY
Landscaping Sydney as a
Natural Wonderland
D
DESIGNING, CONSTRUCTING and maintaining garden landscapes from an extensive
range of plants and products, then blending in the needs of clients with modern
day life is what Urban Roots does best.
With five employees, Urban Roots caters
for commercial and residential clients in
the Sydney metropolitan area. Among its
impressive list of clients are Jones Lang
Lasalle and Knight Frank, both commercial
managing agents responsible for managing
some of the most prominent Sydney CBD
properties.
The Challenge:
Improving Technology
Just as in most small businesses, printing is
important for Urban Roots, with invoices,
letters, proposals being only a few of the
day-to-day yet essential documents requiring hard copy output.
For Dean Aikin, Urban Roots founder
and director, replacing his aging thirdparty printer with a new model that would
deliver a quality of print to reflect the
professionalism of his business was long
overdue. Added to this was his need for
a scanner that could be used for copying
office documents and forms, as well as
creating electronic copies of manually prepared landscape designs.
“To be quite up front,” Aikin said,
“I really didn’t want to purchase three
separate devices — a printer, scanner and
photocopier. I was after something that
gave me the total functionality of all these
devices but without taking up valuable
office space and the overheads in running
costs and purchase price.”
The Solution:
a Multi-Function Printer
With his offices located in Balmain, Aikin
visited a Harvey Norman store and
explained his requirements to one of the
store’s sales staff members. “As soon as I
outlined what I wanted and didn’t want, he
took me straight over to look at the EPSON
STYLUS CX5100,” he said.
According to the store’s manager,
Richard Clark, the arrival of the STYLUS
CX5100 on the market has given a growing number of his customers a new view
on the flexibility and quality of MultiFunction Printers (MFPs).
“We’re constantly being asked by
customers to recommend a single solution to meet multiple requirements,” he
said. “And just as with Dean, we’re able
to demonstrate that quality of printing,
copying and scanning is very obtainable
and extremely affordable.”
STYLUS CX5100
The fast Multi-Functional Printer
that delivers high
quality, durable,
plain paper
colour copying
and scanning
— perfect
for the home
office and small business.
DURABrite INK
Designed for incredible print
durability, with even plain paper
prints featuring up to 70 years
lightfastness* as well as amazingly
high levels of gasfastness and
water- and smudge-resistance.
Saving Time and Money
As soon as the STYLUS CX5100 was installed
at the Urban Roots office, it was immediately
put to use. “I needed to make copies of the
company’s BAS statements and send the
originals off to the Australian Taxation
Office,” Aikin said. “Previously, I would have
to go to the local printing shop for copies
and then send them away via normal post.
Now, with the STYLUS CX5100, I’m able to
make necessary copies of important documents whenever I require them.”
Exploring New
Functionalities
Aikin has a number of plans on how to
explore the functionalities of his newly
acquired STYLUS CX5100.“Scanning is going
to play a very big role in our work in the near
future,” he said. “In the landscaping industry,
it is important that when I draw up plans of
gardens, the quality of reproduction, be it in
colour or monochrome, is of superior quality.
“Often, I go to meetings with potential
clients and present plans on how I propose
to landscape and maintain their gardens.
These plans assist my company in winning
business, therefore these documents need
to be professionally presented — colours
have to be vivid and text needs to be
sharp,” Aikin stated. “With the incredible quality of colour I’m getting with the
STYLUS CX5100, we get just this!”
EPSONow | 21
THE EPSON EDGE
This is the nozzle plate of the Micro Piezo Print Head. The minuscule white streaks rising
from the seven thin white lines in the plate are actually rays of light filtering through the
minute nozzles of the seven different colours of ink
22 | EPSONow
It’s What’s Inside
THAT COUNTS
Take a moment to look at an EPSON inkjet printer — any
model will do — and one from another vendor. As expected,
the differences are much, much more than superficial.
It’s way down in the inner workings of the inkjet printer
where the differences are really noticeable; and when it
comes to how each printer actually gets the ink from the
printer itself to the paper, the differences can be enormous.
G
GENERALLY, THERE ARE two methods of
“ejecting” ink from the printhead to the
paper — thermal, which is used by the
majority of inkjet printer manufacturers,
and EPSON’s Micro Piezo technology.
While both achieve the end result of getting
ink from the printer to the paper, it’s the
difference in quality that really matters.
Worlds Apart
To start things, we’ll take a look at the
thermal method of producing ink droplets. In a thermal mechanism, a minute
electric heater underneath the ink chamber heats the ink to the point where, just
as with boiling water, a bubble is formed,
which forces the ink out on to the surface
of the paper. Even though researchers have
made significant advances in controlling
the size of the ink droplet and the direction of its travel once ejected, the nature of
the mechanism means a certain degree of
control is unattainable.
With the EPSON Micro Piezo print
head technology, though, incredibly high
control over the droplet size and its direction is achieved. The origin of this technology is EPSON’s Piezo technology, which
involves a piezo crystal connected to an
electrical circuit. When a specific amount
of power is applied across the circuit, the
crystal expands by a relative amount.
By applying this technology to inkjet
printing, EPSON created a minuscule,
highly controlled pump. With the piezo
crystal acting as the pump’s piston and
controlled by precise electrical charges, it
expands to the perfect size, thereby creating an ink droplet that with certain EPSON
inkjet printers can be as small as 3 picolitres
— approximately 4 times smaller than the
diameter of a human hair.
Just before we proceed, it’s worth
mentioning that it is the piezo technology that underpins another EPSON inkjet
innovation — the Variable Sized Droplet
Technology (VSDT). By applying different
electrical charges to the piezo crystal, the
print head is capable of delivering variable
sized droplets. It all depends on the nature
of the charge. With VSDT, the printer can
deliver extremely fine ink droplets for fine
detail print areas and larger sized droplets
for print areas of a single colour.
Another difference you may notice in
inkjet printers is how often you actually
throw away the print head. With many
of the thermal printers, the print head is
Perfect Picture Imaging System is a
combination of Micro Piezo Print Head
technology, Quick Dry Inks, AcuPhoto
Halftoning and EPSON Specialty Media
The Micro Piezo print head is just one of
the Picture Perfect Imaging System’s (PPIS)
four main components
EPSONow | 23
THE EPSON EDGE
actually contained within the ink cartridge,
meaning every time you dispose of an empty
cartridge, you’re throwing away a print head.
Not too good for the environment.
When EPSON designed the Micro
Piezo print head it was with permanence in
mind. The researchers developed a mechanism that was so reliable it quite simply did
not need to be thrown away. In fact, it is so
reliable that in most cases it far outlasts the
useful life of the printer.
Inside the Workings
Let’s leave it there for the print head and
look now at that other important component — the ink cartridge. In 2000, EPSON
introduced the EPSON Intellidge ink cartridge that had as one of its design goals to
actually protect the print head.
As expected, the Intellidge ink cartridge
holds a certain colour and type of ink. But
at one end of the cartridge there is a tiny
micro-chip, which stores an enormous
amount of information predominantly
relating to the amount of ink remaining
in the cartridge. When the printer driver is
activated, it reads this information from the
chip and displays it in the status monitor.
Monitoring the ink usage in printers
is something EPSON has always done,
though the information has previously
always been stored within the printer driver. This has often led to confusion. When
a partially-full cartridge was inserted, the
printer driver would automatically assume
it was full. Given that the printer driver is
the user’s primary means of identifying
if enough ink is available to print each
job, this method required improvement
BEHIND THE SCENES
Throughout the manufacturing process of EPSON Intellidge ink cartridges
and Micro Piezo print heads, keeping air from leaking in is top of the priority
list and numerous precautions are taken.
The cartridge design includes seals and valves in the ink chamber nozzle,
so the air is kept out, even when the cartridge is being installed. The ink itself
is put through a de-airing process and the filled cartridges are then vacuum
sealed in their packaging.
in order to provide the end user and the
printer driver with more accurate and useful information.
So, by introducing the Intellidge ink
cartridge, EPSON ensured that information
relating to ink levels stayed where it should;
and that is the ink cartridge. If you insert
an ink cartridge that has only one-quarter
of its capacity remaining, this is precisely
what you’ll see in the status monitor. More
importantly, rather than providing the
information to just the user, the printer
driver itself is able to act on it. The driver
can ensure that when it is time to change
the cartridge — even part-way through
printing a page — the printer can accept
the new cartridge then resume printing
without wasting paper, which would be the
case if it didn’t have the information and
continued printing.
Another advantage of tracking ink
information is that the driver can report
back on how many pages — based on the
most recently printed — can be printed
with the remaining ink. For users who
do large print jobs this is a major bonus,
giving them the ability to send through the
The green squares on the end of each of these
genuine EPSON ink cartridges are the Intellidge Ink micro chips
24 | EPSONow
print job without worrying if there’s enough
ink remaining.
As mentioned earlier, one of the most
important features of the Intellidge cartridge is that it also works to protect the
Micro Piezo print head. One of the most
damaging influences on a precision print
head is air. Once air is introduced to the
print head via the ink cartridge, clogging
and/or misfiring may occur. Essentially, it
disrupts the smooth flow of ink that is
essential in gaining high-quality photograph, graphic and text prints. When these
problems arise, ink is wasted by having to
run the printer through a head cleaning
process.
To ensure air is kept out of the ink
cycle, EPSON ink cartridges are designed
to retain a minute amount of ink at the time
the status monitor reports the cartridge
should be replaced. It is this tiny reserve of
ink that ensures no air can be introduced
into the print head.
Now, this article would be far from
truthful if it failed to make mention of
Intellidge bypassing, but it would also be
incredibly neglectful to ignore the consequences. Ever since EPSON introduced the
Intellidge ink cartridge, users have sought
ways to bypass it and eke out a few cents
more of ink. Flash devices are the most
prevalent of bypassing methods. In using
these devices you can certainly run your
ink cartridges a small amount further but
you also run the very real risk of deterioration in quality when the colours drop out
mid-print. The result is facing one of the
very problems for which Intellidge was
developed to address.
The purposes of the EPSON Intellidge
ink cartridge are to protect the investment
you have made in your printer, save money
by avoiding head cleans, and ensure every
print is perfect. As you can see, it all comes
down to high-quality printing without the
risk and cost.
CASE STUDY
Colour Laser in Action
AS ONE OF Australia’s most successful
real estate companies, Marshall White
& Co is based in Armadale and operates
across some of Melbourne’s more prestigious suburbs. Toorak, Malvern, South
Yarra and Prahran are only some of these
suburbs where Marshall White’s resultsdriven sales and rental teams make their
presence felt.
A
The Move to Colour
While the 50-strong Marshall White team
have a strong belief in professionalism,
each team member knows all too well the
importance of reflecting this in the company’s “image”. According to Marshall
White’s Office Manager, Susan Weston,
even the quality of printed documents
plays a major part in presenting a professional image. “We have long recognised
the impact of colour documents,” she said.
“Whether it is the newsletter we publish
and distribute, documents that include
colour images of houses and properties or
even the rental list sheets; colour is crucial
in creating a strong first impression.”
The main problems faced by Marshall
White when it came to colour printing,
though, were the same as those faced by
virtually any other business — professional
colour printing is a costly and sometimes
lengthy process. From the directors and
right across the sales, rental and office staff,
there was a need for colour printing that
was in-house, reduced costs and afforded
total control over the designated printing
process from marketing proposals, staff
profiles, rental lists to graphs and more.
Solution: A Simple Walk
Quite by chance one day, Weston walked
past EPSON Australia’s Melbourne office
complex and decided on the spur of the
moment to walk in and talk to someone.
“I ended up sitting down with one of the
EPSON laser printer representatives and
having the whole concept of colour laser
printing explained to me in terms I could
understand and take back to present to the
company’s directors,” she said. “Within a
couple of weeks we were trialling an
EPSON AcuLaser C4000 and paying particular attention to the performance, running costs and above all, print quality.
Office Manager, Susan Weston using EPSON’s AcuLaser C4000 for
Marshall White & Co’s in-house printing
“It didn’t take long for us to see that the
printer was far and away better than what
we had initially hoped for, so in May 2003,
we made the fairly simple decision to buy
the colour printer and really take control
of a significant component of our in-house
printing.”
Cost Savings
Prior to the purchase of the EPSON colour
laser printer, Marshall White staff needed
to get all their short-run colour printing
done externally. For double-sided documents, this was costing the company up to
two-dollars a page — a cost that has now
reduced by 40 per cent to around $1.20.
Adding even more to the cost savings are
efficiencies in flexibility — print runs can
be as long or as short as is required and
productivity — no more wasting time by
having to send staff members out of the
office.
“Generally, every colour page left over
and thrown out was two dollars lost to
the business,” Weston stated. “It may not
seem like much, but it quickly adds up to a
significant amount of money. With the new
printer, we are able to use a Just In Time
EPSONow | 25
CASE STUDY
process — we print as many copies as we
need when we need them and with any last
minute changes.”
This ability is particularly important in
real estate, where clients may want marketing documents changed even slightly
to generate better effect or even reflect a
change in price. “It used to be the case that
we would have to either charge the client
additional fees or absorb the extra printing
costs in our own overheads,” Weston said.
“Now, we simply change the document
ourselves and create a new print run.”
Weston added that she has been impressed
by the overall finished product even where
regular grade paper has been used as
opposed to the photo quality papers which
give even better results.
Better Rental Presentation
One of the most useful tools in real estate
is photography. A good photo attracts
attention and often starts the enquiry
process. Marshall White agents understand this, so high quality, colour photograph prints have always been an essential
aid in their work.
“Traditionally, when you go into a real
estate office you see photocopied or monochrome laser printed brochures of rental
properties. Because of the AcuLaser’s low
cost per page when compared to professional printing, we are preparing our rental
property list in colour as well,” Weston
said. “In addition our rental list includes a
special colour flyer, including colour photograph, for the rental property of the week.
The result is that we are able to provide our
clients, the property owners and the tenants with a much better service all around
and show off the properties to their best.”
Connected and Easy
With the AcuLaser C4000 installed on
Marshall White’s Microsoft Windows NT 4
IN THIS STORY
AcuLaser C4000
The EPSON AcuLaser C4000 is
the perfect solution for businesses
that recognise the real
need for colour
laser printing
without
sacrificing
speed or quality.
26 | EPSONow
A Marshall White & Co employee proofing AcuLaser C4000 prints
Server network, up to 50 staff members
have instant access to the printer’s colour
and monochrome laser printing capabilities. According to Weston, even servicing
such a large user base, the printer continues to perform at maximum levels without
missing a beat.
“Even maintaining the printer is
extremely straightforward,” Weston commented. “We have a third-party IT support
company as well as an internal IT help
desk person, but the vast majority of maintenance work on the printer is carried out
by our receptionist. It takes her only a matter of seconds to change toner cartridges
and really, that’s about all the maintenance
that is required.”
More Than Product
One of the strongest points Weston
makes when talking about the decision to
purchase the EPSON colour laser printer
has nothing at all to do with the printer
itself. “I believe that an important factor in
making a purchase is service — it’s important to know that the company that’s
behind the product is going to support it at
every level,” she said.
“Right from the time I walked into
the EPSON office, I’ve had only the best
possible service and support — and that’s
precisely what I expect from any company
with which I do business.”
Aside from the AcuLaser C4000, EPSON
has a range of other AcuLaser colour printers.
The benefits mentioned in this case study
are reflected at various levels across this
entire range. For further information
about these exciting alternatives to
monochrome-only laser printers, please visit
www.epson.com.au/products/laser.asp
DAVE’S DIARY
Dave’s Diary – One Year On
WHEN WE LAST TOOK a peek at Dave’s Diary
(EPSONow Second Edition), this Solitaireplaying and bumbling executive earned for
himself some major brownie points by his
assistant’s use of an EPSON STYLUS C80
to print a 300 page report for his boss, who
also happens to be his wife.
Since then, Dave’s attitude to the people in IT (Incredibly Thick, in his mind) and
work hasn’t changed a great deal. The only
thing that’s really changed is that Freecell
has taken the place of Solitaire as his
favourite work pastime.
8:46 a.m. Oh, Monday. Let me count the
ways I hate you. As if it wasn’t enough to
have my wife talking “shop” all weekend,
now I have to come in to this place and
actually live it. Where’s my assistant with
my coffee. She knows I can’t function if I
haven’t had a coffee.
8:52 a.m. Twenty-two minutes late! Can
you believe it. I was sitting here for twentytwo minutes before Sharon finally brought
in my coffee. What does she think? That I
should get my own!? It’s really set me off
on the road to a bad mood. A quick game
of Freecell should get me back on track for
the day. Oh, great! No sugar in the coffee.
9:38 a.m. Now that was one tough game
of Freecell. Took me 12 goes to work it out.
Better head off to the bathroom to think
about what I should be doing today.
9:49 a.m. Sharon’s really asking for a
stern warning. Just came back from the
bathroom and she gave me a very funny
look — as if I had no right to take a few
minutes out from my schedule to relieve
myself. When I asked her what was wrong,
she simply smiled and asked if there was
anything she could do to help out with
the project. What project? She’s out of her
mind, the silly person.
9:53 a.m. E-mail just in from the boss.
Asked me if I’d remembered to give the
kids their lunch money and check the
meeting room booking. Check the meeting room booking!? I have an assistant to
do that sort of thing! Anyway, there aren’t
any meetings I’m due to attend today, so it
can always wait a while before I chase up
Sharon and pass the buck on to her. Might
just duck downstairs and check out the
new café that everyone seems to be raving about.
W
10:41 a.m. Well, I have to agree. That
was a great coffee. Ended up sitting with
Mike from accounting who was rambling
on about something to do with a proposal
going before the board this afternoon. I
have no idea why he was telling me this,
but I have a strange feeling…
10:45 a.m. I don’t believe this! I just
called Sharon in to the office and was just
about to give her that stern warning when
she asked me if she should organise sandwiches to be delivered during the break in
the meeting this afternoon. When I asked
her what the hell she was talking about,
she started rambling on about some presentation I had to give to the board of directors. There’s a strange tingling down my
left arm all of a sudden. But that meeting
was for next week.
10:49 a.m. Just checked my schedule.
Oops. Was looking at last week when I
checked it earlier today; and the meeting’s
definitely set for today — 11:30 p.m. to be
precise. Oh, no. There’s a note attached to
the meeting entry, something about providing the board with a full profit and loss
report for my business unit. That tingling.
I think it’s definitely getting stronger.
10:52 a.m. Rushed out to Sharon and
told her to print out the profit and loss…
with lots of graphs. After all, the doddering board of directors can deal with rows
and columns of figures just as well as they
can deal with making a cup of coffee. They
can’t. Makes me think I should have a cup
of coffee myself right now. Told Sharon to
get me one… and not to forget the sugar
this time.
11:15 a.m. Went out to check the
progress of the report printing only to
find Sharon sitting at her desk reading
e-mail. Worse still was the fact that her
printer wasn’t doing anything at all!
Ended up having to go totally off my
nut at her. Told her that if she couldn’t
understand how critical the report was
and appreciate the importance of prioritising her work, then she could find
herself another job. She pointed to a
laser printer halfway down the hall that
seemed to be spewing out sheet after
sheet of paper. A laser printer! This
document is absolute choc-a-block with
graphs and charts — they need to be in
colour! Is this such a difficult concept for
anyone to understand!?
11:17 a.m. Sharon went over to the
printer and brought back a pile of paper.
What goes on here? Colour graphs
— amazing quality, too — from the laser
printer!? Seems the people in Incredibly
Thick installed an EPSON AcuLaser C900
colour laser printer. Hold on a second!
You can’t get this sort of quality without it
costing an absolute fortune — what’s this
going to do to the budget I’ve allocated for
“entertaining” clients and, well, myself?
Can’t fail to be bowled over by the stupidity of those people in Incredibly Thick.
Idiots. Idiots. Idiots! The tingling in my
arm seems to be spreading to my chest.
Only 13 minutes until the meeting.
11:18 a.m. Sharon shuffles through the
reports she’s been printing and pulls up a
page detailing the expense history of the
AcuLaser C900. This thing cost the same
as our old monochrome printer and running costs are incredibly low. Will have to
find something else to pick on her about…
just to keep her on her toes, of course.
11:21 a.m. The printer’s stopped! It’s run
out of toner. I told Sharon to get someone
up from Incredibly Thick immediately to
fix the thing. What does she do? Goes
and lifts up a panel, takes out a cartridge,
drops in a new one and presses a button to
start the printer going again. She’s getting
too smart and smug, that one.
4:06 p.m. That was one hell of a meeting,
but managed to pull it off. The doddering
old board members almost drooled over
the report — and so they should have. I
nearly had a heart attack doing the blessed
thing. I deserve a coffee. Where’s Sharon?
Made my own, but forgot the sugar.
4:52 p.m. E-mail just in from Sharon.
Seems she’s applied for another job. Well,
if she expects to get a reference from me
after the stress she caused me this morning, she’s barking up the wrong tree.
4:56 p.m. Another e-mail. Will these
constant interruptions never cease. The
boss, my lovely wife, has asked me to
remember to reimburse the kids the lunch
money they had to take this morning from
their own pocket money, and ask Sharon
to come in at 8:40 a.m. tomorrow as her
new assistant!
EPSONow | 27
THE EPSON EDGE
EPSON Colour AcuLaser…
Totally Distinctive
Taking a quick look at what it is that makes the EPSON
AcuLaser colour laser printers stand out from the crowd.
Technologies and features — many of them developed by
EPSON — working together for colour printing excellence.
EVER SINCE EPSON released the AcuLaser
C2000 colour laser printer in 2000, the
world of laser printing has been turned
on its head. Building on the initial success of the AcuLaser C2000, EPSON has
E
continued to refine its monochrome
and colour laser printing technologies to
develop a range of printers that is secondto-none. From the AcuLaser C900 right
through to the AcuLaser C4100, incredibly
high quality colour laser printing is affordable and effective for a broad range of users
— home and small office to the largest of
workgroups.
On these two pages we’ve highlighted
just a few of the features and technologies that provide the AcuLaser colour laser
printers with their leading edge — features
and technologies that are only a few from
which all your printing requirements can
benefit.
ASIC TECHNOLOGY
Hardware-Based Processing for
Enhanced Performance
EPSON AcuLaser printers use dedicated
ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit)
technology to handle data decompression,
RGB-to-CMYK colour conversion and halftone
smoothing. As a result, first-page printing and
continuous throughput are blazingly fast, even
on complex, graphics-intensive documents.
SPEED
EPSON AcuLaser Printer Driver Technology
As the world leader in colour imaging,
no one understands the importance of
printer driver technology better than
EPSON. Featuring a user-friendly
interface for enhanced operating
ease and network administration, our
advanced AcuLaser printer drivers are
continuously refined to ensure maximum
spooling and data transmission speeds in
a wide variety of computer environments.
Other Printers
X PPM
EPSON AcuLaser Printers
Print Data
Data
Data
Data
Data
Spooling Compressing Transfer Expansion Processing
Print Command
issued
Data
transfer
begins
Data
transfer
completed
16 PPM
Printing
begins
Printing
completed
A
Speed
High- ting
in
r
P
Slow data processing means slower printing – even if data transfer speeds are high.
AcuLaser technology speeds up data processing at every stage, ensuring fast, efficient printing.
EPSON AcuLaser Adaptive Data Compression
This remarkable technology boosts speed and reduces overall printing time by optimising data compression and
decompression algorithms according to whether the data stream contains text, line, or image data.
28 | EPSONow
A
QUALITY
EPSON AcuLaser Fine
Dot Control
EPSON AcuLaser
Intelligent Line Screening
When printing photos and gradient fills,
the sophisticated screening and halftoning technologies
of EPSON AcuLaser Fine Dot Control boost the
effective resolution to 2400 dpi, delivering a level
of image quality that is unrivalled in the industry.
Using sophisticated content-recognition technologies
adapted from our world-famous inkjet printers,
EPSON AcuLaser Intelligent Line Scanning automatically
optimises line screening frequency and colour
correction for each area of the page. As a result, output
quality is superb even when pages contain a complex
mixture of photographic images, text, and line drawings.
EPSON AcuLaser Colour RITech
Sophisticated Colour RITech smoothing technology
ensures that charts and graphs are sharp and well
defined, and that the fine details of colour-coded
CAD drawings and schematics are always clear
and legible.
EPSON AcuLaser PhotoEnhance 4
Colour RITech
ON
Colour RITech
OFF
New MicroPolymer Toner
New EPSON AcuLaser MicroPolymer Toner particles
are smaller and more spherical than conventional toner
particles, assuring smoother, more uniform coverage for
improved image quality.
Another offshoot of our acclaimed inkjet printer technology,
EPSON PhotoEnhance 4 lets users apply a number
of pre-defined effects and image adjustments to
sharpen and enhance
final output.
A smoother colour
matrix ensures smoother
gradations and fills, with
better overall image quality.
NETWORKING
Easy EpsonNet Networking
EpsonNet networking makes it easy to get the most out of your printer by sharing it with everyone in your office or
workgroup. Set-up and management are a snap, with advanced features like automatic printer discovery and automatic
driver installation that help keep administrative chores to a minimum.
EpsonNet InstallWizard
EpsonNet WebManager
EpsonNet InstallWizard automates everything
from printer driver installation to printer port selection.
Network administration tasks are reduced because
administrators can simply distribute installation
packages to each client over the network —
EpsonNet InstallWizard takes care of the rest.
With EpsonNet WebManager,
Web-based printer discovery, set-up,
monitoring, and troubleshooting
can all be handled remotely.
Print log management tools let
you view print logs and monitor
the status of consumables.
EPSONow | 29
THE EPSON EDGE
Get Scanned – Part Two
In the last issue of EPSONow, we looked at ways to
optimise your scanning efforts with the promise that in this
issue, we would take a step back and give you a helping
hand in identifying the best scanner to suit your needs.
A
AFTER ALL, it’s easy enough to know exactly
what it is you want to do with a scanner,
but the tricky part comes in choosing the
scanner that delivers a balance between
finances and features. So, to help you
understand what it is about scanners that
contributes to this balance, we will also be
taking a look under the hood and finding
out what makes them tick.
disk drive capacity (it didn’t have one of
those, either) or keyboard layout (well, OK,
it didn’t have a keyboard as well). But in a
short time, people were demanding faster
(and better equipped) personal computers.
With scanners, there’s little different.
Performance is a must, even with the lower
range models that are typically used in the
home. By improving the basic technologies
discussed previously and developing and
introducing new technologies, EPSON has
sought to meet and even exceed the performance demands of users.
If we consider first the quality of the
scan, the scanner’s lens is one of the initial
components on which to focus [pun
intended — ed]. To ensure a perfect focus
for accurate colour and incredibly sharp
text, all EPSON scanners feature highquality large diameter glass lenses.
Starting with the Basics
Today’s scanners offer users an enormous
range of opportunities, from the fun of
scanning and cropping photos through to
the serious business of archiving and managing documents. When you look at a scanner in a somewhat more clinical light, its
task is simply to create a digital representation of a two-dimensional document, such
as a page of text, image or photograph.
In the case of a flatbed scanner, which
is the type you’ll purchase from your local
retailer, an original document is placed on
the surface of the scanner (usually a sheet
of glass with a cover to afford protection
from incident light) and illuminated by
means of a fluorescent tube. A reflector
system projects the light reflected from
the document onto the scanner’s Charge
Coupled Device (CCD) chip, which acts like
an “electronic eye”, scanning each line, dot
by dot and determining the brightness and
colour values. An analog/digital converter
then converts these into digital values
— zeroes and ones.
CCD method:
Since there is a distance between the
image and the sensor, it is easy to focus
at any distance therefore 3D scanning
is possible.
CIS method:
The sensor with same length of the original
image is used. Only those images on the
glass can be captured. Otherwise, it cannot
focus and scanned image will be blurred.
Getting Up to Speed
It is an interesting thing to note that whenever a new technology is introduced, barely
anyone gives a second thought to its performance. It’s more the novelty that appeals
to most of us. When the first personal
computer hit the market — in kit form —
no-one gave a second thought to its screen
refresh rate (it didn’t even have a screen),
30 | EPSONow
To achieve better scanning quality, a superior CCD is a must. With MatrixCCD, the sensitivity is
greatly improved. With A/D converter installed on the board together with the MatrixCCD, the
data can be digitalised immediately. Therefore, the noise level is reduced to the minimum.
This lens is what give your scans edgeto-edge imaging and accurate detail, and
is mounted on the scanning head which
is controlled by a high-precision stepper
motor. This combination is essential in
achieving speed and quality.
Earlier in the article we touched on the
use of CCDs. With EPSON’s range of scanners, a MatrixCCD technology is utilised,
employing a staggered array of light sensors that simultaneously handle incoming
and outgoing signals to improve scanning
speeds.
An added benefit of the MatrixCCD is
that it virtually doubles the scanning resolution capabilities of the scanner.
➜
In the business world, scanners have long
been used for converting hardcopy text
pages to digital files that can be edited with
a word processor. For those who haven’t
come across this before, it’s called Optical
Character Recognition (OCR).
This is a software-based technology
that attempts to recognise characters from
a scanned image. As a matter of fact, most
scanners on the market today will come
bundled with some form of OCR software.
Unfortunately, one of the problems with
OCR software has been the difficulty of
“stripping” out unwanted scanned elements, such as images, line art and icons.
To give the OCR software a helping
hand, EPSON scanners incorporate the
Text Enhancement Technology (TET). By
filtering unwanted content during a Scanto-OCR operation, TET ensures the OCR
software receives only the scanned portions
that it recognises as text. The result is more
accurate character recognition and fewer
mistakes when it comes to proofreading
the scanned document.
With many scanners, much of the
intelligence is in the bundled software and
printer driver. While this is an expedient
method of delivering features and functionality, it has the downside of consuming computer resources and relying on the
speed and performance capabilities of the
computer.
To bypass these issues, much of an
EPSON scanner’s intelligence is contained in an on-board Application Specific
Integrated Circuit (ASIC). As a result, many
of the functions normally carried out by the
computer are now carried out by a lightning fast computer chip.
➜
Improving Text Scans
Extra Refinements
EPSON is renowned for embedding the
best technologies in its scanners, but let’s
not forget the driver and bundled software.
Recently, EPSON introduced several photograph refining tools with its new scanner
software. Colour Restoration and Dust
Removal are just two of these tools and
work to create scans that match your photographs’ original colour and quality.
Colour Restoration restores faded or discoloured images. It attempts to restore the
colour of the image back to its original state.
The extent of fading or discoloration relies
upon the original adhesion condition of the
ink onto the paper (plain or photo) and the
environmental (including light, temperature,
and airborne contaminants) conditions
under which the paper has been kept.
Dust Removal acts to remove the automatically detected dust noise from scanned
images. Working on negative and positive
A screen-shot of exactly what
is on offer to you when using
EPSON’s Smart Panel software
EPSON’s PERFECTION 1670 is
the latest of EPSON’s scanners
to offer new software,
such as Dust Removal
film (colour and greyscale) scans, dust
is removed by softening the image and
detecting the figure of dust shadow, then
correcting that shadow with neighbouring
pixels.
Use the Web
OK, so there is probably more to a scanner
than you may have initially thought before
reading this article. Actually, what we’ve
covered here is only a drop in the ocean
when it comes to what’s under the EPSON
scanner’s hood. On the EPSON Web site
(www.epson.com.au), there is a scanner
link that takes you straight to all available
EPSON scanners and provides details on
the suitability of each scanner for specific
needs and situations.
Bear in mind that not all scanners are
created equal, but it is an understanding of
what makes them different that will give
you the edge.
EPSONow | 31
THE EPSON EDGE
Before You Buy That Projector…
Over the past several years, digital projectors have
been subject to the same influences that have
affected virtually everything else in digital products —
constant improvement in technologies and features
coupled with an almost parallel decrease in the price.
When this occurred with personal computers,
the rate of adoption skyrocketed; and it is now
precisely what we are starting to see with projectors.
WHEN YOU THINK BACK only a few years
ago, even though everyone was looking
to buy a PC, there were many rushing
in with little understanding of what they
were actually buying. For those who had
even a fair knowledge of computers, barely
a week went by without someone asking
W
32 | EPSONow
them what was the difference between a
hard drive and a floppy drive, what were
these kilobyte and megabyte things, or
what was meant by a modem’s baud rate.
We are now witnessing a similar trend
with projectors. But why?
The first thing we should appreciate is
that as projectors have improved in technology and features, their versatility and application have increased dramatically. Take, for
example, the EPSON EMP-S1 projector,
launched earlier this year onto the Australian
market. Here we have a projector that apart
from being extremely easy to use, light and
— at last in the world of projectors — stylish, can move from a business machine to
an entertainment device in seconds; and it’s
the latter of these that is really pushing the
projector adoption rate ever upward.
Take a look for a minute at that which
is set to become the norm for home video
entertainment — video cassette recorder/
player, DVD player, cable/satellite and freeto-air television broadcasting, digital photograph slide shows, sophisticated gaming
consoles and, of course, the personal computer. Yes, we have omitted the television,
but for good reason.
As more and more of the abovementioned home video entertainment device or
services are purchased by people, the quality of the television itself has become one
of the major sticking features. We have all
these great sources of entertainment, but to
go out and purchase a “big screen” to really
give it impact can cost up to and beyond ten
thousand dollars. Now, that’s expensive!
On the other hand, a high quality projector that aside from being small and having the ability to deliver a viewing screen
far bigger than the big screen plasma
televisions you’ll see in the electrical stores
can be purchased for a fraction of the price.
This is precisely one of the main reasons for
the uptake. They’re bigger in screen size,
smaller in physical size and cost less.
But… before you buy that projector, it
helps to understand what the new wave
in specifications is all about. In particular,
contrast ratio, keystone correction and
luminance rating.
Brightness at a Glance —
ANSI Lumens
Luminance is what the human eye sees
and is defined as the amount of light
reflected off a surface.
In ancient times, in order to measure
brightness, the candle was a standard of
measurement (the amount of light a candle
projects in any one direction) and a lumen
was defined as one candle per square
metre. Since candlelight can vary depending on wick length, reflectivity of the surface and the temperature of the flame, a
more scientific standard of measurement
needed to be defined.
The LCD panel — providing vastly
superior colour fidelity
The American National Standards
Institute (ANSI) developed a stringent set
of light measuring rules that more precisely
defined the amount of luminance given off
by a projector.
The ANSI rating also dictates that
the projected image must be measured
at nine points on the screen and the final
EPSONow | 33
THE EPSON EDGE
ANSI rating of any given projector is the
average of these nine measured points. To
provide you with a “quick glance” guide
to a projector’s ANSI lumens and its best
use, we’ve prepared the following table
(Figure 1).
When it comes to brightness, especially in projectors that will be used in a
home theatre environment, there is a very
important point to consider — bright is not
necessarily better.
An important point to consider when
talking about projectors is that there are
two primary types on the market — Digital
Light Processing (DLP) and Liquid Crystal
Display (LCD). Naturally there are advocates for both types, but when it comes to
colour control and fidelity, LCD really does
have a major advantage. By using three
separate LCD panels — one each for red
green and blue — each can be controlled
independently for brightness and contrast,
leading to vastly superior colour fidelity.
Clearly Better
From Any Angle —
Keystone Correction
Keystone correction essentially corrects
trapezoidal distortion. When the projector is not positioned central to the screen,
the image is projected at an angle and may
appear distorted.
Depending on the projector you purchase, you will have anywhere up to a 30
degree vertical keystone correction capability. In some of the higher end models
the projector can automatically detect and
adjust keystoning, although in most projectors for the home and small business
environments, a few button presses on the
remote control is all that’s required.
A typical long-life lamp as used in EPSON projectors
Black or White —
Contrast Ratio
Contrast Ratio is the ratio between white
and black. The larger the contrast ratio the
greater the ability of a projector to show
subtle colour details and tolerate extraneous room light. Contrast measures the
ratio of the light output of an all-white
image and the light output of an all-black
image.
LCD projector contrast ratios range
from 300 to 1200. When comparing the
contrast ratio of projectors, make sure you
are comparing the same type of contrast.
Users quite often focus on the projector’s ANSI lumens ratings rather than
consider how everything actually works
together to provide the best possible colour
Projectors with:
Generally work best in these environments:
Up to 1,000 ANSI lumens
Normal business-sized conference rooms,
classrooms and living rooms
Small-to-medium sized audiences
Reduced lighting
1,000 to 1,500 or more
ANSI lumens
Larger conference rooms or classrooms
Normal room lighting
1,500 or more ANSI lumens
Large venues, including conference rooms
and auditoriums
Most lighting conditions
Figure 1
34 | EPSONow
reproduction. Contrast ratio is equally as
important as ANSI lumens and LCD projectors, because of the ability to control all
three LCD panels independently (see ANSI
Lumens), do not require an enormously
bright lamp to generate superior contrast
ratio and colour reproduction.
Caveat Emptor —
Buyer Beware
Just as the early days of the personal
computer saw a myriad of vendors appear
almost overnight — and just as suddenly
disappear — much the same is set to happen in the world of projectors. If we’re to
learn from history, then look to those early
PC days and take a lesson from them.
There are a few companies, such as
EPSON, that have been mainstays in the
worldwide projector market; leading the
way with technology innovations and setting the groundwork for others to follow.
But if history is to repeat itself — as it does
so often — then many of those followers
will undoubtedly fall by the wayside, leaving their customers with little, if any, support or access to repair facilities.
The best advice we can give you is to
understand what you’re buying, which is
where we set out with this article. It’s also
important that when you’re setting out to
purchase a projector you take the time to
see them in action. Specifications are one
thing, but actually seeing the projector in
action should always be a top priority.
USING EPSON
Projectors in
BUSINESS
When it comes to growing a small business one
of the major problems is how to grow the business;
and grow it in spite of the fact that larger businesses
with higher profiles and more marketing dollars
are often the main competitors. Quite often it
boils down to image and impressions.
O
OVER THE PAST SEVERAL YEARS there have
been a number of innovations that have
provided the small business owner with
the ability to improve the image of the
company without spending unreasonable
amounts of money. The first of these that
comes to mind is the Internet and more
precisely, the Web. With inexpensive and
highly effective programs, even the smallest of companies can develop a Web site
that can be every bit as swish as the biggest of companies. Then, of course, there
are the professional-quality documents
and marketing materials that can be printed on your EPSON inkjet printers.
The presentation of a small plumbing company to a tough selection panel is enhanced by the EPSON EMP-S1
EPSONow | 35
USING EPSON
The three friends are able to collaborate on toy design concepts by using an EMP-73
While a growing number of small business owners have moved to capitalise on
the image-equality potential of the Web
and high quality desktop printing, some
of them have gone several steps further by
using the new generation of projectors.
Certainly, this article could present
specifications on various projectors and
explain how one model is better than
another for specific purposes, but that has
been dealt with in other articles. Instead,
let’s examine situations where and how
projectors can create a lasting impression
for the business.
T
The Presentation
SITUATION: A small plumbing company
has established a good reputation for itself
with local builders. During its five years
of business it has grown to four full-time
plumbers and the owner now believes it is
36 | EPSONow
time to expand by working with a national
property development company on a large
building project. A proposal has been forwarded along with preliminary costings,
which have been looked upon favourably by
the developer’s contractor selection panel.
CHALLENGE: The company’s principal has
been asked to give a presentation before
the selection panel and provide compelling
arguments to support the initial proposal.
The plumber knows full well that the panel
members are a hard bunch to win over, so
something that will really grab their attention — and keep it — is critical.
SOLUTION: With little more than a notebook computer and a portable EPSON
EMP-S1 projector, the plumber opted to
deliver a presentation using PC-based
presentation software and video clips.
Professionalism and time is important
in these situations and everything has to
go as smoothly as possible. Long gone are
the lengthy warm-up times for projectors.
The plumber’s EMP-S1 warmed up in five
seconds and was set up in less time than it
took the notebook computer to start up.
Noise is also a factor in presentations and a noisy projector serves only
to distract and even annoy the audience.
With the EMP-S1 having a noise level of
33dB, the attention of the plumber’s audience remained where it should — on the
plumber and the screen.
An important issue for the presenter
during a presentation is freedom of movement and control. In other words, the ability to control the projector without the need
to return constantly to the unit or notebook
and press buttons.
Fortunately for the plumber, the EMPS1 features two card-type remote controls
— one for the projector and another to
emulate the notebook’s mouse and certain
keystrokes.
By the way, the plumber did win over
the panel and won the business.
T
The Brainstorm
SITUATION: Three friends have decided
to create a new small business that will
manufacture a new range of wooden toys.
Collaboration is essential and design concepts must be researched and agreed upon
before they can even consider developing
prototypes. Added to this is the need to
understand the competition and their
products.
CHALLENGE: While each of the friends has
a personal computer, the three of them
gathering around a single computer to
go over concepts and examine competing
companies’ Web sites is uncomfortable
and impractical. The big challenge is that
while they recognise a projector is the
ideal solution, money is another resource
in high demand but low in availability.
SOLUTION: For less than $4,000, the
friends purchased an EPSON EMP-73. It
was a purchase that even their accountant
agreed was easily justified. Aside from
being able to use it to meet their immediate needs, the projector would also be used
in presenting the company and its products to potential large volume purchasers.
In designing their toys, the friends
recognised that colour is a major factor in
a product’s appeal. While the final colour
selection would be made using colour
swatches from paint manufacturers, the
initial narrowing down process was easily done on-screen. An advantage of the
EMP-73 over many other projectors is that
it uses an LCD-based system. With this
system, each of the three primary colours
— red, green and blue — can be controlled individually for vastly superior colour
reproduction.
Connectivity was also a big issue, with
video sources including video tape players, computers, digital cameras and even a
DVD player to view the movie that inspired
their venture — Toy Story. With a built-in
speaker and connectivity support including
RGB, S-Video, PC and USB, the EMP-73
provided total video and audio support
to keep the development process rolling
without a hitch.
It has to be noted that there actually is
one problem when it comes to the young
company’s projector, though. Arguing over
whose turn it is to take it home and hook
up to their DVD players and game consoles
for the “big screen” experience seems to be
never-ending.
T
The Experience
SITUATION: The local medical centre
provides primary health care and family
medicine to its surrounding communities,
accommodating general practitioners and
a range of support staff, which includes
nurses and administrators.
It incorporates a variety of ancillary
services such as physiotherapy, pharmacy,
optometry, pathology and diagnostic
imaging, thereby making the medical centre a “one-stop healthcare shop” for its
neighbourhood.
The centre’s staff members believe in
providing efficient, professional management and a pleasant environment for
patients-in-waiting. In so doing, they have
earned a valuable reputation for the quality
of their service and products.
CHALLENGE: Due to the increasing
amount of visitors to the centre, patients
were often experiencing lengthy waits for
their general practitioners and the specialist services. Staff members received
feedback from the patients that if the
television was slightly larger, this would
help to make waiting time less of an
annoying experience.
SOLUTION: To maintain the centre’s principle of ensuring patients have a comfortable waiting environment, the centre
purchased an EPSON EMP-7800. The
decision was easily justified toward the
projector, as opposed to the purchase of
a large plasma television, which saved the
centre several thousand dollars.
In order to keep the projector out of
harm’s way it was decided to mount it on
the ceiling. This would save on space but
there was some hesitation because the
projected image might be distorted due to
the downward angle of the projection. But
with vertical keystone correction of up to
40 degrees, patients can view a perfectly
proportioned screen regardless of the projector’s angle.
Another initial concern was the high
levels of light in the waiting room. Some
staff members believed that it would
essentially overpower the projected image.
However, the EMP-7800 has an impressive
3500 ANSI lumens, which means that even
with the light-filled room, patients are still
able to see what’s on show, clearly and
vividly.
IN THIS STORY
EMP-S1
Suited to small offices,
classrooms and ideal for the
home environment, this projector
delivers incredible ease-ofoperation and versatile
presentation functionalities.
EMP-73
A high performance and
affordable, mobile projector
for professionals on the move,
the EMP-73 is bright, quiet and
easy-to-use.
EMP-7800
An incredibly high quality
presentation projector designed
to suit all presentation situations,
needs and locations, whether it
be in a classroom, boardroom
or lecture theatre.
The medical centre has again delivered
professional excellence in its services to
the local community with a very enjoyable
waiting environment for its patients. The
only problem is that patients now like the
wait as they can experience large-screen
entertainment at the medical centre, which
was unheard of before.
The variety of ways businesses can use
an EPSON projector extends beyond these
situations, demonstrating how versatile
such technology is in enhancing business professionalism without breaking
the bank.
EPSONow | 37
EPSON ONLINE
Surfing with EPSON – Part I
Whether you’re researching your first scanner, printer or
projector, or looking for software and tips on how to best exploit
the potential of your existing EPSON products, then the EPSON
Australian Web site (www.epson.com.au) is a great place to
surf. Since the site’s launch in 1996, it has become one of
the most popular resources for users of EPSON products.
OVER TWO ISSUES of EPSONow we will take
a look at the EPSON Australia Web site and
uncover some of its treasures of which the
casual surfer may not be aware.
O
Click For Support
Whenever someone buys a product, be it a
printer, refrigerator, car… whatever, there is
an element of trust that goes with the purchase. You’re trusting the manufacturer or
supplier to provide support for that product — support that is, above all, effective,
understandable and easy to access.
One of the most prominent support
issues relating to EPSON products is
obtaining the most recent drivers and software. This is particularly important when
users upgrade their operating systems. To
give you a quick-start guide to keeping
your EPSON software and drivers up-todate, here’s a step-by-step guide:
■ Head over to the EPSON Australia Web
site (http://www.epson.com.au)
■ Click on the Technical Support button on
the home page. This will take you to the
Technical Support home page.
■ Click on Drivers/Updates, which takes
you to the front page of the EPSON
download library.
■ Click the Continue button.
■ Select the type of product for which you’re
seeking software. For example, the STYLUS
C82 is an inkjet printer so you would naturally enough click on Inkjet Printers.
Simple and straightforward, EPSON Australia’s Web-site home page outlines
the various services it has to offer
38 | EPSONow
■ The next page will display two dropdown
list controls. Regardless of which product
type you selected, the layout will always
be the same — product and operating
system. Use the dropdown lists to select
your product and operating system then
click the Search button.
■ After searching the software library
database, the site will present a list of
all software for your EPSON product
and operating system. By clicking on the
filename (top-right side of the file entry),
a file download session will start.
■ Click the Save button to bring up a Save
As… dialog box for selecting the folder
to which the file is to be saved.
■ Once saved, you can either click the Open
button to install the software immediately, or Close button to complete the
download and do the install later.
Where support issues cannot be
resolved by installing a new driver as
outlined above, the Technical Support
area also features an on-line technical
query form. The purpose of using this
form is to provide EPSON Technical
Support staff with detailed information
about a particular problem, which can
then be researched before a support staff
member responds.
Getting to the Technical Support Query
Form is done by:
■ Head over to the EPSON Australia Web
site (http://www.epson.com.au)
■ Click on the Technical Support button on
the home page. This will take you to the
Technical Support home page.
■ Click on the Contact EPSON Support
Services link.
■ On the next page, click on click here for
the Online Technical Query Form
■ This next stage may take a few minutes
to complete, but it is important to be as
thorough as possible. You will need to
provide as much information as possible
about your EPSON product, computer,
operating system and problem. The more
precise the information, the more accurate the diagnosis and remedy.
■ Click the Submit button at the bottom of
the screen and that’s it. The form will be
automatically sent to the EPSON Support
Centre where it will be addressed, generally, within 24 hours.
Supporting Developers
Another area of support included on the site is
designed specifically for developers. This is an
area gaining greater interest with an increasing number of companies taking advantage
of rapid software development tools, such as
Microsoft Visual Basic. For hobbyist programmers or corporate software development
teams, selecting EPSON Developers from the
Technical Support page or heading straight to
http://www.epsondevelopers.com/ will take
you to an area rich in support. Whether
you’re programming for Windows, Apple
OSX, Linux or the Sony Playstation 2, there
is a ready source of reference guides, thirdparty links and Software Development Kits.
Technology That Matters
Finding out what makes your EPSON product“tick”is one of the best ways of getting the
most out of its capabilities. For users interested in understanding what it is that makes
EPSON products so versatile and powerful,
then the Technology News section of the site
is an absolute must. To get there, simply click
on the What’s New button that will be at the
top of most of the site’s pages. This will take
you to a page with the following links:
■ Press Releases
■ New Products
■ Technology News
■ Press Reviews
■ EPSONow Magazine
Of course, we can’t resist the temptation to
point out that previous editions of EPSONow
magazine are always available for download or
on-line viewing once you click the EPSONow
Magazine link. On from that, though, clicking
on the Technology News entry will take you
immediately to a page from where you can
easily unearth information about many of
EPSON’s unique technologies.
Actually, one of the reasons we decided
to give this area some focus in this article is
the amount of information it contains about
lightfastness. This is an important issue for
many users of EPSON inkjet printers and
EPSON has actually gone to some length
to provide accurate information on how
lightfastness ratings are calculated.
The Contact Support/Service page and query form is always there and is very simple
to fill out, if you ever need any help with an EPSON product
More Surfing
In the next edition of EPSONow, we will take
a look at product areas on the Web site and
also try to get EPSON Australia’s E-Business
Manager, Andrew Pettigrew, along with
some of his staff members, to talk about
what they have in store for the future.
Find out about the latest technologies that are incorporated in to EPSON’s products
on the ‘Technology News’ page
EPSONow | 39
EPSON ONLINE
Welcome to the Club
IF YOU HAPPEN to have logged on to the EPSON Web site
(www.epson.com.au) recently, you may have noticed a new link to
Club EPSON. Designed to provide EPSON users with insights on
new ways to use their EPSON products, shop online and share digital images, Club EPSON is already proving to be one of the hottest
and most popular areas created on-line by EPSON Australia.
Consisting of four sub-sites — PhotoStation, Creative Corner,
Shop Online, and Competitions and Promotions, Club EPSON is
focused on interaction, creativity and entertainment for everyone.
Aside from being free, joining is as simple as completing the
on-line membership form and selecting which of the four sub-sites
you would like to access. You can select all four or just the specific
one, two or three that interest you. If you’re already a member, then
don’t forget to enter the latest competitions — you have to be in
it to win it!
I
PhotoStation
(www.photostation.epson.com.au)
In the PhotoStation sub-site there’s quick and easy access to your
own on-line photo albums. Once logged in to PhotoStation you
can upload your images then paste them into your photo albums
40 | EPSONow
to which you can invite family and friends from all over the world
to view.
Within the Photo Fun section of the PhotoStation sub-site,
there are another two options available. The first is the ability
to send an E-card with a selected photo from your album(s) to
someone special. This can be easily activated by selecting a photo,
entering an e-mail address and message for the e-card’s recipient
and, of course, sending it. The second option is the ability to frame
and edit your images. The PhotoStation site has plenty of frame
designs to choose from, and it’s a collection that continues to grow.
Shop Online
(www.experience.epson.com.au)
demand some break in the monotony. So, why not be a little creative and log on to the Creative Corner sub-site? The activities on
this site are aimed at all age groups, with puzzles, games, activities
and drawings for the whole family.
There are six specific sections within this site, such as holidays
and event activities; kids corner; photo craft; home and office; cards
and stationery; and puzzles and games. These sections offer great
ways to use your EPSON printers to have some fun — and keep the
kids out of your hair for a while. Whether you chose to download
EPSON’s activities or create your own similar activities, it’s all in
the name of fun.
Competitions and Promotions
(www.competitions.clubepson.com.au)
EPSON manufactures a large range of products and the company
realises that for many people, purchasing on-line can make life
a great deal easier. So if you are searching for a specific EPSON
product, the Shop Online sub-site can well be your best option.
Consumables, Multi-Function Printers and printer accessories are
all featured and available for you to purchase.
There is also a technical department to assist you with any
queries you may have in regard to suitable products and how to
use and understand them. When it comes to selecting the right
paper and ink for the right printer and application, the technical
department is there to inform you of the available applications to
best benefit your prints.
Creative Corner
(www.creativecorner.clubepson.com.au)
Whether you’re stuck in the office during your lunch break or at
home with the kids on a rainy school holiday, both scenarios almost
When you are a member of Club EPSON, you have the opportunity to win EPSON products by entering the Club’s competitions.
The Club regularly draws winners for the colouring-in and photo
competitions and all you have to do is print and colour-in the competition image or send in a photo of the specified theme, printed
on EPSON paper.
Promotions on this sub-site also offer you the chance to receive
EPSON products associated with an EPSON product that you may
have just recently purchased. Over the months Club EPSON has
run a number of promotions, which include free ink cartridges
and even free LCD Preview Monitors for certain STYLUS PHOTO
printers.
Support Is Strong
EPSON Australia’s E-Business Manager, Andrew Pettigrew, is
overwhelmed by the response Club EPSON has received. “The
number of Club EPSON members has doubled in the last few
months, which is extremely positive for the Club,” he said. “It also
shows us that we’re heading in the right direction with the site as
well as giving us strong encouragement to devote even more effort
to expand on what is proving to be one of our most well-received
online initiatives.”
When EPSONow asked Pettigrew what new features we could
expect to see on Club EPSON he nodded in the direction of his
team of Web developers and said:“If I let the cat out of the bag right
now, those people would probably string me up. You’ll just have to
keep checking in and see for yourself.”
EPSONow | 41
USING EPSON
The Inkjet Printer
MARKETING POTENTIAL
Whether for products or services, brochures are proven
to be a highly effective marketing tool. In small business,
just as in big business, brochures serve to inform
potential and existing customers of the services
and products your company offers.
THE PROBLEM IS, of course, that they can
cost a fairly substantial amount to print,
especially if only a small amount is required.
This is where using professional printers
can be far too expensive. In most cases, a
professional printer will charge the same
amount for 100 copies of a document as it
does for 1,000 — but there’s good reason
for this. Most of the money is charged for
setting up the presses and the paper and
ink are almost negligible in comparison.
You could of course use one of the many
T
42 | EPSONow
quick printing outlets, but if you’re after
truly professional results, such as full gloss
and edge-to-edge printing, it might prove
somewhat difficult.
There can be little doubt in anyone’s
mind that desktop printing has come an
enormously long way during the last several years. Clunky, slow printers of dubious
quality have been replaced by new models
with print speeds rivalling many laser printers, incredibly high resolution and brilliant
colour reproduction. Along with this are
specialty papers ranging from almost pure
white right through to rolls of premium
glossy photo paper. Actually, it’s extremely
easy to set yourself up with a high quality,
versatile colour printer for less than it costs
to have one print job of 100 brochures done
by a printing house.
The Benefits
By using a desktop inkjet printer to create your own marketing documents, the
benefits start to pile up at a surprising rate.
While some may be fairly obvious, others
are less so, but just as important.
BUDGET CONTROL: As stated earlier in the
article, professional printing can cost a fair
amount of money even before the first
page is printed. Printing your marketing
materials on the desktop printer will mean
you’re paying only for the ink and the
paper used in creating the precise number
of copies you need.
DEMAND CONTROL: Getting ready for a
meeting means having everything on hand
to make it a success. Marketing materials
are often used in such instances and running
out of stock can present more than just a
minor problem. With the ability to print professional marketing documents on-demand,
availability should never be a problem.
TOTAL CONTROL: Change is a constant; and
in business it seems to be even more so.
Even a minor change, such as a telephone
number, product name or address, often
means brochures and other printed materials need to be adjusted and reprinted.
Marketing Documents
Just about everywhere you look today, there
are brochures and other documents
being used by companies to bring
their services and products to the
attention of customers; and in all but
a few cases, these can be prepared
and printed quickly within the office
or even at home.
POSTCARD MAILOUTS: The great
thing about postcards is that everyone reads them. Whether your goal is
to advertise your business or a special
event, a postcard is an essential and
effective marketing tool. As time is
money in any business, fewer people
have time to waste opening promotional envelopes. However postcards
make it easy for everyone to read
your material because it is easy to
pass around and therefore is read by
more people.
GIFT VOUCHERS: Gift vouchers are
a great way of getting customers to
return to your business. In the case
of small businesses giving out gift vouchers,
it is a way of personalising the customers’
association to the business and making
them feel special. If the gift voucher is aesthetically pleasing, be it through its design
and finally its printing, it will appear more
important and valuable to the customer.
LEAFLETS: Leaflets are simple and inexpensive marketing tools for informing a
large number of people about a company.
Leaflets can be used for advertising, price
lists, information spreading, communicating ideas or supplying helpful information to customers and the general public.
Bear in mind, though, leaflets dropped in
mailboxes will need to be very durable to
withstand rough handling and even moisture. It may prove worthwhile to consider
using EPSON DURABrite INK for this particular purpose.
Some Suggestions
In developing your own marketing materials, there are a number of suggestions that
can make the entire process easier and
more cost-effective:
1. Explore the desktop publishing potential
of your word processor before heading off
to purchase a fully-featured desktop publishing program. Word processors, such as
Microsoft Word and WordPerfect, have been
developed with an enormous range of page
layout features. In most cases, you’ll find
they are more than suitable for preparing
brochures.
1.
work was shown to various people outside
the company who were unaware of the
brochures’ origins, every comment followed
along the lines of: “Where did you get this
printed? The quality is great!”
If in doubt as to the suitability of a
certain paper for your EPSON printer, it’s a
simple matter to visit the EPSON Australia
Web site (http://www.epson.com.au), click
through to your printer and check for compatible papers.
3. Don’t fall into the trap of believing cheap
is better. In every edition of EPSONow we
push the fact that the best results can only
be achieved by using genuine EPSON inks
and papers. This edition is no exception.
Quite aside from genuine ink being one
of the easiest ways to protect the precision
Micro Piezo print head, these inks have
been designed specifically to work
with different types of papers.
4. Use colour carefully. Colour can be
extremely effective in marketing brochures, but it can be all too easy to
go overboard with its use. The main
purpose of a brochure or leaflet is to
tell the reader your message. Colour
and graphics should complement the
message but not be the overpowering elements. If in doubt, seek professional advice or search the Web
for guides on the use of colour in
marketing documents.
5. Take advice and suggestions from
other people. It’s very easy to convince yourself that the brochure or
leaflet you have designed is absolutely perfect, when in fact it may well be
quite the opposite. Just as you should
experiment with colour and paper,
experiment also with people. By
showing your preliminary efforts to
other people, you will receive some excellent feedback by way of their immediate
reactions and possible suggestions. If two
out of three people seem to recoil at the
design or the way in which something has
been written, that should be your warning
bell that some adjustments are called for.
6. Print your brochures to meet demand.
It can often be tempting to print out a
large number of brochures in a single job.
If demand isn’t there to go through them
quickly, then hold back and adopt a Justin-Time process. Changes that need to be
made to the brochures can mean you are
left with a useless stack of outdated, inaccurate documents.
3.
4.
5.
Printing marketing documents
on an EPSON STYLUS PHOTO printer
2. Experiment with different papers for
the best results. EPSON’s range of inkjet
papers is extremely comprehensive and
each has been designed for specific applications. Having said that, though, don’t
be afraid to try something different. A
brochure for which you may only require
50 copies can be cost-effectively printed
on EPSON Premium Glossy Photo Paper.
At EPSONow we tried this on both an
EPSON STYLUS PHOTO 935 and EPSON
STYLUS PHOTO 830U. When the finished
2.
6.
EPSONow | 43
CASE STUDY
EPSON STYLUS Printers in Craft –
WINDFLOWER EMBROIDERY
Since 1989 Windflower Embroidery has made quite a
name for itself by providing embroidery enthusiasts and
professionals with a wide range of kits, materials and
accessories. In 1999, with the success of its mail order
business overshadowing that of its retail operations,
the company’s owner, Jan Kertin, changed Windflower
to a 100 per cent mail order model.
The Extra Dimension
A
AMONG WINDFLOWER’S most popular products are kits for embroidery and stumpwork
(raised embroidery). These kits, which are
all produced entirely by Windflower, are
highly regarded around the world for their
incredible attention to detail and strong use
44 | EPSONow
of colour. With orders coming in from right
across Australia and overseas from places
that include Botswana and even Iceland,
Kertin has long recognised the importance
of providing clear, concise and detailed
instructions for each of Windflower’s kits.
“This is particularly important when it
comes to stumpwork,” she said.“Because of
the three-dimensional nature of this type
of embroidery, my customers often need
to see colour images of what the end result
should be.”
Unfortunately, even with the services
of a local printer, getting the results she
wanted for her kits’ instruction sheets was
something Kertin rarely achieved. “The
main issue was that the quality of prints
simply didn’t accentuate the detail that
goes into creating such beautiful pieces of
embroidery,” she said.
Crisp Colours for Craft
Already relying on her personal computer
to create the master documents for the
instruction sheets, Kertin decided to
assess the viability of producing her own
sheets in-house. After visiting a local retail
outlet and being shown the high-quality printing results afforded by various
EPSON STYLUS printers, she purchased
two — an A4 model and an A3 EPSON
STYLUS 1290.
“I use my EPSON printers to do the
master copies of the instructions, which
are then used by a colour copy store to
print out the number of copies I need,”
Kertin said. “Most importantly, I can show
the copy store staff exactly what the result
should be — accurate, crisp colours and
extremely fine detail.”
her home town of Surry Hills, Melbourne,
is par for the course. With her A3 EPSON
STYLUS printer, Kertin regularly prints
out detailed and precise scans of photographs and embroideries she has done.
When used in her classes and demonstrations, these prints prove invaluable in
showing students exactly how their final
embroideries should look.
“Because of the extremely accurate
colour reproduction I get with the printers, they represent an amazingly valuable
teaching tool,” she said. “The colour accuracy means the prints are virtually perfect,
right down to the finest detail.”
A Vital Teaching Aid
Cost Effective
and Professional
Embroidery has a large interest base
around the world, with a large teaching
circuit in the USA through the Smocking
Arts Guild and Embroiderers’ Guild of
America.
For Kertin, who is a highly sought after
speaker and instructor, preparing notes
and presentations for courses she runs
twice a year in the US as well as those in
A commonly held misconception of the
craft industry is that it is a “cottage industry”. For Kertin, ensuring Windflower
Embroidery is excluded from this means
presenting her company as a highly professional business.
In this, her EPSON printers play a
major part. “The printers have helped in
giving my business a very professional
image by giving me the ability to print
diagrams, photos and text of the highest
quality,” she said.
With the EPSON printers playing such
an important part in Windflower’s success, reliability and ease-of-maintenance
are essential. According to Kertin, one
of the most effective ways in which she
ensures these is by using genuine EPSON
inks only.
“I really don’t want to take the risk
with inks that haven’t been designed to
work with my printers,” she said. “And
first-hand experience has shown me that
by sticking with the EPSON inks, I rarely
have to clean the printhead, which means
I’m saving ink, time and money.
“My printers are very reliable. I give
them a hard life as I use them all day,
every day. They haven’t missed a beat and
I know I am going to be keeping them for
quite some time.”
For further information on
Windflower Embroidery, visit
www.windflowerembroidery.com
EPSONow | 45
USING EPSON
Hands On with EPSON —
The Birthday Party
One of the great things about owning an
EPSON inkjet printer is that when it comes
to creativity, the sky is the limit. In this and
future editions of EPSONow we will include
articles to help you express this creativity,
have some fun and even save time and money.
S
SO IF YOU THOUGHT your EPSON printer was just for printing photographs and documents, then maybe it’s time to read this article
and reconsider. For the first in our ongoing Hands On With EPSON
articles we have developed a series of projects that can make a
child’s birthday party fun even before it starts.
The Invitations
The first of the birthday party projects that we’ll be using our
EPSON printer for is the invitation; and there are some marvellous
resources out there to really get the ball rolling. Just a few of those
that we at EPSONow like to use are:
46 | EPSONow
Club EPSON: (http://www.clubepson.com.au) — This is a site
that is growing all the time with great activities for parties. You
will need to be a Club EPSON member before you access this site
though, so to find out how to join, read our Club EPSON article
on page 40.
The Microsoft Template Gallery: (http://officeupdate.microsoft.com/
TemplateGallery) — this is particularly good for users of Microsoft
Word. Once at the site, select the Stationery, Labels and Cards
option, then Cards and Invitations from the next screen.
Suggestions
If you will be including photographs on the invitation, consider using one of EPSON’s photographic papers, such as
Matte Paper, Heavyweight or Photo Quality Glossy Paper.
When you do this, ensure you select the correct paper from the
printer driver’s Media Type drop down list.
Invitations can take a variety of forms, from single-sided to
folded (much like a traditional greeting card). Whichever
format you decide to use, do a test run to make sure you’ve
placed the elements correctly. This is especially true of folded
cards.
1
2
Colouring-In (Our Favourite)
TREAT BAGS
Well, I have to admit that with three daughters (aged
When it came to doing the treat
3, 7 and 14), colouring-in seems to be one of the most
bags, we threw caution to
popular activities at our house; and to be quite honest,
the wind and purchased
I’m really not that keen on many of the colouring-in
different coloured organza
books on the market.
drawstring bags.
For parties, I find colouring-in contests can be one
The result was actually
of the best ways to keep the kids quiet while I calm my
quite striking with a stark
shattered nerves.
white background to the
Regardless of the age of your children there is an
transferred image. As is
enormous number of Web sites that feature some great
the case with all these
colouring-in downloads. For my two younger daughhands-on exercises,
ters, the most popular is: http://www.abc.net.au/
experimentation is often the
children/games/default.htm.
key to success. Don’t be
Along with many other activities, there are some
great Print and Colour downloads featuring my
afraid to try different materials
and different ways of doing
personal, I mean my daughters’ personal favourite,
things.
Bananas in Pyjamas. One of the great things about this
particular activity is that it costs so little to set up. After
all, it will generally require only a minimal amount of
the printer’s black ink. Another fabulous site, especially
for those of us who can’t get enough of the classic Looney Tunes1
visit the home pages of our favourite television shows, movies or
production houses then search around to see if they have activities
characters is: http://looneytunes.warnerbros.com/looney_library/
for children.
library_activitylist.html
In most cases the colouring-in pages on the Web will be
graphic files that can be either printed straight from the Web
Suggestions
browser or saved to disk for printing later. For the latter,
Finding loads of colouring-in files on the Web to download
simply right-click on the image and select Save Picture As… from
and print is quite easy. It just needs a bit of effort, but the
the menu. Then select the appropriate folder and click the Save
results can be fabulous. One of the best methods we use is to
button.
If the children (or grownups) will be using feltPLACEMATS
tip pens, then it’s best to use EPSON Bright
White Inkjet Paper. This is a double-sided paper
For the placemats, we decided to use EPSON Photo Quality
and weighs in at 90gsm, which is ideal for both pencils
Inkjet Paper; one of the reasons for this choice was that it gave
and felt-tips.
us extremely high quality photo reproduction. To add strength
and durability to the finished product we then took them to a
large stationery outlet and had them laminated for the children
Cloth Treat Bags
to be able to do the puzzle. We purchased some special pencils
What’s a party without a treats bag for the children?
from the same outlet that could be used on the laminate,
While there is some debate around the EPSONow
yet easily wiped off.
office as to whether it should be lollies or more
healthy treats, at least everyone agrees that a treats
bag is essential. There are a couple of methods for
creating treat bags, but for this article we’ll take a
shortcut and still turn out some treat bags that are
really impressive.
To start you’ll require some small cloth bags that
can either be whipped up on the sewing machine or
bought from a haberdashery outlet (best to do some
phoning around first). They don’t need to be fancy, by
the way. Next, some EPSON Iron-On Transfer Paper.
With these on-hand:
Use your favourite graphics programme to create
an A4-sized (or smaller) image you would like to
have on the treat bag.
Add some extras to make it more memorable.
This could include a photo of the birthday girl or
boy, or even the name of the child for whom the
treat bag is being made.
1
2
3
1
2
EPSONow | 47
USING EPSON
Print the image on the EPSON Iron-On
Transfer Paper and follow the instructions that
are included with the paper to transfer the
image from the paper to the cloth bag. Too simple!
3
Fun Place Mats
GREAT ADVENTURE CARDS
Given that the great adventure cards were to be
printed on both sides, we used EPSON
Double Sided Archival Matte Paper
which gave us two sided
printing along with a strong
card finish. If you really
want a glossy photo
finish on the cards, you can
always use an EPSON glossy
photo paper and hand write
your clues on the reverse
side. To avoid damaging the
print though, we suggest you
use a felt tip pen.
It doesn’t seem to matter what age the partygoers are,
they’re bound to make a mess at the table. For my
three-year old, Katelyn’s upcoming birthday I decided
to make some placemats, which really turned up quite
a treat. Once again, your own imagination is the only
limiting factor here. In creating Katelyn’s party mats I
thought it would be fun to make them a little interactive by adding in some activities. Here’s how they can
be done:
Using either a word processor that can manage
graphics and text, a graphics programme or — if
you have one — a desktop publishing programme,
start a new A4-sized document/image session.
Start by creating a colourful border around the edge of the
file. Make sure it’s colourful to grab the attention of even the
most sulky partygoer.
Add some fun extras, such as a join-the-dots puzzle, a small
colouring in picture, or a Find-a-Word puzzle. (If you’re
going to laminate the mats, you will need to provide each
child with some pencils or markers that can be used on the laminate material.)
Print the mats on either EPSON Photo Quality Inkjet Paper
or EPSON Bright White Inkjet Paper.
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Pay a quick visit to a store that can provide a laminating
service and ask them to laminate each of the placemats.
A Great Adventure
Everyone should have their favourite cartoon characters; and they
can make the basis of a great game — a great adventure to be more
precise. The goal of the Great Adventure is to have the children
INVITATIONS
Rather than going to the
effort of designing our
own party invitations, we
downloaded a number
of invitation PDF files
from the Club EPSON
Web site. After testing the
results on various papers,
we opted for EPSON
Matte Paper-Heavyweight.
This gave us a sturdy
card-like invitation that had
a much more authentic look
and feel to it than with the
other papers we tested.
locate hidden cards, which contain clues that will eventually lead
them to the location of the ultimate prize — a toy of some sort.
The cards themselves are two-sided, with one side having a
picture of a cartoon character and the other, a clue to the prize’s
location. The best part is that this game can be played inside or
outside.
Here’s How
Start by searching the Internet for pictures of the cartoon
characters to be printed on the cards — about four to six
should do the trick. Once located, save them to your hard
drive by right-clicking on image and selecting Save Picture As…
from the menu. Select the appropriate folder and click the Save
button.
The idea is to print four cards per A4 sheet, so this is where
EPSON PhotoQuicker will come in handy. After you select
the first four card characters, click the Next button to move to
Select a Print Layout. Once there, click on the paper size and layout
to suit your needs, then Next once more to select the paper type.
On the issue of paper type, you should bear in mind
that as you will be printing on both sides of the paper,
EPSON Double Sided Matte Paper may well prove to
the best option.
Once all your card sheets have been printed it’s
time to run them through the printer once more,
but this time on the reverse side. This is where
the clues to the ultimate prize will be printed, so take
some time to make sure they’re not too difficult for
the youngsters. Simply use any word processor and
type in your clues, making sure they are positioned so
as to be printed squarely on the back of the cartoon
characters.
All that’s left to do now is cut the cards
and distribute them around the area to be
searched. Oh, and don’t forget to put the prize
where it should be.
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LOONEY TUNES, characters, names and all related
indicia are trademarks of Warner Bros
48 | EPSONow
IF IT WERE A CAR,
IT WOULD BE A FERRARI
BUT IT’S A PROJECTOR,
SO IT’S AN EPSON
The EMP-S1 projector from EPSON
Renowned EPSON Colour Technology • 1200 ANSI Lumens
Compact • Lightweight 3.2kg • Digital Keystone Correction • DVD,
DTV, HDTV Compatible • Full Help Functionality • On Screen Menu
www.epson.com.au
Product names mentioned herein
are for identification purposes only
and/or registered trademarks of the
respective companies. Copyright 2003
EPSON Australia Pty. Limited
3 Talavera Road
Macquarie Park NSW 2113
www.epson.com.au
Phone: 1800 652 726
Published by
Australian Corporate Writing Pty Ltd
www.acw.com.au
Phone: (02) 4333 6700