Common Process Colors are created during installation. If an additional Process Color is required – for example, when a special color outside the standard color set if used for your printing system – it has to be created manually. Proceed as follows:

1. Navigate to Administration > Inks and switch to the tab Ink Setup.
2. In the settings area Process Colors, click Add to open the dialog Add Process Color.

Figure 1: The dialog Add Process Color

3. In the dialog Add Process Color, you have to enter a Name and an Abbreviation for the Process Color and define the CMYK color value used for display in the application.
4. If the new Process Color should be used as a gamut-extending color in Color Management, the option Retain Separation [2] should remain disabled. If this option is enabled, the created color is marked for use as a Spot Color of the type "Output as Separation" for the printing system.
5. If the created Process Color is to be used as a light color for calculating transitions between a light and dark color of a Process Color, select the option Light Channel [1] and then activate the corresponding dark Process Color [3] from the selection list.
6. To save the selected Process Color settings, click Save.

An Ink Family is the parent group of inks that have been developed together for use in a printing system. One or more Process Colors can be assigned to an ink family. The most common ink families are already available after installation.

To create an ink family, proceed as follows:

1. In Administration > Inks open the tab Ink Setup.
2. To create a new ink family, click Add in the header bar of the settings area Ink Families.

Figure 2: The dialog Add Ink Family

3. In the dialog Add Ink Family, first complete the description fields [4] for the ink family – Name, Segment, Supplier, and optionally a Comment.
4. Then switch to the tab Inks [5] and add the Process Colors to the ink family for which an ink is available.
5. Next, enter the Name and Order Number of the ink.
6. To create the ink family, click Save.

After all Ink Families and their associated Inks have been created in the database, the inks filled in the printer must be made available.

To make the inks available for the printer, proceed as follows:

1. In Administration > Inks navigate to the tab Used Inks.
2. In the settings area Ink Family, add the previously created Ink Family to the list by clicking Add. The dialog Add Ink Family opens.

Figure 3: The dialog Add Ink Family

3. In the dialog, first select the Ink Family [6]. Selecting the ink family displays all available inks assigned to that ink family.
4. Next, select all inks that are filled in the printer by checking the corresponding checkbox [7]. In case filled colors are not displayed, they have either not been created yet or are assigned to a different ink family. In this case, you either have to create the ink or add an additional ink family in the application.
5. To make the selected inks available in the application, click Save.

To generate an ink consumption report with prices later in the application, the prices for individual inks or special customer-specific ink prices have to be entered in the system.

To set the standard price of an ink, proceed as follows:

1. Navigate to the tab Used Inks [8] in Administration > Inks.
2. In the settings area Ink Families, select the desired entry [9]. All available Inks in the selected family are displayed in the settings area of the same name.
3. Now select the corresponding ink [10] in the settings area Inks. This displays the entry Standard Price [13] in the settings area Ink Price. If the price has not yet been modified, it is set to 0.00 € by default.

Figure 4: The tab Used Ink with the three setting areas

4. Select Standard Price in the settings area Ink Price and click Edit [12].
5. In the dialog Edit Ink Price that opens, you can now enter the price for the ink per litre in Cost € / l [15]. This dialog differs from Figure 15 only in that no Customer can be selected.
6. Click Save to store the standard prices for this ink. Repeat this procedure for all other inks.
7. If you also set a customer-specific ink price, click Add [11].
8. In the dialog Add Ink Price, you can selec a customer [14] and enter the ink price for that customer in Cost € / l [15].

Figure 5: The dialog Add Ink Price

Setting up a printer is required to output print data. Different parameters may be needed depending on the printer type, so the setup process can vary. To provide a general overview, the setup of a PDF printer is described below. Proceed as follows:

1. Select the menu Administration > Printer. If no printer has been set up yet, the application will display the steps that have to be completed in advance in order to set up a printer. A printer can only be set up once all the prerequisites are met. These prerequisites include:
   • Setting Up the File Management – set up the file management on the desired server where the print data should be stored.
   • Path – select the path where the files should be stored.
   • Ink Family – create an ink family for the desired printer with all the required Process Colors.
   • Substrate – create the desired substrate with all the substrate characteristics that should be used.
2. Click Add in the action bar. Depending on your license, different printer types are available for selection here. For this example, a PDF Printer/Output is created.
3. In the dialog Add Printer, the Printer Type [16] is already preselected and cannot be changed. Additionally, enter the Name for the printer and, optionally, a Comment.
4. For the Default Destination Directory [17], select the path or share you previously defined for this printer. In addition, specify the Preferred Height – the height that should be selected as the default for the Imposition – for this printer and then click Next.

Figure 6: The step Printer in the dialog Add Printer

5. In the step Print Heads, the typically used Process Colors are already displayed. In Preferred Ink Family [18], select the ink family that is loaded in the printer.
6. Remove any Process Colors that are not required from the list, or add any unlisted Process Colors that are available in the printing system.
7. The order can be adjusted according to the printer's requirements by simply moving the handles [19].
8. Click Next to proceed to the next step.

Figure 7: The step Print Heads in the dialog Add Printer

9. In the step Color Configuration, the Type [20] has to be selected. When creating a PDF printer, only CMYK can be chosen here. For other printing systems, different printing color configurations can of course be selected.
10. Enter the desired name for the type in the field Channel Configuration Name [21]. By default, the type designation is useed, but you can also enter a custom name of your choice.
11. Click Next to continue.

Figure 8: The step Color Configuration in the dialog Add Printer

12. In the step Print Configuration, you have to enter the Printer Resolution [22] as well as other Finishing Type [23] and Output Parameters [24].
13. After entering the desired values, click Next to continue.

Figure 9: The step Print Configuration in the dialog Add Printer

14. The final step is to create the Color Policy, which plays a central role for output in the application. The following parameters have to be entered to complete the printer setup:
    • Name [25] – assign a name for the color policy. An optional comment can also be added.
    • Substrate [26] – select the default substrate for this printer from the dropdown menu. All substrates created in the application are available in the selection list.
    • Assign to all Substrates [27] – enable this option if the color strategy should be used with all substrates.
    • Assign to selected Substrate [28] – if the option Assign to all Substrates is disabled, additional substrates can be added to the already selected default substrate. This limits the list of available substrates in the application when selecting the color policy to those added here.
    • Intermediate Color Space [29] – select the ICC profile to be used for converting colors from RGB to CMYK from the selection menu.
    • ICC Profile [30] – select the desired ICC profile here, or upload a custom ICC profile. The selected ICC profile should match the target system for which the PDF is generated. The substrate profile (an ICC profile) should therefore be uploaded and selected here.
15. Click Save to create the printer.

Figure 10: The step Color Strategy / ICC Profile in the dialog Add Printer, which is only available when creating a PDF printer

When creating a printer, you already set up a Color Configuration and Print Configuration with all required parameters. If you need to add additional printer configurations – such as color configurations, resolutions, output paths, or similar – you can do so at any time.

To create additional color and print configurations for an existing printer, proceed as follows:

1. Select the menu item Administration > Printer. A list of all printers available in the application is displayed.
2. Click on the name of the printer in the list to open the detail view.
3. The printer detail view is divided into four setting areas – Print Heads [31], Color Configuration [33], Print Configuration [34], and Color Policies [32].

Figure 11: The detail view of a printer for a complete configuration

4. Click Edit in the settings area Print Heads [31] to change the ink family or to add additional colors – such as OVG, varnish, or white.
5. In the dialog Edit Print Heads, at least the Process Color [35], Ink Family [36], and Ink [37] have to be selected for each color channel. Repeat this step for all print heads installed in the printer.

Figure 12: The dialog Edit Print Heads

6. Save the changes in the dialog Print Heads by clicking Save.
7. Next, create the Color Configuration you want to use for production. To create a Color Configuration [33] (Figure 11), click Add in the corresponding settings area.
8. In the dialog Add Color Configuration – note that no additional color configuration can be created for a PDF printer – select the desired color configuration type under Type [38]. Then enter an appropriate name in Channel Configuration Name [39].

Figure 13: The dialog Add Color Configuration with the fields Type and Name already filled in

9. Complete the Color Configuration by clicking Save.
10. Next, create the print configurations you want to use for production. To add a Print Configuration [34] (Figure 11), click Add in the corresponding settings area.
11. In the dialog Add Print Configuration, select the desired Preset [40] from the list of preconfigured modes. Then enter a name for the Print Mode [41]. Note that this name has to be unique for each print configuration.

Figure 14: The dialog Add Print Configuration with the Print Mode already selected

12. Close the Print Configuration by clicking Save.

Once all the required print configurations have been set up, the application is ready to start the color setup for a substrate. Before you start, however, you should at least adjust the menu item Settings to suit your requirements, particularly with regard to color management.

To view or modify the application settings, proceed as follows:

1. Select the menu item Administration > Settings. All areas where settings can be configured are displayed as menu items and tabs. The menu items General [47] and Color Management [48] should, for production reasons, always be adjusted.

Figure 16: The menu item General in the settings

2. In the menu item General [47], configure the settings that best match your working methods and production requirements. There are four tabs available:
   • General [49] – define how length specifications of different labels are handled and how many entries are displayed in the Activities list. The default values in this area are already optimized for typical production processes.
   • Display Options [50] – set the desired display formats for Length Unit, Area Unit, Number Format, Currency, Date Format, and Time Format. In addition, you can determine whether the user sees all menu items included in the license or only those corresponding to their role.
   • Box Options [51] – define both the standard bleed values used in production and the PageBox that should be applied by default for Impositions. In practice, using the TrimBox is a common and recommended approach.
   • Multipage Files [52] – specify how multipage files should be handled.
3. After completing the settings in the tab General, switch to the tab Color Management [48] (Figure 16) and configure the settings to match your working methods and production requirements.

Figure 17: The tab Color Management of the dialog Settings

4. There are three tabs available in which settings have to be configured before starting a color setup:
   • General [53] – define the options to be used for the various areas of color management – ∆E, Color Policy, Simulation Target Color Space, Rendering Intent, and Linearization Method. Be sure to read the descriptions in the notes on the right side of the options. Additionally, select which source profiles in the print data should be used for color conversion. In certain production environments, it may be useful to ignore CMYK source profiles.
   • Working Color Space [54] – select the profiles for CMYK, RGB, and grayscale that should serve as the reference color space for production output. Using ECI-CMYK, a wide-gamut CMYK color space for digital printing, can be useful in pure digital printing environments. The sRGB color space is recommended for environments where the creators of the print data are unknown. For grayscale, sGray is the most commonly used setting.
   • Output Color Space [55] – upload all ICC substrate profiles that should be used as the output color space for printers.
5. Save the configured defaults by clicking Save. If you want to set additional defaults in the other tabs, now is the appropriate time. Settings can, however, be changed at any time afterward.

To ensure that correct conversion of Spot Colors into the output color space and accurate calculation of ∆E color differences for the chosen output color space (Color Policy), you should provide the system with the color libraries used in your prepress or production environment. You can use color libraries from Adobe CC programs (.ase and .acb formats) as well as color libraries in CxF format.

To upload a color library, proceed as follows:

1. Navigate to Color > Spot Colors and switch to the tab Library.
2. Click Import in the action bar.
3. A dialog appears to select an .acb, .ase, or CxF file. Drag the desired file onto the drop zone [56].
4. Enter the desired Name [57] for the color library.
5. Click the button Import Spot Color Library to load the color library into the application.

Figure 18: The dialog Import Spot Color Library  

To ensure that certain Spot Colors are automatically recognized in the application as a Spot Color of a specific type, they must be created as system-wide Spot Color Definitions. Additionally, it is possible to create substrate- or customer-specific Spot Color Definitions.

To create a Spot Color Definition, proceed as follows:

1. Navigate to Colors > Spot Colors. A list of all Spot Colors available in the application is displayed. Using the three quick filters – System, Substrate, and Customers – you can filter and edit Spot Colors by category.
2. Click Add to create a system-wide Spot Color Definition.
3. In the dialog Create Spot Color Definition that opens, enter the following information to define a Spot Color that should automatically be recognized a Technical Color:
   • Name [58] – enter the name of the Spot Color. Note that each spelling – upper and lower case – requires a separate Spot Color Definition.
   • Origin [59] – select whether the Spot Color is a system-wide, substrate-specific, or customer-specific. Technical Colors can only be created as system-wide Spot Colors.

• Spot Color Type [60] – define the type of the Spot Color. The system will handle the Spot Color according to the selection. To create a Technical Spot Color, select the corresponding type.
  • Processing Steps [61] – for Technical Spot Colors and Spot Colors that will be output as a separation, select the desired Processing Steps Group. In most cases, Structural should be selected. Optionally, you can also select the corresponding Processing Steps Type.
  • Color Mode [62] – choose the color space in which the color values for the Spot Color should be specified. Options include CMYK, RGB, and LAB.
  • Color Value [63] – after selecting the Color Space, enter the corresponding color values for the Technical Color. Lab values can alternatively be read directly from a Measurement Device.

4. Complete the creation of the Spot Color Definition by clicking Save.

Figure 19: The dialog Create Spot Color Definition

To grant users access to certain areas, typical user roles must first be created. To create a role, proceed as follows:

1. Navigate to Administration > Users and Roles, and select the tab Manage Roles.
2. By default, the role USER is available in the settings area User Roles. This role has no permission assigned initially.
3. To create a role such as "Prepress", click Add in the settings area User Roles.
4. The dialog Add User Role opens. Enter a role name [64] and optionally a Role Comment describing the role.
5. Click Save to create the new role.

Figure 20: The dialog Add User Role

6. Select the previously created user role in the left section of the settings area User Roles [65].
7. The Role Permissions assigned to the role will then be displayed. In the tab Menu Bar [66], the permissions corresponding to the menu items in the application's menu bar are shown. Additionally, permissions for other areas – such as Editors and Global – can also be viewed.

Figure 21: The settings area Role Permission with the selected permissions from the tab Menu Bar

8. By expanding [68] layer 1, the underlying role permissions for layer 2 are displayed. In some cases, role permissions can be expanded up to four layers, allowing granular assignment of permissions.
9. Go through the list of role permissions and activate the corresponding checkboxes to enable all role permissions of the underlying layers or individual role permissions. If not all permissions in a layer are selected, the symbol [–] [67] is displayed.
10. Once all desired Role Permissions have been assigned, click Save to apply the changes to the role.