Basic FAQ

1. Why should I use the Streamline Multimedia templates?
The templates have been designed by our design department to ensure that your job will move quickly and smoothly through our print shop and packaging departments. Differences of as little as 1/32 of an inch can cause problems in the printing and packaging process. Any file that is not provided in our templates will incur a $50 out-of-template fee to cover our labor for adjusting your files.
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2. Can’t I just use the measurements from a CD or DVD that I own?
No. A jewel box or DVD case from Streamline Multimedia may look the same as every other at first glance, but they have slightly different dimensions. Even slight deviations from Streamline Multimedia specifications can cause problems in the printing and packaging process.
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3. What programs should I use?
Here is a list of file formats we can accept:
Layout files:
• Adobe Illustrator (versions 7-9)
• Adobe InDesign (version 2)
Photos or images:
• TIFF (.tif)
• Adobe Photoshop (version 7) (.psd)
• Photoshop EPS (.eps) - with 8-bit TIFF preview
• Windows Bitmaps (.bmp)
• Photo CD (.pcd)
• GIF (.gif) – accepted, but not recommended for print
• JPEG (.jpg) – accepted, but not recommended for print

Fonts:
OpenType, or TrueType fonts.
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7. Do I need to supply layout files for every part of my package?
Yes. If you don’t provide layout files for every part of your package, you may have to pay design fees for us to create the missing files. The most commonly omitted files are for the on-disc printing.
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8. What are bleed and safety margin?
Bleed is extending any color, photo, or design elements past the cut line. Our print shop trims printed pieces in stacks. This is much faster than trimming individual pieces, at the cost of a little accuracy. Bleed gives the print shop a margin of error when trimming, so that if the cut is a little off, the white of the paper won’t show along the edge.

We request you add 1/4-inch of bleed to your layouts. Each template has guidelines set up so you can see exactly how much bleed you need to add to your layouts. These are generally the outermost guides.

Safety margin is the opposite of bleed. If you put important information such as a song title or an important part of a photo right up against the crop line, some of it may get cut off. We recommend that you keep your type and other important elements 1/8" inside the crop marks. Each template has guidelines set up so you can see exactly how much safety margin to allow. These are generally the innermost guides.


Close up of a template showing the bleed and safety lines.



This cover was prepared without bleed (the black outline represents the cut line). The image stops at the cut line, and the type runs right to the edge with no safety margin.


Here’s what could happen once this job is cut. Without bleed, a thin white border of the paper shows, and without safety, the type closest to the edge gets cut off.



This is what a good cover should look like. The type has been moved in from the edge, and the figure’s left hand is safely away from the cut line. The image extends beyond the crop marks to provide bleed. The bleed area is represented here by the blue highlight, and the safety area is represented by the red highlight.
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9. What is a release number, and is it necessary for me to have one on my CD or DVD?
A release number is an identification number for your CD or DVD. It is usually a combination of up to seven letters and numbers that you select. Music industry pros and retailers do not refer to CDs and DVDs by name, but by release number. Since retailers keep inventory this way, you must have a release number on your project or stores will not even consider putting your project on their shelves.

You should put your release number on the spine of your jewel case, or other packaging, and on your on-disc printing. To avoid confusion, try not to choose common numbers like 01 or 001. If you are using a Streamline Multimedia bar code, we will assign you a release number to match your bar code.
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10. How small can I make my type?
Generally, for your printed pieces you can go as small as 4 or 5 points for black type on a light or white background, 6 points for white type on a dark, black, or complex background (also known as reverse type). This varies depending on the typeface used. For on-disc printing, we recommend type be no smaller than 6 points, 8 points for reverse type.

For smaller type, such as lyrics and credits, we recommend you use simpler typefaces such as Arial, Helvetica, or Times New Roman. Display faces—the “fancier” fonts with lots of detail, like Vivaldi or Edwardian Script—are designed to be used at large sizes, and can be difficult to read even at 10 points.
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11. What’s the difference between CMYK and RGB?
CMYK and RGB are two different color models, and understanding the difference can mean producing a great-looking insert rather than a muddy, disappointing one. We’ll have to delve into a little science to explain this difference.

The RGB color model is used by monitors, televisions, scanners, and digital cameras. A monitor uses very small bands of red, green, and blue light to generate color. For a quick science project, put a drop of water on the front of your monitor in a white area, and it will act like a magnifying glass. You’ll be able to see the red, green, and blue bands. RGB is additive because when you add all three colors together, you get white light; when you turn off all three lights, you get black. By mixing varying amounts of red, green, and blue light, you can create most other colors.

The paper of a magazine, catalog, or CD booklet can’t generate light like a computer monitor. It has to rely on reflected light, and the subtractive color model CMYK. When you add cyan, magenta, and yellow together (CMY), you get a color close to black, and when you don’t lay down any ink, you get white—that is, the white of the paper. A fourth color, black, is added for economical and practical reasons, and is referred to by ‘K’ so as not to be confused with blue. By mixing varying amounts of cyan, magenta, yellow, and black inks, you can create most other colors. All commercial, full-color printing uses CMYK inks.

So why is the difference important? Most colors created on your RGB monitor can be duplicated using CMYK inks, but not all. Your RGB monitor is generating light, so it can create some bright colors that can’t be duplicated on any CMYK printing press. Paper can only reflect light, so if you print the super-bright RGB colors in CMYK, they get a lot duller.

If you’re designing artwork in an RGB color space, we’ll have to convert it to CMYK to print. Depending on your artwork, the colors might shift a little or a lot.


Some colors in RGB can become much duller in CMYK.


Depending on the image, an RGB to CMYK change may or may not look very different.

We ask you to provide all your images in CMYK. If there are any color shifts, you’ll be able to see them and take steps to correct it. If you supply RGB images, we’ll make the CMYK conversion here, and show you a proof. If you want to make any changes to your images at that point, your job may be delayed and incur additional charges. It’s much better for you to supply us with CMYK files up front.
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12. I like how my design looks off of my home printer. Can you match the color if I send in a sample?
No. While inexpensive, ink-jet printers use same CMYK ink model that our printing presses use, the actual inks are not identical. If you printed your design on an Epson inkjet, an HP inkjet, and a Canon color laser printer, they would all look at least a little different, because each company manufactures their inks a little differently. Since your printer and our print are not calibrated to each other, we cannot accept your printout as an accurate color guide.
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13. How should I scan my photos?
Here are a few guidelines to ensure professional-quality scans.

All color and grayscale scans should be created at 300 pixels per inch (ppi) at actual print size. For example, if you want to use a photo for the cover of your CD or DVD booklet, you’ll need to set your scanning software to 300 ppi at 5" x 5". If your software wants the measurements in pixels, multiply the inches times the ppi (i.e. 300 ppi x 5 inches = 1500 pixels). Do not scan at a resolution higher than 300 ppi; this will not increase the quality of the image on your printed piece. (Note: your scanner software may refer to resolution as DPI, or dots per inch. The same formulas apply.)

1-bit (black & white, or monochrome) scans should have a resolution of 800 ppi at size. This is not the same as a grayscale image or black and white photo. A 1-bit black & white scan contains only black or white pixels, with no shades of gray. Examples of 1-bit scans would be the Nike swoosh logo, the CBS eye logo, and Chinese text characters.

Do not scan at a lower resolution and then increase it in Photoshop. This will result in blurry images. You need to input the proper resolution when you scan.

If you have an image editor, such as Adobe Photoshop, you should convert your color scans to CMYK color mode before using them. If you don’t, we will have to make this conversion before we can print your files, and your colors can change (see What's the difference between CMYK and RGB?).

Save your scans as either .TIF or Photoshop .EPS files. Avoid using .BMP, .JPG or .GIF files as they can lower the print quality, and do not allow you to save in CMYK color mode. If you use .EPS files, be sure that you save the image with an 8-bit TIFF preview.
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14. I’ve got a digital camera. How should I supply photos?
You should take your photos on your camera’s highest quality setting. We recommend at least a 2 megapixel size. Use the lowest image compression setting, or uncompressed if possible. Consult your camera’s manual for instructions on how to set the resolution, quality and compression settings on your specific camera. You shouldn’t assume that the default factory settings are correct for professional print needs.

You’ll need to transfer your photos from your camera to a CD-R or Zip disk. We cannot accept compact flash or smart media cards.
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15. I’ve got photos on my website. Can you download them from there?
We could, but you probably don’t want us to. The images on your website are usually compressed to be as small as possible, so they load quickly in a web browser. Images need to have a lot more information for quality commercial print than they do for the web. Your web images will appear blurry, pixellated, jaggy, and generally poor-quality if used in your print work. You should provide us with the original images before they were compressed for the web.
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16. Why do my EPS files appear so pixellated or jaggy on screen?
EPS files have a low-resolution preview file for on-screen viewing. The high-resolution image is still there, and when you print to a postscript printer, the computer will throw out the low-resolution preview and use the high-resolution data.
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17. How do I make my image circular or round for printing on the disc?
You don’t need to make your image round to fit on the disc. All the templates come with a circular area for masking any rectangular image. Each application handles this differently, so consult your software’s manual or help file for information on masking your images into the template.
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18. My files seem really large. Is this okay?
Yes, this is normal. A properly saved 5" x 5" scan, in CMYK color mode at 300 ppi, will take up to 8-10 MB on your hard drive. Your application layout files from Illustrator, or other layout programs will be much smaller than your image files, perhaps even under 100KB. If you have WinZip installed on your system, you can use it to compress, or archive, all your files into one. These programs can compress your layout files down to as little as 10% of their original size. They cannot compress images files nearly as well, so don’t expect a lot of space savings with compressed scans.
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19. Can I send my files in over the Internet?
You may email files under 1 MB to us. If your files are over 1 MB, you cannot send them in over the Internet, and will have to send us a disk.
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20. The 5 most common problems with client-supplied design jobs
1) Failure to include fonts.

2) Failure to include all linked images.
Before you send in your job, make sure you’re including in all linked files. Each application has a different way to check this. Illustrator has a Links menu, which will list all placed images in the document.

3) Image resolution is too low or supplied in RGB instead of CMYK.
For a complete explanation, see 13. How should I scan my photos?

4) Insufficient bleed or safety margins.
For a complete explanation, see 8. What are bleed and safety margin?

5) Failure to supply all parts of the job in Streamline Multimedia templates.
For a complete explanation, see 1. Why should I use the templates? and 7. Do I need to supply layout files for every part of my package?
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21. A final checklist
When you’re ready to submit your job to Streamline Multimedia, make sure that you’re including all of the following items:

• layout file for each part of the job (insert, tray card, on-disc printing.)
• all the fonts used in the layouts
• all the scans placed in the layouts
• up-to-date printouts of every layout file. Black and white prints are fine, even if your files are in color, but faxes are not acceptable due to lack of detail.
• a listing of the files on your disk (please also note the OS, programs and versions you used; i.e. Windows XP, Photoshop 6, etc.)
• a folded and/or stapled mockup (where applicable)
• any special instructions you may have

You should also do a final proofread of all your text and layouts to make sure everything is accurate and complete.
Organize the files on the disk clearly. Set up separate folders for layout files, images, fonts, not-for-output files, etc. If you submit a disk with dozens of unorganized and/or unnecessary files, your project will be delayed.
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22. Special concerns for Illustrator 9, 10 and CS users
Save your document in whatever current version you are using. Our Illustrator templates are saved in version 8, and Illustrator will try to save these documents in version 8 format by default. You must change this the first time you save your file(s). New features such as transparency are not supported in version 8, and saving backwards may cause problems that cannot be fixed.
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Advanced FAQ

23. Should I convert all my type to paths or curves?
We recommend against converting type to paths. Once type is converted to paths, it’s uneditable, which limits our ability to make adjustments to your files. It also creates a more complex file that may cause Postscript errors in the printing process. Keeping your type as editable text and sending in your fonts is the most practical solution.
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24. Do I have to send my scans in if they’re embedded?
Yes. If we need to do any editing on the scans, whether to add bleed, convert to CMYK or to adjust the resolution, we will need your scans as individual TIFF or EPS files.

We recommend against embedding your images. Linked images are much more efficient than embedded ones.

If you are using Adobe InDesign as your layout application, we recommend you make use of the Package option, which will gather your fonts and images for you.
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25. Should I embed a color profile to my Photoshop documents?
We do not currently use a color-managed workflow. If you have a input profile for your digital camera or scanner, you’re welcome to embed the profile. If you’re creating artwork in Photoshop, then embed your working space profile. Color management can be quite confusing, so don’t worry if you don’t fully understand it. You can’t do any harm to your file by embedding a profile.
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26. What are the differences between on-disc printing and insert printing?
There is one main difference. Your inserts will be printed in CMYK inks, while discs are printed with a thermal transfer process. Since they use two different ink systems, the colors may not always match.
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27. Can I use OLE (Object Linking and Embedding) to import graphics into my layouts?
No. OLE only works on the same version that the file was created on, and will not work if you have different software versions than we do. It’s quite possible that our systems will have slightly different versions of at least some of the software you are using. You should import or place your art into the layouts instead.
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28. Can I supply PDF file for output?
Yes, but it’s not recommended. Our abilities to analyze and edit PDF files are much more limited than working with native Photoshop or Illustrator files.

Our service includes a 28-point checklist review of all your files by an electronic prepress specialist. Take advantage of this free service by providing layout files in one of our accepted publishing programs instead of PostScript or PDF files.
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