![\"Glossary](\"https:\/\/blog.tonergiant.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/Fotolia_45645783_S1.jpg\")
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If you\u2019re tired of technical mumbo-jumbo when shopping for a new printer or replacement cartridges, our comprehensive glossary of printing terms will give you the confidence to make an informed decision on the product that\u2019s right for you.<\/p>\n
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Click on any of the letters below to jump to the corresponding glossary terms:<\/strong><\/p>\n \u2018A\u2019 Sized Paper \u2013 <\/strong>Paper sizes based on dimension \u2013 from A8 (smallest) to A0 (largest)<\/p>\n Absorption \u2013 <\/strong>Refers to the absorption rate of a sheet of paper or card.<\/p>\n Acetate \u2013 <\/strong>A thin sheet of transparent plastic, commonly used for overlaying.<\/p>\n Acid-Free Paper \u2013 <\/strong>A specially developed, acid-free paper renowned for its longevity.<\/p>\n Art Paper \u2013 <\/strong>High-quality, wood-free papers with a smooth, filled surface.<\/p>\n Auto Duplex \u2013 <\/strong>A function in a printer that allows it to automatically print on both sides of the paper without manually feeding it through. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Blue Angel – <\/strong>A German certification, granted to environmentally-friendly products.<\/p>\n Bond \u2013 <\/strong>Business-grade paper, with a brilliant white finish and smooth surface texture.<\/p>\n Bleed \u2013 <\/strong>When the printed image extends beyond the edge of a sheet of paper.<\/p>\n Blend \u2013 <\/strong>The transition between two colours; also known as a graduated tint.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n CMYK \u2013 <\/strong>Refers to the primary printing colours \u2013 Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Key (Black).<\/p>\n Compatible \u2013 <\/strong>A cartridge produced by a third-party \u2013 not the same brand as your printer.<\/p>\n Copier Paper \u2013 <\/strong>A type of standard quality paper used in everyday printing<\/p>\n Continuous Stationery \u2013 <\/strong>A continuous reel of paper that can be folded or perforated.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Density \u2013 <\/strong>Refers to the opacity of a sheet of paper.<\/p>\n Digital Printing \u2013 <\/strong>Printing directly from a digital file without the use of plates or film.<\/p>\n Dot Gain \u2013 <\/strong>A printing fault in which individual dots print larger, causing tone and colour defects.<\/p>\n DPI \u2013 <\/strong>Dots Per Inch. Remember: the higher the DPI, the better quality the image.<\/p>\n Drum Unit – <\/strong>Essentialy a seive that carries the toner from the toner cartridge in a laser printer to the paper in the correct pattern of the print out.<\/p>\n Duplex function – <\/strong>If a printer has a ‘duplex function’, this means that it is capabable of printing on both sides of the paper. Often denoted as a ‘D’ in printer model numbers.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Embossed Paper – <\/strong>Paper with a depressed or raised design, applied through pressure during the print process.<\/p>\n Energy Star \u2013 <\/strong>The international standard for energy efficient products.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Franking \u2013 <\/strong>Markings or \u201cfranks\u201d applied to an envelope that allow it to be posted.<\/p>\n Full-colour Process \u2013 <\/strong>Refers to full colour printing using the CYMK printing spectrum.<\/p>\n Fuser Unit \u2013 <\/strong>The spare part of a laser printer that ‘fuses’ or melts the toner to the paper to prevent smudging.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n g\/m2 \u2013 <\/strong>Grams per square metre; used to measure the weight of paper.<\/p>\n Greyscale \u2013 <\/strong>Refers to printing using the black cartridge only.<\/p>\n GSM \u2013 <\/strong>An acronym for grams per square metre.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Halftone \u2013 <\/strong>The result of dot gain, when a page contains varying tones created by different sized dots.<\/p>\n Hue \u2013 <\/strong>The facet of a colour that makes it unique.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Image Area \u2013 <\/strong>Refers to the portion of the page covered in ink or toner.<\/p>\n IPM \u2013 <\/strong>The measurement of print speed, as calculated by the ISO test document.<\/p>\n ISO \u2013 <\/strong>The International Organisation for Standardization.<\/p>\n Inkjet \u2013 <\/strong>A prominent printer type, which uses jet nozzles to spray ink on to the page.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n JPEG \u2013 <\/strong>A compression method, commonly used for digital images.<\/p>\n Justified \u2013 <\/strong>The alignment of word document, so that the text is flush with each margin.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Kraft Paper \u2013 <\/strong>Tough, durable paper commonly used as parcel wrapping.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Lamination \u2013 <\/strong>A thin, plastic coating used to preserve and protect paper documents.<\/p>\n Landscape \u2013 <\/strong>The orientation of a page, whereby the shorter side is vertical.<\/p>\n Laser Printing \u2013 <\/strong>When a laser is used to plot images and text on a drum.<\/p>\n Listing Paper \u2013 <\/strong>A type of continuous stationary, used predominately with Dot Matrix printers.<\/p>\n LPI \u2013 <\/strong>Lines per inch.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Maintenance cartridge \u2013 <\/strong>A replaceable part of a printer that collects waste material during the printer cleaning process.<\/p>\n Maintenance Kit \u2013 <\/strong>A replacement kit for worn parts that contain paper pickup and feed rollers needed to transfer the paper through a laser printer.<\/p>\n Matt \u2013 <\/strong>Refers to a paper\u2019s dull, non-glossy page finish.<\/p>\n Multifunction \u2013 <\/strong>A printer with all-in-one functionality, including print, scan and copy.<\/p>\n Micrometre \u2013 <\/strong>A device used to measure paper thickness.<\/p>\n Micron \u2013 <\/strong>As above \u2013 an alternate device used to measure paper thickness.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n NCR \u2013 <\/strong>No carbon required.<\/p>\n Networked \u2013 <\/strong>A printer function that allows it to be connected to multiple computers on a ‘Network’. Often denoted as a ‘N’ on printer model numbers.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n OEM \u2013 <\/strong>Original Equipment Manufacturer.<\/p>\n Offset Printing \u2013 <\/strong>When an image or text is transferred from a roller or plate, on to the page.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Pantone Colours \u2013 <\/strong>Premixed colours based on the Pantone Scale, often developed using the CMYK scale.<\/p>\n Photoconductor unit \u2013 <\/strong>An essential part of a laser printer that collects and statically delivers toner to the page. Also known as a drum cartridge<\/strong>, PC unit<\/strong>, or image drum<\/strong>.<\/p>\n PMS \u2013 <\/strong>Pantone Mixing System.<\/p>\n Portrait \u2013 <\/strong>The orientation of a page, whereby the longest edge is vertical.<\/p>\n PPI \u2013 <\/strong>Pixels per inch.<\/p>\n PPM \u2013 <\/strong>Pages per minute, as calculated by the ISO\u2019s test document.<\/p>\n Printhead \u2013 <\/strong>A part of an inkjet printer that delivers ink from the cartridge to the paper. Often built into an inkjet cartridge<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Ream \u2013 <\/strong>500 sheets of paper.<\/p>\n Resolution \u2013 <\/strong>The quality of an image based on the DPI (Dots per Inch).<\/p>\n RGB \u2013 <\/strong>Refers to Red, Green and Blue \u2013 the three colours associated with digital technology.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Satin Finish \u2013 <\/strong>A smooth, high sheen page finish.<\/p>\n Solid Ink \u2013 <\/strong>Solid sticks of ink that are melted during the print process. Predominantly used with Xerox Solid Ink Printers.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Thermal Ribbon \u2013 <\/strong>Often used in fax machines, a thermal ribbon material is melted by the printer and applied to the paper. The ribbon is often on a roll.<\/p>\n Tint \u2013 <\/strong>A patch of tone created by a specific pattern of dots, which can lighten the colour of the ink.<\/p>\n Toner \u2013 <\/strong>A black or coloured powder used in xerographic printing. Toner is used exclusively in laser printers.<\/p>\n Transfer Belt \u2013 <\/strong>Also known as a ‘Transfer Unit’<\/strong>, Belt Unit<\/strong>, or ‘Belt Roller’<\/strong>, the transfer belt is an internal part of a laser printer that is statically charged and attracts the toner to a film. As a belt rotates the toner is transfered onto the paper.<\/p>\n <\/p>\nA<\/a> B<\/a> C<\/a> D<\/a> E<\/a> F<\/a> G<\/a> H<\/a> I<\/a> J<\/a> K<\/a> L<\/a> M<\/a> N<\/a> O<\/a> R<\/a> S<\/a> T<\/a> W<\/a><\/h2>\n
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