Academic and Research Computing

The PostScript Plotters: vcplt, vcpltg, vcpltcf

Important! Before plotting, please read the section Tips for Successful Plotting. Be sure to configure the HP 1055 CM plotter driver according to the instructions.

Refunds for unusable print jobs will be granted for plotter errors only. If you are having difficulty achieving a desired result, request help from an ARC Help Desk consultant or staff member before replotting your document. Refunds will not be given for unsatisfactory results due to user errors.

About the Plotters

The RCS plotters, vcplt, vcpltg, and vcpltcf, accept PostScript jobs and are appropriate for large-format applications.
These HP DesignJet 1055CM inkjet printers produce output on continuous paper up to 72 inches long, with a minimum paper height of 11 inches. The paper width is 36 inches, but your document width should be 34 inches or less. This plotter has three "device options" for print quality: draft, normal (the default) and best. You also have the option of printing color as gray.

Output from the plotters is placed in special bins next to the output racks in the VCC. Note that the plotters need time to produce quality output, so don't expect your output to appear very quickly.

The plotter named vcplt (long name VC_HP_Plotter) is loaded with normal paper.

The plotter named vcpltg (long name VC_HP_Plotter_Glossy) is loaded with glossy paper. Be aware that glossy paper is very expensive! Check the Charges before you send a job to vcpltg. Also note that, since the glossy plots must be completely dry before they are rolled up, it can take an extra 3-6 hours for these plots to appear in the output racks. If you are in a hurry, do not use vcpltg.

The plotter named vcpltcf (long name VC_HP_Plotter_ClearFilm) is loaded with clear film, which is even more expensive than glossy paper. Check the Charges before you send a job to vcpltcf. Note that there may be times when the jobs sent to vcpltcf will be delayed because this plotter will be loaded with normal paper when the demand on vcplt is very heavy.

Tips for Successful Plotting

Resolution Tips

Note that, although the resolution of the HP DesignJet 1055CM is 600dpi, you should create your graphics at 300dpi rather than 600dpi. The result will look just as good, and you will avoid problems caused by the huge job sizes of 600dpi graphics. On the other hand, if you have created graphics at screen resolution (usually 72 or 75 dpi), they will not look good when printed, no matter how high the resolution of the printer or plotter.

Use of Background Colors

Solid backgrounds use a tremendous amount of ink, and there is no guarantee that the result will be satisfactory. If your plot is large and has a solid color background, you may not like the result due to the saturation of the paper. It is also possible that the plotter might run out of ink before finishing the plot.

Color Matching

For many reasons, it is difficult to impossible to make your plotted output match the colors you see on the screen. For starters, monitors and scanners are based on an "additive" color system, using the RGB (red, green, blue) color space, while the plotters are based on a "subtractive" system and use CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow, black). And different monitors can vary in many ways, including calibration, variances in the phosphers and bit depths. Also the device gamut (range of colors) is widely different, with monitors displaying many more colors than any printing device. Colors will also look different on different types of paper. Color science is exceedingly complex-- way beyond the scope of this discussion. Although the next section on configuring the plotter device driver and the section on plotting from Photoshop have a few tips for improved results, the bottom line is that you cannot expect exact agreement between your screen and the paper. If precise color rendition is important to you, consider going with a professional printing outfit.

Configuring the HP1055CM Driver

After installing the printer driver, you will need to do some configuration to ensure successful plotting. Be sure to follow the detailed configuration instructions to change the appropriate settings.

Also, for futher tips, see the Instructions for Various Applications.

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Charges

The fees for these plotter have been set to recover the cost of supplies. The charges depend on print quality, paper quality and color/gray, as shown below. The variations in print quality are achieved by different plotter speeds. In best (or enhanced) mode, the plotter prints very slowly and deliberately, resulting in greater accuracy and therefore improved appearance.
 

Plotting costs are charged to your Bursar bill from Rensselaer.

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Using the Plotters from a Campus PC

To use the plotters from a Windows PC, you must be using a machine that has the appropriate printer installed. The computers in the public labs have the correct drivers for all three plotters. If you would like to install the plotters on a private PC, see the instructions on installation and then follow the configuration steps.

If you are on a machine that has the correct driver, select Print from the File menu of your application. In the Print window, pull down the menu next to "Name:" and select the name of the plotter you want. Next, it is very important to choose the paper size for the plotter! If the paper size is not already set to an appropriate size, click on Properties and select the "Paper" tab, if there is one. On some versions of Windows there will not be a "Paper" tab; if this is the case, on the tab marked "General", click on the "Printing Preferences" button. In the window that pops up, click on Advanced... and a window will appear that allows you to select the paper size. The printer drivers under Windows give you a list of sizes to choose from,  ranging from smaller than US letter to Architecture E (36" x 48") and larger. You may select one of the standard sizes or specify a custom size, keeping in mind that the width of the plotter paper is 36 inches, and the maximum height is 72 inches. Note that, as a general rule, the width of your document should be 34" or less, and also that some applications require the document to be 2 inches less than the paper size in both width and height.

Standard paper sizes:  use this page to look up the dimensions of the standard paper sizes (ANSI C, ARCH E, A0, etc),  if the printer driver does not display them.

If you would like to change the print quality from the default of "Normal," you can do so from the Print window by first selecting the "Device Options" tab. Once you have selected the options you want, follow the usual procedure for printing your document, after making sure to set the document itself to an appropriate size from within the application.
   

Using the Plotters from UNIX

Use the UNIX command lpr to send a PostScript file to a plotter, specifying one of vcplt, vcpltg or vcpltcf on the -P option.
For example, to send the file "mygraphic.ps" to vcplt, the command would be:

    lpr -Pvcplt mygraphic.ps

By default, output is color with "normal" or "standard" print quality. You can choose grayscale or specify print quality (pq) and paper size by using the -X option on the lpr command. The -X options are

    grayscale      (or greyscale)
    pq=fast        (or pq=draft)
    pq=normal
    pq=best
    paper=<width>x<height>  (e.g., paper=20x30 means 20 inches wide by 30 inches high)

For example, to choose grayscale and "best" print quality on vcplt, the UNIX command would be:

    lpr -Pvcplt -Xgrayscale,pq=best filename.ps

Note that the "paper" option is rarely needed because the application normally sets the paper size. If the application doesn't set the size, you can use the "paper" option to set it or accept the default paper size of 36"x17".

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Using the Plotters from a Campus Mac

To use the plotter from a Macintosh, first use the Chooser to supply your RCS userid and password as follows:

1. Select the Chooser option from the Apple menu.
2. In the Chooser windows, select the AppleShare icon.
3. The AppleTalk zone closest to the lab in which you are currently working should appear highlighted in the "AppleTalk Zones" field. If it does not, select the closest AppleTalk Zone. In the Biology Macintosh Lab, select rpi-public-160.
4. From the list of file servers, select RCS Spooler server. Click OK.
5. In the dialog box that appears, supply your userid and password; click OK.
6. In the dialog box that appears, select the line with your userid on it if it is not already highlighted. Make sure no items have a checkmark next to them, and click OK. The RCS Spooler Server icon, which looks like a little devil or "printer daemon" labelled with your RCS userid, will appear on your desktop.

Still in the Chooser window, follow the steps below to select the plotter:

1. Select the "LaserWr 8.3.4-rpi" icon in the Chooser window.
2. Make sure the same Appletalk zone you first selected is highlighted.
3. Select the plotter you want from the list on the right. (NOTE: there should be a color icon to the left of the plotter name; if it isn't there, printing is not likely to work.)

You can now close the Chooser and follow the usual procedure for printing your Macintosh document. In the Print dialog box there should be an "Options" button, allowing you to choose options for the plotter. Note, however, that some applications have trouble printing to large paper. Photoshop and PageMaker have been tested with good results.

If you have a private Macintosh without the "LaserWr 8.3.4-rpi" icon, you can install it yourself.
Click here for Instructions.

Instructions for Various Applications

A number of applications have been tested, and some of them require special instructions for good results. Click on the name of application below to see specific instructions for that application. If you do not find the application you wish to use in the list below, please check with the ARC consultants before sending a job to the plotter. ARC cannot provide refunds for unsupported, untested software or in cases where users did not follow the instructions.

Note: If you encounter problems (such as PostScript errors) when you send your job to a plotter, sometimes it helps to convert to PDF format and send to the plotter using Adobe Acrobat.

FrameMaker (Unix, PC)
LaTeX (Unix, PC)
PageMaker (Mac)
Photoshop (PC)
Photoshop (Mac)
PowerPoint (PC)
ProEngineer(Unix, PC)
Word (PC)

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