Print Preparation (Prepress)
Guides for print-ready PDF preparation, browser-first preflight, server-assisted recovery, imposition, crop marks, and troubleshooting.
Print Preparation (Prepress)
Guides for preparing print-ready PDF files to professional print-shop standards — bleed, colour, imposition, crop marks and preflight checks.
Guides in This Section
Basic Concepts
Bleed, safe zone, CMYK and resolution — the essential terms for print preparation.
PDF Requirements
Technical standards and a checklist for files uploaded to NowToPrint.
Imposition
N-Up, Booklet and Work-and-Turn modes for professional page layout.
Crop Marks
Adding crop marks, registration marks and colour bars.
Preflight Check
What gets checked, what Pass/Warning/Error mean, and how fallback works.
Ink Coverage
Per-page CMYK ink coverage analysis and TIC alerts.
Zen Mode
Distraction-free full-screen preview and quality check.
Troubleshooting
Common prepress failures and the fastest recovery steps.
Quick Start
Open the relevant print-preparation or workspace flow and upload your PDF.
NowToPrint starts with browser-side preview and fast checks so you can inspect the document immediately.
If the browser runtime is compatible, findings complete in the browser. In supported workspace flows, incompatible browser analysis can be rerouted to server-side analysis.
Use the report to decide whether the file can continue, needs operator review, requires supplier proof, or must be corrected at source and re-uploaded.
How the Current Preflight Stack Works
| Layer | Role |
|---|---|
| Browser-side preview | Opens the document and renders pages quickly; this is preview, not measured proof |
| Browser-side fast analysis | Runs immediate checks such as size, colour, bleed, and structural signals |
| Evidence and trust signals | Separate measured, estimated, heuristic, unsupported, and preview-only findings |
| Server-assisted fallback | Completes supported flows with request IDs and limitations when browser runtime evidence is not sufficient |
Browser-first, not browser-only
NowToPrint starts with client-side analysis whenever possible for speed and responsiveness. Depending on the workflow and capability path, the same file can also be routed to server-side analysis to complete the check or produce a stronger provenance signal.
Preserve-first boundary
NowToPrint preserves design intent, colour behaviour, and late-binding integrity. It does not automatically convert RGB to CMYK, convert spot colours, flatten transparency, generate trapping, outline/substitute fonts, create synthetic bleed artwork, or treat a preview as measured proof.
Product state boundary
Preview is not proof. Plan is not output. Output is not production-ready until a receipt, post-output validation, and required proof evidence are present. Studio UI explains these states; Rust owns parser, geometry, preflight, and imposition truth.
Preflight authority
Studio reports which preflight provider produced the result. ntp-pdf-preflight means Rust-native
preflight evidence was used. server-ts-v1/internal-analysis means the server TypeScript analysis
path handled the request. Browser local-first results and external-authoritative providers are
labelled separately, and fallback status stays visible in the report.
Current readiness label
PDF Tools is currently treated as internal alpha until final gates and live smoke pass. Guarded public beta is the next eligible label, not an unrestricted production-ready replacement for specialist prepress suites. Browser render and fallback imposition plans are preview-only. Unsupported and heuristic signals stay visible as limitations until measured evidence exists.
Why Prepress Matters
| Issue | Consequence | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Missing bleed | White edges after trimming | Add 3 mm bleed |
| Low resolution | Pixelated print | Use appropriate DPI |
| RGB colour mode | Colour shift | Prepare at source or review the RIP plan |
| Fonts not embedded | Font substitution | Embed all fonts in PDF |
| Browser crash during analysis | Review interrupted | Retry or allow workspace fallback |
Industry Comparison
Current architecture note
NowToPrint starts with browser-side processing whenever possible. Depending on the workflow and capability path, the same file can also be routed to server-side analysis to finish the check or produce a stronger provenance signal.
NowToPrint is not a drop-in replacement for every specialist prepress suite. Its current promise is clearer: browser-first review, Rust-owned structural/preflight truth, preserve-first decisions, imposition plans with output receipts, and Print Trust Passport handoff evidence. Some workflows can run locally; others may use a controlled server/runtime path, and those paths must disclose request IDs, limitations, proof status, and privacy boundaries.
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