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Artifact
A visible defect in a scanned image, usually caused by hardware or software limitations. Also a defect in image caused by repeated encoding/compressing of JPEG images.

Back flap
The back part of a dust jacket that folds inward and contains copy continued from the front flap and/or a photo and biography of the author.

Banding
An undesirable graphic effect in which a gradation contains visible stepping of shades.

Binding
The fastening of assembled sheets or signatures along one edge (inside edge or inner margin) of a publication. The binding process also includes folding, gathering, trimming, stitching, gluing, and/or casing.

Bitmap (.bmp)
A format for saving images, particularly black and white images, not recommended for use in manuscripts to be submitted to Lulu.

Bleed (Full Bleed)
The portion of an image, line, or color that extends beyond the final page size.

Bleed is necessary for when you want images, lines or colors to go to the edge of the finished page. For example, a 6 x 9" page is created larger (6.25 x 9.25") and is centered .125"(1/8") around the finished page size. See the image below.

When creating a document with bleed keep in mind that important art and text should be .25"(1/4") from the edge of the finished page size. This will allow for trim variance as well as bleed. The variance is shown below from the blue dotted line to the orange dotted line.

Calibrate
To adjust an input device such as a scanner or an output device such as a monitor, image setter, or printing press to more accurately reproduce color.

Casewrap (Case)
The most common type of binding for Hardcover books. Coated paper is attached to boards and then glued to the spine of a bound book.

Composition
Formerly used to describe the process of hand-setting letterpress type, now used to describe the process of designing and laying out pages and sections of a manuscript.

Copyediting
Part of the editing process. Includes a check of spelling, grammar, punctuation, proper abbreviations, numbers and lists, and proper word usage in a manuscript, as well as a double-check of the table of contents.

Copyright page
The page that typically appears on verso of the title page, containing the artistic property protection.

Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black (CMYK)
The colors of the subtractive color system, also known as process colors. This is the image mode ideal for print.

Coil-bound (PlastiCoil)
The most common type of binding for instructional manuals, cookbooks and calendars since it permits them to lie flat. Pages are held together with a round plastic coil inserted through holes punched along the inner margins of the pages.

Download
A file transferred from the Internet to your computer. The act of transferring a file from the Internet to your computer.

Dots Per Inch (DPI)
A measure of an output device's resolution, such as a monitor or laser printer.

Drop cap
A large capital letter that "drops" below the first line of the first paragraph of a chapter, article or essay.

Drop shadow
A graphic effect in which display type is repeated behind itself, creating a "shadow."

Dust Jacket (Dust Cover)
A seperate paper wrapper that covers a casewrap book and protects the cover. Lulu Dust jacket harcovers are bound in navy blue linen.

Encapsulated PostScript (.eps)
A document file format that contains PostScript information for high-resolution graphics.

File Transfer Protocol (FTP)
A way to transfer files to and from websites without using a browser. Usually requires an FTP client like WS_FTP or CuteFTP.

Graphics Interchange Format (.gif)
An image file format best suited for digital images with few colors, such as cartoon clipart. It also supports transparency and limited animation.

Flap copy
The text that appears on the front or back flaps of a dust jacket.

Flush
To align text or images along one edge of a page layout.

Footer
An area in the bottom margin of a page, often containing the page number

Format (noun)
The size, style, number of pages, and other printing requirements of a piece to be printed.

Format (verb)
To apply type specifications to text.

Grayscale
The range of gray tones between black and white as displayed on a monitor or in an image.

Gutter
The inner margins of two facing pages in a publication.

Header (or head margin)
The top of a page above the headline or text.

High contrast
A photographic reproduction that contains higher density levels than usual.

Hue
The attribute of a color that distinguishes it from other colors.

International Standard Book Number (ISBN)
A unique number provided by R.R. Bowker/Reed Reference Publishing and assigned by the publisher that identifies the binding, edition, and publisher of a book.

Joint Photographic Experts Group(.jpg or .jpeg)
An image file format ideal for digital images with lots of colors, such as photographs.

Justification
Aligning each line of a paragraph so that the edges of the text are straight along one or both margins.

Lossless
A method of compression in which no data is discarded.

Lines Per Inch (LPI)
The number of rows of halftone cells per inch, also referred to as screen frequency. The finer the frequency, the less noticeable the halftone dots.

Margin
The white space surrounding the text or main content of a page.

Page Count
Total number of pages in a book, counting both sides of each sheet of paper.

Pagination
The numbering of the pages.

Paper stock
The paper used for printing a particular piece.

Portable Document Format (.pdf)
An electronic document format developed by Adobe that allows the distribution and viewing of digital files as originally designed and formatted by the author without the viewing computer having the same software application or fonts.

Perfect-bound
The most common type of binding, usually for paperback books. Pages are gathered, one on top of another; then flexible adhesive is applied to the spine.

Pixel
Picture element. The smallest unit of a bitmapped image as displayed on a computer monitor.

Pixelated
A displayed or printed image is said to be pixilated when the edges are jagged when they should be smooth. This happens when the image resolution (see DPI) is too low.

Portable Network Graphic (.png)
An image file format.

Proof
A pre-publication printing intended for editorial use, or occasionally to be sent out for review.

Print on demand (POD)
Printing, usually from a digital file to a digital printer, only when the object is needed and in the quantity required.

Point
A typographic unit of measure. Traditionally, there are 72.27, 72.29, or 72.3 points to the inch, depending on whom you ask. For the purpose of designating type sizes, most modern publishing applications use 72 points to the inch.

Pages Per Inch (PPI)
Unit used to measure the thickness of paper.

Resolution
Defines amount of detail and clarity in printed format, measured in dots per inch. Lulu uses 300 dpi for images in books and for cover art.

Red, Green, Blue (RGB)
The hues of the additive color system. This is the image mode ideal for digital images.

Raster Image Processor (RIP)
A device that converts the description of a page from high-level PDL coding to low-level scanning instructions for an imagesetter.

Rich Text Format (RTF)
A universal document file format that is readable across operating systems and word processors. Unlike .txt, it offers limited formating capabilities like bold and centered text.

Saddle-stitched
The most common type of binding for booklets or comics. Pages are held together with staples along the spine of the book.

Scaling
The process of determining the amount an image should be reduced or enlarged to fit a specified area.

Spine
The spine is the book's backbone. The spine displays the title and author of the book and is often the only part of the book that can be seen on a shelf.

Spread
Often called two-page spread. Two adjoining facing pages in a book, featuring a single image (photograph or Artwork) or a themed group of images that span across the gutter.

At lulu you cannot upload a PDF as spreads. you must have separate pages.

Stock
The type of paper or other material that will be used for printing.

Tagged Image File Format (TIFF)
A standard graphic format for the storage of high-resolution (greater than 72 dpi) scanned images that can be imported into a page layout program.

Template
A preformatted document that is protected from overwriting and can be used repeatedly to create new documents.

Text Block
Pages containing the content of a book (text, illustrations, etc.).

Tint
A solid color that has been screened back less than 100% to create a lighter shade of that particular color. v. To screen a solid color back by less than 100% to make it lighter.

Title Page
The page that gives important information about the book (title, author, publisher, date, etc.).

Toner
Imaging material used in laser printers, copiers, and other electrophotographic devices.

Transparency
An effect applied to an object that causes it to appear transparent and allows objects below it to show through. A common Transparency is the drop shadow(reference dropshadow).

Layers in files will become transparencies when converted to PDF.

Transparencies cause white blocks or washed out colors when printed. The best practice is to flatten all files when converting to PDF or right before converting to PDF.

Trim size
The size of a page/book after it has been trimmed.

Upload
To transfer a file from your computer to a website, like Lulu.com.

Variance
Slight deviation or difference from the original form. In printing there is a possible difference from book to book or run to run of books. There is an acceptable 1/8th inch variance at Lulu as well as an acceptable color variance.