PDF preset setting - question

[Chilbear]

I have a noob designer and he is working in Illustrator 5 on PC making architectural drawings. The drawing is done to size and has a .7 (point 7) stroke. In INDD he places the item and saves using a PDF preset I built so I get all the goods.

My spidey senses is reminding me about strokes being reduced proportionally from long ago. In INDD this illustration is at 30% so the question is what happened to that warning window I remember asking me if I wanted to scale lines when it was being saved? Will the .7 be scaled to 30% of .7? It looks good in the trial PDF but trying to be cautious before it goes live.

Does this box in the PDF preset have any bearing?

[Possum]

That box is a general compression setting for the file. It's compressing the information, not the actual elements.

I don't know enough about Indy to help with that, but I know I've had problems with some thin lines on forms not showing up on PDFs. If it shows up all right on the PDF, it should be good, but gremlins have been known to appear.

[Joe]

I'm surprised the test PDF showed it at .7 point instead of 30% of .7 point (.21 point).

[Tracy]

maybe your thinking about illy's scale strokes and effects?

[Skryber]

I don't remember a warning window. Everything should be scaling proportionately. So if the placed file is at 30%, that should mean everything including strokes. When you scale an object that is not a link is when you have to check it.

[Chilbear]

So I am showing my age  and there was a window years ago when saving out of Illy I believe. Anyways I visited and tested out on the noobs site and the .7 held but the thicker lines scaled down proportionally. So my only guess is there is a floor line thickness and no lines scale below that - making it "printable". We are proceeding to proof next... when they stop foolin' with the artwork.

[mwc]

Just to point out - the thin lines are subjective to the resolution of your output device.
Typically for us... 0.25pt is the minimum line that will be 'printable' for us on our plates, images at 2438dpi.
The same line output to a 300/600 dpi laser looks fine/fat...but on a plate it is very thin.
300 dpi Laserprinters have a minimum dot size that is 8x larger that our CTP device...so thin lines reproduction can be 'very' non-representative.
(OK I mention 300 dpi lasers....I know that most are 600 or 1200 these days, but the principal still applies)

-our workflow has a preflight catch/fix option for these thin lines to bump them up to our standard minimum (.25pt)

you are correct that at .7pt line on a PDF that is placed at 30% will scale...and that line will now be .21pt. Without any preflight fixes, that may be too thin depending on your output device.
It might "look right on my screen" but the output might be undesirable.
and......"My other printer never has a problem with my files...."

[pspdfppdfxhd]

good name for a new printing company: "The Other Printer".


 

[Farabomb]

A "new" printing company is a mythical beast.

It is a good name though. 

[Skryber]

good name for a new printing company: "My Other Printer".


 

Fixed.

[Possum]

Then you could put that saying on the business cards and letterheads, "My Other Printer never had any trouble with this job."

[gnubler]

A "new" printing company is a mythical beast.

Sad, but true. Unless you're in China...that's where all our outdated equipment is surely ending up.