4
Dynamic Marks
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Note: You can also specify your own separator by typing it directly in the Separator list.
3. When you are satisfied with what you see in the Preview, click OK.
Reflow text
If you create a custom mark based on text in a text frame, resizing using standard transform tools will resize the text "as is" instead of reflowing the text inside the resized text box.
Dynamic Marks
4
If the
Reflow Text option is enabled, resizing using standard transform tools will resize the text box, and the text will reflow inside the resized text box.
4.3.8 Barcode Mark properties
A Barcode Mark is a Custom Mark created from a Barcode object. For more information on creating barcodes, please refer to the Dynamic Barcodes documentation.
1. Create a barcode, using the barcode type and settings you want to use, and add it as a
Custom Mark.
For more info on adding obejcts as Mark, see
Adding objects as Mark
on page 18
2. Open the Dynamic Mark Properties palette, by choosing Window > Esko > Dynamic Marks
>
Dynamic Mark Properties
The existing Barcode is static, which means it won't change when you use the Mark into another document, or if the document changes.
You can make all or part of the code dynamic, to have it change with every document you use your mark into.
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Dynamic Marks
3. To get a dynamic barcode, you need to insert dynamic fields.
Place your cursor where you want the field to be, or select the text to replace with a field, and click the Insert / Modify ... button.
4. In the Insert Field dialog that opens, choose the fields to insert: a) choose a field Category, for example Barcodes, Date & Time...
b) in that Category, choose the Field you want to use (see
Categories and Types
on page
34 for a list of available categories and fields), c) if applicable, choose the Format to use for your chosen Field (see
Formatting Dynamic
Fields
on page 37 for details),
Note: The Preview line shows how the field will be resolved in the current document.
d) when you are satisfied with how your field will look like, click OK.
The dynamic parts of a barcode will appear between square brackets.
Note: Only the barcode's code can be changed after making. You can not change the barcode type or other settings after creating a Mark from a bar code. To change these settings, you have to delete the Mark and create a new one.
White Underprint allows to add White Underprint to your Mark. See
White Underprint
on page
44
4.3.9 Image Mark properties
An image Mark is a mark created from a linked image
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Dynamic Marks
1. There are two ways to create an Image Mark
• Click the Add Standard Mark button or select Add Standard Mark from the fly-out menu, and choose Image Mark as type.
• Place an image (supported file formats are JPG, PDF, TIFF, EPS and PSD) as a link, and add
it as a Custom Mark. For more info on adding obejcts as Mark, see
Adding objects as Mark
on page 18
2. Open the Dynamic Mark Properties palette, by choosing Window > Esko > Dynamic Marks
>
Dynamic Mark Properties
If the Image Mark was created from an existing image, the Dynamic Mark Properties will reflect the properties of this image: its position attached to the top left corner of the trim box, and the path of the linked file.
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3. Set the Scaling
• When set to Numeric, you can enter the scaling in %.
• Scale to Fit will scale the image proportionally to fit the object defined in the "Attach to" field. You can use this for example to fit the image inside a named object. The % field will reflect the current scale factor.
• Downscale to Fit is the same as "Scale to Fit", but the image will only be downscaled (if necessary), not upscaled. The % field will reflect the current scale factor.
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Dynamic Marks
4. Set the Rotation for the image using the buttons
5. Use the File field to set the path for the linked image. If the path is valid, the image will be shown in the document. Otherwise, a placeholder is shown.
If you used a placed image to create the Image Mark, its file path will be entered automatically.
You can enter the path manually, or use the Browse button.
You can use dynamic text in the path, e.g. the Job Folder. Use the Insert/Modify button. For
more information on dynamic text, see
Text Mark properties
on page 32
6. Color can be set to Static or Dynamic. For an EPS image, only Static is allowed.
Note: If you switch from Dynamic to Static, the colors from the original file are used. If there is a difference in the number of channels between two real images, the mark will switch back to static.
7. White Underprint allows to add White Underprint to your Mark. See
White Underprint
on
page 44
Note: Image marks can NOT be modified (rotating, channel mapping, etc) outside of the
Dynamic Marks Properties palette.
4.3.10 White Underprint
White Underprint allows you to create a white background underneath the selected marks.
This white background can be necessary when printing on transparent or metal material.
White Underprint is available for Text Marks, Barcode Marks and Grid Marks
White Underprint Object
White Underprint objects will be created in a top-level "White Underprint" layer, and will be put in overprint.
The White Underprint object will be
• a solid rectangle, using the bounding box of a
Text Mark
• a solid rectangle, using the bounding box of a
Barcode Mark
• a solid rectangle, using the bounding box of a
Grid Mark
The Add Bar option, available for Grid Marks, will stretch the White Underprint over the full size of the Media Box (or Trim Box if no Media Box is defined).
• For vertical grid marks, the White Underprint object will be a vertical bar, using the width of the grid mark, and the height of the Media Box
• For horizontal grid marks, the White Underprint object will be a horizontal bar, using the height of the grid mark, and the width of the Media Box
If the Mark is modified, deleted or expanded, the White Underprint will also be modified, deleted or expanded.
White Underprint Ink
The Ink used for White Underprint on Dynamic Marks can be defined by clicking the
Ink
Settings button, and entering the name of the Ink to be used for White Underprint.
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Dynamic Marks
In case the defined ink doesn't exist yet, a new spot color will be added to the swatches, using the Ink name and the Color patch.
When the name of an existing swatch is entered, this ink will be used for White Underprint.
Note: White Underprint can only use Spot Colors. If an existing swatch name is entered, and the swatch is not a spot color, a warning will be generated: "A swatch by this name already exists but is not defined as a Spot Color".
If you change the White Underprint ink, all White Underprint objects on Dynamic Marks in the open document will be changed as well.
The White Underprint ink definition is saved in the Mark Set. If you load a Mark Set containing a different White Underprint ink definition as in the open document, you can choose if you want to keep your White Underprint ink, or if you want to load the White Underprint ink definition from the Mark Set.
4.4 Changing the Symbol of a Standard Mark
You can change the Symbol used for a Standard Mark in the Dynamic Mark Properties, by clicking the
Set Symbol button, and selecting the desired Symbol from the list.
To change or add Symbols,
1. In the Dynamic Marks palette, select Open Symbol Library from the fly-out menu
The file DynamicMarks_CS6.ai (CS6) or DynamicMarks_AI18.ai (CC2014 and
CC2015)will be opened
2. Open the Illustrator Symbol Library by choosing Window > Symbols and use the Illustrator tools to add, edit, remove, duplicate, ... the symbols defined in the file.
3. Save and close the DynamicMarks file
The new and modified symbols will now be available when clicking
Set Symbol in the Dynamic
Mark Properties.
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5
Dynamic Marks
5. Mark Sets
When no mark set is loaded, you get the option to load a mark set, or to create a new set.
From the Fly-out menu of the Dynamic Marks palette, you can
• Load a Mark Set
• Save the current Mark Set
• Delete the current Mark Set
• Manage Mark Sets
5.1 Load Mark Set
To load a Mark Set:
1. In the Fly-out menu of the Dynamic Marks palette, select Load Mark Set
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The Load dialog will show the Esko Default Mark Sets, and Mark Sets saved at the location
defined in the Dynamic Mark Preferences. See
Esko Mark Sets
on page 50 and
Dynamic
Marks Preferences
on page 49
Note: Since Mark Sets are regular .ai documents, the list will show all Adobe Illustrator files at the defined location. When loading an Illustrator file that doesn't contain a Mark Set, nothing will happen.
2. Select a Mark Set from the list, and click Load.
Note: If the Mark Set contains a mark with the same name as a mark already in the
Dynamic Marks palette, an error message will be given, and the Mark Set will not be loaded.
Dynamic Marks
The marks from the loaded Mark Set are added in the Dynamic Marks palette. If you want to replace the current marks with the ones from the loaded Mark Set, you need to select all marks and delete them first.
If you load marks with dependencies, the mark will be attached to the object (e.g. PowerLayout
Grid or Named Art) with the same name as in the Mark Set file. If no such object exists, you will get an error message and the mark will be attached to the Trim Box.
5
5.2 Save Mark Set
To save a Mark Set:
1. In the Fly-out menu of the Dynamic Marks palette, select Save Mark Set
The Save dialog will show the Mark Sets already saved at the location defined in the
Dynamic Mark Preferences. See
Dynamic Marks Preferences
on page 49
2. Enter a name for the Mark Set and click Save. If a Mark Set with this name already exists, you will get the option to overwrite it.
Note:
You can only save a Mark set if the Illustrator file is saved. If not, you will be prompted to do so before saving the Mark Set
Mark Sets are saved as simple .ai documents, containing only the objects needed for the Mark
Set.
Note: All Marks in a set need to have a unique name. If not, an error message is shown, and the Mark Set is not saved.
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Dynamic Marks
5.3 Delete Mark Set
To delete a Mark Set, select Delete Mark Set in the Fly-out menu of the Dynamic Marks palette.
The Mark Set, including all Dynamic Marks will be removed from the file.
Note: This does not remove a saved (and loaded) Mark Set from disk. To do so, select Manage
Mark Sets from the Fly-out menu. See
Manage Mark Sets
on page 48
5.4 Manage Mark Sets
To manage your Mark Sets:
1. In the Fly-out menu of the Dynamic Marks palette, select Manage Mark Sets
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The Manage Dynamic Mark Set dialog will show the Mark Sets saved at the location defined
in the Dynamic Mark Preferences. See
Dynamic Marks Preferences
on page 49
Note: Since Mark Sets are regular .ai documents, the list will show all Adobe Illustrator files at the defined location.
2. Select a Mark Set from the list, and
• Click Rename, enter a new name for the Mark Set, and click Rename to change the name of the Mark Set
• Click Delete to remove the Mark Set from the list. The actual Illustrator file will be deleted. This can not be undone.
Dynamic Marks
5
5.5 Export Mark Sets
To use a Mark set in the Dynamic taskson an Automation Engine server, you can export your
Dynamic Marks set as a Dynamic Marks Set (.dmk).
To export your Mark Sets:
1. In the Fly-out menu of the Dynamic Marks palette, select Export Mark Set
2. Select a file name and location for the Dynamic Marks Template.
3. Move the file to your DFE server at this location: server
\bg_data_marks_v010\DynamicMarks
Limitations:
• The server does not support different fill and stroke setting
• It is not possible to choose technical inks only or printing inks only.
• Color Patch marks are not yet supporte. As a workaround, you could manually create a custom mark that looks like the Color Patch.
Note: It is not possible to import a Mark Set back into Illustrator. It is highly recommended to keep the native Adobe Illustrator files for future modifications in the Marks.
5.6 Dynamic Marks Preferences
You can open the Dynamic Marks Preferences by choosing Illustrator > Preferences > Esko
> Dynamic Marks Preferences on Mac, or Edit > Preferences > Esko > Dynamic Marks
Preferences on Windows.
In the Dynamic Marks Preferences, you can set the location to save and load Mark Sets.
• Default Folder: Mark Sets will be saved to and loaded from the default Esko location.
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5
Dynamic Marks
• on Mac OS X: /Users/Shared/EskoArtwork/DynamicMarks/
• on Windows Vista and 7: x:\Users\Public\Documents\EskoArtwork
\DynamicMarks\
• on Windows XP: x:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data
\EskoArtwork\DynamicMarks\
• Custom Folder: Mark Sets will be saved to and loaded from a custom folder which you can select by clicking the Browse button.
5.7 Esko Mark Sets
When installing Dynamic Marks, a number of default Mark Sets are installed as well. These sets can not be changed, but you can load one of these sets, change it and save it under a different name.
Here is an overview of these Mark Sets:
1 x KAMA
A Custom Mark, using these settings:
• The mark is a circle of 3.2 mm diameter, and a vertical and horizontal line of 6.5 mm. All lines are 0.15 mm thick.
• Attached to the Trim Box
• The center of the mark is vertically centered, and 12 mm to the right of the left border of the trim box.
• Using Darkest color
1 x Label Row
A Grid Mark, using these settings:
• attached to PowerLayout Grid 1
• on the right side, with a reference to the outer left cell
• using a 3mm offset in horizontal direction, 0mm in vertical direction
• repeat Every 1-up.
• symbol 10 x 5 mm in Registration color
1 x Sheet
A Custom Mark, using these settings:
• The mark is a rectangle of 10 by 5 mm.
• Attached to the Media Box
• A 3 mm horizontal offset to the upper right part of the Media Box
• using Registration color
2x Label Row
Two Grid Marks, using these settings:
• attached to PowerLayout Grid 1
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Dynamic Marks
• Right mark is on the right side, Left mark is on the left side, both with a reference to the outer left cell
• Right mark is aligned to the right bottom corner, Left mark to the upper left corner
• using a 3mm offset in horizontal direction, 0mm in vertical direction
• repeat Every 1-up.
• symbol 5 x 5 mm in Registration color
Mark Set 1 (Esko)
A set for maximum 6 inks in the document, units: mm
• 1 Registration Mark placed on every side
• a Text Mark with the name of the document
• a Text Mark with the date
• a Gradation Strip on the left, with 1 rectangle per ink, colored in 100%
• a Gradation Strip on the right, with a 40%, 80% and 100% rectangle for every ink.
• 6 Text Marks, one per ink, with the name of the ink, and colored in 100% of the ink.
Mark Set 2 (Esko)
A set for maximum 6 inks in the document, units: mm same as Mark Set 1, but with different type of Registration Mark
Mark Set 3 (Esko)
A set for maximum 4 inks in the document, units: mm
• 12 Gallus elements on left and right side of the document
Mark Set 4 (Esko)
A set for maximum 6 inks in the document, units: mm
• Bearer Bars in vertical orientation and attached to the Trim Box
• 6 Text Marks, one per ink, with the name of the ink, placed inside the Bearer Bar, and colored with 0,2% tint to knock out the Bearer Bar in the same separation
Mark Set 5 (Esko)
A set for maximum 12 inks in the document, units: mm
• Bearer Bars in vertical orientation and attached to the Trim Box
• a Gradation Strip on the left, with one circle per ink, colored in 100%.
• a Gradation Strip on the right, with one circle per ink, colored in 50%.
• Registration Marks placed on the left and right side.
• 12 Gallus elements on left and right side of the document
• a Text Mark with the name of the document, colored in registration
• a Custom Mark setting a background for the above mentioned Text Mark
• 12 Text Marks, one per ink, with the name of the ink, and colored in 100% of the ink.
• a Custom Mark setting a background for the above mentioned Text Marks
• 12 Text Marks, one per ink, with the current Angle of the ink, and colored in 100% of the ink.
• 12 Text Marks, one per ink, with the current Ruling of the ink, and colored in 100% of the ink.
• a Text Mark with the date and time
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5
• a Text Mark with the name of the author, based on the XMP info
Dynamic Marks
52
Dynamic Marks
6
6. Dynamic Marks Layer
When adding a Dynamic Mark for the first time to a document, a layer named "Dynamic
Marks" will be created. Standard Marks are created in the Dynamic Marks layer, Custom Marks are moved to the Dynamic Marks layer. If you rename the Dynamic Marks Layer, all Dynamic
Marks created later will still be created in or moved to this layer already containing dynamic marks.
Loading a Mark Set
If you load a Mark Set, the Dynamic Marks in the set will be placed in the same layer as saved in the set. This means you can have two different layers containing Dynamic Marks at that point. Newly created marks will then be placed in one of those layers.
Locking or hiding the Dynamic Marks Layer
If the Dynamic Marks layer is locked, you will not be able to add any mark. A message will be shown in the message palette. However, all indirect operations are possible, for example changes in the Ink Manager will change the gradation strip, even if the Dynamic Marks Layer is locked.
If the Dynamic Marks layer is invisible, marks will be created / moved in the Dynamic Marks layer, and will immediately turn invisible.
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Dynamic Marks
7. Dynamic Panels in Dynamic Marks
When opening a document containing a Dynamic Panel, you will see those Dynamic Panels in the Dynamic Marks palette.
By selecting a Dynamic Info Panel and choosing Convert Panels to Dynamic Marks from the fly-out menu, you can convert the selected Dynamic Panel into one or more Dynamic Marks.
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• Every text item in the Dynamic Panel is converted to a separate Dynamic Text Mark, using the same variables.
• If possible, other panel items with the same color attribute will be grouped and combined in one single mark.
• The inks used in the Dynamic Panel are replaced by the corresponding Dynamic Marks color:
• A Dynamic Panel ink will become Dynamic color with mode "Only Printing Inks"
• A Dynamic Panel Technical ink becomes Dynamic color with mode "Only Technical Inks"
• Darkest ink becomes Darkest color
• An object using Registration swatch becomes Registration color
• Other inks (not Dynamic) become a static color.
• The position of converted panels will always be defined relative to the top left corner of the trim box
• Panel items that can't be converted into a Dynamic Mark (e.g. a linked image) will remain as a panel item, while other items are converted. A message will be shown.
Dynamic Marks
8
8. Tips and tricks
I open a new document, create an object to be used as a mark, and as soon as I use "Add
Selected Art as Mark", the color of the object changes or disappears. Why ?
If you have a document with e.g. only one rectangle, colored with 100% cyan in your document, the Ink Manager will only contain one ink (Cyan).
When you create a custom mark, the default color attribute is "Dynamic". At this moment, the color definition of the mark becomes "100% of the first ink in the ink manager". Because
Ink Manager doesn't read inks from marks with color attribute "Registration", "Darkest" or
"Dynamic", and because there are no other objects in the document, the inks list in the Ink
Manager will be empty, and so will the custom mark be.
As soon as another ink is used in the document, this ink will be the first ink in Ink Manager, and will be used by the Custom Mark.
In the same way, if the original document would contain e.g. one object in cyan and one in magenta (and nothing else), creating a Custom Mark from the cyan object would make magenta the first ink in the ink manager, so the mark would change from cyan to magenta.
Can I start from an existing standard mark to create my own mark symbols ?
Yes, you can, as long as you remember to expand the mark / symbol first (i.e. making it a regular object instead of a symbol).
What if I delete a symbol in the DynamicMarks(_CS6).ai file ?
If you delete a symbol in the DynamicMarks.ai file, the symbol will obviously no longer be available in the Set Symbol list. If you delete the default symbol for a Standard Mark, creating the corresponding Standard Mark will result in an error message. To fix this, you have to create these symbols again manually.
Existing marks will NOT be affected, since the symbol is internally copied in the file when creating the mark, or when setting a different symbol. This also means that you can open a file with marks using custom symbols (saved in your local DynamicMarks.ai file) on another computer without loosing the marks.
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