Digital Data Exchange Standards (DDES) For The Graphic Arts Industry

Less than a year ago we presented at the TAGA national meeting in St. Paul entitled The Issue of Standards for Electronic Prepress (1), in which we presented our technical views on the needs and requirements for developing digital data exchange standards to facilitate the exchange of digital information between electronic prepress systems by difference manufacturers. In conjunction with preparing this technical presentation we examined many of the evolving digital standards from many different industries, (e.g., GKS, CGI, CGM, PHIGS form the computer graphics industry; ACR/NEMA from the medical imaging world; IGES from the CAD/CAM industry) and found that although some of these evolving standards may have pieces to contribute to an overall DDES for the graphic arts industry, none of them, in our professional opinion, would suffice to serve as a complete exchange standard for the graphic arts industry. Subsequent to our continued investigations in this area this is an opinion that we maintain. In conjunction with preparing this technical presentation we examined many of the evolving digital standards from many different industries, (e.g., GKS, CGI, CGM, PHIGS form the computer graphics industry; ACR/NEMA from the medical imaging world; IGES from the CAD/CAM industry) and found that although some of these evolving standards may have pieces to contribute to an overall DDES for the graphic arts industry, none of them, in our professional opinion, would suffice to serve as a complete exchange standard for the graphic arts industry. Subsequent to our continued investigations in this area this is an opinion that we maintain. Today's paper is a report on the formation and progress of the DDES Vendor Group; a group that formed shortly after the 1985 Lasers In Graphics Conference to address the needs and concerns of developing digital data exchange standards for the graphic arts industry.