The EskoPNDSN PDF extension

This page applies to Harlequin v13.1r0 and later; both Harlequin Core and Harlequin MultiRIP.

The RIP can read and obey the EskoPNDSN extension used to select non-standard spot functions in PDF files. If the EskoPNDSN key is present in a PDF job, the following controls and a look-up table are provided as a way of handling this in the RIP.

When using an Esko workflow the integration of the RIP is seamless. For details of the GUI controls for HMR, see the Harlequin OEM Manual, section entitled "The EskoPNDSN PDF extension".

There are three system parameters:

IgnoreEskoPNDSN

Boolean

Default: true

This option can only apply when an OverrideSpotFunctionName is not specified.

When an OverrideSpotFunctionName is not specified and the IgnoreEskoPNDSN option is false, any EskoPNDSN key encountered is honored and the look-up table is used. See "The EskoPNDSN look-up table".

When this parameter is true, whatever dot shape is specified in the job will be used and any EskoPNDSN key is ignored.

AbortIfEskoPNDSNUnknown

Boolean

Default: true

This parameter only applies when IgnoreEskoPNDSN is false, and determines what the RIP does when it cannot find a match in the look-up table. When true the RIP aborts the job. When false the RIP falls back to using whatever is specified in FallbackEskoSN.

FallbackEskoSN

String or Name

The spot function to use if the proprietary selection value is unknown.

In HMR /FallbackEskoSN is set to the dot shape selected in the Color Separations, Edit Style dialog.

The EskoPNDSN look-up table

When the RIP encounters an EskoPNDSN key in a job it can be configured to use a look-up table. If the EskoPNDSN key is present its value is searched for in this look-up table. The value returned is a halftone name supported by the RIP which defines the screen that should be used. That is, the look-up table allows you to adjust the relationship between a requested spot type and the actual spot type used for output.

The look-up table is configured in the /EskoPNDSNMappings dictionary in the file:

SW/Sys/ExtraStart/ProprietarySelectionMapping

The following is an example mapping file:

TEXT

            statusdict /EskoPNDSNMappings <<
              % Add mappings here of the form:
              % /EskoPNDSNvalue /RIPInternalSpotFnName
                  /CustomName1 /Round
                  /CustomName2 /Euclidean
            >> put