Internet group coordinates Croatian donation

Nov 1, 2005 12:00 AM, By Katherine O’Brien

InRegister InPrint

In 2003, PrintPlanet (www.printplanet.com), host of the CTP Pressroom and other popular online forums, received an unusual request. “Marko Rakar asked if I could help a secondary graphic arts school in Zagreb, Croatia, obtain equipment companies were no longer using,” PrintPlanet founder Dave Mainwaring told the group in a broadcast message. “Sometimes a request sparks my attention, as this one did. Consider this e-mail an open appeal to all companies on the PrintPlanet forums to donate previously used equipment to needy schools and colleges.”

How Marko became a CTP celebrity
After discovering the PrintPlanet Web site about six years ago, Rakar read thousands of posts from printers around the world and soon became an active member, especially in the CTP forum. Rakar, founder of one of the largest printers in Croatia (www.printel.hr), attended the school Graficka skola u Zagrebu (www.grafickaskolazg.hr) 15 years ago.

A poor economy coupled with the high cost of equipment has prevented the school from upgrading its prepress tools. “We used equipment that was [at least] 20 years old,” says Rakar. “We were learning letterset and doing separations with glass raster and repro cameras. I was quite aware then that equipment we used as well as the knowledge transferred to students was seriously out of date.”

Xitron steps up
Two years ago, Rakar decided to donate his company’s old Heidelberg Quasar imagesetter to the school, which was still using a film-based workflow, repro camera and glass raster set up. “But there was no point in giving them an imagesetter with an old Apple Quadra 650 RIP, so I asked on the forum if anyone would support my project by donating RIP software,” says Rakar. “Jim Thrush from Xitron jumped in and promised to provide the RIP.”

Xitron and Global Graphics Software donated the Navigator GPS solution, including the RIP with all the options (ICC engine, FM and hybrid screens, trapping, proofing engine and imagesetter interface). “Also, thanks to Bill Owens, Xitron’s director of marketing, Xitron also included Navigator RIP Manager workflow software which includes file management as well as the tools for PDF creation, preflight and PDF correction and soft proofing,” says Rakar.

At PRINT 05, the school got some new imposition software after Owens explained the project to Joanne David, vice president of sales at Ultimate (www.imposition.com). “She immediately committed to provide whatever solution would be best for the school,” says Owens.

In Croatia, Rakar has arranged for some support from a local Microsoft office which will provide OS software and installation to the network Rakar is building at the school, as well as additional software for publishing and Web design. HP Croatia will donate a Designjet inkjet printer.”

All aspects of modern prepress
“When we install everything we will have a full top-notch workflow solution which will cover all aspects of modern prepress—from page layout, PDF creation, preflight and PDF correction, inkjet proofing and soft proofing, form proofing to imagesetting,” says Rakar. “We also will network all computers and connect prepress and multimedia departments and create school intranet, so as an additional bonus, the school will have a platform for cross-platform publishing.”

Microsoft will provide training for teachers while Rakar’s company will provide training for the donated products. Rakar was inspired by philanthropic as well as practical motives. “I am trying to return something to society, but my reasons are partially selfish: I want to have better workers in the future. With better education in school we will all have fewer problems with [recent graduates] in our companies. In a fully digital, on-demand color-managed world, how useful is a student who learned to make separations with a repro camera? I have done this because I am in a unique postion to do so. Thanks to PrintPlanet, I have direct contact with many influental people who were able to help with their donations.”

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