Trade Terms - What does that mean?

As with any trade, there are certain terms and words used that aren't common in the everyday person's vocabulary. To help you speak our language, here are a few terms and what they mean.
If you can't find the one you were looking for, why not ask us now.

Term:
Definitions:
adobe
 A company who produces award-winning technologies and software that have redefined the printing artwork industry. See their website here.
bitmap
 Bitmap is an organisation type, used by computers, to store images. Common file type which are bitmap based are .jpg, .bmp, .gif. To learn why bitmap files make printing difficult click here.
hi vis
Hi Vis is short for High Visibilty and refers to garments that comply with the Australian standards for workwear (for more information on this, look here). We print and embroider hi vis garments all the time. Why not check some out by lookng in our Johnny Bobbin catalogue.
illustrator
 Illustrator is an Adobe program (see above) that handles vector artwork. We use this everyday and are constantly learning new techniques to keep up to date with the latest technologies. An Illustrator file has a file type ".ai".
jpg
 jpg or Jpeg is the file type that commonly handles photos. It is an abbreviation for Joint Photographic Experts Group (which is the name of the group that created the standard). Whilst jpgs are good for photos and web images, they tend to be inappropriate for screen printing unless they are of a very high resolution.
kool dri
Kool Dri (or cooldri or cool dry or JB's Dri) is a fabric type comprised (depending on the company) specially to absorb body perspiration into the fabric and to move the moisture to the surface where it is evaporated leaving the wearer fresh and cool [thanks to JB's for this description].
lead time
Lead time is the time it will take for your job to be ready for pickup. Our lead time starts from the moment you approve your artwork and is usually 2 weeks (though this may differ depending on the job and / or how busy we are at the time).
mac
 Mac is a computer operating system designed specifically for Apple computers. We use Apple computers as they are the leaders in graphics manipulation.
one colour
One colour simply means that the print is a one colour job. You can have any combination of colours (one colour, two colour, three colour) and is just a term used to describe your job.
pdf
 pdf is a file type which can be opened using Adobe reader. We send many of our artwork proofs as this file type as it allows for documents to appear the same on any computer. This program is available for free download by clicking here.
plastisol
 Plastisol is a plastics based ink which is used on different materials to achieve an effective print. It is commonly used on large print runs as it doesn't dry out during the printing process(unlike water-based inks). It is most probably the ink used to print the t-shirts you buy from the shops which are massed produced.
process print

A process print is a print that uses CMYK colours; it is a four colour print that involves cyan, magenta, yellow and key (black) to make up a full colour effect. It works much the same way as an inkjet printer; the image is made up of tiny little dots which are each designated a colour. Once the colours overlay each other, they create a new colour, thus giving the effect of a full colour print using only 4 screens!

 
serif
 Decorative pieces added to the tips of characters in certain fonts.
suppliers
 Our suppliers are the businesses who provide us with the garments for decoration. To view their online catalogues, click here.
vector
 Vector is an organisation type, used by computers, to store images. Unlike bitmap (see above), where the information is stored as little dots, vector information is stored as objects. This allows for scaling to occur easily and accurately. To see the difference between vector and bitmap, click here.