When you select File / Print your document has two main options as it travels to your printer. It can travel via the printer driver or it can take a small detour and go through a software program called a RIP or Raster Image Processor. Think of the RIP as a translator between you and your printer. You give it instructions in the language of your desktop publishing application and the RIP translates your instructions into the language of the printer. Both options will produce a print but that is where the similarities stop. Why would you need to spend the extra money on a RIP when you can print directly to the printer using the supplied print driver? The answer to that question depends on what your needs are.

RIP has many faces:
A RIP can come in many forms. The most common form of RIP used today is the software RIP. Software RIPs are independent and can work with many types of devices. Firmware RIPs are usually built into a desktop or large format printer and hardware RIPs are a dedicated piece of hardware configured for a specific device, such as an imagesetter. A software RIP is most common today as it offers you the option to upgrade to a new printer as your needs change.

Lets look at what the supplied driver can and cannot do:

• All supplied printer drivers assume the incoming file is in the RGB colour space.
• CMYK data is converted to RGB before printing.
• Printer drivers are optimized for specific media's. For example, the Canon printer driver is only going to support Canon media, for obvious reasons.
• No support for Pantone (PMS) colour's.
• Limited ability to simulate a press or printing conditions.
• Your ability to optimize a particular media prior to building a 3rd party profile is restricted.
• Prints pleasing colour output on vendors supplied media in what you will get when printing via the Printer Driver.
• 3rd part media support is hit and miss.

What differences are available when printing via a RIP.

• All colour management is handled in one centralized location. This is advantageous in a network environment.
• Not vendor bias. You can print on any media.
• Full support for CMYK Proofing and RGB Photo printing.
• Better implantation of Pantone colour's.
• RIPs offer linearization and ink limiting controls. This allows you to optimize any media prior to creating an ICC Profile yielding a much better result.
• Many RIPs allow the optimization of the media with Nesting options. (Grouping images on a page)
• Multiple queues or print environments can be setup and posted on the network. For example, you could have a 360 dpi low resolution queue, a 1440 dpi photo/poster queue, a 1440 dpi proofing queue and a nesting queue.

<!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]--> The advantages are numerous when printing via a RIP but there is a negative, cost. RIPs are an additional piece of software that needs to be purchased. Depending on the complexity of the rip and the colour matching requirements it may also be required to have a qualified consultant install the RIP and build a few media profiles.   <!--[if !supportEmptyParas]-->

When considering the purchase of a RIP consider the following:

1. Do you require both RGB and CMYK printing?
2. Are you looking for a Proofing RIP or a Fine Art RIP?
3. Are you looking for a RIP that will produce neutral B&W prints under any lighting condition?
4. Do you need Nesting functions, Tiling and Preflight colour correction?
5. What are the re-calibration options to bring the printer back to a baseline.
6. Is Pantone Colour matching important?Can you define custom Spot colour's?
7. What 3rd party spectrophotometers and densitometers are supported?
8. What support options does the RIP vendor offer and for how long?
9. Does the Software run on both Mac and PC?Does the PC version require a Server version of Windows or can it be run on XP Professional?Server versions are more expensive.
10. Is the interface easy to understand?
11. Does the RIP support all the file formats your company uses?
12. What ICC profiles (media calibrations) are supplied?
13. How easy is it to create an ICC profile?Is a demo available to test prior to purchasing?
14. What are the installation and setup charges?   <!--[endif]-->

The best option is to ask for a demo of the software as RIPs come in many different flavours.

Some RIPs are geared towards the fine art market while others are targeted towards proofing. Asking the right questions and test-driving a few RIPs could save you a few late night sessions.