It's been 10 years since the term was first coined.

When Paul Brainerd, president of the software giant Aldus, first coined the term "desktop publishing" in 1984, most graphic designers, conventional typesetters and printers scoffed at the output.

They agreed that it was a crude substitute for conventional typesetting and design. DTP, simply defined as the process of using a computer to format text and graphics on a page, was relegated to low-quality publications at the outset.

Since then, however, the same people who once ridiculed DTP now realize that they, too, must become skilled in the process or be left behind in the competition.

"Quality has come a long way since the inception of the term, and it's more affordable," says Charles Horell, CEO of Cardinal/Lipps Printing Services Inc. in New Albany.

Technology in this field has improved the possibilities in staggering proportions. From its modest genesis have grown systems that forever have changed the printing and graphics industries. DTP still may be used for low-end products as it was in its beginning, but in the years since, breakthroughs have made it suitable to create high-quality publications. Indiana Business Magazine, for example, has been a DTP publication since 1986; many other Indiana publications have joined the DTP ranks as well.

These technological advances can save users time and money and give them greater control over the design work.

Some might say the user has too much freedom. "It's gotten to the point where you can't believe what you see anymore," says Randy Roberts, president of Lincoln Printing Corp. in Fort Wayne. "Anything can be altered and easily." Do you want to move the Great Pyramids of Egypt for a more pleasing composition? That's what National Geographic did for one of its covers. Change the spots on a cow? Sure. This issue of greater design control, however, usually is one of the first advantages cited by DTP users, including John Robinson, CEO of the House of White Birches in Berne, which publishes 23 periodicals dealing primarily with crafts. His staff began using DTP in 1986 and witnessed the evolution firsthand. "Our production is becoming more and more electronic."

Yet more control adds responsibility, Robinson warns. "And more and more of the work falls back on us"--work the printer once did. The additional work load causes Robinson "sometimes to wonder if we really save money; it does feel like, however, that what we are doing is more cost-effective."

Robinson's opinion is similar to many others: Along with the improvements come new problems.

The rapid technological changes, for example, helped create confusion. "We now have a giant learning curve that we're going through with our customers," Roberts says. "So many people are just not experienced with DTP."

Roberts echoes several printers' observation that many functional problems develop when customers submit work on disks. Their idea is to have the project transmitted directly to film, which, theoretically, saves money. Because of many clients' lack of understanding of the printing industry, however, vital parts are missing from the disk for successful completion of the project.

For those knowing how to use DTP properly for color separations, the savings are significant. "Now you can get seps for maybe $10 instead of $100," Roberts says. "There is still a need for the high-end separations done in the traditional manner, but desktop has opened up the possibilities for people."

One company that foresaw the effect of DTP, particularly for color separations, is Rheitone Inc. in Indianapolis. In late 1989, the company installed its first DTP system and now handles both conventional and digital prepress work.

"DTP is making full-color work more affordable and obtainable," says David Sattler, president of Lafayette Printing Co. in Lafayette. He adds that those who once believed that they could afford only one- or two-color work could find four-color literature in their price range.

"If everything is done correctly," says Paul Bippus Jr., vice president of Colorwheel Printing in Indianapolis, "then the overall quality of DTP output is up." He estimates, however, that only about 50 percent of his clients using DTP thoroughly understand the procedures or design.

"There is no replacement for a good artist," adds Carl Dosmann, director of graphic services at Dec-O-Graphics, a prepress service bureau in Elkhart.

This lack of expertise is seen as a selling point for at least one printing company. Design Printing Co. in Indianapolis emphasizes teamwork with its customers.

"Our process," says company president Gregory King, "is designed to work in unison with customers' systems, regardless of the kind of hardware or software they possess.

"We have the most advanced, state-of-the-art equipment available," King says. "Of course, that could change next month," he adds, alluding to the fast pace of the technological changes in this field.

Not all printing company have grasped DTP technology but most printers and prepress staff agree that the marriage between DTP and their industries is here to stay.

Should you set up desktop publishing?

Promises of savings but a new set of problems

Desktop, or do-it-yourself, publishing sounds like a quick way to save a few dollars. Maybe and maybe not. Accompanying the promise of saving time and money is a new set of problems or considerations.

Before implementing any DTP system, you should ask yourself and your staff the following questions:

1. How sophisticated is your publishing? Do you need a more advanced, and therefore more expensive, software package or would a simpler version suffice? PageMaker currently ranks as the favored program for layout-intensive publishing, although QuarkXPress is a close second. Other popular, high-end DTP programs include Ventura Publisher and FrameMaker. Some mid-range systems are Microsoft Publisher and Ready,Set,Go!

2. Do you want to use the Macintosh or a PC platform? Most printers and graphic designers prefer the Macintosh for its ease in learning and flexibility for design work. However, PCs are generally preferred by corporations that greatly utilize word processing. PCs also are becoming more user friendly for the designer.

3. Do you need high or low resolution for the output? Besides the software, you should consider the laser printer. The price for this equipment usually increases as the quality improves.

4. How much disk space or memory do you need? At the House of White Birches, John Robinson warns about mass storage requirements for his magazines. "The computer files sometimes are unwieldy and difficult to transport." Additional memory space usually means extra expense.

"It seems like you never have enough power or space," says Carl Dosmann of Deco-O-Graphics. "Consider how much you need to spend, and then spend more for extra memory." Some recommend getting twice the hard-disk space that you think you need initially.

5. Can you printer or service bureau accommodate your output? If you plan to submit work on disk, you need to know whether the printer can output directly to film. Your printer's equipment and technical expertise should be at your disposal, and most printers indicate a desire to help to avoid any costly errors for the client.

6. Are you hoping to save on the bills for artwork or for printing? Currently, DTP represents a significant savings only in such prepress functions as the typesetting, color separations and design work. You can eliminate the step of providing art boards to the printer by submitting your work on disk for transfer directly to film. This sidestep, however, represents a minor savings in comparison to the overall printing bill.

7. Is DTP truly cost effective for your needs? Does the amount of published output justify the price of equipment and software, the training or hiring of personnel, or the increase in your staff's work load? In addition to learning the DTP technology, novice and veteran users now have to know more about the printing industry than ever before. Without the proper education provided for the DTP user, companies wanting to cut publishing costs by installing DTP may find that the opposite is true.