The world's graphic arts experts have come together to release v4 of the Ghent Workgroup specifications (http://www.gwg.org/GWGversion4.phtml) for automated workflow efficiency in the range of application and output environments. v4 of the specifications supports Adobe Acrobat 9, which includes Universal Proof of Preflight developed by the Ghent Workgroup (Ghent, Belgium). Heading the list of additional enhancements to v4 is a check for missing glyphs, one of the leading causes of preflight and page production frustration.

　　“This is more than a minor update. It is a collection of feedback from the industry and associations over the last 3 years that was incorporated in the GWG v4 specs,” says Peter Kleinheider, documentation officer for the GWG and print publishing technologies manager for callas Software. “The main interest was the reduction of unnecessary restrictions like the use of double byte fonts or to ignore elements completely outside the trimbox. On the other hand, the check for image resolution or line width was adopted to reflect today's printing capabilities.”

　　Other highlights of the v4 specification, according to Kleinheider, include:

　　· A response to the growing amount of font problems in pdfs. Now all font-related restrictions introduced by the PDF/A ISO Standard are mandatory.

　　· In response to the increasing use of standardized ICC Profiles, a set of recommended ICC Profiles to be used for the various printing conditions of the market segments for which the GWG supplies specifications (http://www.gwg.org/colormanagement.phtml).

　　The GWG, formed in June 2002, is an international assembly of industry associations and suppliers from across Europe and the United States. The GWG's objective is to establish and disseminate process specifications for best practices in graphic arts workflows.