Marketing 101 - "Weasel" words

Whether you're a marketing services provider or a consumer you need to be aware of the use of "weasel" words in advertising and marketing verbiage.

Weasel words, or phrases, are used in marketing/advertising in order to avoid making a direct statement or promise. I.e. they are used as a way to say something that legally, or truthfully, cannot be said. They're also used to make you think you've heard something that hasn't actually been said, to accept as truth something which has only been implied, and believe things that have only been suggested.

A short guide to marketing and advertising "weasel" words.

Sale - Often used in newspaper advertising flyers and at point of purchase in the store. "Sale" or "sale price" is intended to make you think that the product's price has been discounted. But in reality, unless the original price is also displayed, "sale" simply means that this is the normal price that the product sells for.

Help - Often used with health and beauty products e.g. "Helps prevent cavities" "Helps make wrinkles disappear." The word "help" simply means "assist" and nothing more. No advertiser can say: "Our product makes wrinkles disappear" so instead they qualify it with "help" and can say: "Our product helps make wrinkles disappear." Our minds skip over the qualifier "help" and just hears "makes wrinkles disappear."

"Helps prevent..."
"Helps fight...."
"Helps you look..."

Like - "Like" is a qualifier that has a comparative element to it. It is used to stop the consumer from looking at the actual product being sold and instead start thinking about something that is bigger, better, or different.

"It's like getting another one free."
"It's like a vacation in Hawaii."
"Cleans like a white tornado."

"Like" is intended to make you believe that the product or service is more than it actually is by likening it to something else.

Virtual/virtually - This word just means "in essence" or "in effect," but not in actual fact.

"Virtually never needs service"
"Virtually the same as"
"Virtually handmade"

"Virtually" is interpreted by most people as meaning "almost or the same as...." But it really means "not in actual fact" so, for example, "Virtually never needs service" really means that it actually needs service.

Can be/may be - E.g. "Brand X can be of help in reducing cavities" or Brand Y may be effective in your weight loss program." Can be/may be is basically saying that the advertiser doesn't know if their product does anything.

Up to - This is used to imply an ideal situation but actually qualifies it. E.g. "Up to 50% off our regular prices." Well that could mean that discounts range anywhere from 0% to 50% - but they've got you in the store looking for all those 50% discounts.

As much as - E.g. "You'll reduce your ink consumption by as much as 28%." See "Up to."

Feel - This word expresses a subjective opinion. E.g. "This fabric feels like the finest silk." "Feels" like in this example is the advertiser's opinion of their product. Counter "feels" by completing the thought - "This fabric feels like the finest silk - but it isn't."

Free - Rarely is anything actually free. Free usually just means that it is included in the total price rather than listed as a separate item.

The paper problem - no specifications

Typically paper - the most used printing substrate - accounts for some 30-50 percent of the overall print project cost. And despite the fact that it is also often the most expensive component of the final presswork it's surprising that there are no published standards, specifications or trade customs in the paper industry.

The assignment of a particular grade to a quality category and the establishment of sales policies are made by each paper mill based on its own internal evaluation of its products relative to those of its competitors. 

That makes direct, objective, competitive comparisons between different papers virtually impossible. 


The color of paper is identified using adjectives like "cream","natural", "white", etc. rather than objective definitions such as the CIEL*a*b* coordinates that printers use. Again, there are no specifications or tolerances provided by mills as to the consistency of a specific paper color either through the stack, roll, or when the same brand is supplied by mills located in different regions.

The brightness of the sheet is one common measure of distinction. It is measured by comparing the amount of light reflected by the paper surface to the amount of the same light reflected by the surface of magnesium oxide established as the standard of 100%. A common term used in quoting the measure is “G.E. brightness,” although G.E. no longer manufactures the measuring instrument. "Brightness" is also not a measurement that printers or buyers can measure themselves. Even though variation is part of every manufacturing process, there are no defined tolerances for paper brightness.

There are no specifications or tolerances or even notification of optical brightener agent content. This has become a major issue as the mills have mostly switched from clay fillers to calcium carbonate. This problem has resulted in the fact that papers today, for the most part, no longer meet the ISO 12647 specification. Papers with optical brighteners are impossible to visually match between printing technologies which can cause severe disconnects between proof and presswork as well as greater color shifting as presswork and proof are viewed under different lighting conditions.

"Caliper" defines the thickness of paper, measured in thousandths of an inch, which can also be expressed as a point size - e.g. If the caliper of a paper measures .009 inches it is a "9 point" stock. As paper caliper varies, presswork color may also vary. But again there are no defined tolerances for paper caliper either through the stack, roll, or across the width or length of the sheet.
If the sheet metal used in car manufacturing was specified and toleranced with the same technical rigor as a sheet of paper is for print manufacturing - the cars would likely be undrivable.

The graphic arts vendor tour

Usually we try to find a graphic arts vendor at a certain location - but sometimes the vendor is the location. So pack your luggage, make sure your camera is loaded with pixels and take a trip to these vendor brand tourist traps.

Dip your toes in pristine placid Agfa Lake located in the State of New York. It's a popular weekend destination since Agfa Lake is a just a short three hour drive from Kodak's headquarters in Rochester NY. Although Agfa Lake bears a similarity to one of the Great Lakes it is not quite on the same scale.
Adobe Arizona is sometimes confused with the much smaller rival town of Double Adobe which is also in Arizona. Adobe has a certain sameness to it that is shared by many Arizona towns. Interestingly there are no working bridges in Adobe.
Canon is a city in Franklin County, Georgia, United States. For some reason there's a great deal of statistical information on the internet about Canon (the city). Population is about 755, and there are 315 households, 221 families, and 361 housing units. The racial makeup of the city was 94.97% White, 2.52% African American, 0.13% Native American, 0.26% Asian, 0.66% from other races, and 1.46% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.19% of the population. And on and on and on.
Although it's a small city, it hosts a lot of newspapers including the American Union, The Free Press and the Universalist Herald, the Franklin County Register, and the Canon Echo. So, despite there being a great deal of Canon printing the name may not always be top of mind when one thinks of print.

Esko is an unincorporated community in Carlton County, Minnesota, United States. Most of the residents are descendants of Finnish, Norwegian and Swedish immigrants who settled the area during the early 20th Century.
In the year 2000, the population of Esko was approximately 4100. For some undocumented reason the population has been steadily increasing over the last several years. Although once Esko gets incorporated that growth may not continue.
Fuji is located on the banks of the Fuji River and enjoys a warm maritime climate with hot, humid summers and mild, cool winters. The city has been home to numerous paper factories including Nippon Paper Industries (former Daishowa Paper Industries) and Oji Paper Company since the Meiji period. It is also known for producing a few well known soccer players.
Heidelberg probably has the largest geographical tourism footprint of all considering there's a Heidelberg Germany:
A Heidelberg, Mississippi:
A Heidelberg, Pennsylvania:
And even a Heidelberg, Victoria, Australia.You might say that if Heidelberg is on your itinerary, you've got a complete tourist experience with one destination.

Kodak is actually a very tiny community in Tennessee. There's a street intersection where two different roads cross each other:And a "Trade Center"And that's about all that's left.

Screen, in Ireland, is popular with tourists, but it often appears on maps under a different name - which can make travel a bit confusing. Some maps don't list it at all and even satellite images of Screen try to blur the location.
Xerox is a community in Florida that can be a bit hard to find since most communities in Florida are just duplicates of each other while internet travel sites try to point searches to Xerox offices instead.

E Ink Color Display - handicapped because of a fundamental color mistake?

E Ink Inc. whose Pearl greyscale displays are used in all the major e-reader devices have introduced a color e-paper display. If successful it may also compete against the new class of tablet computers such as Apple's iPad.

But is the color display handicapped because its engineers made a fundamental mistake in color technology?

E Ink's new Triton display will come in 5-, 7-, and 10-inch varieties, and E Ink seems to think that it will be instrumental in establishing digital newspapers and periodicals.It is claimed to be able to display “thousands of colors,” specifically 4096. However the color is extremely desaturated even in their carefully presented marketing materials. The display's lack of color saturation may actually reveal the cause of the problem.

How the display works

E Ink is short for “electrophoretic ink”. Technically speaking, charged pigments suspended in a clear liquid micro-capsule respond to a voltage that moves black or white pigments to the screen’s foreground.The technology differs from traditional displays because electrophoretic displays reflect light, rather than emitting it. Whereas computer displays and mobile phone screens rely on a backlight to illuminate pixels of different colors, E Ink technology leverages ambient light just like ink on paper.

With the E Ink Triton color configuration, a thin transparent colored filter array (CFA) is added in front of the black and white display. Now the display can also reflect color.The CFA consists four sub-pixels – red, green, blue, and
white – that are combined to create a full-color pixel. The result? A low-power, direct-sunlight, readable color ePaper display.

So what's the problem?

Emissive color displays like those used in LCD computer displays and televisions are based on the additive color model and use red, green, and blue light to produce the other colors. Combining one of these additive primary colors with another in equal amounts produces the additive secondary colors cyan, magenta, and yellow. Combining all three primary lights (colors) in equal intensities produces white. Varying the luminosity of each light (color) eventually reveals the full gamut of those three lights (colors).The additive color model used by emissive color displays uses combinations of red, green, and blue primaries.
On the other hand, reflective color displays like newspapers and magazines use the subtractive color model which starts with light, presumably white light. Colored inks, or filters, between the viewer and the reflective surface subtract wavelengths from the light, giving it color. In most color printing, the primary ink colors used are cyan, magenta, and yellow.The subtractive color model used by reflective color displays uses combinations of cyan, magenta, and yellow primaries.
E Ink's Triton color display, although a reflective device, uses the primary colors of emissive devices - red, green, and blue rather than cyan, magenta, and yellow. The result is very poor color saturation and very much reduced color gamut.Triton color display screen captures - note the absence of Yellow - a color that cannot be achieved with combinations of red, green, and blue filters in a reflective, subtractive color-based display system.


An E Ink video explaining the RGB(!) display technology.
Did the engineers made a fundamental mistake in their choice of color technology?

To linearize your CtP plates or not?

A bit of background
Back in the old film to plate days the standard prepress procedure was to linearize film output. That means a specific tone request in the original file results in halftone dot in the film equal to the file tone request. So, for example, a 50% in the file became a 50% tone in the film. Linear film was the agreed standard interchange file format between prepress tradeshops, publishers and printers. At that time, the final tone on the plate was not measured. Instead, the resulting tone in the presswork was measured and deemed to be in specification, or not, relative to the supplied linear film. I.e. At 133 lpi, a 50% tone in the film resulting in a final tone of about 71% in the presswork would be considered in specification. Interestingly, although the film was linear, the resulting plates were not linear due to the dynamics of exposure in the vacuum frame.

The arrival of CtP in the late 1990s eliminated film as the intermediary. As a result, measuring tone values on the plate became a process control metric. However, CtP plates seldom have a linear response to laser exposure and if a tone reproduction curve is applied to them to make them linear - the resulting presswork is usually too "sharp" - i.e. not achieving enough dot gain.

At the same time that CtP was rapidly being adopted, printers also began to use finer halftone screens, including FM screens, which had very different dot gain characteristics compared to the old published standards. Printers began to leverage the flexibility that CtP provided in being able to apply different tone reproduction curves to their CtP plates to achieve the tone reproduction on press that they required.

So the question for the printer becomes: should prepress first apply a curve to linearize the plate and then, if needed, apply another curve on top of the first to achieve the desired final press tone response?

I was shocked
So, just to confirm that the method that I have been using for the past 13 years was indeed the standard method used in the industry, I posed the question to an internet printer's forum: "Do you linearize your plates before applying a press curve (a two curve workflow - e.g. one to linearize the plate followed by another one to compensate for dot gain) or do you only apply a press curve to the uncalibrated plate (a one curve workflow - e.g. one to compensate for dot gain)?"

The response shocked me - a whopping 70% said they first linearized the plate with a curve and then applied a press curve while only 30% responded that they simply applied a press curve to the uncalibrated (natural state) plate.

70% using one curve on top of another? That makes no sense to me at all.

In a film to plate workflow, linear film is exposed to the plate in a vacuum frame. The function of the plate exposure is to reproduce the halftone dots in the film as consistently as possible across the surface of the plate, and perhaps more importantly, to create a robust halftone dot on the plate that will maintain its integrity on press. However, although the film may be linear, the resulting plates are not linear due to the dynamics of exposure in the vacuum frame. In North America using negative film there is typically a 2%-5% dot gain on plate at 50% (i.e. 50% in the film creates about a 54% on the plate) while in Europe and Asia where positive film was used there is typically be a 2%-5% tone loss at 50%.

In a CtP workflow, as with a film to plate workflow, the important thing is to set laser exposure and processing (or lack thereof) to the manufacturer's specifications so that the result is a robust halftone dot on the plate that maintains its integrity on press. However, as with a film workflow, the resulting plates are typically not linear due to the dynamics of laser exposure, individual plate characteristics, and processing.

In this example, the thick line that dips below the 0 line is the natural uncalibrated plate curve after the engineer has done their work setting up exposure and processing for the most robust dot possible.With this particular positive thermal plate the uncalibrated plate curve results in a negative value through the tones. The bottom numbers in the graphic are the requested tone values in the file - 5%, 10%, 20%.... 90%, 100%. The "0" line represents linearity. I.e. if the plate was linear then that 0 line would be straight and be the "plate curve". But, in this case, a 50% request has resulted in about a 47% on plate. This is fairly typical - a well and properly exposed CtP plate does not have a linear response (i.e. a straight line). Also note that it is typically not a classic Bell curve - there is no symmetry. Different CtP/plate combinations will each have their own characteristic natural curves.

So, from a CtP vendor engineer's perspective, it does not matter whether the result of their setup is a linear plate or not since a tone reproduction curve can always be applied to achieve whatever tones are required on plate - including linearizing the plate. What's important is that the exposed dot is robust and that the plate imaging is consistent across the plate and repeatable from plate to plate.Put another way - the key criteria is that when properly set up the plate will have a characteristic non-linear tone response. And that's fine - as long as the plate responds the same - i.e. delivers the same non-linear tone response – every time because without that consistency it is not possible to build any tone reproduction curves at all.

Some definitions

These definitions are not "official" however they are useful to keeping the issues and discussions clear.

A "plate curve" is a tone reproduction curve that is applied in the workflow to a plate in order to have it render tone values that are different from those it delivers when the laser exposure and processing (or lack thereof) have been set to the manufacturer's specifications. So, applying a linearizing curve that makes an inherently non-linear plate linear is an example of the use of a plate curve.

A "press curve" is a tone reproduction curve that is applied in the workflow to a plate in order to have it render tone values that are required to deliver a specific tone response on press. The assumption is that the laser exposure and processing (or lack thereof) have been set to the manufacturer's specifications.

By this definition, if only a linearizing curve is applied because a linear plate is needed to deliver the correct tone response on press then that linearizing curve is a press curve.

A plate curve in this sense is not related to tone reproduction on press. It is effectively a calibration curve. It brings the plate to a known condition. However, in a CtP environment, the manufacturer's setup of laser exposure intensity, processing chemistry, and processing time effectively calibrates the plate plate to a known condition. It might not be linear but it is known. There is no need to recalibrate by applying a plate curve to what is already calibrated.

Another way to look at the question

Let's suppose that a linear plate provided the tone response on press that we need. Would it make sense to then use two curves - one to linearize the plate (a plate curve) and a second curve (a press curve) to linearize the linearized plate? I doubt it. Makes more sense to just apply the one linearizing curve - based on the uncalibrated natural condition of the plate.

So, if that logic makes sense, why wouldn't it make equal sense if we needed a non-linear press curve? Just apply the one non-linear press curve based on the uncalibrated natural non-linear condition of the plate.

As long as the plate's tone response is consistent then it can be the basis on which to build press curves. However, if the plate is inconsistent in its tone response then the use of linearizing plate curves as well as the use of press curves will fail. You cannot use curves, plate or press, on a device that is inconsistent.

What the "authorities" have said*Some quotes on this topic from the Idealliance G7 guides:

6.2 Origin of NPDC curves
To determine the 'natural' NPDC curves of commercial CtP-based printing, G7 research analyzed numerous press runs made with ISO-standard ink and paper, and a variety of plate types imaged on “un-calibrated” CtP systems (no RIP curves applied, not even to “linearize” the plate).

5.4 Set up the RIP
Set up the plate making RIP exactly as you would for a normal job, but clear out any values in the current calibration table, or begin with a new, empty table. The first press run is best made with ‘un-calibrated’ plates – i.e. no calibration values in the RIP.
IMPORTANT: Do NOT linearize the plate-setter so that measured dot values on plate exactly match original file percentages. Contrary to common belief, this may reduce accuracy of subsequent steps.

a. PRINTING IDEALIZED TARGETS VALUES - Achieving calibration condition with raw or linear plates, not requiring a curve, is an ideal situation.

*A note about authorities. I had trepidations about including these points from G7 because I do not believe that people should blindly do what some authority says they should do. It is not enough to say "Do it this way because I say it should be done this way." If the authority cannot explain exactly why one way is wrong and another right then it is just an opinion and without evidence to back it up it is not a credible opinion. I included these quotes only because they may carry credibility for some readers of this post.

Scenarios“We’ve always done it this way!” or “This way works just fine!” Even when we have the time to think about how or why we do things a certain way, our thoughts are often clouded by that kind of thinking. However, it can make it easier to understand the merits of a one curve workflow compared with a two curve workflow if one breaks down the sequence of steps required to get a plate into the press room. Given the same final result, the fewer the steps - the better the workflow since it provides fewer opportunities for error.

Here are some examples of workflow scenarios to see what happens with a one curve workflow vs a two curve workflow:

One CtP & one plate shop - to achieve the same final result on press:
One curve workflow: one press curve = one curve total.
Two curve workflow: one linearization plate curve plus one press curve = two curves total.

One CtP & one plate shop using three different curves to optimize for three different papers. To achieve the same final result on press:
One curve workflow: one press curve per paper type = three curves total.
Two curve workflow: one linearization plate curve plus one press curve per paper type = four curves total.

One CtP & two plate shop - to achieve the same final result on press:
One curve workflow: one press curve per plate type = two curves total.
Two curve workflow: two linearization plate curves plus one press curve = three curves total.

One CtP & two press shop - to achieve the same final result on two presses:
One curve workflow: one press curve per press = two curves total.
Two curve workflow: one linearization plate curve plus two press curves = three curves total.

One CtP & one plate shop - what happens if a new batch of plates do not perform as the previous batch did:
One curve workflow: modify one press curve so that the plate tones are the same as the previous plate batch = one modified curve total.
Two curve workflow: modify one linearization plate curve plus apply the standard press curve so that the final plate tones are the same as the previous plate batch = two curves total.

One CtP & one plate shop - what happens if the press curve needs to be tweaked/adjusted:
One curve workflow: modify one press curve to achieve the required tone reproduction on press = one modified curve total.
Two curve workflow: one linearization plate curve plus modify one press curve to achieve the required tone reproduction on press = two curves total.

One CtP & one plate shop - what happens if the CtP device is replaced:
One curve workflow: measure the new plate output and modify one press curve to achieve the same tone reproduction/dots on plate as with previous CtP = one modified curve total.
Two curve workflow: measure the new plate output and modify the linearization plate curve to linearize the plate then apply the existing press curve = one modified curve for two curves total.

Looked at this way, the linearization plate curve, in the vast majority of cases, is redundant. It serves no useful purpose except to add complexity and another point of failure.

Esko Concentric screening - some observations

Esko Concentric screening is at heart an AM screen which uses a unique halftone dot where solid AM dots are divided into thin concentric rings.Click on the above image to see it enlarged.
Concentric screening and color gamut
Chroma in press work derives primarily from the ratio of light being filtered by ink carried on halftone dots vs light reflected off the paper that hasn't been filtered by the ink. Light that is unfiltered by the ink effectively contaminates the color reducing the potential gamut of the inks. If one compares Concentric halftone dots with conventional AM/XM halftone dots at the same lpi - e.g. 175 lpi. what is clear is the difference in ink coverage area through which light can be filtered.
At left is a micro photo of Esko Concentric and on the right is an AM/XM screen (Esko Paragon). Both are imaged at 175 lpi.
Note that dividing the dot into rings actually lessens the area of ink and increases the area of unprinted paper. Effectively it increases the contamination of color by light reflected off of the unprinted substrate which can actually reduce, rather than increase, the potential gamut.

In the below plot, the CIEL*a*b* values of the same tone values for 175 lpi AM/XM/Paragon screening (in green) is compared to 175 lpi Concentric (in red). If the Concentric had a larger gamut the red dots would be significantly above the green dots indicating a greater chroma. Instead they track at, or are below, the chroma for 175 lpi AM/XM/Esko Paragon screening.
What this means is that, as far as I can determine, Concentric screening offers no additional gamut, and possibly less of a gamut, when it is compared with AM/XM screens at the same lpi.

Concentric screening and image quality
Since it is still an AM screen there is still the opportunity for screening and subject moiré - although the finer the screen (AM/XM or Concentric) the less likely that will be a problem. Because it's still an AM halftone screen it has rosettes - just like any other AM/XM screen - formed by the screen angles.At left Esko Paragon AM rosettes. At right Esko Concentric rosettes. Both screens are 175 lpi. (Squint your eyes or move a few feet away from the screen to make the rosettes more prominent.)
From a print buyer point of view there will likely be no visible difference between a 200-300 lpi conventional AM/XM screen and Concentric screening - even if viewed under a loupe.

Concentric screening and ink reduction
The two primary causes of the reduction in ink usage with high lpi screens are the thinner ink films and the need for tone reproduction curves for plate imaging to bring the press tone response in line with the standard 175 lpi AM/XM screening. Ink reduction with the use of Concentric screening should be similar to the ink reduction enjoyed by high lpi conventional AM/XM as well as FM screens.

Concentric screening and on press color stability
Greater color stability when solid ink densities naturally vary during the press run is a characteristic of high frequency screening (i.e. smaller dots) whether AM/XM, FM or Concentric. The actual ink film thickness of Concentric vs conventional AM/XM screening at the same lpi is actually very similar. Projecting dot density to height in 3D one can see this quite clearly (Concentric is left of the black line - AM/XM is right of the black line.)Of course, if the Concentric screening is run at a very high lpi it will acquire a stability that is similar to conventional screens (AM/XM and FM) that are run to the same high frequency.

Concentric screening and imaging system resolution
Concentric screening is effectively an AM screen ruling multiplier. What this means is that the resolution of the imaging system needs to be able to image the minimum specified ring width. Put another way, if the ring thickness called for is 10 microns wide then the imaging system (plate and press) must be capable of consistently imaging a 10 micron pixel/dot even though the actual final halftone dot size may be almost five times wider (e.g. 48 microns wide a 50% dot at 250 lpi).Concentric halftone dots that depend on 1-2 pixel width imaging integrity can be problematic for most imaging systems
As a result, using Concentric screeing can push the effective screen frequency so high that process stability and imaging may be compromised and it can be difficult to support their use on plate let alone find a way to implement them in the press room. The problem is that some concentric screen settings can drive rulings way over what plate imaging can support - on the order of 1-2 pixel widths for the rings, which is understandably problematic. For example, a 200 lpi screen with 2 pixel ringwidths = 600 lpi which is finer than, for example, a 10 micron FM screen.

Coarser ringwidths are easier to support but at that point it is probably more effective to use an AM screen of equivalent lpi.

For printers contemplating the adoption of Concentric screening
Since Concentric screening is a conventional AM screen using a unique halftone dot design, I suggest that when you are evaluating this type of screening that you "compare apples to apples". That means that you should compare the on press performance of Concentric against a conventional AM/XM screen imaged at the same lpi. Use a combination of subjective (pretty pictures) as well as objective measurable targets (single and two color step wedge gradients and IT8 profiling targets).

N.B. The data that I used as the basis for this post is derived from published promotional samples printed by Esko. I have contacted Esko as well as members of public prepress/press forums asking for press profiles and/or printed test samples of Concentric vs conventional AM/XM screens run at the same lpi under the same press conditions. Despite the product being in the market for over four years I have been unable to acquire such a basic color profile or press samples. If you have that data I would appreciate hearing from you by email ( pritchardgordon @ gmail (dot) com ).

How was it printed? Simple ways to determine the printing method used.

The proliferation of new printing technologies like commercial production toner and ink jet presses as well as the rapid increase in quality of some traditional systems like flexography, has made it a bit difficult to determine exactly which printing method was used for a given sample. Was it offset or digital ink jet? Flexo or offset?

Here is a guide to help you identify which printing method has been used. The best method is to look very closely with a loupe at the letter forms and then confirm by looking at the halftone dots themselves. Although these images were taken at about 200x to show as much detail as possible, they are not that different than what would be seen by the human eye under a loupe at 10-20x.

Offset lithography

Type edges are sharp and well defined. The ink density is similar across the letter. The paper around the printed ink is usually clear/unprinted. The sharpness and consistent ink density is reflected in the halftone dots. Note that this same sharp appearance occurs if the halftone screen used is FM (the third image) rather than AM (second image).
Gravure

All graphic elements appear halftone screened so the edges of text show a rough halftone appearance. Although presswork color may appear rich, viewed under a loupe, the halftone dots may have a watery appearance. Individual dots may appear to have a hole in their centers.
Flexography

Flexography uses a rubber-like plate that, under pressure, transfers ink to the substrate. This results in type that often appear to be surrounded by a sharp-edged "halo." The same effect, but in opposite, occurs in the halftone dots which may have dark edges and light centers. Both type and halftone dots usually have very sharp and well defined edges. Note that this dot sharpness also occurs with an FM screen printed with flexo (third image).
Electrophotographic (a.k.a. laser toner, Xerographic)

With electrophotographic systems the image is created by depositing a powder toner. This results in a "sprayed on" appearance. Type edges are soft and there are often specks of wayward toner on what should be unprinted paper. On close examination you'll likely see apparently random Yellow dots. Those are anti-counterfeiting tags. Halftone dots have a similar fuzzy appearance.
Inkjet

Under a loupe, ink jet type has a "blocky" "chunky" edge appearance. This is caused by the low resolution/large droplet size typical of these devices (despite the claims of high dpi). Sometimes there will be the occasional "satellite" ink droplet near the letter (two are shown in the image below). Because of the way the ink is sprayed onto the substrate, halftoned areas appear to be done with an FM screen. However, unlike the FM screening used in offset lithography, there is usually no apparent pattern or organization to the dots.
Engraving

Engraving is typically used for currency/bank note printing, stamps, and sometimes very exclusive stationary. Type is very crisp and sharp. The process is capable of extremely fine detail and as a result is used to print security microtype. Halftones are usually created with line effects rather than a conventional halftone screen. Softly passing one's fingers over the printed work will reveal a tangible texture due to the raised ink.
Thermography

Thermography is commonly used on wedding invitations, letterheads, business cards, and greetings cards as an attractive alternative to the more expensive engraving process. Type has a raised surface texture similar to engraving however, with thermography type appears to be printed under a transparent coating. The low resolution of this process makes it unsuitable for quality halftone screening.
LCD display (print to screen - just for fun)

The letter "e" as displayed black against a white background on my laptop's display. Since the LCD display produces no light of its own, it requires a cold cathode fluorescent lamp situated behind the LCD panel. Electronically-modulated pixels filled with liquid crystals are arrayed in front of the light source to produce images in color. Passing the backlight through the red, green, and blue liquid crystals recreates the backlight white, while blocking the backlight creates black. Anti-aliasing of the letter helps to smooth the shape of the letter form and compensates for the relatively low resolution of the screen itself. Note that the pixels forming the image are not square but rectangles.