ASTRO astrojet II plus, Installation And Operating Manual

Page: 35 / 62

31
Printing Tips
Types of Media
The AstroJet Image Blaster will print on many types of mailing media, but some
restrictions apply. As with any other printing process, the texture of the media has a
direct effect on both the print quality and the ink drying time. It is best to test each new
type of media to determine performance levels before beginning the Job.
Since coated and plastic types of paper do not easily absorb ink, smearing may occur.
Print may appear fuzzy on very porous paper. Another cause of fuzzy printouts is
excessive buildup of dust within the machine, or a printhead is too far away from the
media. Be aware, that when printing in the High Quality mode, drying time for the ink is
longer than in the other modes. In addition, when humidity is high, drying time is
increased.
Media Thickness
The AstroJet Image Blaster will handle pieces up to 1-1/4”” thick (1.250”). All folds must
be crisp and even.
CAUTION
DO NOT use stapled pieces in the AstroJet Image Blaster.
DO NOT use paper- clipped pieces in the AstroJet Image Blaster.
These methods of binding the mail piece will damage the printheads, affect print
quality, and may seriously damage your printer. The Astro Warranty Policy will
not cover components damaged through improper use.
The USPS does not accept this type of mail for its automated equipment.
Databases
The AstroJet Image Blaster System is capable of handling many types of databases.
There are, however, some limitations. To avoid problems we offer the following
suggestions to help you improve the operation of your AstroJet Image Blaster System.
Large ODBC Databases
Random accessed ODBC databases are not indexed on the first column. As a result
the performance of the printer may get slower and even stop when using very large
databases. To prevent this from occurring, the following actions can be taken before
the database is loaded into the AstroJet Image Blaster software:
1. The user can convert the ODBC database to a text database (*.CSV file) with the
Layout Editor, and then subsequently open the project with that alternate
database. The Layout Editor explicitly indexes text databases, so performance is
not an issue for these files. Note: the Layout Editor retains ODBC field names in
the first record of the *.CSV file, so when you select it later, you should check off
that the “first record contains field names”.