SignWeb | signweb.com

(May 2008) posted on Tue May 20, 2008

ST

By Darek Johnson

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

“I’m gonna ask you some simple questions.”
– Jason Bourne,
The Bourne Supremacy

Separately, digital-print-industry writer/analysts – digital sleuths, if you will Chris and Kathi Morrison, Sophie Matthews-Paul and Elmo Sapwater visited important industry tradeshows, and digital-print product manufacturers’ plants, to examine this year’s print-machine offerings. At the International Sign Expo 2008 (Orlando), Chris and Kathi, ST investigators and reviewers, in their Jonathon and Jennifer Hart to Hart manner, meticulously examined, operated and photographed 22 digital-print machines. They’ve accumulated their findings for later reviews in ST, but offer an overview here.

Surely, Sophie Matthews-Paul is the digital-print industry’s Lady James Bond. Like Bond, she’s everywhere at once, seemingly, and gains covert information (the kind others seldom uncover) from exclusive contacts. She has British pluckiness, a history in the industry and isn’t easily deceived (Sophie knows the working difference between MEMS and thermal printheads). Below, she gives her insights on industry trends.

Elmo Sapwater, who owns and manages the Imaging Insider and Endless Years websites, is an imaging-software connoisseur of Mac systems and photo-print operations. He moves inconspicuously through tradeshows to gather and report exclusive information. If Sophie strikes a James Bond chord, Elmo, surely, reminds one of The Saint’s Simon Templar. He, like Sophie, visited this year’s FESPA Digital tradeshow (Geneva); here, he reports on its two-day, fabric-printing seminar.

You’ll also want to read Vince Cahill’s analysis of Hewlett-Packard’s recently announced waterbased, latex ink for digital printing. It’s in the June 2008 Tech Update column. Vince can be Napoleon Solo in The Man From U.N.C.L.E.

The Morrisons: From ISA Sign Expo, Orlando
Before everyone bought iPods, the choice personal music player was Sony’s Walkman. From its 1979 introduction until the last cassette-tape model sold, Walkmans were a basic, tape-playback system rigged with lightweight headphones. Every year, they would get a little smaller and lighter, but – remember? – the changes were incremental, not revolutionary. The ISA Sign Expo 2008 tradeshow was comparable to the cassette Walkman – things were niftier and better, but not revolutionary.