Comments on: Print on demand – seriously

By: Stephen Dedman

Stephen Dedman — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 10:39:23 +0000

I’m with Chris on this one. Granted, putting paper into a machine tends to complicate matters, but I seem to be spending far less time unjamming photocopiers and printers than I used to do. And the machines certainly haven’t become any more expensive: I frequently see photocopier/printer/fax machine combinations selling for less than the cost of the ink cartridges inside.

By: Chris Lawson

Chris Lawson — Mon, 06 Aug 2007 21:58:26 +0000

I agree in principle, Nick, but it depends on how much they've spent on the mechanics. Modern daily newspapers run much more complex printing presses with very little downtime. Of course, modern newspaper companies can be worth billions of dollars and they can't afford to miss their printing deadlines or the entire distribution system falls down, so the owners are willing to spend a fortune on the engineering. Having said that, even cheap engineering can be very reliable. I'm always amazed at how reliable even cheap Korean cars are, for instance, especially when you consider how bloody complex they are. Ever seen the inside of a gearbox?

By: Nick

Nick — Mon, 06 Aug 2007 02:08:06 +0000

Yeah, it’s a lovely idea – but…

Having worked in a couple of offices which had high volume copying or risographing machines running from time to time, my mind boggles at the potential for jams and breakdowns.

Looking at the picture, there are way too many moving parts for that machine not to break down constantly, and libraries and bookstores are not going to have the technical staff on site to repair and service it effectively.

I have a tenner that says the machine is out of service about 20-30% of the available time, and that servicing cost blowouts kill its rollout into general use.

By: John Parker

John Parker — Fri, 03 Aug 2007 04:51:44 +0000

About 15 years ago I saw an article about the “Indigo” printing system. Supposedly capable of of pumping out a “glossy” magazine in a few seconds “on demand”. It was limited by the CPU power of the computers available. (A Sun SPARC Station didn’t have enough grunt to keep the printer fed)

THis was an interesting one because it promised a better model for magazines. Newsagents could get away with only ordering one of each magazine and ordering a replacement for the next days run if it had sold during the day.

It’d allow more titles with less waste and unlimited back issues.

Not sure what ever happened to them. They may have been bought out by HP by the looks of things.