The Texas Printing Institute offers short-term non-credit courses on Saturdays or week nights for individuals who wish to learn a specific topic related to printing and publishing. All courses are taught at the University of Houston under the direction of Dr. Jerry Waite in the graphic communications technology electronic prepress laboratory.
The list of courses offered changes each semester. Some of the courses previously offered are listed below. In addition, selected UH credit courses can be taken by non-credit students by enrolling through the Texas Printing Institute.
To receive a copy of the schedule of courses for any given semester, contact the Texas Printing Institute at 713-522-1066. View a recent schedule by clicking here.
This course is designed to familiarize
students with the Macintosh computer. Students will learn how
to start applications, work with menus, organize the desktop and
other common techniques. Students will learn about the Macintosh
architecture and system software, including System 8, as well
as additional applications. Students will also install new system
and application software. This course is a prerequisite for all
other electronic publishing courses, unless the student is computer
literate.
This course introduces the student to
the capabilities of QuarkXPress. Students learn to prepare simple
one page layouts, place text, illustrations and photos, and use
QuarkXPress' basic commands. Spot color techniques, including
trapping and output considerations, are also covered. A working
knowledge of the Macintosh is a prerequisite for this course.
This course builds upon the skills learned
in QuarkXPress I. Students learn to prepare complex layouts in
multiple colors. Special emphasis is given to the creation and
use of: style sheets and tags; creating, moving and modifying
elements; linking and unlinking text blocks; master-page strategies;
working with photographs, and the use of dialog boxes and palettes.
QuarkXPress I, or permission of the instructor, is a prerequisite
for this course.
This course introduces students to the
use of Photoshop for print production purposes. Students will
learn to use Photoshop's tools to retouch black and white line
illustrations, perform tone and color corrections, and prepare
halftones for printing. A working knowledge of the Macintosh is
a prerequisite for this course.
This course introduces students to the
use of Photoshop for graphic design purposes. Students will learn
to use Photoshop's tools to create and touch-up images, use layers,
channels, and paths, work with type, use filters, and perform
special effects. Photoshop I is the prerequisite for this course.
This course is deigned to familiarize
desktop publishers, electronic prepress operators, preflight coordinators,
sales representatives, customer service representatives and graphic
designers to the processes that must be completed to reproduce
digitally-prepared documents. Students will learn how negatives
are stripped, how plates are made, and how presses and binding
processes work. Special emphasis is given to the print production
problems that can occur if errors are made in prepress operations.
The course includes a field trip.
This course introduces students to the
use of Adobe Illustrator. Lessons include: editing anchor points
and paths, painting with gradient fills, special type effects,
importing and masking photographs, working with layers, using
filters, designing custom graphs, producing and printing color
separations, and trapping, knockouts and overprinting.
Houston-area printers note that up to
97% of the electronic files they receive from clients are flawed--some
of them fatally! Learn how to prevent problems before they happen.
Topics covered include: problems with layering in illustration
programs, fonts, scanned-image file size, outputting to imagesetter
and 3M Rainbow proofer, working with PC users, and the Printing
Industries Association of Texas Electronic Prepress Guidelines.
This course is useful for art directors and production managers
as well as technicians.
This course provides students with an
introduction to linear multimedia using Microsoft Power Point
and the preparation of Internet Web Pages using HTML. Special
attention will be given to the preparation of photographs and
illustrations for multimedia and web pages, including scanning
techniques, setting image resolution, selecting the appropriate
color mode, and file format issues. A working knowledge of Photoshop
is a prerequisite for this course.