white writing

[bjc111]

Is there a way of printing white writing onto colour paper?

 

[Connan the Stamp Collector]

No.
For a more detailed reply, search the Google archive; Miss Tick covered this
subject in (very) great detail quirte recently.

 

[bjc111]

Sorry but where do i find this google archive?

No.
For a more detailed reply, search the Google archive; Miss Tick covered this
subject in (very) great detail quirte recently.

 

[garfield-n-odie]

No, unless you can get a white ink/toner cartridge for your
printer. When you set the font color to white in Word, you have
to put a colored background behind the text in order to see the
text on the screen. When most printers print white text, the
printer actually prints nothing where the text is, and just
prints the background color around the text, allowing the natural
paper color (normally white) to show through.

 

[bjc111]

Thank you for your advice garfield-n-odie

No, unless you can get a white ink/toner cartridge for your
printer. When you set the font color to white in Word, you have
to put a colored background behind the text in order to see the
text on the screen. When most printers print white text, the
printer actually prints nothing where the text is, and just
prints the background color around the text, allowing the natural
paper color (normally white) to show through.

 

[Miss Perspicacia Tick]

No.
For a more detailed reply, search the Google archive; Miss Tick
covered this subject in (very) great detail quirte recently.

See - I have me uses! It's elementary school physics, really... ;o)

It just so happens that I archived this for such an occasion. I'll paste in
reply to the OP.

Miss T

 

[Miss Perspicacia Tick]

Is there a way of printing white writing onto colour paper?

You don't. This has nothing whatsoever to do with software, it's a printer
issue. Does your printer have a white cartridge? No, it does not. White is
not a colour, it is the absence of colour. When you print 'white' on white
paper, it looks white because the paper is white. Print 'white' on coloured
paper (e.g. burgundy) and it will be the colour of the paper.

No consumer-grade inkjet is capable of printing white because they cannot
utilise a white ink. Why? Well the white ink used in those printers which
can use it (e.g. the now-defunct ALPS units) is (usually) comprised of
titanium pigment, which is also the main component of the white emulsion
paint you'd use to paint your walls. Think of the consistency of emulsion
paint and you'd never contemplate putting that in your standard inkjet.

OK, now you're probably thinking "Why can't I print white using a mixture of
inks?" For the answer to this, and more than you ever wanted to know about
chromatography (the science of colour) see
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colour. However, the basics are below.

There are two types of colour: - pigment and light. The former is often
referred to as 'additive' and the latter 'subtractive'. Why? Because of the
way the colours are mixed. The three primary colours are red, green and blue
(the three primary colours of pigment are only red, yellow and blue because
the pigments are impure). Now, the mixing of light goes something like
this: -

Red + Blue = Magenta (as you'd expect)
Red + Green = Yellow (this is why yellow is considered primary when it comes
to pigments because it cannot accurately reflect all the red light).
Green + Blue = Cyan

Red + Green + Blue = White (or, more correctly, Red - Green - Blue = White
as white is the absence of colour).

OK, on to pigment (paint, ink, etc). You know what you were taught in
school: -

Red + Yellow = Orange
Yellow + Blue = Green
Red + Blue = Purple

Red + Yellow + Blue = Black (because all light is being absorbed, therefore,
as far as pigments are concerned, black is the absence of colour).

Therefore, if you mix all the colours in your printer, you'll produce black.
This is really primary school science. I remember being taught this aged
about seven.

Please note that, in the strict chromatographic sense, black and white
should not be referred to as colours.

I hope that adequately explains it.

 

[James Silverton]

Miss wrote on Fri, 15 Jul 2005 10:39:17 +0100:

MPT> bjc111 wrote:
??>> Is there a way of printing white writing onto colour
??>> paper?

MPT> You don't.
MPT> Therefore, if you mix all the colours in your printer,
MPT> you'll produce black. This is really primary school
MPT> science. I remember being taught this aged about seven.

MPT> Please note that, in the strict chromatographic sense,
MPT> black and white should not be referred to as colours.

There are commercial printers capable of printing white on
color, eg. http://www.durstus.com/press/press-031.php
but they are probably very expensive.

You *can* produce and print white text on a colored background
with a color graphics program as simple as Microsoft Paint.This
will use a lot of ink and Paint is limited in its scope but more
complex programs might be more flexible. Does anyone know what,
for example, the Gimp will do?


James Silverton.

 

[Miss Perspicacia Tick]

Miss wrote on Fri, 15 Jul 2005 10:39:17 +0100:





There are commercial printers capable of printing white on
color, eg. http://www.durstus.com/press/press-031.php
but they are probably very expensive.

You *can* produce and print white text on a colored background
with a color graphics program as simple as Microsoft Paint.This
will use a lot of ink and Paint is limited in its scope but more
complex programs might be more flexible. Does anyone know what,
for example, the Gimp will do?


James Silverton.

Well, obviously, but the ink is used in colouring the background. The text
is still white because the paper is. Ye cannae change the laws of physics...
;o)

I know there are (and ALPS were commercial - the cheapest was around £4,000
or so).