glossary — R
Raster Image Processor
A raster image processor (RIP) is used in printing to translate page description
commands or vector digital information (for instance, a Postscript file)
into a high-resolution raster image (a bitmap). The bitmap is sent to an
output device such as a laser printer or imagesetter.
The page description
or vector image can come from a high-level page description language such
as PostScript or Portable Document Format. It can also come from another
bitmap of higher or lower resolution than the output device, and in that
case, the RIP applies smoothing or interpolation algorithms to generate
the output bitmap.
A RIP can be a software component of an operating
system or firmware executed on a microprocessor inside a printer. For high-end
typesetting, standalone hardware RIPs are generally used. Every PostScript
printer contains a RIP in its firmware.
RGB
The abbreviation for red, green, blue. RGB is an additive color model in which red, green, and blue light are added together to reproduce a broad array of colors. It is used to sense, represent and display images in electronic systems, such as televisions and computers. See more about additive and subtractive color models at Wikipedia.
< Back to Glossary P.Q | Go to Glossary S >
Sources:
Microsoft Press Computer Dictionary, Third Edition; Microsoft Encarta College
Dictionary; Wikipedia; Wiktionary; Urban Dictionary
- - - - - - - - -
Back to top
