# InkRIP — colour & ICC concepts (learning depth)

InkRIP-only. Software learning only. **Default stance until Eric says otherwise:** stay on **factory / bundled profiles** — do not run full ink-limit → linearisation → custom ICC on Monitor-PC yet.

## Why colour looks “wrong” after print

Monitors use light (**RGB**, additive). Printers use ink (**CMYK** + optional White / Varnish / spot, subtractive). Vibrant on-screen colours often print duller unless colour-managed. InkRIP’s job includes translating design colour into ink for the selected driver / media.

Training: [RGB vs CMYK](https://softwaretraining.co.za/inkrip-rgb-cmyk-difference).

### Practical habits (AM design-practices framing)

- Prefer designing **for print in CMYK** when the artwork is print-bound; converting RGB→CMYK later is possible but often not identical to what you saw.
- Screen vs print calibration is a deep topic — skip deep calibration until Eric asks.
- Extra channels (White / Varnish / spot) are InkRIP colour-channel work — see create-spot-color / spot illustration manuals under `sources/manuals/inkrip/`.

## What an ICC profile is

**ICC** = International Color Consortium. Think of a profile as a **translation dictionary** between devices so colour stays consistent from capture → screen → printer.

Pipeline (AM Color Manager Part 1):

1. **Input** — camera/scanner attaches an input profile.
2. **PCS** (Profile Connection Space, often CIE Lab / XYZ) — device-independent hub.
3. **Output** — printer output profile maps PCS → ink amounts for that printer + ink + media.

### Four profile types (training)

| Type | Role |
|------|------|
| **Input** | How scanners/cameras see colour. |
| **Display** | How monitors show colour (monitor calibration). |
| **Output** | Printer capabilities — usually **ink + media** specific. Main focus for InkRIP Color Manager. |
| **Working space** | Idealised edit spaces (e.g. sRGB, Adobe RGB) — not tied to one device. |

Why care: brand colour consistency; soft-proof before wasting ink; gamut mapping when a colour is out of printer range.

Training: [About ICC profiles](https://softwaretraining.co.za/inkrip-icc-profiles-about) · index [ICC Color Manager](https://softwaretraining.co.za/inkrip-icc-profiles-manager).

## Generic (factory) vs custom profiles

| | Factory / generic | Custom |
|--|-------------------|--------|
| Source | Ships with product / InkRIP Colour Profiles packages on cncu | Built with spectro + charts for **this** machine + ink + media |
| Good for | Learning, first jobs, many shops | Critical brand colour / problem media |
| Assumes | Every unit is identical (often not true) | Measured reality of this setup |

**Learning rule for Vector now:** use factory / default profiles attached to the InkRIP printer driver / Colour Profiles leftovers. Full custom ICC series (ink limit, linearisation, spectro) waits until Eric names printer + media + whether a spectrophotometer is available.

Manual deepeners (boxed): `Create-ICC-Profile-by-InkRIP-Basic-Steps.pdf` under `T:\V\sources\manuals\inkrip\` / cncu; Color Manager Parts 2–11 on softwaretraining (spectrophotometer, ink limit, linearisation, import/export, use new profile).

## Where ICC shows up in the UI

- **Color Manager** tool inside InkRIP (ICC mini-series).
- Job Manager **Mode** column — which colour / ICC mode the job used ([Job Manager detailes](https://softwaretraining.co.za/inkrip-job-managers-detailes)).
- Printer **driver properties** / resolutions interact with colour output quality (printer-drivers mini-series).

## Software-only drills

1. Watch / read RGB vs CMYK + About ICC (Parts above) — no printer needed.
2. In InkRIP, locate Color Manager entry points on 7.2.14.0.4; list which factory profiles appear — **do not** create a new profile yet.
3. In Job Manager (empty or sample jobs), note the **Mode** column concept.
4. Pause before ink-limit / linearisation / spectro steps until Eric opens ICC depth.

Updated: 2026-09-05 (SAST).