What is a Plotter Printer?
A plotter printer is a poster printer! It's just a printer that prints in a large format. Our plotter printer can print up to 3 feet wide and any length long. This printer specifically prints .PDF or .JPEG files, in the size it was saved as originally. It does cost $2.50 per square foot.
If the Makersloft Coordinator is in the building and available, refer to them.
If the Makersloft Coordinator is not there, or unavailable for some reason (ex. in a meeting/manning a booth for an event, etc.), feel free to request for another staff member or supervisor for assistance.
How-To
- The patron interested in plotter printing needs their design complete and created in the size they want (ex. small pictures printed large will blur or print on a tiny scale).
- Save design as .PDF onto a flashdrive.
- Press the on button next to the home screen to wake up the machine, as it may need a minute to power up properly [this is near bottom right of the screen].
- Plug in the drive into the plotter printer [see top right, near screen].
- On the screen, select ‘USB’.
- Select the item on that drive that the patron wants printed.
- Select the blue print button.
- It will confirm a series of things with you. All you need to do is press the blue arrow in the bottom of the right screen, as all the pre-sets are correct and do not need adjusting (with the only exception being number of copies).
- It will ask: which “Pages” (if multiple), “Print Quicksets” that includes the percentage of size, number of “Copies”, and “Settings” which includes paper source and output.
- When presented with a number pad during the Copies, type in the number of copies of this print that the patron desires.
- Hit the blue print button/arrow again. You should see a green checkmark come up letting you know that the file will print momentarily (some prints make take two to three minutes of computing before any printing actually begins, depending on the design).
- The poster will print and cut along one edge automatically. If the print needs extra cutting for size, there are multiple options that an LLC employee can do or can set up for the patron to do.
- Mat-Cutting. There are cutting mats below the plotter printer, Exact-o knives in the ‘Staff Only’ drawers under the Bambu printers in a small blue box, and yellow metal rulers that include a hand safety edge near the laminators. Pull out the mat, use the ruler to get a consistent line, and use the exacto knife to cut.
- Scissors. There are scissors in the ‘Staff Only’ drawers under the Bambu printers, a red one and a blue one. Both can be used to cut paper.
- Patron choice, they can take it home and cut how they would like. If the patron would like, they can request a rubber band from the front desk to allow for easier transportation of the paper.
