Sans serif |
A typeface without serifs. More legible in headings than in body text. Many examples of environmental typography, such as road signs, use sans serif type to aid instant recognition. |
Scale |
To increase or decrease the size of an image. |
Scanner |
A hardware device that converts real photographs or artwork into a bitmapped graphic file. |
Schedule |
A news editor's record of assignments. Also, the copy editor's record of stories handled |
Scheduled job |
A task, defined in SQL Server Agent, which runs in regular intervals. |
Screamer |
An exclamation point. Also called a bang. |
Screen angle |
When printing black and white or color images, each color is broken into a halftone with a screen. The angle of the screen refers to the direction of the lines that comprise it. Choosing the wrong screen angle results in noticeable screen lines, or in the case of process color images, moire patterns. |
Screen color |
A color made up from screens of two or more of the four process colors. |
Screen frequency |
The lines-per-inch resolution used to screen an image. So a color separation run out at 133 LPI has a screen frequency of 133. |
Screen tint |
Solid colors such as Pantone colors or solid process colors can be lightened by screening them; the resulting color is called a screen tint or simply a tint. For example, magenta printed as a 40 percent tint appears as a medium pink. |
Screen, screening |
Halftone patterns. |
Scoop |
As a noun, a story no one else has; as a verb, to do it to the competition. |
Script |
(1) A decorative typeface, designed to give the feel of handwriting. Unlike a cursive face, the letters are connected. (2) Small custom program, interpreted at the run time, written in VB.NET, or SQL, or Perl. |
Sculpting |
See wraparound. |
Second front page |
The front page of a second section; also called the "split page" |
Second-day story |
A "follow-up" story giving new developments on one that has already appeared in the newspaper |
Section |
A classification item for pages. |
Sectional story |
A major news story with different aspects, featured under two or more headlines |
Sending |
(GN4) Moving content to another folder. |
Sentence case |
Phrase capitalization style using an initial capital for the first word, with following words in all lowercase. |
Series |
A group of related stories generally run on successive days |
Serif |
(1) A line or curve projecting from the end of a letterform. See character. (2) A typeface which has serifs. In general, serif type is more legible than sans serif for body text, but in practice legibility is equally affected by size, line length, leading, and use of white space. |
Server |
When two computers are connected, the server is the one that runs the primary data management tasks. A Web server transmits World Wide Web files to machines that connect to it. Compare client. |
Service |
A software module that runs on a server, and typically starts automatically |
Session |
a/ The contiguous time interval of using software, e.g. your software session takes from 8am till 12am. See also gn_LoginTable and login data. b/ The contiguous interval of transmitting content. |
Set solid |
Type with the same leading and point size, expressed as 100% leading. |
Set-width |
The width of a letter and its surrounding space; the space needed to set a line of text in a specific typeface. Also known as advance width. |
Shading |
The percentage of a selected color applied to an object. Another term: tint. |
Shaping tool |
The polygon tool |
Shirt tail |
A short, related story added at the end of a longer one |
Shoot |
To take photographs |
Shortcut |
(1) A keyboard or mouse shortcut (2) An icon in Windows that links to an application or file |
Sidebar |
(1) A secondary news story that supports or amplifies a major story; (2) An expandable full-height panel on the right side of the application window |
Sign-in information |
Sign-in information, typically user name and password, but it may signify also domain name and pass-phrase. Known also as 'credentials'. |
Signature |
A sheet of printed pages that will comprise a set of 4, 8, 16, or 32 pages before binding. |
Skybox |
A term for promotional boxes that are usually above the nameplate of the newspaper. Also known as a teaser. |
Skyline |
A banner head that runs above the nameplate |
Slant |
A character attribute that tilts a letter. |
Slot |
One of the people on the copy desk who checks over the copy editors' work before committing it to type. Also used as a verb: "Hey, Terry, slot me on this, will you?" |
Slug |
An internal name for a story, usually just one word. Elex might be the slug for a story on school elections. |
Small caps |
Capital letters whose height more or less equals that of the typeface's x-height (lowercase letters). |
Smart quotes |
Quotation marks applied in pairs to quoted material. Called "smart" because the program automatically inserts an open quote character at the start of a word and a close quote character at the end. Dumb quotes utilize a separate, neutral character (neither open nor closed) in each instance. |
Snap-to (guide or rules) |
A feature for accurately aligning text or graphics. |
Soft copy |
Copy seen on a computer screen |
Soft hyphen |
See Discretionary hyphen. |
Soft return |
A return character that forces a line break without starting a new paragraph; on Windows systems, inserted by pressing SHIFT+Enter. Compare hard return. |
Solid fill |
In a draw program, a fill that inserts a single color value. |
Solidus |
A slash character. |
Source |
A supplier of information. A person, document, etc. |
Space rate |
An unit of compensation for written work, based on the amount of space that the submitted material occupies in print, and usually computed in column inches. Cf."piece rate." |
Space writer |
A journalist or copywriter paid according to a space rate. Also called "space man. "stringer" |
Speccing type |
Formerly, a distinct stage in the design of a publication, still applied to steps associated with typographic choices in DTP. Among these are: choosing typefaces and point sizes; adjusting line length; choosing justification; adjusting letter/word/line spacing; setting tabs, heads, subheads, sidebars, and other elements. |
Spell check |
A facility to enable a spelling error check to be carried out. |
Spiking or Deleting |
To kill something. At one time, when editors were finished with a piece of paper, such as a story, headline or page proof, they would slam it down on an upright nail on their desk. Then, they would know they were done with it, but could go back to it later if they needed to. Today, many newsroom computers have a "spike" key for killing a story or file. (GN4) Changing status of items in database, to 'hidden', so they can be purged later on. |
Spline |
A curve that connects a set of points smoothly. [illus of B-spline, Bézier spline, Cubic spline. Pierre Bézier, 1970; 4 control points; transition from line AB to line CD; a curve that connects two points smoothly and is further defined by two more points that it does not pass through.] |
Split page |
Usually the first page of the inside or second section of the newspaper carrying local or area news; the second front page |
Split run |
A pressrun, as that of a newspaper or magazine, which is interrupted after the running of a specified number of copies to permit the substitution of type or of a cut, as in a keyed advertisement: a device for testing the relative effectiveness of different versions of an advertisement. |
Spot color |
Color that does not use process color separation, but instead consists of solid-colored type and design elements. |
Spot news |
News obtained on the scene of an event, usually unexpectedly |
Spot story |
A small story that is usually more specific, as opposed to a bigger story like a feature story. |
Spread |
Two facing pages in a publication are a spread; also called a double spread or double truck. In printing, the enlargement of a color area to trap with abutting areas of a different color is also called a spread. |
Spur |
See character. |
SQL |
Standard Query Language |
Square brackets |
See brackets. |
Squib |
A short news item; a filler |
Standing heads |
Headlines that do not change and are usually kept in a library file on a computer so they are ready for instant use |
Standoff |
The distance between a image and text in a wraparound. |
Stem |
The main vertical stroke making up a type character. |
Stet |
"let it stand." Proofreader's notation instructing the printer to ignore a change marked on a proof; from the Latin "stetundum". |
Stock |
The type of paper a job is to be printed on. |
Story |
GN4: a wire or archived text content. General: All the text in a single article. |
Story-driven |
Work method where the space on page is driven by text; opposite from layout-driven. |
Straight news |
A plain account of news facts written in standard style and structure, without coloring or embellishments |
Strap |
A subheading used above the main headline in a newspaper article. |
Streamer |
A multi-column headline leading a page, but not necessarily across its full width. Synonymous with banner. |
Stress |
An attribute of a character or typeface: refers to the direction of thickening in a curved stroke. |
Strikethrough |
A text effect using a horizontal line drawn through the letters, most commonly used in editing to mark text for deletion. |
Stringer |
A correspondent for a newspaper or a news agency, usually part-time, who often covers a certain subject or geographic area. The person is usually paid according to the number or length of stories printed by the newspaper. A writer or photographer who is not a full-time employee, but who is paid by the job. The term comes from the days when a writer would get paid by the column inch and would measure his or her contribution by holding a string along the story to measure its length, knot it, measure the next column or story, and so on, reporting the final length for pay. |
Strip |
A story that goes all the way across the top of the page -- or nearly so. Some people will call it a strip if it goes almost all the way across. Others will say it's not a true strip if there is anything above it, but will grudgingly concede the point. |
Style book |
A compilation of typographical and other rules formulated by a newspaper to make uniform its treatment of spelling, capitalization, abbreviations, punctuation, typography, etc. Most newspapers provide style books for their staffs' use. |
Style sheet |
A collection of tags specifying paragraph settings and type specifications. |
Sub, subeditor |
An editor who writes headlines, and brings copy in measure. |
Sub-heading (subhead) |
A secondary headline, often introducing a section of body text. Small, one-line headline inserted in the body of a story to break up the monotony of a solid column of small type |
Subscript |
Small characters placed below the baseline, as in a chemical formula. |
Superscript |
Small characters set high, as in footnote references. |
Swash |
Capital letter with a decorative flourish. |
Swipe file |
Personal collection of examples of excellent or inspirational design. |
Syndicate |
An organization that buys and sells feature material of all kinds, such as comic strips, gossip columns, crossword puzzles, etc. |
you use to create irregular shapes or to move parts of objects. Also 'polygon tool'.