Ten mandatory media attributes identify each media:
Media name, type, width, height, weight, color, prepunched, tab, insert, and cycle length.
These 10 media attributes are always used to define media in both PRISMAprepare and the PRISMAsync-driven printers. However, media can be defined by more attributes. For example, PRISMAprepare and the PRISMAsync-driven printers also define the media thickness, but this attribute is not mandatory. PRISMAsync-driven printers often also contain product dependent attributes such as media family or X-OffsetFront.
Define the media catalog once on a PRISMAsync Print Server. Then import the media catalog into all PRISMAsync-driven printers and into PRISMAprepare. You can start using the media directly in PRISMAprepare.
It is recommended that you define the media catalog on that printer that uses the most attributes for the media catalog. For example, you own a printer of the VarioPrint i-series, a printer of the VarioPrint 6000 Series and the PRISMAprepare application. The VarioPrint i-series uses approximately 80 attributes to define media. The VarioPrint 6000 Series uses approximately 20 attributes. PRISMAprepare uses not more than 15 attributes. In this case, you should define the media catalog on the printer of the VarioPrint i-series.
Import the media catalog of the printer of the VarioPrint i-series into PRISMAprepare. For each media of the PRISMAsync-driven printer, at least the mandatory media attributes are mapped onto the mandatory media attributes of PRISMAprepare. Other attributes might be mapped to media attributes of PRISMAprepare, for example, the media thickness and 1-sided media. The remaining PRISMAsync attributes are ignored by PRISMAprepare. For the most part, these remaining PRISMAsync attributes are product dependant attributes.
It is not recommended to define the media catalog in PRISMAprepare and then export it to the PRISMAsync-driven printers. PRISMAprepare uses a lesser number of attributes to define media than the PRISMAsync-driven printers. For example, you want to export the media catalog of PRISMAprepare to a printer of the VarioPrint i-series. After export, you have to configure many missing media attributes for each media before you can start using the media catalog in the printer.