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[Guillaume]

Received my sample batch from moo today- the printing quality is really good!

The image is a bit darker than I expected though- but the difference probably comes from my poor color-quality netbook screen I designed them on.

[CiroContinisio]

What's the size of the cards you (all) use? Wikipedia seems to report different sizes between US and Italy, do people in the US use the A8 format?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_card

[___]

We're getting some cool stuff printed for the ole Snapshot.  Hopefully it arrives on time... 

[Rob Lach]

What's the size of the cards you (all) use? Wikipedia seems to report different sizes between US and Italy, do people in the US use the A8 format?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_card

When I got my cards made they were 3.5 x 2 inches (88.9 x 50.8 MM). I know a lot of countries use 90 x 50 mm which would be pretty much US sized. Japanese cards are slightly wider and British ones are slightly taller.

[jwaap]

making random images
now for a back with text

[phubans]

I really like those designs, JW. My favorite is the 3D alleyway/street, I think

[Chris Z]

Word of caution on overnightprints.com...  They may have been good at some point based on people recommending them earlier in the thread but they did a 3-way number on my order.

1. Took almost 2 weeks to print my order even though I paid for "express printing"
2. Took longer than necessary to drop off/schedule a pick up with UPS.  The status was "Billing info received" for 3-4 days.  UPS status updates are near instant normally.
3. Got my order and the background color on the card was smudged, for lack of a better word, on all of them.  It's like they didnt even inspect them after printing.

I just emailed them so we'll see how this all gets resolved (I requested a free expedited reprint and shipping) but I wanted to let you guys know ASAP since I know a lot of you are getting ready for GDC and printing cards now.

[astrospoon]

I also used overnight prints, and didn't run into any trouble. This is like my 6th or 7th time using them, and it has always been a breeze, for both flyers and business cards. But yeah-- I worked with printers a bunch at my old job, and it always sucked to get stuff back with some terrible mistake on it that they really should have caught.

That said, the card stock and printing is pretty great at Overnight Prints. I've gotten many compliments on all the stuff I have had them print.

Like my cards for GDC this year:



Voila!

PRO TIP: People will want to take notes on your card. Make sure to leave some white (or light colored) space on the back for this. Also-- don't make the back glossy or you can't write on it either!!!! I made this mistake at PAX and tons of people were hunting for scrap paper for extra info, which I am SURE got lost.

[___]

Word of caution on overnightprints.com...  They may have been good at some point based on people recommending them earlier in the thread but they did a 3-way number on my order.

1. Took almost 2 weeks to print my order even though I paid for "express printing"
2. Took longer than necessary to drop off/schedule a pick up with UPS.  The status was "Billing info received" for 3-4 days.  UPS status updates are near instant normally.
3. Got my order and the background color on the card was smudged, for lack of a better word, on all of them.  It's like they didnt even inspect them after printing.

I just emailed them so we'll see how this all gets resolved (I requested a free expedited reprint and shipping) but I wanted to let you guys know ASAP since I know a lot of you are getting ready for GDC and printing cards now.

Overnightprints has taken a lot longer than usual for me this year :I

[Chris Z]

Those look beautiful Andy. 

Mine do look great (minus the smudge defect) and are printed clearly on nice stock.
I realize that maybe it could be a one off thing, but too many things went wrong and I didnt want others to be without cards or not have time to reorder because of faulty ones with GDC so close. 

[supershigi]

Hey guys, what's the smallest font that you've used on a business card where it comes out legible and nice looking?  Most of my smaller text is currently in 8pt, but I have something in 6pt and I'm concerned that it won't turn out right.

EDIT: Yay, I finally ordered them   Just a note for those who are using overnightprints.com ...I found a few coupons on this website for various discounts.  The one I used was for 10% off my total purchase.  To get that one just enter this code when you check out: TENOFFOP

[aeiowu]

@supershigi

it really depends on the font, but I _just_ did a test print on a digi-printer at Copyworks and 4pt. Avenir in All-Caps showed up just fine (see that at the single line at the bottom). All of my copy is in 6pt. Here. check it out:



So the the first couple paragraphs are in Avenir 6pt. Avenir is a pretty legible sans-serif font. If I used the display font (Orbitron) at that size in a paragraph, you would have a real tough time reading it. Make sense? Most newspapers will set their copy between 8pt and 10pt and that's for long articles that people take minutes to read. For short bursts of paragraph like the one in our postcard, you're fine going with something a bit smaller like 6pt. or even 5pt.

I know it looks unreadable in that size on the screen, but you have to remember there's a big difference between things in real-life (300DPI) and on screen (72DPI). Definitely try a test print to be sure if you're still uneasy about it, but I'd say you're just fine with 6pt. type.

BTW, RE: OvernightPrints. Due to the issues coming up in the thread, I decided to go with www.VistaPrints.com I'm really happy with the options in their "Flat Notecard" because they offer a "linen finish" which is what I was hoping for. Most of these places print on basic super-white matte or gloss and they all end up looking the same with little character. The linen paper they give you, with some of the options, will provide a nice tooth to the paper that will distort a bit of the print, but make the overall look feel a lot warmer. It's basically like watercolor paper, if you're familiar. I'm excited! Pluuuuus... VistaPrints gives you a 3-day express option and they guarantee we'll receive the order 3 days after we submit the order, not just 3 days after they complete it. That's huge...

PS. if you wanna see the back of that card, check 'er out: http://www.flickr.com/photos/aeiowu/4383758313/in/photostream/

[supershigi]

Ah, thank-you for the information... that gives me some peace of mind   I ended up going with "Ground with Priority Printing" but I'm not sure how long it will take the business cards to get to me.  It didn't really give an estimated time for any of the options except "next day" or "next 2 days"... so I'm just crossing my fingers that they'll get here before GDC! 

[CiroContinisio]

What's the size of the cards you (all) use? Wikipedia seems to report different sizes between US and Italy, do people in the US use the A8 format?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_card

When I got my cards made they were 3.5 x 2 inches (88.9 x 50.8 MM). I know a lot of countries use 90 x 50 mm which would be pretty much US sized. Japanese cards are slightly wider and British ones are slightly taller.

I'm going for the 85 × 55 cm format, seems to be the most common here.

Now, does someone have a recommendation for an online printing service in Europe?

[Guillaume]

moo.com ?

[CiroContinisio]

moo.com ?

Yeah it's the same I was pondering about... I wanted to see if there was a valid alternative..

[supershigi]

Oh, I forgot to post mine!  Here it is, front and back (phone # is blocked out):

[KommanderKlobb]

Wow, looking through all those awesome bizcard designs makes me wish we hadn't printed so many, so I could go make some new ones :/

Here's mine:

[Chris Z]

So overnightprints.com was pretty quick to reply to my mail and they reprinted and shipped a new batch the very next day (why wasnt it that fast to begin with?!).  I imagine they'll be more careful this time but I'll let you guys know if otherwise. 

Customer service seems to be pretty great, they were speedy the first time I called as well when printing was taking so long.  I'd recommend emailing them if printing takes long for you guys.

[supershigi]

So overnightprints.com was pretty quick to reply to my mail and they reprinted and shipped a new batch the very next day (why wasnt it that fast to begin with?!).  I imagine they'll be more careful this time but I'll let you guys know if otherwise. 

Customer service seems to be pretty great, they were speedy the first time I called as well when printing was taking so long.  I'd recommend emailing them if printing takes long for you guys.

That's kind of a relief... although now I'm wondering if I should send a preemptive email or something...  I placed the order on the 23rd, giving exactly 2 weeks for them to get before GDC using "Ground with Priority Printing"... I'm in California so hopefully it'll be there by then.  I did notice an option on the status page to change your shipping options, but I don't want to bother with that unless they make the same mistake as they did with you.