3/26/00 Grayphics Adds To The Family

After approximately 9 months of waiting, Jordan Robert Gray has made his appearance. Feel free to check out some pix of the boy.

1/5/00 Steve Jobs No Longer Interim CEO

Apple Computer's keynote address at this years Mac World provided many glimpses into Apple's future and an announcement that brought cheers to the auditorium. Steve Jobs has maintained an "Interim" in his title for the last two and a half years, but today he shed the "Interim" and replaced it with iCEO to reflect Apple's commitment to the internet.

MacOSX is now expected mid year with an extreme overhaul. For details check out Mac.com, Apple's redesigned website.

1/1/00 Happy New Year!

As with most businesses that prepared for the Y2K switchover, things went smoothly. And in that we're not scrambling around trying to fix everything, we'd like to take this opportunity to wish you and yours a very happy and prosperous new year.

It will likely be several months before the computer community realizes whether or not latent bugs have affected their machines.

8/14/99 In Design Arrives

On the tails of Photoshop 5.5, Adobe releases a new product that we must describe as a "Quark Killer". With an interface that can be changed with the swap of a plug-in, users might forget that they aren't working in Quark or Pagemaker.

Worried about all those files that you've been creating over the years? Don't. So far we've had only successes in converting both Quark and Pagemaker files. What was a suprise was how quick the Quark conversions were, while the Pagemaker lagged slightly.

Beware: On the Mac only PowerPC 604 processors and better will work and you must be using OS 8.5 or later. On the PC an Intel Pentium II w/ 300 mhz processor or faster is recommended with Windows NT with Service Pack 4 or Windows 98. Both require a lot of RAM -- not worth trying without 48mb or better.

8/7/99 Photoshop 5.5 Released

In most trade journals and computer catalogs you'll find ads for Photoshop 5.5. You may have already ordered your copy and are waiting patiently for it to arrive with its "NEW" internet capabilities.

As an Authorized Adobe Service Bureau we often get our copies before the general public so we can serve you when you get your copy. This is true with the current Photoshop release, which we find falls far short of our expectations. It is still one of the, if not the, best software products on the market, but the internet portion of the upgrade appears to simply provide a hyperlaunch button for their existing application Adobe ImageReady. Very disappointing.

3/26/99 Global Virus Alert!

A new fast-spreading computer virus could spread havoc Monday after already forcing several large U.S. corporations to shut down their e-mail systems. The virus, which is named Melissa and is spread by e-mail, may have infected tens of thousands of home and business computers today. The virus replicates itself by going into the address book of the computer's user and e-mailing itself to 50 addresses -- eventually overloading network systems to the point where they must be shut down. It does not appear to harm or disable the computers according to experts.

E-mail infected with the virus has a topic line which begins "important message from" followed by the name of the person whose computer address book inadvertently provided the recipient's e-mail address. That is followed by the seemingly innocuous message: "Here is that document you asked for ... don't show it to anyone else". A massive 40K document called list.doc is attached. While opening the e-mail is harmless, opening the attachment unleashes the virus. It seeks out 50 addresses in the recipient's address book, sends itself off, and the whole process begins again.

Wouldn't you know it, the two e-mail programs most likely to be affected were Microsoft Outlook and its slimmed down cousin, Microsoft Outlook Express.

2/23/99 Our Email Options are Expanded

We admit it... We get people all the time misspelling our name. Whether it's "Greyphics", "Grayfix", "Grafix", "Graphics", "Grayphix", or something similar, we've seen it. It's been on a check, a letter, an article, the phone book, you name it.

Well this doesn't work well for email, so now you have options for your email. Our $14.95/mo. dial-up users and our $9.00 email accounts can now have new names without the cost of Domain Name Registration. We are offering: sbdowntown.com, theseaside.net, thesunbelt.com, greatgrub.com, foodplaza.com as well as grayphics.com for your email accounts. There is a one time $9.00 fee to switch, but your mail is worth it. It gives you more "uniqueness" and often the sense of being part of something larger.

2/22/99 Transparancy Option for Copier Received

After nearly two years of waiting IKON Office Solutions delivered our projector. Our CLC-1000 can now copy your 35mm slides and larger transparancies. With a single set up fee of $5 we will copy as many slides as you provide at our standard copy prices.

12/12/98 Posters Get Fluorescence

Colorspan released spot color options for our 62" wide 1200 dpi poster machine. GAMUT+ HiBrite inks add fluorescent printing capabilities to our already wide gamut poster device. Eye catching brilliant colors bring shocking vibrance to your high end poster projects. You can now choose two (out of seven) spot colors in addition to the wide gamut six color process remaining. Only seven colors are released currently, however, gold and silver are expected soon. And not too far in the future special mixes can be acquired for your "Coca Cola Red", "7-Up Green" or "Your Company Color".

12/2/98 Eleven Years Old Today

Yes, that's right... another year and Grayphics turns eleven. December 2, 1987 seems like yesterday but things have certainly changed. To help celebrate the occassion we will be offering half off canon prints and 25% off posters for anyone mentioning this birthday announcement during the month of December 1998!

11/3/98 Syquest Down for the Count

The high density removable format wars have been going on for years. In 1991 Grayphics was one of the few with Syquest's 44mb drive mechanisms. In 1993, with a revision to it's technology, Iomega started gaining a foothold with it's Bernoulli disks. And then came Zip. And then another from Iomega, Jaz. Iomega's products were more stable, more predominant, and simply more cost effective.

The end result is that this week Syquest suspended trading on the Nasdaq and announced a bankruptcy filing.

Grayphics will be unloading all it's stock on new 44mb syquests for those that need them. $18 per disk while our supplies last.

8/02/98 Virus Continues to Infect S.B.

The Virus described as the AutoStart 9805 is the first worm to infect the Mac Platform. Originally surfacing in May of 1998 in Asia, the Virus has now spread to four continents and has made a stong hold right here in Santa Barbara.

If you are a user of the Mac platform it behooves you to acquire the appropriate antivirus software. To help fend off the virus turn off "Enable CD-ROM AutoPlay" in the "QuickTime Settings" control panel. Quicktime 2.1 or earlier version users should disable the Quicktime extension altogether. This will only help users that don't have an infected machine - if you're infected it's too late.

How do you know if you have this virus?
1. If you're a client and you've brought us a disk, we've told you.
2. Your network/machine may freeze up with your hard drive spinning every 3, 6, 10, or 30 minutes.
3. The name of worm files such as "DB" or "Desktop Print Spooler" may list in the menu bar or current processes.
4. Unexplained damaged files or restarts of your computer are also indicators.

We have had great success with Dr. Solomons Virex and suggest that you visit their site for purchasing information. For those of you that own Virex, because new virus strains show up randomly, we highly recommend updating the software periodically.

7/26/98 Merger at Grayphics

After six years of negotiations Tim Gray, the owner of Grayphics, ended his bachelorhood. The beautiful wedding took place on cliffs overlooking the ocean with nearly 200 attending. Most say that it was both the best and the most fun of any wedding that they had ever attended. Susan Boline now takes on the Gray name and the staff at Grayphics wish them a lifetime of happiness.

4/6/98 The Gray Matriarch Passes

Today marked the passage of Elizabeth Jordan Gray. She will be laid to rest beside her husband, Rear Admiral A.H. Gray, her first son, and her still-born daughter. Family and friends will meet in the Coronado/San Diego area for her Memorial.

4/6/98 More Honors for Attitude

After winning BEST OF SHOW in the Addy Awards, Grayphics' submission of their Attitude Talent CD was bumped to a Regional Show in which they again won. The CD is now in competition on the National level and the buzz is that another new trophy may be sitting on the counter soon.

3/21/98 And the Winner is!

Grayphics Digital Imaging has won BEST OF SHOW in the 23rd Annual Addy Awards! The multimedia production that one BEST OF SHOW and BEST DISK BASED PROMOTIONAL PACKAGE truly blew the doors of the judges at the 1998 ADDY AWARDS. Our Attitude Talent Portfolios CD was the winner and can be obtained by visiting their online site.

2/16/98 Bigger is Better!

and Size DOES Matter and Grayphics. We are happy to announce both, the introduction of the largest poster printer availble to our arsenal of equipment and the launching of the BigPoster website. We are now capable of printing posters 5 feet wide by up to 100 feet long, at 1200 dpi resolution, and in an eight color process making this device and its output something to marvel at.

1/24/98 American Journal of Photography

Grayphics orders for Iris prints jumped drastically and, unexpectedly, the orders were from all around the country. It took a while to find out what had happened, but apparently Grayphics was written up in the Journal for their Iris output. Orders over the internet have proven the worth of Internet Commerce.

12/2/97 Grayphics Turns 10 Years Old Today

Many things have changed over the years; employees, location, technology, focus and scope of our operations. One thing hasn't changed... Our commitment to our clientel, to provide the best services at the best prices, with the best turnaround. We thank you for the years that we have served you and the support you have provided us.

6/27/97 CLC 1000 Delivered - DIGITAL PRINTING!

It's here... Digital printing is now in Santa Barbara! With the new CLC 1000, Grayphics can offer 2-sided 12 x 18 inch, full color prints on up to 110lb index stock, with a three hour turnaround! No drying needed, ready to go, ready to use. At 31 pages per minute, and with a full MIPS R5000/200mhz RIP, even the most complicated long jobs are turned around same day. More info and prices are available.

1/21/97 We're In!!!

The construction is done, our stuff is moved, the power is on, and we are again ready for action. A magnificent job was done by Hal Lyons, our contractor, and his crew of one, Joe Swift. A complete remodel of the facilities leaves us with 2400 sq. ft. of operating space. The self serve area even has a fireplace. We invite you to come see it for yourself -- ask for a tour when you're here!

1/13/97 More Info On Move

On Friday, January 17th, Grayphics will be open from 8:00 AM until 12:00 noon for pick-up of jobs only. We are moving our equipment on the 17th, so we will not be able to run any jobs or take in any jobs until we re-open on Monday, January 20th at 10 East Figueroa Street.

12/20/96 The Move Is On

It's official. After six years on Anapamu Street in Santa Barbara, Grayphics has signed contracts to move to larger digs at 10 East Figueroa, former home to Charles Schwab. In addition to more generous space for production equipment and facilities, this new location gives us more visibility. Being only steps from State Street, we anticipate that our self-serve color copies, rental computers with fast Internet, and free coffee will attract new walk-in traffic.

Grayphics' last day on Anapamu will be January 17th. The move will require our being closed on Saturday the 18th, but open at the new location Monday the 20th with some minor distractions. We have excellent people doing some finishing work on the space and expect the final results to look extraordinary.

Details will be available here over the course of the move. We expect to maintain our normal turnarounds (3–4 hours on color laser prints, film, and RC paper; 24 hours on scans and large-format posters) for the duration of this operation.

Grayphics now offers email boxes for those without access to computers, or anyone without the time to set up their own computers for Internet access. Full email service made easy, quick, and convenient—no computer necessary.

12/10/96 Linotype-Hell Topaz II

With a larger color gamut, wider dynamic range, more color spaces, and double the resolution of our previous hardware, this new scanner allows us to provide the best possible balance of quality, flexibility, and convenience.

In addition to CMYK and RGB, we can now scan directly into the device-independent CIE Lab color space. Lab images can contain a wider range of color than CMYK or RGB images, and can be re-targeted to any device gamut at a later time, including Pantone's new Hexachrome process specification. More information is available.