Typesetting

Typesetting, also called composition, was traditionally done by the printer. Until this century most printing shops had their own composing room and compositor, or typesetter. Today, most printers have given over the function of typesetting to the typographer, who operates independently.

In this section we shall discuss the four ways type is set: by hand, machine (casting), typewriter, and phototypesetting. We shall begin with a brief review of the basics of typography in order to define the terminology that we will be using throughout.