Hot metal typesetting (also called hot lead typesetting or simply hot metal) is a term used to encompass a range of different 19th century technologies to create or compose text for use in the letterpress method of printing. This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ...

Generally speaking, this method injects molten type metal into a mould that has the shape of one or more letters, which are later used to press ink onto paper. Type metal is an alloy (usually lead, antimony, and tin) that is used in typesetting. ...

Types of typesetting

Two quite different approaches to mechanising typesetting were independently developed in the late 19th century. One produced characters on individual type bodies, known as the Monotype system; the other, Linotype, created slugs, usually comprising a whole line of text. Currently Monotype Imaging, Inc, a typesetting and typeface design company responsible for many developments in printing technology — in particular the Monotype machine which was the first fully mechanical typesetter — and the design and production of typefaces in the 19th and 20th centuries. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Linotype machine. ...

Both systems met with success in different fields: the Monotype caster was more popular for bookwork and the Linotype system found success in newspaper production. A manual linecasting solution known as the Ludlow Typograph also met with success because it was able to cast display body sizes that other mechanical composition systems were unable to produce. A Ludlow Typograph was a hot metal typesetting system used in letterpress printing. ...

The nature of text printed via the hot-metal method is notably different to that produced by the phototypesetting processes that followed it. As the lead type used to print (letterpress)a page had been directly formed from the type matrix a good fidelity to the original was achieved. Phototypesetting suffered (at least in its early days) from many problems relating to optical distortion and misalignment. These disappointing results were a thorn in the sides of many authors and readers (especially of complex or mathematical texts that had many small sub and superscripts). A desire to recreate the aesthetic qualities of hot-lead spurred Donald Knuth to create one of the first general purpose digital typesetting programs, T_EX. Phototypesetting is a method of setting type with light (photo). ... In the kind of printing which involves setting type, a matrix (often called a mat) is a mold for shaping the letters -- the mats of all the letters to go on one page are assembled, and then hot metal is poured into that matrix to make the plate to go... Donald Ervin Knuth ( or Ka-NOOTH[1], Chinese: [2]) (b. ... TeX (IPA: as in Greek, often in English; written with a lowercase e in imitation of the logo) is a typesetting system created by Donald Knuth. ...

Although strictly speaking not typesetting, stereotyping (electrotype or nickeltype) could be used to cast a reproduction of an entire typeset page (or pages imposed in a forme) using a mould made with an impression using flong (similar to papier-mâché). The ensuing casting could be made curved for use on a rotary press or flat for the slower flat bed presses. This technique was often used in newspaper production.

See also

• printing
• printing press
• phototypesetting