I have noticed this problem, the colours are very washed out and the black isn't really black but more grey.
Obviously some ones idea of *saving* money by *saving* on the ink used - which, obviously in our case, is a bit of a scam to be blatently honest.
We pay good money for our books, we expect them to be of the highest quality - it's hard enough trying to sell them, let alone having the colours washed out!
I reported this to Lulu, and all they could say is that it is a CYMK error (Cyan, Magenta, etc - basically the 4 base colours used by the printers - as opposed to RGB which can fulfill everything far better in vibrant colours). - EDIT: To clarify, they said not that it's an error as *such* but which the printers colours go by - more below:
I have a suspicion one of their printer distributors is the primary suspect for this flushed out colour - I did work experiance in a print factory - so I know for a fact CYMK colours issues are a problem, considering other batches I have ordered are completely fine.
These are what I think are the problems:
1) The employees working at the print factory are not applying enough paint/ink into the monstrous machines they use.
2) They have various print distributors - one uses enough ink, whilst the other is working for economic purposes (thus denying how good the final print ends up).
Sorry Lulu, I just don't buy the CYMK excuse. Colours on other larger batches have been splendid - whilst some of the batches SUCK!
Get it together and investigate why this is occurring.
It is all to easy to blame CYMK. Listen to your customers.
"Those who let fate lead them roll the dice. Those who lead themselves never roll them at all." - Orchestra, Vol. II.
