Visit CS2  |  November 2007

A guide for the CAD industry...
CADworld

 What a Ride!!!

I have just completed what might have been the busiest month in CAD Supplies Specialty, Inc. history. We not only sold as much paper and ink as we ever have, but with the help of HP's Rebate, dropped more plotters in a month than we typically sell in a year! It is good to be in Austin right now.

As much as it pains me, I am almost happy to see an end to it. My wife has instigated the 6:00pm rule. If I'm not home by 6:00pm, I don't eat supper with the kids -- now that's tough.

The new T & Z series plotters have shown to be excellent plotters. I expect to continue selling them briskly. Keeping our future in mind, we have added a couple new service techs. We stole Jack Crosby away from Xerox after 27 years on the job. He has a wealth of knowledge. Ben Milburn was promoted from delivery driver. Our clients were so impressed with Ben that they kept calling and telling me what a find he was. Well, we taught him a lesson and promoted him.

Good News -- our 2008 Calendar is finished. This is the earliest EVER. Hopefully, that means all will get their calendars before February! This year has a space theme. But, you’ll have to wait to actually see it.

I am certain things will slow down around the holidays. Yeah right. Oh well, as I tell so many of you, let's not complain about the good times or they will be gone. If I didn't say so before -- thank you Austin for making it all possible!

J Christopher Epstein
President

General Application Tips for Laminating Films

Mike Collinss mike@cadsupplies.com Application Tips for Laminating Films If possible, store laminates 24 hours prior to use in the same or similar environment as the finishing department. Radical changes in temperature or humidity can create problems. Store all laminates upright or make sure they are suspended. Laying laminates on their side, especially pressure-sensitive materials, will create flat spots. Choose a PVC vinyl laminate for overlaminating an image printed on vinyl. Because of their similar composition there is less chance of delamination. Before laminating, be sure that the print is clean. Consider using cleaning roller or a lint free cloth to remove any loose dust or other contaminant particles. When applying a laminating film to a print, laminator operators should start with as little tension as possible (unwind brake), adding more tension as it is required. Remember that with any laminating film, inadequate pressure can cause silvering which will be particularly visible on darker colors. When laminating a print, try to laminate the entire print without stopping. Stopping in the middle of an image can create "hot spots" and/or flat spots. Removing a release liner from a laminate in a "jerky" or stop-and-go fashion (especially clear polyester liners) can create lines in the adhesive, which can then be transferred to your image. When deciding on an appropriate laminate for your application there are many factors to consider: type of print media, ink and toners, laminator, where and how long the print will be displayed, finish desired, etc. Because media compatibility is usually the biggest issue, make sure you talk with the CAD Supplies graphics department to make sure you get the correct laminate for your job. If you need a laminator for your sign company or reprographics shop, we sell the Drytac brand laminators and offer a full line of machines to get even the toughest jobs done. They offer laminators from 25” to 63” in width. JetMounter JM54 Cold-Mount Laminator ($4895) Standard Features: Specifications: variable speed-electric drive silicone rollers all-steel construction forward and reverse supply shaft included foot pedal controls photo electric safety stop Max Laminating Width: 53.25 in. Width: 62.5 in. Depth: 17.75 in. Height: 18 in. Weight: 331 lbs. Roller Diameter: 5 in. Max Nip Opening: 1 in

The Haunted House on the Forty Acres

I bet you didn't know there is a haunted house on the central campus of the University of Texas here in Austin! A majestic old Victorian home sits stubbornly on the west side of campus, refusing to alter it charmingly 19th century aspects. It is a beautiful example of eclectic Victorian architecture and it something of an anomaly on a campus that is surging into the future with new construction and dramatic advances in technology surrounding it. It is also a building rich in history and it own flavor of ghostly mystery. The home was built in 1893 for $50,000 by a Southern cattle baron, banker, Confederate officer and generous campus benefactor named George Littlefield. At that time, it was only one of a street full of big, gaudy, and imposing Victorian houses built by businessmen in a thriving but young and small town of Austin, Texas. Now it is the lone remaining example of those grand Victorian mansions. "The house illustrates a love of ostentation, which is characteristic of Victorian architecture," says Richard Cleary, associate professor of architecture. "It's a statement of proclamation of wealth and privilege, but now it's a bit of an orphan, sitting alone without the other homes of its era. It's a ghost of the past,” he hints!

Major Littlefield was a strong and outspoken Southern gentleman, and the Littlefield Home carries the weight of his boldness and confidence well. Victorian design was not restrained or understated, and the Major's influence is seen in a number of examples. A deep spacious veranda surrounds it with intricate iron grillwork and stately, blue-gray marble columns. The wide steps in the front, which lead to an intricately layed mosaic porch, are a pale marble with streaks of black and gray and the small yard is enclosed with a low stone fence. Like most Victorian structures, the exterior of the home is indeed colorful, but the colors represent the traditional Victorian palette -- in this case, big & deep red-brown 10 cents-a-piece brick from St. Louis. With the dark blue-gray columns, the towering structure has a forebodingly dark appearance even on a mildly overcast day.

With all of its beauty and stateliness, it was, no doubt, a very cheerful and lively home when the Littlefields lived there. It was situated on the edge of the original Forty Acres, as the campus was called, and the couple, who had no children, could sit and watch students pass by on their way to class.

Somewhere between the early 20th century and the present, however, Victorian homes began to be a commonly accepted visual representation of spookiness. Sightings of ghosts became more common and carried more drama in a setting such as these. And, as you might expect, the otherwise innocent Littlefield Home has its own tantalizing tales of haunting! There are many ghostly tales about the home and their variety is exceeded only by their vagueness. But the most common strain in most of the stories is Alice Littlefield, Major Littlefield's wife.

Some say that Major Littlefield locked Alice up in the attic when he was away so she would not be grabbed by Yankees who might be strolling by and oblivious to the fact that the Civil War was over. According to lore, while languishing in the attic she was assaulted by bats, and her shrieks of terror reverberate in the mansion to this day. Others say that the ghost of Alice can still be heard banging out a chord on the old piano on the first floor. Some accounts reveal her deep concern for her husband's welfare and her fears for his safety that caused her to become continually depressed and slowly and quietly she went insane later in her life. Her ghost is said to relentlessly roam the attic, peering out the tiny window, watching for his return.

Much of the home's spooky mystique can directly be attributed to architectural elements that are both Victorian and Gothic. The first and second floor windows are tall, vertical and narrow, blocked by wooden shutters that are cracked open here and there just enough to allow a glimpse of movement, real or imagined, in the shadow-shrouded interior. The interior of the home invades you with the same chilling and uncomfortable gloominess. Entering the home, you find also a dark interior that is lit by glow of small globe lamps in the wide main gallery. Enormous, heavy, imposing chandeliers grace each of the rooms and when they are lit they illuminate the walls of almost 14-foot high ceilings and spacious parlors, library and dining room.

In true Victorian style, the rooms are decorated with thick, heavy dark woods throughout. Maples and walnut cover the walls & archways, wainscoting as well as floors and fireplaces, giving the home a feel of a gothic cathedral. And to some an impression of a scene from an Alfred Hitchcock movie!

A large painting by Alice Littlefield hangs near the fireplace in the library and it does little to dispel the myth that she was of a morbid and morose frame of mind. The painting reveals a mysterious night scene, rendered in blacks, grays, and plum colors, in which a woman is being escorted from a veranda down steps to a gondola where a man in all black stands. The setting is exotic, with a background of a shoreline bathed in a full moon.

Wandering through the first floor can seem a little bit abandoned and desolate, but the house has served a number of practical purposes since Alice Littlefield died in 1935 and the house was donated to the university. During that 72 years, it has housed, at various points, the Austin and University of Texas Centennial Office, the Music Department, the Navy R.O.T.C.(who used the attic as a firing range and placed a cannon on the front lawn) and UT’s Resource Development staff presently occupy the second floor. The first floor is also used for special Presidential functions.

During George Littlefield’s life, he left his fingerprint all over the campus, showing his love for the university and also his wish to be remembered. He started the Littlefield Fund for Southern History and gave $225,000 toward the purchase of the John Henry Wrenn Library. He provided funds for the Littlefield Memorial Fountain and the six flanking statues south of the Main Building. He erected the Alice Littlefield Dorm and donated $500,000 (which had grown to $1 million by the time it was needed) toward the construction of the Main Building. And he wielded influence on the Board of Regents from 1911-20.

Maybe the best thing that the Littlefields left, though, was a little more lore and tradition for a campus that loves its colorful history. So the next time you have a chance to get a look at the Littlefield home, you will know a little about the history of its residents, and it will remind you mostly of their generosity! For a map to its location, please view the following web page link.