When printing first became popular, most books were printed on paper made from a type of bark that was soft and pliable. This type of paper was not easy to print on and often damaged or tore when pulled or folded. Many printers turned to paper made from rags, which was harder to print on and often difficult to clean up. Rags were not a very good choice for book covers because the ink would often stick to them, making it difficult to turn the page. To solve this problem, printers began using paper made from wood pulp. This type of paper was easier to print on and often did not damage or tear when pulled or folded.
While paper made from wood pulp was easier to print on and often did not damage or tear when pulled or folded it was also more expensive to produce but it did not have the same popularity as paper made from bark. Thus however popular it was, most printers used paper made from bark to print on until the middle of the nineteenth century when paper made from wood pulp became more popular.
From the beginning of the 20th century until the 1970s, most printers used paper made from wood pulp to print on. However the use of paper made from wood pulp was not without its problems. Since wood pulp paper was made from wood that had been chopped down to small pieces it was difficult to print on and often tore or broke when pulled or folded. With the advent of the Xerox printer in the 1970s many printers found that they could print directly on paper made from wood pulp without damaging or tearing it. Such technological advances made paper made from wood pulp an increasingly popular choice for printers until the early 21st century when the use of paper made from wood pulp began to decline.
Revolutionary prints from the early 21st century onward were often printed on paper made from a type of plastic that was easy to print on and often did not tear or break when pulled or folded. Competitive pressures from the printing industry and advances in printing technology led to the development of cheaper and more efficient printing methods that made paper made from wood pulp less popular and eventually replaced it as the most popular choice for printers.
Things changed for printers in the late twentieth century when a new printing technology called offset printing became popular. Offset printing involves printing the pages of a book one sheet at a time and then placing them in sequence on a large piece of paper called a printing plate. This printing plate is then placed on a printing press where the printing plate is inked and the ink is transferred to the paper. By using this printing method, printers could print large amounts of pages without needing to make as many printing plates.
Offset printing also made it possible to print on paper that was thicker than paper made from wood pulp and to print on such thick paper. This made it possible for printers to print on the backs of books, for example, and made it possible to print on thicker paper that was used for invitations and other printed matter. Offset printing also made it possible for printers to print on paper that had a glossy or shiny finish. This was especially popular for printers who printed on paper made from plastic.
