Ink Jet is a method of printing images using jets that squirt miniscule drops of ink onto a variety of surfaces. Most small, affordable desktop printers are ink jet printers. Depending on the type of printer, images printed from an ink jet are not good to scan from or use to shoot plates from because of the type of "screening" these printers use. The printers are mainly used for final composite printouts or for soft proofing a project before sending it to press.