Abstract: The surface treatment for printing applications using water-based ink of the present invention comprises a surface pretreatment of the recording media prior to the deposition of the ink on the surface, wherein the pretreatment liquid is an aqueous and/or alcoholic solution or emulsion containing a polyvalent metal salt, and at least one of an organic swelling reagent and a coalescence reagent. The pretreatment liquid is applied with a rubbing motion in a thin layer of approximately 4 &mgr;m to the entire upper surface of the recording media. The swelling reagent and/or the coalescence reagent cause the upper 3-5 &mgr;m to swell and the polyvalent metal cations become embedded in the surface. After partial drying of the pretreated media, ink composition is deposited onto the surface to form an image. The ink solids precipitate in response to the embedded cations deposited in the pretreatment, and form interactions above and below the surface of the media to give a mechanically stable ink dot.

Abstract: Resinous compositions, especially synthetic resins and most especially arylate polymers, contain 2,3-dicyano-1,4-diaminoanthraquinone as a blue dye. Said compositions are characterized by improved weatherability in comparison with compositions containing other blue dyes.

Abstract: There are described rhodamine derivatives of the formula ##STR1## where R.sup.1, R.sup.2, R.sup.3 and R.sup.4 are each hydrogen or substituted or unsubstituted C.sub.1 -C.sub.4 -alkyl, or R.sup.2 is paired off with R.sup.5 or R.sup.4 with R.sup.6 to form 1,3-propylene, which can be substituted,R.sup.5, R.sup.6, R.sup.7 and R.sup.8 are each hydrogen or methyl,R.sup.9 is hydrogen, substituted or unsubstituted C.sub.1 -C.sub.4 -alkyl or a radical of the formula (C.sub.2 H.sub.4 O--).sub.n H, where n is 2 or 3, andAn.sup..crclbar. is the equivalent of an anion derived from an addition or condensation polymer that contains acid groups, novel cyclic rhodamine dyes, and the use of the novel rhodamine derivatives and cyclic rhodamine dyes for dyeing polyacrylonitrile fibers, for incorporation into polymers or for preparing inks.