For the Graphic Designer, prepress means the procedure to prepare digital graphic design files for printers and vendors. These steps of preparation can include proofreading, revisions, checking size, fonts and color, and output of the file in correct format. Prepress at a printer can include making separations, platemaking, creating blue lines and color proofs. The steps stay basically the same on each job and when you do them professionally for several years you may notice signs of how they affect your life. Below are the top ten signs you may be a prepress pro:

1. Double spacing after periods in body copy REALLY bothers you.

2. While driving home after a long day using Illustrator – you imagine creating bezier curves with your car on the highway.

3. You get called nicknames like Genius, Design Darlin’, Design Dumplin’, Graphics Guru or Speedy Spice (from way back – Spice Girls).

4. You really wish you could do a “Command Z” on some actions in life.

5. You are fatigued explaining “Bleed” has nothing to do with losing precious bodily fluids.

6. Continuous tone is not about the car alarm that went on for hours in the neighborhood last night.

7. You feel nausea when you see the font Comic Sans or any True Type font or encounter a Microsoft Word file or Illustrator file used as desktop publishing software.

8. Dummy means an example of design work. You have a lot of other words for stupid people and dingbat is not one of them either.

9. Acid free paper is not about being completely bummed at a Rave.

10.Eating a meal is a major distraction. When you do get out to a restaurant and look at the menu, you recognize the fonts, typos and double spaces after periods instead of the food. Besides, fonts are considered a food group.

What signs have you noticed?