Need Something Creative..

[mattmainster]

I really need something creative to do. I am so sick of fixing customer's files all day. People that call themselves "designers" yet have no clue what they are doing when setting up files for print. I know we charge for it, but that doesn't benefit me. I know I'm not the only one dealing with this...arrghh:mad:

[morea]

I hear you, and I sympathize.

When you get some free time, try these!
http://www.graphicdesignforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=17133

[Exodus]

In-house designer or prepress? I feel your pain. I was prepress for over 2 years and have been an in-house designer for 1.5 years. Here lately, the design side of my job has been lull. However, I've been getting bombarded by files to "fix" that are so pancaked up it's rediculous! I would like to know how some of those "designers" got their job and apply there myself. I'm almost willing to relocate.

Nothing against Pennsylvania or anything.... but a certain ad agency there that uses us all the time for print must have highschool drop outs with no math skills whatsoever "designing" for them. I had a board that was six feet off the other day.

Sales person: "Hey Ex, prepress just sent this job back up... They say the size is off. I talked to the customer and they asked if we could 'fix it' for them."

Me: "Let me look at it... This is waaay off! I don't see much hope for this one..."

Sales person: *blank stare*

Me: "Let me pull the file up... Crap! This job is for a 14' x 48' right? This file is set up for a 20' x 48' not incuding bleed!"

Sales person: "It has to be fixed. That's all they have."

Me: "What? That's BS... not to mention I have no support files to work from."

Sales person: *blank stare*

Me: "Send it back to them and tell them to learn math!"

Sales person: "I can't see why you just can't photoshop it!"

Me: "What?! Dude, just tell them to send prepress a new file set to the correct dimensions! For a 14' x 48' they need a file set up 7" x 24" @ 300 dpi. You have a spec sheet right?"

Sales person: "Okay, I'll tell them."

Me: "Whatever..." <sigh>

10 minutes later:

Sales person: "Okay Ex, they're uploading the support files to the FTP so you can fix it."

Me: *Smacks forehead*

Now my left eye twitches everytime I see that sales guy or a work order with that ad agency on it...

[mattmainster]

Pre-press/ In-house designer here.

I know it's posted all over the place, but this one cracks me up:
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y153/Gromit801/Designercartoon.gif

[Exodus]

Holy crap! :eek: I just got another one from a place in New York... 8 feet off. That's a new record. Smarter sales person this time though. She is going to make them send new art.

Needed: A design that scales to 4' x 20'

Have: A design that scales to 12' x 20'

*Thank God I will not have to "fix" this one!*

Yea, I've seen that comic. It's classic! :D

[budafist]

I feel your pain! We're very quiet here today. I have 1 thing in my intray which I am saving because I don't want my intray to be empty. If it's empty someone might send me out to help in the bindery!

[fredrich]

http://www.kunnskapspark1.no/upload/pettersmart27530.jpg

+

http://dictionary.laborlawtalk.com/prev_wiki/images/thumb/1/16/250px-Hammer.jpg

=

http://www.jyskhandi.dk/images/lillehjaelper.gif

[mattmainster]

Ahhh!! Nooo...not the BINDERY!!! :D

[morea]

lol, I've been there. :D

[budafist]

Yesterday we printed 3000 books that had 2006 on the cover instead of 2007. So we had to rip the covers off to be replaced with new ones. Client needed them ASAP so all the employees were ripping off these covers. That's enough bindery work for me thanks!

[mattmainster]

Ouch..I know how that goes. You must work for somewhere very siilar to where I work.

[budafist]

Quite possibly...

Offset printers with copy centre attached 25 total employees?

[mattmainster]

Pretty much the same here...only with about 12 employees.

[Jackimalyn]

The worst bindery was at my last job, once every other month one of our customers would have 3000 newsletters printed that had to be printed w/ bleed, cut, collated, folded, stapled, folded again and then tabbed for mailing. all by hand. grrrrrrrr. Wasn't until 2 months before I left that he bought a digital printer that could do everything but the last fold and tabbing.

[budafist]

It's funny, before you work in these places, you can't fathom that this stuff would be done by hand! For the Christmas parade last year we had to hand staple 100,000 flyers to cardboard sticks to be used as flags.

[hewligan]

I still have nightmares about the collating machine at a place I used to work.

[mattmainster]

lol. funny, man. personally, im not so fond of mailing equiptment.
apart from being prepress/ design, i do all the large format, some bindery, and i am in charge of the mailing department here. i guess thats what i get for working in the family business.

[Hub]

Do all of you work for companies where things get so slow that everyone can pitch in and join the party? I helped out a printer once - for a special client - then I found a local company that employs hadicapped workers for just such jobs. Believe it or not, it saved us hundreds of dollars...and we were able to help employ some folks with special needs.

It was a win-win situation and never a dull moment again! Check for local resources and recommend employing the handicapped to your boss.

[budafist]

No we weren't slow, but the job needed to get done that afternoon - don't have a pool of workers like that just will work at no notice for such jobs so we all pitched in.

[Samakimoto Graphics]

...- then I found a local company that employs hadicapped workers for just such jobs. Believe it or not, it saved us hundreds of dollars...and we were able to help employ some folks with special needs.

It was a win-win situation and never a dull moment again! Check for local resources and recommend employing the handicapped to your boss.

^^^That's :).

I have watched the collating machine at our in-house press, not a fun place to be.

[panzer]

we have to do 10k books

so A3 on litho cut in half then 6 pages collated finished j0b A5
god it looks a nightmare (again)

but at least we only have to a few at a time
and nope we wont send out to a finisher, theyre to damn dear for this job

sigh
hiya folks

im back

any one miss me

*looks around*

oh hi im dave :P

[morea]

where ya been, panzer? ;)

[panzer]

flu missus :(

i had a fever
my GF calls it "mans flu"

but i was that hot you could boil a kettle of my ass
im turning americanese :P
it sounds less offensive them well you know what i meam morea :P

but better and at work now
i ran out of books to read
:P

[morea]

glad you're feeling better... just in time for the weekend, too!

[panzer]

thank you much obliged

yes i had a lovely weekend

then the flu came back lol

[DesignStudio]

Here's one of my favorite cartoons, i haven't seen it on the site yet so hopefully it will inspire some of your creative process as much as it does mine. especially those of you who work from home. enjoy!

http://img89.imageshack.us/img89/6938/nonsequitur20060604cj8.gif

[budafist]

I wish the creative process had that luxury of time!