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Introduction

The printing process has three stages--prepress, press and binding or postpress. Prepress workers prepare material for printing presses. They perform a variety of tasks involved with transforming text and pictures into finished pages and making printing plates of the pages. Desktop publishing poses new challenges for the printing industry. The printing industry is rapidly moving toward complete "digital imaging," by which customers' material received digitally is converted directly into printing plates. Other innovations in prepress work are digital color page makeup systems, electronic page layout systems and off-press color proofing systems. Printing press operators prepare, operate and maintain the printing presses in a pressroom, In most shops, press operators also perform preventive maintenance. Computers allow press operators to perform many of their tasks electronically. With this equipment, press operators monitor the printing process on a control panel or computer monitor, which allows them to adjust the press electronically.

pathway graphicOther Pathways in this Cluster

This pathway is part of the Arts, Audio-Video Technology and Communications cluster. These are the other pathways in the cluster: