Software

Alwan Color Expertise will unveil its new OEM strategy at the GraphExpo 2012, and announce its inaugural partners - Caldera, Compose System and Dubsat.  Representatives of the three OEMs will welcome their customers and visitors on Alwan booth 154 at GraphExpo.

Printing Standards adoption has gained momentum worldwide thanks ISO 12647 and G7. Print Buyers and printers agree today that the files and the prints they deliver should comply with these industry standards.  File and Print conformance to standards is the mission and the technology Alwan has been delivering to the graphic industry since its foundation fourteen years ago.

Now Alwan's recognised vision and highly awarded technologies have received new and strong support from the three industry-innovating manufacturers, Caldera, Compose and Dubsat. All have embraced Alwan's vision on standardised workflows, and have committed to embed Alwan technology in their systems, enabling their customers to produce standardised colours, files and prints with the industry reference technologies.

Elie Khoury, founder and president of Alwan Color expertise is thrilled.  "Those who know Alwan know that Alwan is all about co-operation: human, technical and business co-operation. We are particularly happy today to see that our business approach and ethics are attracting attention of notorious companies such as Caldera, Compose and Dubsat. Their support has enabled us to improve our technologies even further, making them available to a larger number of users, and enabling our partners to improve their systems and offer their users standardised colour, files and prints.”

Joseph Mergui, CEO of Caldera, is looking forward to move the digital printing industry towards printing standards.  "When I met Elie Khoury for the first time in 2008, I knew that one day we would work together. His vision regarding conciliating printing standards and working practices using simple and automated tools made sense to our digital printing industry, but it was too early then. Today, Caldera users want to print to standards and match on their large format printer, customer colours that are printed on other processes, conventional or digital. This is the reason why we decided to join forces with Alwan. Today, we have two joint projects, the first is the very successful Caldera InkPerformer which is the digital printing version of Alwan's recognised and awarded Dynamic Ink Saving Technology. The second is Alwan's G7 certified system DynamicPrinterCalibration that we decided to offer with our next RIP version, and which has been also optimised by our joint teams for large and grand format printers inks, gamuts and substrates."

Tom Sit, CEO of Compose System, adds, "Compose is an Alwan distributor and an OEM partner for Global Graphics Harlequin RIP for years. We have hundreds of satisfied users printing with Alwan and Harlequin technologies worldwide. However these two complementary solutions were separate and available on different platforms. Now, thanks to Alwan, Compose and Global Graphics joint efforts, we have succeeded to integrate Alwan award winning DeviceLink Profile technology in the Harlequin RIP, enabling thousands of additional users to benefit from Alwan's industry reference colour management and standardisation technology within their Harlequin RIP.  This is great news for our market, and great news for us."

Olivier de Pina, Adsend's global product manager, is excited about the services the relationship with Alwan will bring to Adsend’s AdGate users in particular.  "With the global adoption of printing standards, we wanted to offer our ad agency users the ability not just to manage their colours, but to produce standardised colours and files that will print without any problems on any printing process worldwide. After investigating the available technologies and holding discussions with many prepress and printing companies worldwide, it was highly apparent to us that Alwan technology is the standout choice for us and for our customers thanks to its recognised performance and wide adoption. Alwan will be an excellent addition to our existing partners, as this new co-operation will allow Dubsat to provide PDF standardisation services to our users worldwide, with the guarantee that their colours can match regardless of the printer and the printing technology."

Caldera, Compose and Dubsat’s new software and services embedding Alwan technologies will be available to their customers Q4 2012.

Wide-format software specialist Caldera has announced the latest version of its digital signage software designed for wide-format print houses, Variable Display 2.0. The latest updates include improvements to the scheduling functions and a number of new advanced settings, as well as a new plug-in, which will allow print houses to use Variable Display as a dashboard to follow their activity from the production floor.

Variable Display, which was unveiled last year at FESPA 2011 in Hamburg, was designed as a low-cost digital signage solution combining the qualities of printed and dynamic content as an add-on sales product for large-format PSPs. With a specification list that includes control from multiple operating systems as well as smartphone apps, and the ability to drive screens on several different sites through one interface, Variable Display's power and ease-of-use was endorsed by Viscom Düsseldorf in 2011, at which Caldera's solution was used to power all the event's screens.

"Since we first launched Variable Display, we've had a great response from printers wanting to expand their offering," explains Sébastien Hanssens, vice-president for marketing, Caldera. "Now they can offer a whole package of marketing materials to a client including a digital signage solution that is quick to set up and simple to use. The latest upgrades offer added functionality to the original user-friendly product, offering wide-format houses a unique solution to help them access the potentially lucrative new world of digital signage."

An interesting new development for Variable Display 2.0 is the Print Board plug-in, the first display solution of its kind to interact directly with a RIP engine. The plug-in will allow users of Caldera's RIP software to show an overview of their production activity on a screen for all employees to see, with information including which files have recently been added to the spooler, and the number of square metres processed daily by the RIP.

Enhancements to the AIR interface comprise a large part of the upgrade, including the ability to create users with different permissions. Users will also have greater control over planning and scheduling their playlists and content. A new calendar interface will enable drag-and-drop playlist scheduling, to make planning and implementing campaigns quicker and simpler. The conflict detection system has also been improved to reduce the potential for scheduling clashes.

Each player now also has its own web interface with advanced settings such as the ability to alter network settings, reboot or shut down the device and change passwords. Additionally, the web interface allows the user to define the area of the screen that the player will use – a helpful feature when using outdoor and indoor LED billboards – and the x and y co-ordinates of the playlist frame.

Other new user-focused features include the addition of tooltips, plus the sorting and filtering of content within the AIR interface. The ability to send multiple files to the server is also new in Variable Display 2.0, as is the improved installation process: the user is now able to display the IP address, subnet mask and name of a box by plugging in a USB mass storage key.

Caldera will reveal the latest version of its comprehensive workflow solution, Flow+ 1.6, at SGIA Expo in Las Vegas between October 18th and 20th. Flow+ 1.6 boasts major enhancements to the quoting system, customer relationship management and user interface, as well as a number of new tools and a faster processing engine.

The Flow+ team, which recently welcomed Serge Clauss as its new Workflow Sales Manager, has been working to improve and fine-tune Caldera's flagship workflow software based on customer feedback and believes the additional functionality in the latest version offers one of the most comprehensive solutions available to the industry in a sleek and updated interface.

"We know that simplified end-to-end sales and production processes are becoming more and more important to wide-format businesses as raw materials costs rise and margins are squeezed," says Serge Clauss. "For many of our customers, Flow+ is a business-critical investment. That's why the additions to the latest version make it work harder for them on every level."

Improvements in the quoting system include a more flexible quotation builder, designed to assist companies implementing an MIS for the first time by allowing the creation of quotes with a free text field. This will enable sales teams to learn and adjust to the Flow+ system more gradually, whilst also making for a smoother and quicker integration. In addition, the quoting wizard has been enhanced, meaning that groups of finishing processes can be added to a job. For example, a 'Banner Finishing' group could contain 'pocket sewing' and 'eyelet positioning', helping to prevent work being done without being invoiced.

The CRM module has also benefited from a number of improvements, including better filtering of customer information to help the sales team identify existing clients and leads to be followed up. A list of pending quotes can be called up easily and also exported in a Microsoft Excel format for sales team meetings. Information filtering options have been extended throughout Flow+, putting the right information in the user's hands when they need it.

A host of new tools have been introduced for Flow+ 1.6 to make planning resources and monitoring production even more intuitive. The daily inventory report can now be exported for analysis, as can overviews on production load, showing how many of which types of job have been scheduled, filtered by device. Similarly, a Job Life Cycle report summarises a job from start to finish and helps production managers identify potential efficiency savings. A further new reporting tool offers the ability to track the amount of time a job spends in pre-press, helping pre-press managers improve productivity.

Another invaluable new tool is the Installation Planning feature, which helps users schedule installations for each job in the system. Deadlines can be set and sub-contractors assigned for each project, and jobs can be grouped together for improved efficiency.

The entire user experience has been given an overhaul too, with a completely modified engine built for faster responses even when the system is overloaded, a sleek, modern new user interface and added Spanish language support.

"Our mission at Caldera is to make printing easier for everyone and this newest release of Flow+ is a great example of our commitment to this," says Sébastien Hanssens, vice-president of marketing for Caldera. "Collectively, these small improvements will make a huge difference to our customers using Flow+, by providing the tools and systems they need to become more efficient as simply as possible."

Enfocus has updated the Switch Web Services Module for Enfocus Switch 11.  Part of the new Enfocus Switch 11 range of Smart Automation tools, the Web Services Module allows users of Switch 11 to build secure, Browser-based interfaces into a Switch workflow environment for job submission, file upload, review and approval.

Intelligently connecting customers and remote resources with employees and internal workflows is vital to ensure business processes are efficient and effective. The Web Services Module enables any web browser to become the front-end to a Web-to-Print portal, a document or digital asset management system or any other process automated by Switch. Any file types can be uploaded into Switch-based workflows for additional processing or format conversion, automated routing and distribution to relevant workgroups or individuals, output to internal print queues, archival purposes or even delivery to another location or provider.

"The Web Services Module is a powerful addition to any Enfocus Switch solution”, says Elli Cloots, Director of Product Management. "Our users are always looking for a way to more efficiently interact with their own customers and Enfocus provides the tools they need to streamline their production. By automating job submission, review and approval processes on their websites, our users free up time to concentrate on the quality of their services and seek out new business opportunities. This makes the Switch Web Services Module an addition that offers both immediate and long term ROI."

The Web Services Module enables service providers to collect job information from forms that are automatically displayed when a user accesses the job submission Web page. The Smart Forms feature in Switch optionally displays specific form fields based on values in other fields already completed. Form fields are defined within the Switch interface to require specific formats, remember prior values, or be displayed as read only and changes are updated automatically on the Web pages. Access to job upload pages can be optionally controlled via user name and password credentials, and user-based access can also be specified for remote reviewing, approval and routing of jobs.

The Web Services Module allows users to easily build custom web interfaces into their Switch workflows based on the Simple Language Access Protocol (SOAP). Examples Web interfaces built with PHP are included in the Module and demonstrate how to display job submissions, reviews and approvals. The Web Services Module uses SSL to ensure all job information and file content remain secure and confidential, and uploaded files are always automatically compressed during submission to insure optimal user bandwidth consideration.

Availability

The Web Services Module is already available from Enfocus' network of Switch Authorised resellers and integrators. Also a free trial and a customisable Switch 11 Web Services sample are available on www.enfocus.com.

Orbus Exhibit & Display Group, one of North America’s leading suppliers of display, exhibit and event solutions, has partnered with ErgoSoft, a leader in RIP solutions, to enhance colour matching and print quality as well as streamline the company’s printing processes.

"ErgoSoft RIP Solution, TexPrint, is the complete solution for handling all of our graphic printing needs. From its integrated colour profiling software to its automated cutting functionality, it provides virtually every feature we could need or want to produce a higher quality print graphic,” says Jaime Herand, Orbus' director of graphic operations.

Greater efficiencies are achieved with TexPrint’s automation and streamlined processes and Orbus’ use of this RIP solution will 'elevate the company’s high graphic standards to an even greater level'.  ErgoSoft’s sophisticated colour features allow Orbus to reach a wider colour gamut and closer vibrant matches for Pantone colours, providing a better quality print for its customers.

"In addition to the streamlined processes and improved colour benefits of the software, ErgoSoft's customer support and hands-on training programme has ensured that our team has the highest knowledge of the features offered," continues Herand.

“Under the direction of Jaime Herand, the Orbus graphics department proved that it is possible to implement new RIP technology while maintaining a rigorous production schedule. The challenge of printing legacy work while introducing new technology to improve colour fidelity, colour matching, and production efficiencies proved inconsequential when compared to the resulting improvements,” adds Robert Nute, Director of Business Development at ErgoSoft.

Each of Orbus’ facilities are fully equipped with this new RIP Solution in addition to its G7 Master Print certification, providing superior graphic services across the United States.

Corel has launched a new membership programme where CorelDRAW® Graphics Suite X6 users can connect through a new cloud-based environment to leading edge graphic design tools and digital content.

The new membership programme is being rolled out across multiple regions and will offer two membership levels. Standard Membership gives users product updates, as well as online access to digital content. Premium Membership provides exclusive digital content and early use of new product features before they are introduced to the broader CorelDRAW community in future product releases. In addition, Premium members will receive major product upgrades as they become available.

“Allowing users to create, connect and work with CorelDRAW Graphics Suite in a way that best suits them is a top priority for us. With the introduction of our new Membership Program, we’re excited to offer more choice and extra benefits to ensure our users are getting the most out of their CorelDRAW experience,” said Nick Davies, Executive Vice President of Graphics and Productivity at Corel.

The new Membership Program expands on the current CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X6 experience by offering members exclusive premium content, early access to new features and choices that go beyond what’s included in the box. The CorelDRAW Membership includes:

• Cloud-based connectivity to all existing digital content (Standard and Premium Members)
• Product updates, previously known as Service Packs (Standard and Premium Members)
• Exclusive content including clipart, photos, fonts and more (Premium Members)
• Early access to new product features (Premium Members)
• Future access to online services (Premium Members)
• Major version upgrades (Premium Members)

New membership options available through new X6.1 update

CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X6 customers can download this first update (previously known as a “Service Pack”) from www.corel.com to become a Standard or Premium member. X6.1 delivers new valuable features and additions like new dockers, scanning capabilities, PowerClip and PHOTO-PAINT™ enhancements, additional OpenType support as well as general performance updates.

The X6.1 update will allow Standard members to experience most of the Premium Membership features for free. For future updates, users can continue to enjoy exclusive features and online content by purchasing a Premium Membership.

Availability and pricing

Standard Membership is free and Premium Membership is available for the equivalent of £7.95 per month when signing up for a £95.40 annual membership, including VAT.

To become a Standard or Premium Member, users must create a Corel account within CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X6. Membership options are available to box and electronic download customers of CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X6 at this time.