Aldus ships PageMaker Color Extension

Business Wire

July 18, 1989

SEATTLE -- Aldus Corp. Tuesday announced shipment of Aldus PageMaker Color Extension for the Macintosh, a package that includes additional color capabilities for the company's popular desktop publishing software.

The product was introduced at the Seybold Seminars '89 in March.

``PageMaker Color Extension represents a major step forward in our commitment to integrate high-quality color into desktop publishing,'' said Aldus President Paul Brainerd. ``Aldus customers can use Color Extension to produce full-color comprehensives on a color desktop printer, separate their color pages on a PostScript-language imagesetter, or send their documents directly to a high-end prepress system for color separation.''

DESIGNING WITH COLOR AT THE DESKTOP

Aldus PageMaker Color Extension gives graphics professionals more color choices to speed up the design process, right at their desktops.

When specifying colors for their PageMaker documents, users can now choose from the palette of PANTONE Colors, or work with one of the three industry-standard color models currently supported in PageMaker 3.0: RGB, HLS and CMYK. The colors they select can be applied to both text and PageMaker-drawn graphics.

For those who want to import and display colored graphics created with other software, Color Extension imports TIFF (tag image file format), EPS (Encapsulated PostScript), and PICT files.

A color-adjustment feature -- introduced in Aldus FreeHand -- lets users fine-tune PageMaker's on-screen display of colors to more closely match the printed results.

Complex TIFF images can take up a lot of disk space and slow down screen drawing. To save disk space, Color Extension compresses color and black-and-white TIFF-image files to one-third or less of their original size, depending on the amount of information in the file. When work on the document is complete, it restores the files so they can be read by other applications, as when they are transferred to a service bureau's equipment for printing.

To speed up redrawing time, PageMaker automatically displays lower-resolution versions of imported TIFF images. But when precision work is called for, Color Extension has a keyboard shortcut command that instantly brings up the original, high-resolution TIFF image.

PRINTING OPTIONS FOR A RANGE OF NEEDS

When they're ready to print, Color Extension owners can choose from a range of options to suit their specific needs for low-end, mid-range, or high-end output.

For their more basic requirements, graphic artists can use a desk-top color printer, such as the QMS ColorScript 100, to print inexpensive full-color comprehensives for client review and proofing, or to add a dash of color to their proposals and presentations.

Full-color comps can include both color TIFF images and EPS illustrations created in Aldus FreeHand or other PostScript-language drawing programs, as well as text and design elements, such as rules and boxes, drawn in PageMaker. Users can also print color files to a black-and-white printer, with their TIFF, EPS, or PICT graphics converted to grayscale.

For more sophisticated publications, users can print color separations of their Color Extension files using Aldus Separator. This new utility separates EPS, PICT, Paint and PageMaker text and graphics to PostScript-language imagesetters, such as the Linotronic 300. As soon as it is ready, Aldus Separator will be included in the product box, and mailed free of charge to all registered owners of Color Extension.

For separating publications containing color TIFF images, Color Extension is designed to work with separation utilities that are compatible with the new Open Prepress Interface standard (OPI). Customers should consult with their service bureau to determine how best to separate their puclications. For the highest-quality color reproduction of color TIFF images, users can send their Color Extension files directly to high-end prepress systems that support OPI. They should consult with their prepress house about the compatibility of the vendor's equipment.

OPEN PREPRESS INTERFACE

Introduced by Aldus at the March Seybold conference, the Open Prepress Interface is a key element in Aldus' strategy for bringing full-color publishing capability to the desktop. OPI is a new set of PostScript conventions that define sizing, positioning and cropping information for TIFF images. It allows high-end prepress systems to strip images electronically into the page negatives created from PageMaker Color Extension files, thereby eliminating the costly manual work usually necessary with the traditional prepress approach -- and making four-color work from the desktop feasible.

Several color systems vendors -- including Crosfield, Dainippon Screen (DS America), and Hell Graphic Systems -- have already endorsed OPI. They and other companies are developing OPK implementations that are expected to be available in the next six months.

TEXT FEATURES

Color Extension also includes PageMaker's newest text-editing enhancements. Filters have been added for importing text files, with their formats intact, from Microsoft Word 4.0, Microsoft Works 2.0, XyWrite III Plus, and WordPerfect 1.0. A ``smart'' ASCII filter gives the user more control when placing text-only files in PageMaker.

Color Extension owners can also specify type sizes in half-point increments and use the new Adobe Originals line of specialized fonts for the professioal typogra8ter.

For those who don't plan to use color in the near term, these text features are also being made available to registered users of Aldus PageMaker for the Macintosh in an update, PageMaker 3.02.

SYSTEM CONFIGURATION

The required system configuration for Color Extension is Aldus PageMaker 3.0 and an Apple Macintosh Plus, SE, SE/30, II, IIx, or IIcx, plus a hard disk. A Macintosh II and a color monitor are recommended.

Color Extension is compatible with the QMS ColorScript 100 printer and other PostScript-language color printers; the Tektronix 4693DX and other PageMaker-compatible color QuickDraw printers; and PageMaker-compatible black-and-white PostScript-language and QuickDraw printers. It also supports the Linotronic 100 and 300 and other PostScript-language imagesetters with the use of Aldus Separator.

PRICING AND DISTRIBUTION

Aldus PageMaker Color Extension is available through Aldus authorized dealers for a suggested retail price of $195. Registered PageMaker 3.0 owners can purchase Color Extension directly from Aldus Customer Relations, 206/628-2320, for $150. For subscribers of Aldus' Extended Technical Support Service (ETSS), the price is $75.

The PageMaker 3.02 update is also available from Aldus Customer Relations for $25. ETSS subscribers can receive it free by calling Customer Relations.

Aldus Corp. (NASDAQ:ALDC), founded in February 1984, develops, markets and supports computer software products that help business and creative professionals effectively communicate information and ideas. The company's products include Aldus PageMaker desktop publishing software for the Apple Macintosh and DOS-based computers; Aldus Persuasion, a desktop presentations program for the Macintosh; Aldus FreeHand, a graphics program for the Macintosh; and Aldus SnapShot, an electronic photography program for DOS-based computers.

NOTE: PANTONE Colors is Pantone Inc.'s check-standard trademark for color reproduction and color reproduction materials.

CONTACT: Aldus Corp., Seattle Gail Rice, 206/628-2352 by Cunningham Communication Inc., Santa Clara, Calif. Lisa Goldman, 408/982-0400