Aldus announces a version of TrapWise for the Macintosh

BIRMINGHAM, U.K., September 7, 1993 -- Aldus Corporation today introduced
Aldus TrapWise 2.0 for the Apple Macintosh, a new version of its
electronic trapping software that will build upon and extend the
technology of TrapWise 1.0 for Windows. The announcement was made at the
IPEX '93 show.

TrapWise 2.0 for the Macintosh will have several new prepress controls,
including image trapping, color-separation capabilities, batch processing,
and the ability to trap up to 16 colors at once. It will trap not only
single-page EPS files that conform to Adobe's color conventions, but also
multipage PostScript files that conform to the Adobe Document Structuring
Convention (DSC) 3.0. Users will also be able to launch Aldus PressWise
2.0 directly from TrapWise to automate the imposition phase of the
prepress process.

"The development of TrapWise for the Macintosh continues our commitment to
the electronic prepress market, which is strategically important to the
industry and to Aldus' future as a leader in publishing software," said
Eric Bean, Aldus prepress program manager. "This version will have the
same popular features as its Windows counterpart, plus significant new
features suggested by customers."

The case for TrapWise

In multicolor printing, two or more layers of ink must be laid onto a sheet
of paper and precisely aligned so that the colors abut properly. Often,
however, slight misregistration occurs on the press, and small gaps can
appear between objects. Prepress operators compensate for these potential
gaps by trapping adjacent object that is, by adjusting their edges until
they overlap slightly.

Quality trapping has always been achievable on traditionally produced jobs.
Electronically produced files, however, are particularly difficult to trap
with traditional methods, for they often contain very thin elements, many
graduated fills, and hundreds of PostScript objects. Software such as
Aldus TrapWise helps professionals produce the precise traps required for
these electronically generated pages.

What's new in TrapWise 2.0

TrapWise 2.0 for the Macintosh will offer many new features to improve
operators' productivity. Users will be able to both trap and output color
separations directly from TrapWise, thereby speeding up their prepress
cycle. New batch-processing tools will allow them to group multiple jobs
(with or without similar trapping parameters), and process them
unattended. The program's ability to trap up to 16 colors at once (four
process-color inks plus twelve spot) will help prepress operators make
their documents press-perfect in minutes rather than hours. And operators
will be able to smoothly trap the perimeter of continuous-tone images, as
well as objects within images.

Like the Windows version, Aldus TrapWise for the Macintosh will accept
conforming files from any platform, such as Macintosh, Windows, or UNIX.
It will extend this support, however, to include both single-page and
multipage files that conform to the appropriate PostScript conventions.
Applications that can produce these files include Aldus PageMaker 4.x and
5.0, Aldus FreeHand, QuarkXPress, and Adobe Illustrator. Once a file is
processed, users will be able to output the resulting PostScript pages to
any PostScript-compatible imagesetter, platesetter, printing press, or
other device.

Other standard features 

In addition to the new features mentioned above, the Macintosh version of
TrapWise will have all the features of its Windows counterpart. It will,
for example, produce precise traps for process- and spotcolor jobs, and
handle complex trapping situations easily, including graduated fills,
small text, and multicolor intersections.

TrapWise's controls let operators apply their professional knowledge to the
traps. Users can define "keep away" rules so that black support layers are
properly hidden; define unlimited, rectangular "trap zones" to refine and
control variables in a particular area; apply ink-by-ink controls for spot
colors and overprinting; and treat spotcolor inks as their process-color
equivalents for trapping purposes. In addition, they can define a minimum
color contrast to control when TrapWise will create a trap; specify the
percentage of black ink that TrapWise will consider to be true "black";
and reduce a trap's color based on percentages of component inks.

Pricing and availability

Aldus TrapWise 2.0 for the Macintosh will be available worldwide in the
fourth quarter of 1993 for a suggested retail price of $4,995 (U.S.).
Customers will be able to purchase it from graphic arts resellers,
original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) of high-resolution output devices,
and directly from Aldus. Registered owners of Aldus TrapWise 1.0 for
Windows will be able to buy TrapWise 2.0 for the Macintosh for $1,000
(U.S.) in the United States and Canada.

System requirements

The recommended configuration for TrapWise 2.0 will be a Macintosh Quadra
series computer, 16MB of RAM, a 200MB hard drive, an 8-bit color monitor,
and System 7 or later. A PostScript-compatible output device is required.

Aldus Corporation (NASDAQ:ALDC) creates computer software solutions that
help people throughout the world effectively communicate information and
ideas. The company focuses on three lines of business: applications for
the professional publishing and prepress markets; applications for the
general consumer market; and service and support programs for professional
end-users. Aldus has subsidiaries in Europe, Asia, and the Pacific Rim
serving a worldwide network of dealers and distributors.

Aldus Corp, 411 First Ave South, Seattle, WA 98104-2871
206-622-5500

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