COLE'S NEWSWIRE, March 17, 1999

March 17, 1999
Vol. 5, No. 11

The NEWSWIRE is a weekly distribution of information about the sales and installations of publishing technology and the latest news on new products developed by suppliers to the industry.

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APPLE COMPUTER INC.
Apple, the Cupertino, Calif.-based maker of the Mac OS operating system, has announced that ColorSync 2.6 is available. New features include support for JPEG and GIF files, support for 16-bit images handled by plug-ins for Adobe Photoshop, and the introduction of a grayspace profile for applying ColorSync's quality control capabilities to grayscale images.

The latest version of Apple's color management workflow software may be downloaded free from http://www.apple.com/colorsync/.

Apple also has released a ColorSync software development kit for Windows, enabling developers to create ColorSync-compatible hardware and software in the Windows environment

ATEX MEDIA SOLUTIONS
Atex, a publishing systems supplier based in Bedford, Mass., has announced recent sales of its advertising and editorial products to several publishers in Southeast Asia.

In Malaysia, Star Publications has signed a contract for enhancements to its Enterprise classified system at the 183,000-circulation STAR in Petaling Jaya and for an upgrade to its existing J-11 editorial system to make the system Year 2000-compliant.

In Thailand, the Post Publishing Co. will install a 23-seat, Thai-language Enterprise classified solution at an unidentified facility while the Nation Multimedia Group will replace a J-11 editorial system with a 170-seat Prestige solution at its unidentified newspaper.

In Central America, Atex has gone live at the 160,000-circulation DIARIO EL UNIVERSAL in Caracas, Venezuela. The 65-seat installation, which includes Enterprise advertising and classified pagination solutions, replaces a J-11-based system.

Atex is on the Web at http://www.atex.com/.

HARLEQUIN INC.
Harlequin, an imaging products supplier based in Cambridge, Mass., has released to its Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) clients the latest version of its RIP management system, ScriptWorks 5.1. Providing support for PostScript LanguageLevel 3, Version 5.1 also offers enhanced capabilities for color proofing, a recombine function to take color separations and merge them for proofing, better color management of spot or process color overprints and calibration of photo inks using a CYMK target.

Harlequin also has introduced SOAR, the Scalable Open Architecture RIP. Developers now have at their disposal SOAR Renderer, for preparing jobs using ScriptWorks functionality; SOAR Raster Out, for generating screened and color-managed TIF raster files, and SOAR FlatOut, software that can be used to merge and "stitch" raster output files into multi-up flats.

Harlequin is on the Web at http://www.harlequin.com/.

MCC PUBLISHING CONSULTANTS INC.
MCC, an integrator and solutions provider based in Rochester, Mich., has announced the sale of its TextCon text conversion software to LA OPINION, the 99,000-circulation Spanish-language daily in Los Angeles.

TextCon is being used to convert ad files as generated by a classified system from System Integrators Inc. of Sacramento to text files that include Quark XPress tags to be read by a Page Director Classified Layout System from Managing Editor Inc. of Jenkintown, Pa. TextCon is relied on to retain as much typographical information as possible in making conversions.

MCC is on the Web at http://www.mccbiz.com/.

NEWSINC.
The Newspaper Association of America's advertising revenue numbers may be signaling the beginning of the end, NEWSINC. Editor-Publisher David M. Cole writes in the March 15 issue of the newsletter. The NAA's calculations show a decline in classified advertising revenues as other categories held steady or declined at a slower pace. With so much profit tied up in classifieds, it's hard not think that the easy-money days may be in jeopardy, Cole writes.

Inside, Senior Editor Pete Wetmore examines the ad revenue numbers more closely, then speaks with ad directors around the country. Correspondent Jay Small writes about the new turf wars, as territories shift with the advent of on-line competition. Wetmore also writes about how communications are bringing about gains in safety on the job, talks with a key executive at the E.W. Scripps Co. about his new role, and explores how an ad raises some what-if questions about ad deadlines and production.

For more about the March 15 issue of NEWSINC., visit The Cole Group on the Web at http://colegroup.com/.

PUBLISHING BUSINESS SYSTEMS
PBS, the Des Plaines, Ill.-based supplier of business systems for newspapers, has announced that The McClatchy Co. of Sacramento has licensed several PBS products for installation at 11 McClatchy sites, including the 334,000-circulation flagship STAR TRIBUNE of Minneapolis.

McClatchy is buying PBS's MediaPlus Circulation Management, ListMatching, Insert Management and InSight, as well as training services. The newspaper group said the selection was made by circulation and information systems representatives from the newspapers, and that going with one supplier for 11 sites would enable it to more easily share good marketing and business practices among its papers.

PBS is on the Web at http://www.pbs.com/.

TRENDWATCH
TrendWatch, a monitor of the graphic arts industry based in Harrisville, R.I., has released results of a survey about speed -- telecommunications connections, that is -- which finds that there's no real rush to get faster links to the Internet.

The largest group of respondents saying they'll adopt ISDN, T-1 or T-3 service during 1999 comprises designers (37 percent), followed by agencies (25 percent), corporate designers (18 percent), commercial photographers (11 percent) and publishers (six percent).

For more about the TRENDWATCH CREATIVE REPORT NO. SIX, visit TrendWatch on the Web at http://www.trendwatch.com/.

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COLE'S NEWSWIRE is compiled by Pete Wetmore and distributed by The Cole Group, publishers of THE COLE PAPERS and NEWSINC., and consultants to newspapers and magazines worldwide. To receive more information about The Cole Group, send e-mail to: info@colegroup.com.

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