Quark (http://www.quark.com) made two
announcements at the IFRA in Vienna, Austria,
including the introduction of Automation Services
for Quark Dynamic Publishing Solution (Quark
DPS). The updates announced today are built into
Quark Publishing System (QPS), a core component
of Quark DPS. New Automation Services allow users
to automate routine manual publishing tasks and
enhance XML support throughout the publishing
process.

Automation Services automate routine publishing
tasks and increase XML support throughout the
publishing process to enable the efficient
delivery of content across print and digital
media from one source, according to the folks at
Quark.

Automation Services enables producers of
richly-designed communications and technical
publications to overcome dependency on
programmers and labor-intensive manual tasks,
resulting in reduced costs and faster delivery of
content across print and digital media, says PG
Bartlett, senior vice president of product
management for Quark. He adds that the services
also allows users to:

° Automate XML multi-channel publishing --
predefined functions in QPS now automate the
conversion of formats for content creation
(QuarkXPress, XML) to formats for content
delivery (HTML, PDF, XML, and other digital
formats).

° Automate print-to-web publishing -- it provides
out-of-the-box integration with Drupal Web
Content Management System for content repurposing
to the web;

° Integration with Quark XML Author -- users can
integrate content created with Quark XML Author
into QuarkXPress files and the Quark DPS
workflow.

Automation Services also integrates with Altova
MapForce, a XML mapping and conversion tool.
MapForce integration helps multi-channel
publishers work with varied content formats by
translating: XML into HTML for digital
publishing; QuarkXPress print layouts for digital
publishing; and XML to print pages via
QuarkXPress .

In addition, Quark introduced new QPS Portal
Services, an application program interface (API)
to QPS that allows developers to build web-based
extensions. Organizations that manage complex
creative and editorial processes with widely
dispersed workforces -- such as large marketing
departments or newspaper and magazine publishers
-- may need to customize their editorial system.
With QPS Portal Services, which is an API, system
integrators and in-house developers can build Web
applications that adapt to any publisher's
specific workflow requirements to allow users to
create, review, approve, and report content from
anywhere, anytime, says Barlett.

Additional capabilities that are new to QPS include:

° Article shapes -- standard, reusable shapes
that allow a user to write copy that fits into a
text box independent of a particular layout;

° Centralized QuarkXPress libraries -- all users
can work from the same shared library of reusable
items using QuarkXPress libraries that are
centrally managed in QPS;

° XTensions for Creative Suite 4 -- users can
work with both QuarkXPress and QuarkCopyDesk and
Adobe® InDesign and InCopy®within one workflow
system.
Quark is showcasing the new features and
functionality of Quark DPS at IFRA in booth #A210
from October 12-15.