The latest version of PageMaker is reportedly nearing completion and will include a number of features closely related to the internet along with layout techniques from QuarkXPress. PageMaker 6.5 will sport a revamped interface that reflects Adobe's renewed efforts
to create a unified look across its line of graphics tools, sources said. PageMaker 6.5's tool
palettes will be reorganized to resemble those of Photoshop. A key feature in the update will be the ability to convert PageMaker files into HTML 3.0 code and the ability to drag PageMaker documents into and from Adobe PageMill. PageMaker 6.5 will also reportedly add a new Box Mode that will let users create pages comprising a collection of text and graphics boxes, like those used in QuarkXPress.

 he next incarnation of Adobe 

Type Manager, ATM Deluxe 4.0, 

will finally earn its name when 

it ships later this summer: It 

will manage fonts in addition to 

managing font rasterizing and 

substitution. In fact, ATM's 

on-screen-type-display talents will improve in 4.0, with the addition of anti-aliasing. But it's the font-management features of ATM Deluxe 4.0 that most distinguish this version from previous ones. Like Suitcase, version 4.0 will find and list all available fonts on your system, both Type 1 and TrueType. It will also let users drag and drop fonts into sets that can be turned on and off. Unlike Suitcase, or even Master Juggler, when you open a document containing fonts that are on your hard disk but aren't currently active, ATM will automatically activate them. And when you close the document, ATM will deactivate those fonts.

Claris have jumped onto the Web page creation band-wagon and will soon release the originally titled Claris HomePage. From early comparison between Claris’ new application and the shortly to be updated PageMill, Claris seem to have the upper-hand. HomePage allows you to create tables and frames from within the program. A public pre-release test version is available now from Claris’ Web Site: http://www.claris.com/

Fractal Design are currently preparing Expressions, a program which combines natural media technologies with traditional vector graphics. All the illustration tools you would expect will be there including Bézier curves, the ability to skew, layering features and text manipulation tools. Artists will be able to create complex images quickly by converting any part of a drawing into a stroke. Expressions will be available at the end of August for £299 + VAT.

PointCast Inc. will be demonstrating the Mac client for its PointCast Network, at MacWorld Expo in Boston. The Internet application and Web browser plug-in brings news to a user's screen. A Power Mac-only beta version is expected in the Autumn; the final version, due in both Power Mac and 680x0 incarnations, will ship later this year. Financed by advertising, the PointCast service and software are free to end users.