Prepress
callas software launches 6th generation of pdfToolbox
Tuesday 10. July 2012 - Today, callas software releases the 6th generation of its preflight champion pdfToolbox. This new version includes innovative and unique new features including process plans and many other enhancements such as color remapping and increased process stability. The server version of pdfToolbox 6 now allows network-enabled setup and offers support for load-balancing through a dispatcher.
callas pdfToolbox, today’s easiest yet most powerful PDF preflight and correction application, fixes problem files during preflight or with a click of the button in the Switchboard. Flattening transparency, converting fonts to outlines, inserting trim and bleed boxes to match printer marks, converting office documents or even PostScript files directly into PDF, comparing versions of PDF files, visualizing ink coverage, … no job is too difficult. The previous version already featured full 64-bit support and included significant performance improvements such as a new batch feature to easily process complete folders of files, a visual compare feature to find differences between PDF files and an extended document conversion feature. With the release of pdfToolbox 6, callas software demonstrates why it is the leading developer of PDF technology for publishing, print production and document archiving.
pdfToolbox 6 brings important enhancements for the whole pdfToolbox family
One of the most important new features in callas pdfToolbox 6 is ‘process plans’. This feature allows building logic into profiles and makes it possible to combine sequences of steps in a single profile. A step may be a preflight check, an imposition task, a correction, etc. Combining them into a single profile allows you e.g. to create a report or to perform a file conversion only if previously checked conditions are met. This unique new feature gives you even more flexibility – in previous version all fix-ups were executed first and then preflight checks were run.
Thanks to this new feature, it is easy to create a profile that actually is a combination of various steps to be executed and then adapt the order of the steps to the specific needs of the sequence. The execution of a processing step can be done in response to the results of previous steps. A detailed result view shows you how actions or corrections are applied while files are being processed and what the results of each step are. And most important: Process plans are not only limited to pdfToolbox Desktop but can also be used in pdfToolbox Server 6.
Another important new improvement is the color remapping function. Spot colors can now be created from process colors or can be put on PDF layers.
Other smaller enhancements are the extended checks, fixes and profiles, further increased process stability, the possibility to remove layers from a document and a new feature to create secure PDF files by locking them.
pdfToolbox Server: Network-enabled setup and management using pdfToolbox Desktop
callas pdfToolbox Desktop 6 now offers the option to connect to a local pdfToolbox Server that is running on a different machine somewhere in the local network. It is no longer necessary to export profiles from pdfToolbox Desktop in order to use them with pdfToolbox Server. There can be a direct connection between pdfToolbox Desktop 6 and one or more pdfToolbox Servers in the network so that profiles and hotfolder configurations is done with pdfToolbox Desktop while the actual processing runs on a different server. This is all done through IP-based communication and allows you to easily manage automation within a local network.
Support for load-balancing through dispatcher
It is even possible to perform load-balancing through a new ‘dispatcher’ mode that pdfToolbox can be used in. When pdfToolbox 6 is used as a dispatcher, as many ‘satellites’ as required can connect to it. A satellite is basically a regular server that will process files, the dispatcher on the other hand is a server that doesn’t process files itself but instead receives files in its job folders and sends them to the satellites to have them processed. In other words, the dispatcher has the jobs defined on it and distributes the work that needs to be done. This allows for load balancing as well as for fail over configurations so that processing does not stop even if one of the satellites is switched off.
Prices and availability
callas pdfToolbox 6 is available as of today and comes in two versions:
pdfToolbox Desktop for manual processing as a plug-in within Adobe Acrobat or standalone. Starts at 499 EUR. An upgrade from pdfToolbox 5 costs 199 EUR and an upgrade from pdfToolbox 4 costs 299 EUR.
pdfToolbox Server for fully automated, hands-off processing starts at 3999 EUR. pdfToolbox Dispatcher is available for 1999 EUR.