Prepress

Caldera creates freedom without compromise in landmark new version, V10

Wednesday 05. November 2014 - The tenth edition of Caldera's feature packed printer control software will liberate today's print houses through productivity, connectivity and modernity, the French developer reveals today. Leading on the freedom to develop and create dynamic new applications, V10 of the popular suite doubles previous average RIP speeds to provide printers of all sizes and types with the independence to print what they wish without having to sacrifice speed or complexity.

V10 unleashes the power of smart algorithmic processing, APPE 3.3 and new remote management capabilities within a svelte yet fully-featured new interface. Designed for ergonomy and efficiency, it allows users to streamline their screen to focus only on live tasks, while icons and markers have been standardized throughout in a modern style. Caldera’s use of HTML5 provides cross-platform, cross-OS support for remote management via new module VisualRemote which recognise the nature of today’s print room by providing different levels of off-site access to operators.
“In the latest version of Caldera, we have considered at length the way companies deploy their RIP, both now and also over the course of the product’s lifetime,” explains Caldera’s Chief Technical Officer, Frédéric Soulier. “V10 marries new usability concepts with major advances in raw speed, making it, we believe, the RIP of choice for this exciting era of applications development within and outside the graphic arts.”
Caldera’s vision of interoperability recognizes that the RIP must work in tandem with the other software business owners have researched and selected to facilitate their operations. Its new version frames task automation and data connectivity in single-click pathways from within the Ul: for example, QuickPrint allows a user to push a job to print using a preset configuration. V10 can also be used in conjunction with Caldera’s JDF toolkit, Nexio, to create connections with MIS, accounting and logistics software, enabling simplicity through advanced data management and the foundations of a unified workflow. Users may add QR Codes alongside the print, with an automated cut path where required, to facilitate this functionality.
The inclusion of APPE 3.3 marries this upgrade with the benefits of 64bit data handling. Users can now RIP massive files which, previously, were limited by a lack of onboard memory, leveraging their processor’s full active memory to provide additional efficiencies across the full job queue. Files with transparency and overprinting benefit particularly by processing consistently three times faster than previously in live production environments, although this increases to a blistering 50 times for some files.
In line with customer polling, other features have been recontextualised within Caldera to support operator logic and ease of use. Production overview tool PrintBoard – formerly an application of Variable Display – now becomes an intrinsic element of the RIP, allowing users to see job and production status at a glance through a web-based application and extending its use into the realm of remote monitoring. Smaller but nevertheless nifty features have been reallocated within the RIP; grommets and eyelets can be added to artwork from within the Print module, while advanced wall graphics visualisation is accessible through a new Tiling+ module. Update notifications have been gathered in a single area and are automated, ensuring that critical updates reach the user rapidly, while, in a similar vein, profiles can be accessed from within a new library directly within EasyMedia.
Version 10 now integrates various successful modules within the heart of its interface. Contour Nesting and Tex&Repeat, which transfer printers’ skills into the textile, wallpaper, ceramics, glass, wood and CAD areas, are now embedded within the RIP, while PrintBoard has been converted into a one-look browser-based snapshot of operational status, extending it beyond digital signage into the realm of remote monitoring.
“Finally, ink-jet technology is starting to realise its full potential,” explains Joseph Mergui, Chief Executive Officer, Caldera. “We can now print to more surfaces, in more situations, than ever before. The most exciting areas of print are those yet to be brought to life, but the technology required to create them starts here. For our users, that is with V10 of Caldera.”