Month: October 1999 (Page 1 of 12)

Solbright Inc. announced the release of AdSuite, an automated workflow system that provides a comprehensive and efficient infrastructure for managing the sales and production processes of Internet advertising. AdSuite offers publishers a comprehensive solution, combining newly launched AdSales Manager with AdTraffic Manager. The new AdSales Manager system provides Internet publishers with an XML-based sales automation and contract management system designed to increase efficiency and standardize communication. By providing sales managers with a dynamic and flexible workflow application, AdSales Manager helps online publishers to efficiently generate quotes, access critical contractual data, and close advertising deals. AdTraffic Manager streamlines the traffic and production process by simplifying the complex workflows required to handle rich media and online advertising. AdSales Manager provides quick access to relevant account information for the sales and production teams, establishes consistent price/value propositions, provides detailed quotes, tracks and analyzes client-buying habits, and monitors the approval and production status of specific insertion orders. AdTraffic Manager provides web publishers an automated production solution that reduces the time required to process and approve all types of online advertisements. www.solbright.com

Bitstream Inc. announced it is shipping Font Fusion, the company’s most advanced font rasterizing engine. Font Fusion provides developers with full font fidelity and high-quality typographic output at any resolution on any device, while maintaining the integrity of the original character shapes. In addition, Font Fusion performs well in memory-constrained environments. For example, a traditional Chinese font with over 13,000 characters occupies less than 0.5 MB. Font Fusion marks the convergence of Bitstream’s TrueDoc and T2K rasterizers, available in an advanced, object-oriented architecture. It is designed for operating systems, software applications, Web applications, low-resolution screen devices, multimedia servers, high-definition television screens (HDTVs), set-top boxes, continuous tone printers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), and other embedded systems and Internet appliances. Font Fusion consists of the Core Font Engine, as well as the optional Font Manager and Cache Manager. The Font Manager supports multiple fonts and font fragments, while the Cache Manager enhances overall system performance by taking advantage of memory resources. Operating systems and applications supported by Font Fusion include Macintosh, Windows, Linux, UNIX, embedded operating systems, real time operating systems, cross-platform applications, and Web (HTML) applications. Font formats supported include TrueType, Type 1, CFF/Type 2, TrueDoc portable font resources (PFRs), T2K, Font Fusion stroke (FSS) format, and embedded bitmaps. www.bitstream.com

Alchemedia, formerly known as cSafe, today announced the immediate availability of its new product, Clever Content Server. An evolution of the company’s PixSafe product, the new server software offers a complete system for protecting and sharing digital images including photos, illustrations, designs and artwork. Rather than displaying valuable images in an unprotected way, Clever Content Server allows owners of intellectual property to define the parameters under which their material may be used. The result is far more than enhanced protection: Clever Content Server enables Content Commercialization. Now, organizations such as movie and TV studios, global Web publishers and stock photography agencies can safely and profitably promote the distribution and sale of their protected images and related merchandise across the Web. Requiring no change in the image production process, Clever Content Server allows the Webmaster to manage authorizations using Clever Content Manager, indicating which pages or images are to be protected and in what configuration. The free Clever Content Viewer supports both Windows and Macintosh browsers, and is implemented as an Active X Control for Microsoft Internet Explorer and a SmartUpdate Plug-in for Netscape Navigator. On the Web, the process follows a simple pattern: www.alchemedia.com

Inso Corp. said its board had authorized the management of the electronic publishing company to pursue the sale of its product data management (PDM) division. The company said in a statement that the board also had approved a restructuring plan designed to reduce the PDM Division’s operating costs, while retaining its technical assets and customer service and support infrastructure pending the sale of the division. The company said it had begun discussions with several potential acquirers regarding the possible purchase of the PDM Division and had identified interested parties. The restructuring plan is expected to result in a charge of $5.4 million, of which about $2 million is non-cash, in the third fiscal quarter ending Oct.31. The company also expects to take a charge in the third fiscal quarter for the write-down of intangible assets and capitalized software costs attributable to the PDM division ranging from $15 million to $20 million. www.inso.com

Cascade Systems Inc. announced its intention to acquire U.K.-based MidSystem Technology Limited. The agreement, which the companies expect to be completed by the end of November, calls for engineering and marketing staffs to be combined and MidSystem products to be integrated into the Cascade Media Publishing Solution and the Cascade Merchant Publishing Solution. MidSystem Technology Limited, founded in 1991 and located in Aylesbury, UK, is a software developer and systems integrator in workflow management and database solutions for publishing and multimedia applications. Cascade Systems Inc. provides e-merchandising and asset management solutions. Cascade enables merchants and media companies to maximize their customer relationships by bridging the worlds of print and electronic media. www.cascadenet.com.

Constructw@re, is an ASP delivering enterprise-wide project management solutions for the construction industry. As more companies access wide area networks to deploy more personal computers and wireless devices than ever before, Constructw@re is evolving with powerful technology, including XML, to provide online applications that simplify how business gets done. Constructw@re is currently used to manage more than 1100 projects across the nation by companies such as Brasfield & Gorrie, Heery International, J.A. Jones, Inc. and Pepper Construction. The list of million-dollar construction projects includes the Freddie Mac in Virginia; Fort Collins Military Base in Colorado; and a Las Vegas condo development. This November, Constructw@re plans to release a major upgrade to the company’s core Internet-based product using XML-enabled technology. www.constructware.com

SRI International announced that it worked with Sun Microsystems, Inc. to produce a suite of free software tools for developing standards-based educational content. Announced by Sun, these tools generate documents in XML and utilize the Instructional Management System (IMS) specification for creating and integrating content, platforms, and tools for educational settings. Working closely with SRI International’s Center for Technology in Learning (CTL), Sun created the toolkit using Java technology for free distribution to IMS members and the educational community. IMS is a standards body consisting of universities; platform vendors, such as Sun; and instructional software tool companies. For more information about this developers’ toolkit or to obtain the free code, please visit , http://www.sri.com