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
Day: October 27, 1999
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.
