Technology Audit XyEnterprise XPP 7.2
Description
Written by Mike Davis, June 2003 TA000269DMP Technology Infrastructure Butler Group Subscription Services Document Publishing TECHNOLOGY AUDIT XyEnterprise XPP 7.2 Abstract XML Professional Publisher (XPP) is a formatting and pagination application that facilitates the rapid publication of high quality documents, in large volumes, using batch or interactive modes, with significant automation. Content, whether from enterprise systems or desktop applications, (including graphics), can be automatically processed for output on paper, in electronic form, or made ready for a professional printing process. It is ideally suited for use within organisations that produce high volumes of structured documents to tight deadlines. This is a professional publishing tool for use by editors and compositors. The potential returns are through allowing publishers to deliver more quickly and more flexibly, and enabling these skilled people to spend more time on the creative elements of their work, adding more value. The key strength is the adoption of the XML/SGML standards, these are highly developed Markup languages adopted by the publishing world, with a clear road map. Butler Group believes that XPP can deliver demonstrable value in a wide range of organisations. KEY FINDINGS 19 years of product Can automatically publish to development and experience. multiple channels. XPP will not make a secretary Perception as a ‘niche’ a compositor, ...
Informations
| Publié par | Enna |
| Nombre de lectures | 26 |
| Langue | English |
Extrait
Written by Mike Davis, June 2003
TA000269DMP
Butler Group Subscription Services
Technology Infrastructure
Document Publishing
TECHNOLOGY
AUDIT
XyEnterprise
XPP 7.2
Abstract
XML Professional Publisher (XPP) is a formatting and pagination application
that facilitates the rapid publication of high quality documents, in large
volumes, using batch or interactive modes, with significant automation.
Content,
whether
from
enterprise
systems
or
desktop
applications,
(including graphics), can be automatically processed for output on paper, in
electronic form, or made ready for a professional printing process. It is
ideally suited for use within organisations that produce high volumes of
structured documents to tight deadlines. This is a professional publishing
tool for use by editors and compositors. The potential returns are through
allowing publishers to deliver more quickly and more flexibly, and enabling
these skilled people to spend more time on the creative elements of their
work, adding more value. The key strength is the adoption of the XML/SGML
standards, these are highly developed Markup languages adopted by the
publishing world, with a clear road map. Butler Group believes that XPP can
deliver demonstrable value in a wide range of organisations.
KEY FINDINGS
19 years of product
development and experience.
Can automatically publish to
multiple channels.
XPP will not make a secretary
a compositor, publishing skills
are still required.
Perception as a ‘niche’
offering, rather than a widely
applicable tool.
Key:
Product Strength
Product Weakness
Point of Information
LOOK AHEAD
Key opportunities for the product are for outsourced publishing teams, and
the provision of content as Web services. But, even relatively small
organisations, which produce large volumes of structured documentation,
such as IT companies, could find value, and potentially save publication
costs, by deploying XPP internally.
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FUNCTIONALITY
Publishing has historically been seen as a mysterious process. It has been the
province of typesetters, compositors, and editors, who worked some magic,
and obviously put in a significant amount of skill and effort, to format the text
or pictures, whether originally hand written, typed, or electronic in form, into a
presentable printed document. This was then formatted to a page size, with
margins in the correct places; print of the appropriate font and size, and with
captions on the illustrations. The majority of the work undertaken by these
skilled people is, however, laborious and repetitive. It is time consuming,
requires significant attention to detail, but is of relatively low added value to
the document production process, particularly where the document is of a
defined structure, for example, a reference manual or journal. The reality is
that each edition or update is effectively a bespoke publication. As a result the
publication process has come to be regarded as both expensive and slow.
Desktop tools, such as Microsoft Word and Publisher, have given many people
the ability to create reasonably good looking content and to publish it quickly,
but not necessarily of the final output quality that will reflect well on the
organisation, and not necessarily in a secure and controlled manner. The
development of the Portable Document Format (PDF) specification by Adobe,
with its freely available reader, has provided a method of preventing the
published document from being changed, but the quality of the document and
adherence to a defined style is the responsibility of the person in publishing.
Content Management Systems (CMS) have also improved both versioning
control, and access to documentation, but again a CMS cannot manage the final
document quality. In parallel, the rapid adoption of the Internet has created the
environment, and another channel, for not only the distribution of a publication
as Web pages in Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), but also for the
submission of the original content, and its creation into a published format.
None of these technologies can, however, meet the requirement of
organisations both large and small, to stabilise or reduce publishing costs,
whilst maintaining quality and reducing time for production.
Product Analysis
and Operation
XML Professional Publisher (XPP) is a pagination engine that is effective in
either batch or interactive formatting of data streams. It can accept content
from a range of sources, whether desktop word processors, graphics files, or
structured data from enterprise applications. If required, XyEnterprise or third-
party transformation tools including XSLT can be used to automatically
translate the content into Structured Generalised Markup Language/eXtensible
Markup Language (SGML/XML) format, adding tags to respective elements.
XPP then publishes the content according to appropriately defined style sheets
in multiple formats, including PDF, paper via a printer, as HTML for display on
a Web site, or as colour separations for professional print shops. When XPP
imports content that is in XML or SGML format, it preserves the structure of
the data during composition, validates the structure after interactive editing,
and uses the structure, in combination with the predefined style sheets, to
format the page and export a valid instance of the document.
In using XPP, publishing professionals define both the style sheets for the
respective forms of output, and the method for tagging input of the source
content. Once these are established, XPP can automatically accept content
delivered in batches through queues or via Web services-based interfaces, and
process this as required by the publishing professionals, delivering the output
electronically, either for hard copy or electronic output. XPP also allows and
facilitates interactive editing of the content during the production process
where appropriate.
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As each of the page elements within the XML content has been tagged on
import, it is the tags that drive the composition of the final document against
the defined style sheet. For example:
•
Titles are automatically placed.
•
Items are automatically numbered and cross-referenced.
•
Headers and footers can be automatically generated.
•
Graphics can be automatically anchored to a reference point on a page.
•
Vertical line spacing can be set automatically.
•
Rules and boxes can be automatically sized.
XPP can also automatically recognise and use graphics natively in their
respective TIF, JPEG, or EPS formats. Further, it automatically creates
hyperlinks in PDF output by using PDF marks, allowing navigation between
documents when viewed via a browser.
The distinguishing feature of XPP, as a publishing product, is in the style guides
and formats being maintained separately from the content. This concept is the
key to automated publication. Established styles are shared and maintained
within style libraries for reuse or amendment, reducing the publishing effort even
further. Additional differentiating elements of XPP are its Page Orientated
Database, its use of multiple queues, and Native XML support.
Figure 1: The Automatic Composition of a Page by XPP
XPP has a range of features to meet the demands of different vertical
publishing requirements:
Technical
•
Automated Loose-leaf processing.
•
Multilingual hyphenation in 30+ languages.
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•
Automatic creation and resolution of tables of contents, illustrations,
indices, and cross-references.
•
Compliance with CALS, ATA AECeMA, DocBook, and other industry
standards.
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Legal
•
Multi-column and multi-page footnotes.
•
End notes.
•
Loose-leaf composition.
•
Complex indices.
Financial
•
Blacklining.
•
Financial Tables.
•
EDGAR output, for financial results.
•
Compare and print changed pages.
Commercial
•
Refined control of page formatting.
•
Multiple options for formatting logic and output settings.
•
Support for process and spot colour.
Scientific, Technical, and Medical
•
Composition logic for floating graphics and tables.
•
Dynamic style bundles.
•
Support for SGML and XML.
•
Maths support, and automatic formatting of tables.
Catalogue and Directory
•
Predefined styles.
•
Database import.
•
Database update for last minute changes.
•
Page control at production.
Outsourced publishing services and those providing a print-on-demand
capability also use XPP.
Through the use of XML, XPP allows workflow to be opened to remote users
facilitating both distributed content creation and editing, and the ability to
publish to customers and consumers as Web services. The recently released
Web services toolkit exposes the
style parameters of XPP using XML
tags, allowing customised editing
interfaces to be established, so that
non-specialists
without
in-depth
knowledge of XPP can successfully
undertake
interactive
editing
if
appropriate.
Through the use of XML, XPP allows workflow to be
opened to remote users facilitating both distributed
content creation and editing, and the ability to publish
to customers and consumers as Web services.
The publishing functions of XPP can be combined to build workgroup solutions
for the collaborative creation, management, assembly, and multi-channel
delivery of information.
The architecture of XPP, and the independence of its functions, means that a
modular approach to deployment is possible. The base XPP product consists of
the server licence, a client user licence, and a set of standard software
features, which include the batch and interactive processing capabilities, the
style creation, and management environments.
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Optional publishing functions, can include:
•
Contents and Indexes processing.
•
Loose-leaf processing.
•
Math ML Processing.
•
Edgar processing (for Financial Publishers in USA).
•
Multiple Language support.
•
XPP Web services Toolkit.
These options require additional user licences.
XyEnterprise has a complimentary CMS called Content@ (pronounced
contenta), which provides functionality for the structured creation and
management of content items, which are assembled dynamically and may be
then published using XPP, or accessed by other mechanisms such as a Web
site or enterprise portal.
Product Emphasis
The key to XPP is that it streamlines publication at both creation and
distribution. The use of SGML/XML gives automated multi-channel publishing
ability, and the option for creation of content through a browser interface,
providing opportunities for outsourcing and partnership working. By separating
the style of a publication from the content, and automating steps in the
publication process, XPP not only
reduces
the
human
resource
required, it allows those specialist
staff to utilise their skills to a much
greater extent, adding value by their
creative input, rather than being
restricted by the need to undertake
repetitive, mundane processing. It
also allows organisations that would
have
previously
put
all
their
publishing to a third party to have
the
option
of
undertaking
the
process in-house.
By separating the style of a publication from the
content, and automating steps in the publication
process, XPP not only reduces the human resource
required, it allows those specialist staff to utilise their
skills to a much greater extent, adding value by their
creative input, rather than being restricted by the need
to undertake repetitive, mundane processing.
X
DEPLOYMENT
XPP has a two-tier client/server architecture. The server element can be
deployed on Microsoft Windows NT/2000 servers, Sun Solaris, or IBM AIX
platforms, and the clients can be either Microsoft Windows 98/NT/2000 or
Sun Solaris. The client is normally a desktop PC. Deployment sizes range from
2 or 3 users, up to a maximum of 30. For example, a professional typesetting
company will have 15 users, or a corporate-sized company with just 2. The
scalability of the product comes from the ability to undertake the automated
composition in a batch mode in the background, to run multiple queues, and if
required, to be deployed across multiple servers.
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Programming within XPP composition is undertaken using PERL. XyEnterprise
has its own version of the Open Source language – XyPerl, which is integrated
into the XPP product. For deployment, organisations will require an
Administrator for the system, staff with typographic skills, and knowledge of
structured data, along with the ability to use PERL and macro languages.
XyEnterprise will normally provide first line implementation and training for the
Administrator and end-users. Training will either be on-site or classroom-based
as appropriate. Deployment times range from two weeks to two months,
depending upon the complexity of the publication, with subsequent
publications taking a number of days to develop.
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Figure 2: XPP Page Production Engine
Maintenance and support is charged at 18% of the product price. Support by
XyEnterprise can be on-site, via e-mail, or telephone.
Deployment Examples
The
US Naval Surface Warfare Centre
uses XPP, plus its stable mate
Content@, to maintain and distribute the technical manuals for warships. The
warship systems and relevant documentation come from multiple suppliers, but
the content for the manuals needs to be in a standardised and consistent format.
XPP is used to automatically format the information supplied by the suppliers
and their subcontractors, significantly reducing the costs of production and
maintenance. Further, the Web services toolkit is used to allow updates to be
submitted through a browser, with the manuals updated in this manner also
being available for review via a browser. This further reduces the costs of the
publication process and makes it highly flexible in access and deployment.
X
PRODUCT STRATEGY
XPP 7.2 was released in June 2003, with the major focus being the
development of the Web services toolkit as a method for both composition and
delivery. Within the publishing arena XyEnterprise has a number of target
deployments where it believes XPP provides advantage:
•
Technical.
•
Legal.
•
Financial.
•
Commercial.
•
Scientific and Medical.
•
Catalogue and Directory.
XyEnterprise has set itself the target of being the number one company for
XML/SGML composition pagination solutions and has partnered with a number
of Value Added Resellers (VARs) to market the XPP offering.
There are also a number of specialist contractors, employed as required by
XyEnterprise and the VARs to assist in deployment.
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XPP is licensed on a server and client basis with additional charges for
optional modules. Typical project values are reported as ranging from £20,000
– £100,000, of which normally 60% is licensing cost and 40% services.
Version 7.3, to be released in late October 2003, is planned to have a range
of improvements including:
•
Improved character encoding.
•
XML Schema, namespace support.
•
XSL, XSL-FO support
•
Structured editing of segments i.e. Math, References, Authors.
•
Support for:
•
PDF graphics.
•
SVG graphics.
•
Enhanced CID and OpenType fonts.
•
Adobe’s XMP.
•
Web-based style development.
•
Enhanced Web services.
The predominant focus for development will be the Web services engine.
X
COMPANY PROFILE
XyVision started in 1984, producing Pagination Composition software (now
the company’s XPP product). XyVision Enterprise Solutions, Inc. (XyEnterprise)
was spun off from the XyVision holding company in 1999. Now privately
owned, it is headquartered in Reading, MA, US. It has 80 employees
worldwide, 68 of whom are based in the US, 10 in Europe, and 2 in Australia.
Approximately 30 employees are devoted to Research and Development, and a
similar number to Support and Services. Employee growth during the next 12
months is expected to be 10-15%.
Key business and technology partners for XPP include:
•
Interwoven.
•
Corel.
•
Knowlysis.
•
OmniMark.
•
Oracle.
•
Portaylx.
•
Pennant Information Services.
•
Computing Art Inc.
•
NTG.
•
Portalyx.
Key customers who have deployed XPP include:
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Jane’s Information Group.
•
British Medical Journal.
•
IBM Corporation (Worldwide).
•
Lexis Nexis Legal Publishing
Group.
•
Thompson Professional Publishing
(Worldwide).
•
Reed Elsevier.
•
Wolters Kluwer.
•
Jouve.
XyEnterprise states that there are approximately 250 organisations using its
products worldwide, of which 200 are using XPP.
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Xy User Group
Of important note is the Xy User Group www.xyug.org, which is independent
of XyEnterprise and has operated since 1990. It is active both in the US and
Europe, and many key clients of XyEnterprise are active participants. The User
Group currently has 130 member companies, in 15 countries, and has an
active Internet discussion group using listserv, for communication and mutual
support. The Xy User Group has an on-going dialogue with XyEnterprise on
development and functionality.
X
SUMMARY
XPP is a highly automated publishing tool for delivering high-quality,
standardised content, in XML, PostScript, or PDF, either for printing, or for
display via a browser on the Internet or an Intranet. The typographic
capabilities, the ability to program specific functions using PERL, and the
support for automated batch production, make it suitable for both large-scale
publishing houses and in-house publishing teams, scaling from 2 to 30 users.
X
CONTACT DETAILS
XyEnterprise Solutions Europe LTD.
246 Bedford Avenue
Slough, Berkshire
SL1 4RY
UK
Tel: +44 (0)1753 820565
Fax: +44 (0)1753 694944
E-mail: sales@xyenterprise.com
Corporate Headquarters
XyVision Enterprise Solutions, Inc.
30 New Crossing Road
Reading, MA 01867
USA
Tel: +1 781 756 4400
Fax: +1 781 756 4300
E-mail: info@xyenterprise.com
XyVision Enterprise Solutions –
Australia
Level One, 150 Blues Point Road
McMahons Point, NSW 2060
Australia
Tel: +61 2 9929 9022
Fax: +61 2 9929 9099
E-mail:
michael.carroll@xyenterprise.com
www.xyenterprise.com
XyVision Enterprise Solutions
S.A.R.L.
75, avenue Parmentier
75011 – Paris
FRANCE
Tel: +33 01 40 21 42 00
Fax: +33 01 40 21 24 00
E-mail:
georges.soubies@xyenterprise.com
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