PTC Arbortext Advanced Print Publisher: Case Study
Canadian National Research Council
The National Research Council (NRC) has a requirement for a Software Solution that will support the production functions related to the publishing of NRC’s scientific and technical journals. The final solution will take valid XML files and format to match NRC’s detailed print formatting specifications and produce final print ready postscript as well as create HTML using NRC’s own XSLT. The solution will be scalable in order to handle increasing volumes of work without the need to increase support resources and customizable.
Description of the Solution
Newbook will deliver XML Publishing System Composition Software and all of the necessary installation, configuration, stylesheet development, user interface customization and database integration that will support the production functions related to the publishing of NRC’s scientific and technical journals. The XML Publishing System Composition Software proposed herein will format valid XML files to NRC’s print specification in a highly automated way, while maintaining the validity of the input XML source data throughout the process. The solution will also create HTML using NRC’s own XSLT scripts. The proposed solution is highly customizable and configurable to meet NRC’s needs.
At the core of Newbook’s solution is PTC Arbortext Advanced Print Publisher ("APP" for short), a typesetting and composition software system. APP is recognized as the de facto standard composition tool for scientific and technical publishing and it is currently in use around the world to produce journals and monographs that are typographically similar to NRC’s publications. APP is proven in the scientific and technical publishing industry to be capable of continuous, reliable operation and is able to scale to handle increasing volumes of composition work without a corresponding increase in support resources.
Some of APP’s strengths include
- Full XML support, including XML Namespace awareness and support for XPATH and XSLT
- Sophisticated table handling including complete support for the OASIS CALS table model and native table formatting that allows for more complex table layouts than are achievable through the CALS model.
- Typesetting complex mathematical expressions through support for TeX math and MathML
- An interactive environment for editing composed documents in order to perform final “touch-ups”
- A server configuration that enables high performance, high volume automated composition of PostScript and PDF
- A “toolkit” architecture that allows the software to be customized through a number of programming interfaces in order to meet virtually any publishing requirement.
Newbook’s solution does not end with the furnishing of appropriate technology. It follows through with a proven development and deployment methodology that is delivered by resources with a wealth of essential APP expertise as well as senior level programming and typographical skills. Finally, the delivery of the solution will instill a sense of ownership in the solution to the NRC through involvement of NRC resources throughout the project and through a multi-phased training program.
