October 21, 2002
PDF Magic Professional 1.0 Now Shipping!
Orlando, FL – Acro-Works Software (a division of Acro-Works, Inc) is
pleased to announce the official release of their newest software, PDF
Magic. Used for automating the process of creating interactive,
multi-media, PDF files; PDF Magic shatters the mold for PDF automation by
introducing an entirely new approach for creating multi-page, interactive
PDF documents.
Previously, when attempting to save time while building complex,
link-filled PDF files, it has been necessary to buy a plug-in (an add-on
for an already owned application) for either Adobe Acrobat, or for the
layout
application in which a source document (that will become the PDF) is
created. Each approach has its drawbacks. An Acrobat plug-in to add links
or transitions works only post-distillation (i.e. after the source file has
been converted to a PDF). Consequently, all the work needs to be repeated
each time that changes / revisions are made to the source file, and the
file is then distilled to a new PDF. A plug-in for a layout application
works only for that application, a serious flaw in today’s wired world
where PDF is rapidly becoming the format of choice, and companies need to
produce PDF files from many diverse programs including layout, word
processing, and even slide-show applications.
PDF Magic is a stand-alone application that converts Adobe Illustrator and
Adobe Photoshop EPS files into EPS files that Acro-Works has dubbed “Magic
Link Graphics”, which contain all of the desired settings for a link the
creator wishes to have in a PDF file. This Link Graphic can then be placed
into any file that can place an EPS graphic. This includes all layout
applications, major word processor applications, most slide-show and
presentation applications, and many others. Once this file has been
converted to a PDF by Acrobat Distiller, those links are present,
activated, and pre-configured =8A as if by Magic!
As Acro-Works Founder and CEO, R. J. Sinclair explains, “I wanted to
convert a sixty-four page catalog (that had been laid out to go to press)
into a PDF file for electronic distribution. Every catalog I’ve seen, for a
company with a web site, has the URL (the web address) on every page. Those
URLs should, of course, be clickable links that will take the viewer to the
site. Manually going through each page, and building those web links one at
a time, by hand, was unacceptable. Spending hundreds of dollars on a
plug-in (for Acrobat) to save twenty to thirty percent of that time was
also unacceptable; especially when I realized that every time the source
file was updated and run through Acrobat Distiller, I’d have to do it all
over again. Buying a plug-in for my layout application was also out of the
question because I make PDF files from about a dozen different programs;
and that would add up to thousands of dollars =8A if they were even availabl=
e
for all the programs I use.”
What Mr. Sinclair wanted – a way to put the links into nearly any kind of
source file, especially layout files, (where they could be placed just once
on a Master Page, making them appear on every page) – just didn’t seem to
exist. So he decided to build one for himself. When other designers heard
about his system, and realized that it could save as much as ninety-five
percent of the time necessary to build complex, active PDF files, they
wanted to get in on it as well.
Following in the footsteps of so many all-American entrepreneurs who have
come before him, he decided to start a company and sell the system to
anyone who needed it. PDF Magic was the result.
In addition to the application for making Link Graphics, the system also
includes a set of 160 Transition Graphics that allow a designer to build
flashy page transitions like Wipes, Splits and Dissolves into any PDF file.
Like the Link Graphics, Transition Graphics can be placed in any source
file that can place an EPS. Once that file has been converted to a PDF (via
Acrobat Distiller), the transitions simply appear =8A as if by Magic! This
enables the creation of PDF slide-shows that are small, clean, reliable,
and viewable in the free Acrobat Reader, on nearly every platform in
existence. The system also includes a set of 32 View Graphics (again,
placed in the source file) that will cause the PDF to open automatically at
a particular View (e.g. Fit In Window, Full Screen, etc.).
Early responses from customers have been exceptionally positive, and
include such comments as:
“It’s like waving a magic wand.”
“It’s taken all of the drudgery out.”
“I’ve never had a slide show presentation go so well, as when using one
built with PDF Magic. Even the client who saw it was impressed, and kept
commenting on how smoothly it played, and that it didn’t ‘break’ even once.”
PDF Magic Professional 1.0 includes:
* PDF Magic 1.0
* 160 Transition Graphics
* 32 View Graphics
* Over 600 Ready-To-Use Source Graphics (to be converted to Link
Graphics)
* 2 User Guides in PDF format (one designed for on-screen use, and
one formatted to be printed)
* FREE Upgrades for the life of the product *
Price: $195.00 per copy
(site license discounts and educational discounts are available, see web
site for contact info.)
For more information, visit the web site at: http://www.pdfmagic.com