BlackMagic News Extra Now Available from Graphic Enterprises

North Canton, Ohio - Graphic Enterprises Inc.(GEI) recently announced an OEM agreement with Serendipity Software to offer their BlackMagic News Extra proof management system. This new product specifically addresses the automated proofing of HR screened bitmaps, prior to imaging to film or direct-to-plate. The system features Serendipity's Real Dot Technology (RDT) to produce high-quality, accurate color proofs on newsprint stock using large-format inkjet printers.

Bob Behringer, President of GEI's Prepress Division, commented, "We were so impressed with the speed and versatility of the product during the testing at one of our high-profile accounts that we decided to embrace this new technology. BlackMagic News Extra is a very exciting addition to our product line. It fills the big gap for newspaper companies who demand the matching of the press to a proof on newsprint stock. The proofs are so accurate, it's difficult to distinguish the difference between the proof and the press sheets. What amazed us was the software's ability to reproduce the actual dot from the bitmap on the proof. The proofs are sharp, color accurate, without moiré and show the true rosette pattern."

"We are delighted to be associated with Graphic Enterprises," stated Peter Skarpetis, CEO of Serendipity Software, "The company has a very strong reputation for being an innovator and seamlessly integrating solutions to meet demand. Their workflow product line, now linked with Parascan and BlackMagic, makes them the leader with a total solution under one umbrella. The News Extra version of BlackMagic is a special version of our traditional BlackMagic tailored to suit the newspaper market. Upgrades to the commercial version are available for users who demand more functionality."

The features and capabilities of BlackMagic News Extra are a great benefit to any newspaper's workflow. With BlackMagic News Extra, newspapers can obtain sign-off from their major advertisers prior to going to press without being concerned with the compensation pay-outs that are typically associated with poor match color on press.

Newspapers can also utilize BlackMagic News Extra for remote proofing. When HR screened bitmaps are sent to remote satellite printing plants, BlackMagic automatically sees the files with their naming conventions, stitches the individual plates together, applies color management using industry-compliant ICC profiles and then outputs a proof. Utilizing the autoproofing mode, proofs can be scaled and then nested together in multiples, without any manual intervention.

When final pages have text or linguistic changes for different additions, BlackMagic News Extra can simply exchange a plate for another and provide a proof. Furthermore, any plate can be any color using the Virtual Press and user-defined color reference library.

BlackMagic's core engine is server-based with unlimited Java GUI client access that runs on any Macintosh, Windows or UNIX platform. Users can simply log onto any News Extra server on their network to control production as well as adjust and update ICC profiles. The system can be configured for load balancing, printing to the first available printer when multiple printers of the same type are online. Full soft proofing capabilities are also provided with zoom, scroll and rotate functions.

Typically, in production, a broadsheet page with 60% image and 40% text coverage takes just over 3 minutes to process in the RDT mode, based on a 600dpi output to a HP 1050 using a dual 550 MHz Pentium with 256 Mbs of RAM. The FAST setting will do the same page in approximately 1 minute, 30 seconds. Rapid production is achieved by BlackMagic's internal architecture of being able to simultaneously spool, process and print different pages.

Serendipity Software, established in 1994, is a leading provider of digital proofing products for the prepress, printing, sign, poster and mapping industries. Through high quality R&D and flexibility, the company targets niche markets and produces a constant stream of product innovations. With a sustained focus on digital proofing, Serendipity strives to continue its leadership and innovation in the digital proofing arena. The company is based in Sydney, Australia.

Founded in 1975, the Presteligence Inc. prepress division specializes in sales and service of complete workflow solutions to the newspaper, commercial printing and related industries. Innovative technology and growth have allowed GEI Prepress to continually develop the product line to include scanners, workflow software and proofers. The company is based in North Canton, Ohio.

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