LAYOUT : the newsletter of page design

Linotype has updated its free font management program to version 1.2.3 (build 833). The release fixes bugs and ensures that the ‘Clean System Fonts Folder’ command also works on the System folder in Mac OS X 10.5. The font auto-activation plug-in for QuarkXPress 6 has also been updated. Version 1.2.3 of FontExplorer X is Mac-only: the promised Windows edition, previously in beta, is due for an “imminent release” according to Linotype.
www.linotype.com/fontexplorerX

Badia Software has released an upgraded version of its Exportools plug-in that enhances Adobe InDesign CS3’s ability to export multiple sets of text and pictures from page layouts to other formats in one go. The plug-in now exports to SVG, INX (InDesign Interchange) and version CS3 INDD files, as well as PS, EPS, PDF, JPEG and TXT. Exportools 2.0 can also export just the objects you have specifically selected in a layout, and can be set up to open the exported files automatically in their default applications. $99.99, Mac only (Tiger or Leopard).
www.badiasoftware/IDproducts/id_exportools

Markzware has launched PUB2ID 1.5, the first full release of its plug-in that lets you open Microsoft Publisher documents in Adobe InDesign. Prior to the launch, the plug-in underwent a good deal of public beta testing. PUB2ID 1.5 supports Microsoft Publisher 2002-2007 documents, and works with InDesign CS2 and CS3. Mac and Windows, £139.
www.markzware.com

XChange International has bundled together four professional-class plug-ins for Adobe InDesign CS2 or CS3 and cut their combined price in half. The InDesign PRO Plug-in Pack comprises Markzware Q2ID (full price £139), DTP Tools Page Control (full price £35), SoftCare Overset Manager (full price 65) and Cacidi LiveBrowse (full price £59). At their full prices, the four plug-ins together cost £298; purchased in this pack, they cost £149. Cryptically, XChange International says that the offer will only run for a limited time but fails to say exactly how long that is.
www.xchangeuk.com/vstore/store/detail/IDPPIPB0M01

Markzware has begun shipping version 3 of its ID2Q XTension that allows QuarkXPress 6 and 7 to open Adobe InDesign documents. An earlier update in June added Universal Binary compatibility with the Intel Mac edition of QuarkXPress 7, and this latest version 3 allows you to open InDesign CS3 files. £139 new, £79 upgrade, Mac and Windows.
www.markzware.com/id2q

InfoLogic has updated MathMagic Pro Edition, its WYSIWYG maths equation editor for Adobe InDesign, to version 5.6. The update includes a plug-in that works with Adobe InDesign CS3, and offers a few changes and bug-fixes. Mac and Windows.
www.mathmagic.com/product/pro.html

Badia Software has released a free XTension that lets you duplicate items on a QuarkXPress page by holding down the Option key and dragging with the mouse, in a similar way to Adobe InDesign. Badia DragNCopy 2.0 is designed for QuarkXPress 7 on the Mac only.
www.badiasoftware.com/products/freebies.html

Markzware has released version 3 of QuarkXPress to InDesign (Q2ID), a plug-in that makes it possible to import QuarkXPress files into Adobe InDesign. This latest release lets you import version 3.3 through to 7.x Quark files, opening them up using Adobe InDesign CS3. £139 (€199) full version, £59 (€99) upgrade.
www.markzware.nl/q2id

Further to Monday’s mention of the beta, Badia has now officially released version 3.5 of OpenNow Pro for InDesign CS3. Like its QuarkXPress XTension equivalent, the plug-in lets you call up comprehensive information about placed pictures, and quickly open the image file in any program you want. It’s a useful little product but seems pricey at $44.99. Mac only.

Badia Software has released a public of beta of an updated version of its OpenNow Pro plug-in for InDesign. The plug-in provides extra information about linked images in a layout. The 3.5b update supports Adobe InDesign CS3. Mac only.
www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/32780