Software Imaging Announces PrintMagicXPS 2.1

The latest release of Software Imaging’s XPS rendering solution overcomes key objections to the immediate deployment of XPSDrv drivers.

Oxford , United Kingdom – May 16, 2008 – Software Imaging has announced a major update to its leading XPS raster image processor (RIP), PrintMagicXPS 2.1. This new release incorporates improvements which result in a significant performance enhancement compared with typical driver implementations and eliminates one of the biggest objections to the support of XPSDrv printing – poor legacy print speeds.

The XPS Trade-Off: Legacy or Premium Print Path Performance?

When a Microsoft Vista user prints from an application that has been designed to support Vista’s premium XPS print path, XPSDrv printer drivers deliver faster and better quality output than legacy Windows XP-based printer drivers. Users printing from XPS-ready applications or application extensions can therefore enjoy high quality, high performance XPSDrv printing.

Many printer manufacturers, however, have expressed concerns about printing from applications designed for Windows XP, which account for the vast majority of applications available on the market today (including Adobe Acrobat and Microsoft Word). When a Windows Vista user prints a document from such a “legacy” application, some XPSDrv drivers can have unacceptably slow performance. This can be the result of both the conversion layer Microsoft provides between legacy applications and the new XPS print path, and the use of a poor XPS rendering solution, introducing significant delays in the time it takes for the first page of a job to print and an overall increase in total print time.

As a result, manufacturers have believed (until now) that the deployment of XPSDrv drivers results in slower print speeds for most end-users and have therefore chosen not to deploy XPS.

Fortunately, Software Imaging has demonstrated this to be a non-issue with XPSDrv drivers incorporating PrintMagicXPS 2.1.

Breaking Barriers to XPS Adoption

XPSDrv drivers built using the latest version of PrintMagicXPS do not suffer the performance problems of other XPSDrv drivers and provide legacy printing performance rivaling that of native Windows XP printing. PrintMagicXPS 2.1’s enhanced Open Packaging Convention (OPC) support allows files to start printing as soon as the first page is received, while the job is still being spooled from the application.

In like-for-like comparisons with printer manufacturers’ GDI/DDI drivers, the new PrintMagicXPS-based drivers produced faster output than ever before and introduced no delay before the user gets the first pages of their print job .

This means that printer manufacturers no longer have to delay the deployment of XPSDrv drivers and can now plan the strategic replacement of their legacy Windows XP-based drivers without forcing users to accept poor print performance from their favorite legacy applications.

“XPS is a great technology and offers exceptional output quality and color fidelity. These benefits don’t have to come at the expense of legacy print performance, even when printing from legacy applications,” explains Jon Williams, Group Product Manager for Software Imaging. “This new release of PrintMagicXPS makes XPS a viable strategic option for printer manufacturers by eliminating a crucial barrier to XPS adoption - we’re extremely pleased to make it available.”

Higher Output Fidelity & Auto Hairline Features

In addition to enhanced OPC support, PrintMagicXPS 2.1 incorporates new “aliasing” algorithms that provide faster and better font and line reproduction in its print output, leading to crisp font reproduction and better readability of output than alternate solutions.

PrintMagicXPS also offers a new optional feature called Auto Hairline which delivers better quality output for CAD-type applications. In situations where fine lines and details drop to a “sub-pixel” level for a given resolution, Auto Hairline ensures that the lines are correctly reproduced in the output - a critical requirement for engineering and architectural solutions where no elements of a diagram can afford to be lost.

PrintMagicXPS is delivered as a Software Development Kit (SDK) and is ideal for integration into XPS workflow applications, Microsoft Vista premium-signed XPSDrv drivers, and standalone XPS RIP solutions. The PrintMagicXPS SDK is available immediately to software developers and printer manufacturers worldwide.

For more information visit softwareimaging.com/xps or visit us at the Canon booth (Hall 8a, Booth B46) at Drupa 2008 for a live demonstration (www.drupa.de).

About Software Imaging

Software Imaging is well respected as one of the most influential and reliable technology providers in the print and imaging industry.

For over twenty years the company has been at the forefront of global innovation in printing and imaging software, delivering significant time-to-market and cost advantages to customers through its Printer Driver Technologies, Embedded Systems, Mobile Printing Toolkits, and Specialty Applications. With the launch of Windows Vista, Software Imaging continues to work with Microsoft on the new XPS document format .

Headquartered in the UK with offices worldwide, Software Imaging licenses technology to the world's largest suppliers of printers, digital copiers and mobile phones.

Join Our Mailing List

Receive notifications by e-mail of Software Imaging announcements, including newsletters and press releases.

Privacy Statement

Thank you, your submission was received successfully.

Contact Us

Software Imaging
9400 Garsington Road
Oxford Business Park
Oxford OX4 2HN
United Kingdom

TEL   FAX  EMAIL

+44 (0) 1865 786000 +44 (0) 1865 786001 Press Inquiries