Day: June 20, 2008

Paperless Proofs: the way forward?

~ Eoin Purcell ~ Leave a comment

Eoin Purcell

I was in Edinburgh on Wednesday
At the Scottish Publishing Centre for a training course in proofing. I really enjoyed the course as I needed the direction. The tutor was Barbara Horn who was incredibly friendly, very good at what she did and very efficient too. I really learned a hell of a lot.

The reason I bring it up is because, during our lunch break, Barbara showed us an very very exciting new program called Paperless Proofs.

The basic idea is to take the paper out of the proofing process and make the entire editorial workflow, digital. I like what it has to offer and I thought it worth posting about.

My only concern is that if one is going to proof online, why not cut out the unnecessary stages altogether and proof in Indesign or Quark and actually make the change. Using Paperless Proofs, at least record is created though and can be filed for tracking, even if in doing so you institute a whole extra level of process.

Still, it struck me as an interesting move forward.

Ahh the weekend,
Eoin

Blackwells Espresso Deal

~ Eoin Purcell ~ 1 Comment

Eoin Purcell

Blackwells Agree Deal for Espresso Machine Rollout
On any scale this is both interesting and a big deal. From the piece:

The deal makes Blackwell the first UK retailer to install the EBM. The academic chain will trial the machine from this autumn at a yet-to-be-determined launch site, and will then roll it out across its stores. It is also looking at possible international retail sites and library supply for the machine.

Blackwell c.e.o. Vince Gunn described the technology, the brainchild of former Random House US editorial director Jason Epstein, as “trailblazing and pioneering”. He added: “From a retailer’s point of view, even allowing for the first–generation technology and publisher challenges, this is a fantastic opportunity—sell to demand with no risk to inventory and an opportunity to create incremental revenue streams for ourselves and publishers.”

For their sakes I hope they roll it out fast and with fanfare before other steal their thunder. When you consider the customer breakdown and the likely purchases that Blackwell encompasses, you see that they are almost ideally suited as a launch customer for the Espresso in the UK!

My throat feeling slightly better and I’m rested. Lots of work next week,
Eoin