MacPublisher
Encyclopedia
MacPublisher was the first Desktop Publishing
program for the Apple Macintosh, introduced in 1984, the same year that Apple introduced the Macintosh. DTP competitors Ready,Set,Go!
and Aldus PageMaker were introduced in 1985 when Apple delivered the 512K Macintosh.
MacPublisher was developed by Bob Doyle (inventor) and distributed by Boston Software Publishers.
Built on graphics primitives like QuickDraw
that Bill Atkinson
had originally developed for the Apple Lisa
computer, MacPublisher included WYSIWYG
layout for multi-column text and graphics. QuickDraw was incorporated in the Pascal
toolbox for the new Macintosh and had been the basis for MacPaint
.
The Desktop Publishing industry exploded in the year 1985 with the introduction of the Apple LaserWriter
printer in January and in July the 512K "Big Mac" and Aldus
Corporation's PageMaker, which rapidly became the DTP industry standard software.
It was Paul Brainerd
, Aldus' chairman, who gave the industry the name "desktop publishing." MacPublisher had been called "electronic publishing," after the industry then led by Atex Corporation, of which Brainerd had been a vice president.
MacPublisher was the first non-Apple application program to print in color on the ImageWriter II. It introduced spot color
to desktop publishing. MacPublisher III was the first DTP program to rotate text and graphics, using a table look-up for the necessary sine functions in one-degree increments.
MacPublisher builds a page differently than PageMaker and ReadySetGo do; instead of creating an actual image of the page with all the text and graphics, MacPublisher created a page mockup that contains only rectangles that represent the location and size of text and graphic elements, and stored the elements as special text and picture files that you edit separately from the page layout. MacPublisher rebuilds a page whenever it changes. The company says it took this approach to allow creation of master pages, repeating elements, and predefined "canned" page layouts; to help prevent data loss on machines with limited memory (MacPublisher can run with as little as 128K RAM); and to facilitate the programming for the automatic table of contents and automatic page jump ("continued on page x") features. Since the page layout is independent of the text and graphic content, you can easily create publication formats you can reuse as you need them. This reusable formats feature can be especially useful for creating catalogs or other publications in which you want the format to remain the same but in which you need to update or replace information on a regular basis. MacPublisher features either automatic or manual kerning to correct printer spacing idiosyncrasies.
MacPublisher included unusual desktop accessories such as a scissor tool to cut columns of text and paste the remainder into another page, a camera tool for capturing graphics from MacPaint, and a see-through ruler that could be moved around the page for measurements.
MacPublisher was sold in 1986 to Esselte
Letraset
, whose business in press-down dry transfer
lettering was evaporating with competition from laser printers, notably Apple's pioneering LaserWriter
printer. It was briefly sold as LetraPage, but dropped from the market when Letraset subsequently acquired Ready,Set,Go!
from Manhattan Graphics.
Desktop publishing
Desktop publishing is the creation of documents using page layout software on a personal computer.The term has been used for publishing at all levels, from small-circulation documents such as local newsletters to books, magazines and newspapers...
program for the Apple Macintosh, introduced in 1984, the same year that Apple introduced the Macintosh. DTP competitors Ready,Set,Go!
Ready,Set,Go!
Ready,Set,Go! is a software package for desktop publishing. It was originally developed for Apple Computer's Macintosh by Manhattan Graphics, and it was one of the earliest desktop publishing packages available for that platform...
and Aldus PageMaker were introduced in 1985 when Apple delivered the 512K Macintosh.
MacPublisher was developed by Bob Doyle (inventor) and distributed by Boston Software Publishers.
Built on graphics primitives like QuickDraw
QuickDraw
QuickDraw is the 2D graphics library and associated Application Programming Interface which is a core part of the classic Apple Macintosh operating system. It was initially written by Bill Atkinson and Andy Hertzfeld. QuickDraw still exists as part of the libraries of Mac OS X, but has been...
that Bill Atkinson
Bill Atkinson
Bill Atkinson is an American computer engineer and photographer. Atkinson worked at Apple Computer from 1978 to 1990. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of California, San Diego, where Apple Macintosh developer Jef Raskin was one of his professors...
had originally developed for the Apple Lisa
Apple Lisa
The Apple Lisa—also known as the Lisa—is a :personal computer designed by Apple Computer, Inc. during the early 1980s....
computer, MacPublisher included WYSIWYG
WYSIWYG
WYSIWYG is an acronym for What You See Is What You Get. The term is used in computing to describe a system in which content displayed onscreen during editing appears in a form closely corresponding to its appearance when printed or displayed as a finished product...
layout for multi-column text and graphics. QuickDraw was incorporated in the Pascal
Pascal (programming language)
Pascal is an influential imperative and procedural programming language, designed in 1968/9 and published in 1970 by Niklaus Wirth as a small and efficient language intended to encourage good programming practices using structured programming and data structuring.A derivative known as Object Pascal...
toolbox for the new Macintosh and had been the basis for MacPaint
MacPaint
MacPaint was a bitmap-based graphics painting software program developed by Apple Computer and released with the original Macintosh personal computer on January 22, 1984. It was sold separately for US$195 with its word processor counterpart, MacWrite. MacPaint was notable because it could generate...
.
The Desktop Publishing industry exploded in the year 1985 with the introduction of the Apple LaserWriter
LaserWriter
The LaserWriter was a laser printer with built-in PostScript interpreter introduced by Apple in 1985. It was one of the first laser printers available to the mass market...
printer in January and in July the 512K "Big Mac" and Aldus
Aldus
Aldus Corporation, named after the 15th-century Venetian printer Aldus Manutius, was the inventor of the groundbreaking PageMaker software, a program that is generally credited with creating the desktop publishing field. The company was founded by Jeremy Jaech, Mark Sundstrom, Mike Templeman,...
Corporation's PageMaker, which rapidly became the DTP industry standard software.
It was Paul Brainerd
Paul Brainerd
Paul Brainerd is a pioneer in the field of computer-aided editing, design and publishing. Born in Medford, Oregon, to Phil and VerNatta Brainerd, Paul Brainerd attended the University of Oregon where he was the editor for the school's paper, the Oregon Daily Emerald...
, Aldus' chairman, who gave the industry the name "desktop publishing." MacPublisher had been called "electronic publishing," after the industry then led by Atex Corporation, of which Brainerd had been a vice president.
MacPublisher was the first non-Apple application program to print in color on the ImageWriter II. It introduced spot color
Spot color
In offset printing, a spot color is any color generated by an ink that is printed using a single run.The widely spread offset-printing process is composed of four spot colors: Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Key commonly referred to as CMYK...
to desktop publishing. MacPublisher III was the first DTP program to rotate text and graphics, using a table look-up for the necessary sine functions in one-degree increments.
MacPublisher builds a page differently than PageMaker and ReadySetGo do; instead of creating an actual image of the page with all the text and graphics, MacPublisher created a page mockup that contains only rectangles that represent the location and size of text and graphic elements, and stored the elements as special text and picture files that you edit separately from the page layout. MacPublisher rebuilds a page whenever it changes. The company says it took this approach to allow creation of master pages, repeating elements, and predefined "canned" page layouts; to help prevent data loss on machines with limited memory (MacPublisher can run with as little as 128K RAM); and to facilitate the programming for the automatic table of contents and automatic page jump ("continued on page x") features. Since the page layout is independent of the text and graphic content, you can easily create publication formats you can reuse as you need them. This reusable formats feature can be especially useful for creating catalogs or other publications in which you want the format to remain the same but in which you need to update or replace information on a regular basis. MacPublisher features either automatic or manual kerning to correct printer spacing idiosyncrasies.
MacPublisher included unusual desktop accessories such as a scissor tool to cut columns of text and paste the remainder into another page, a camera tool for capturing graphics from MacPaint, and a see-through ruler that could be moved around the page for measurements.
MacPublisher was sold in 1986 to Esselte
Esselte
Esselte is privately held company headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut, USA. It is a holding company, specializing in office products. It owns several companies, including Pendaflex, Leitz, Oxford, Xyron, Rapid, and an operating company also called Esselte....
Letraset
Letraset
Letraset is a company based in the Kingsnorth Industrial Estate in Ashford, Kent, UK.It is known mainly for manufacturing sheets of artwork elements which can be transferred to artwork being prepared. The name Letraset was often used to refer generically to sheets of dry transferrable lettering of...
, whose business in press-down dry transfer
Dry transfer
Dry transfer is a term used to describe decals which can be applied without the use of water or other solvent. Sometimes they are called rub-ons or rubdowns due to the method of application. The decal itself is on a backing material such as paper or plastic sheeting much like a transparency. The...
lettering was evaporating with competition from laser printers, notably Apple's pioneering LaserWriter
LaserWriter
The LaserWriter was a laser printer with built-in PostScript interpreter introduced by Apple in 1985. It was one of the first laser printers available to the mass market...
printer. It was briefly sold as LetraPage, but dropped from the market when Letraset subsequently acquired Ready,Set,Go!
Ready,Set,Go!
Ready,Set,Go! is a software package for desktop publishing. It was originally developed for Apple Computer's Macintosh by Manhattan Graphics, and it was one of the earliest desktop publishing packages available for that platform...
from Manhattan Graphics.