Quark has shared details of the upcoming release of QuarkXPress 2019, this year’s iteration of its page layout software that’s due to arrive this summer.
QuarkXPress started off as a print design tool but over the years has had to add different types of layout to cope with digital media. This latest version gains another new layout space, Flex Layouts, for working with responsive HTML5 web pages in a WYSIWYG environment. It can be used to create banner ads, landing pages, microsites and so on without designers having to learn HTML or CSS coding skills. It can include native HTML5 and CSS3 effects such as drop shadows, gradients, vector shapes and video. It can output responsive HTML5 that can cope with any device aspect ratio, including desktop, tablet and mobile phone screens, and designers will be able to test this responsiveness within QuarkXPress 19. Quark says that its HTML5 output will comply with emerging web standards.
Quark has also rethought its approach to tables with a new table model that comes with new styling rules for table, row, column and cell level formatting along with text styling rules. Table styles can be applied to any table regardless of whether they have been created directly in QuarkXPress or auto-imported from Excel. Excel tables can be linked so that if the data changes in Excel then it is automatically updated in QuarkXPress without affecting the table design. The table styles can be accessed directly from the Measurement Palette, which should offer complete control down to the cell level as well as the ability to format borders and add shading.
This new version also gains support for the latest PDF Print Engine as well as the ability to import InDesign IDML files. It’s also possible to export designs as image files, such as JPEG, TIFF or PNG, which will be handy for creating banner images and logos. Another new feature is a spring-loaded cursor, which lets you select multiple image or text files and import them into existing boxes.
Chris Hickey, Quark’s Chief Executive Officer, commented: “With QuarkXPress 2019, Quark continues to remove the boundaries between print and digital design. Whether it be interactive iPad apps, web publications, eBooks, professional print and now responsive web pages, designers can seamlessly transition their skills, content and design for multi-channel publishing, all within one, unified toolset.”
Anyone buying the current 2018 version will be able to get a free update to 2019 when it ships (the 2019 software, that is, not the year itself; you’re stuck with Trump, Brexit and all the other stuff covered in the daily news that you’d all like to avoid). QuarkXPress 2019 only runs under 64-bit and will require either Mac OS 10.12, or Windows 8.1 or later. You can find more details on the new features from www.quark.com.
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