XSoft Announces Significant Enhancements and Adobe Acrobat Bundle with
InContext Software

Windows-based authoring tool simplifies SGML structured document
publishing

PALO ALTO, Calif, October 31, 1994 - The XSoft division of Xerox
Corporation today announced version 2.0 of XSoft InContext, its structured
document authoring program for Windows. The new version delivers enhanced
formatting, viewing, printing, and editing capabilities, making it easier
for users to navigate and manipulate structured documents in the Standard
Generalized Markup Language (SGML). InContext 2.0 also includes a bundled
copy of the Adobe Acrobat Reader, enabling users to view and print any
document in Adobe's Portable Document Format across different computing
platforms.

Users do not need to know SGML in order to work with InContext, which is
accessed through the familiar Windows user interface and can be used as
either a stand-alone product or part of an enterprise-wide publishing
system. InContext provides full Windows 3.1 support, including Object
Linking and Embedding and Multiple Document Interface protocols. Unlike
most other SGML authoring products, InContext offers the intuitive look
and feel of a true Windows application.

Many industries worldwide are turning to SGML to structure documents and
make their information easier to manage. Because this can significantly
reduce the time and cost of document production, several influential U.S.
industry agencies have mandated the use of SGML, including the
Telecommunications Industry Forum, the Environmental Protection Agency and
the Air Transport Association. One of the most visible uses of SGML is in
the language used by the World Wide Web organization to encode information
for distribution over the Internet.

"The SGML tools market is one of the fastest growing segments of the
software industry, and the authoring tools segment of the SGML market is
outpacing total market growth by more than double," said Steve Kiser,
XSoft's vice president of development and general manager of its
publishing group. "InContext 2.0 delivers the full functionality and power
of SGML while protecting the user from the complexities of the language.
This makes it an ideal authoring solution for the numerous companies who
now need to support SGML with a minimal amount of cost, complexity and
training time."

Most SGML authoring tools force users to work with complicated SGML syntax.
InContext shields users from dealing directly with SGML by presenting
document components in a graphical format, enabling users to focus on the
content of their work.

InContext presents a simultaneous view of the Logical Editor, where the
document's structure is displayed, and the Content Editor, where users
edit text, graphics, charts, and tables. This places the two key elements
of an SGML document next to each other on a single screen for easy
reference. Because InContext makes the workings of SGML transparent,
anyone who can use a Windows word processor can use the software and
obtain all the advantages of SGML structured document publishing.

Enhanced Formatting, Viewing, Printing

InContext 2.0 provides users with style sheets that allow formatting of
several different components of a document, including page layout,
paragraph and text styles, numbering systems, and headers and footers.
Users can now view formatted documents on the screen, print them, or write
them to a Windows Write file. By providing users with greater control over
document formatting properties, InContext makes working in SGML documents
more like working in a familiar Windows application. This gives writers a
better picture of how their documents will ultimately look when produced.

New Editing and Interface Features

InContext's new editing and interface enhancements enable users to more
easily manipulate complex document structures:

* Simple Keyboard Commands. Writers can use a simple keyboard command to
create new elements, such as a chapter, paragraph, or title from within
the Content Editor. The new version also enables users to easily split and
merge existing elements; previously, these functions were only available
through separate menu commands in the Logical Editor.

* Intuitive Insertion Bar. To help users insert new elements from within
the Logical Editor, InContext 2.0 adds an intuitive insertion bar that
appears between elements in the document's structure.

* Pop-Up Error Box. For new users, InContext 2.0 provides an optional
pop-up error box feature to prevent writers from making edits that do not
satisfy the logical or attribute requirements of the DTD. Previously,
error messages appeared only in the Status Bar.

* Content View Bars. To help users navigate their documents, Content
Viewbars provide graphical indications of the Logical Editor elements that
have text boxes currently visible on the Content Editor side, and vice
versa, an important feature in typically long and complex SGML documents.

* Status Bar Help. Gives users helpful information on their current menu
selection, making it easier for users to keep track of their position in
the document.

* Improved Handling of Large Documents. InContext's internal memory
management enhancements enable users to load larger document files and
improve performance by providing faster editing, navigation, and image
"repainting" operations.

Adobe Acrobat Support

InContext 2.0 includes a bundled copy of the Adobe Acrobat Reader, which
preserves the document's format - including distinctive typefaces, page
design, color and graphical objects - even if users don't have the
software or fonts that were used to create the document. This enables
InContext users to view and print both SGML and non-SGML documents across
different computing platforms and applications.

Target Market: SGML Publishing

XSoft InContext is targeted at industries and vertical markets that are
adopting SGML as a publishing direction, including aerospace, automotive,
defense, pharmaceuticals, financial, telecommunications, computer systems,
and government agencies.

Within these information-intensive industries, SGML is rapidly becoming a
requirement for product and information suppliers because of the singular
benefits of the standard for automating information and process
management.

The Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML) is a powerful, increasingly
popular international standard for information processing. SGML applies a
verifiable structure to a document and breaks the information into
elements down to the paragraph level and even below. With a consistent
structure for tracking these information elements and the relationships
between them, users can fully automate the assembly, disassembly,
modification and re-use of information. SGML also helps to automate the
process of generating outlines and hypertext links and gives the
capability to perform precise searches in documents for specific
information.

Pricing and Availability

As a special introductory promotion, XSoft is offering InContext 2.0 for
$795, a significant discount from its normal list price of $995, through
the end of 1994. Customers may purchase the software by contacting XSoft
Direct Telemarketing at 800-428-2995 or 415-813-6920. Volume discounts are
available. Existing customers will be upgraded at no cost.

XSoft

Headquartered on a campus with PARC, the renowned Xerox research center in
Palo Alto, Calif., the XSoft division of Xerox provides software that
improves the way people create and use documents to capture, manage and
communicate ideas and information.

The company develops and markets a broad range of products that support its
vision of an Open Document Environment. They include document management
and workflow solutions, user-interface utilities, office productivity
packages, content-based search and retrieval systems, and
structured-document publishing applications. In addition, XSoft enables
workgroup collaboration through a series of shared document services
products. The company also offers extensive product support, training and
consulting services.

XSoft's products and services are available on multiple operating systems,
networks, and computer platforms. They are sold through a worldwide
network of direct sales and reseller partners.

XSoft
3400 Hillview Ave
Palo Alto, CA 94304
800-428-2995,  fax 415-813-7499

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