Quark has formally unveiled QuarkXPress 10, the next edition of its design and layout software. The release incorporates a number of major improvements, such as a long-awaited switch to a Cocoa code base. The change should help boost performance, and make it easier for Quark to support future versions of OS X.
Paired with the architecture overhaul is a new graphics engine, dubbed Xenon. The technology is said to improve rendering of pixel- and vector-based images as well as PDFs, and increase speed through features like support for multiple cores and processors, SSE3, and advanced vector extensions.
The user interface has been revised as well. It now supports Retina displays for instance, and can operate as a fullscreen app. When working with multiple displays, palettes can be moved to one side while layout sits on another. In any mode palettes can now be docked to screen edges, hidden, and/or snapped to windows. Users can configure Palette Sets, and work faster with added shortcut keys.
A new page navigator allows quick scanning through page thumbnails thanks to extra navigation options and command keys. The heart of the updated software’s interface has become the Measurements Palette, which in v10 replaces the functions of the Modify dialog, including earlier shortcut keys.
Among other upgrades are a QR code generator, universal support for east Asian typography, PDF pass-through transparency, and the ability to reorder layout tabs. QuarkXPress 10 is slated to ship in “mid-to-late” August. People buying or upgrading to v9 can get 10 for free; until 10 launches, existing owners of v9 can get a 20 percent discount via pre-order. QuarkXPress is normally $849 new, or $349 as an upgrade from a previous release.
