Itis here, at long last. Quark has announced that QuarkXPress 6 for Mac OS X is shipping next week. The long awaited upgrade to the publishing industryis default layout and design solution includes a host of new features, but the number one improvement is simply support for Mac OS X.

The lack of XPress for Mac OS X has been blamed for some of Appleis lagging sales during the last two years, and it has allowed Adobeis InDesign product, which does support Mac OS X, to make inroads in the professional publishing and design markets. Apple currently is promoting QuarkXPress 6 on its home page, and in the marquee spot in the Apple Store. The company is also promoting the product through a dedicated information page at Apple.com itself.

The extended press release from Quark:

At a briefing on the Apple campus today, Quark Inc. announced that QuarkXPress 6 for Mac OS X, the latest upgrade to the worldis most widely used page layout software, will ship next week. QuarkXPress 6 gives designers and publishers enhanced tools for creating content for almost any media and the flexibility to thrive in a constantly evolving technology environment.

"QuarkXPress 6 fulfills two fundamental needs in the publishing industry. It gives you the creative tools to design what you can imagine, along with the productivity features you need to deliver on time and within budget," said Quark president and CEO Fred Ebrahimi. "One of the most significant enhancements is native support for Mac OS X, the leading platform for creative professionals."

"QuarkXPress 6 for Mac OS X is the most anticipated application of the year for our professional customers," said Steve Jobs, Appleis CEO. "Quark has done a great job bringing QuarkXPress 6 to Mac OS X and has removed the last barrier for creative professionals to move to Mac OS X."

New tools for creative productivity
QuarkXPress 6 improves the way related documents are produced and managed by introducing project files, which are collections of layouts that can vary in media type, size and orientation. Style sheets, colors, hyphenation settings, lists and other properties can be shared among layouts.

The new Synchronized Text feature lets users share content between layouts in a project. When synchronized text is edited in one place, corresponding text elsewhere in the project will be changed simultaneously, thereby saving production time and reducing common data entry errors.

Quark has added many useful commands to facilitate rapid work, such as full-resolution preview and multiple undo, all without compromising the productis familiar and easy-to-use interface.

Enhanced functionality for superior output
Underscoring Quarkis long-standing commitment to delivering the highest quality output, QuarkXPress 6 offers several improvements to its print output capabilities, including PostScript level 3 features such as DeviceN color. PDF creation technology has been incorporated into QuarkXPress 6, allowing users to output PDF files directly from QuarkXPress without purchasing a license for third-party software.

Improved features allow more time for creativity
The enhanced features of QuarkXPress 6 continue to provide tools to support design and the ability to precisely control every element of a layout. QuarkXPress 6 includes several changes to the layers feature, including an easier way to print projects that use layers. Broadened table creation functionality includes the ability to better control cell and gridline color as well as the flow of content within a table, link tables to each other or link a table cell to a text box.

Web page design with QuarkXPress 6 is faster and more convenient than ever because of a variety of enhancements to rollovers, menus, hyperlinks, font family management, form control creation and preview and export controls.

QuarkXPress 6 also includes a more intuitive way to tag content as XML. The upgrade also uses an industry-standard XML parser, which provides more robust XML support and enhanced error handling.

XTensions software provides even more functionality
A powerful XTensions interface allows developers to enhance the functionality of QuarkXPress to meet the needs of unique publishing workflows. There are now more than 500 commercially available XTensions that augment the capabilities of QuarkXPress software, delivering vital niche solutions to Quark customers.

Quark is offering QuarkXPress 5 users an upgrade for the new version for US$199., versions 3 and 4 can upgrade for US$499 and US$299 respectively. The full version is priced at US$1,045. Apple is offering it for US$899.

Version 6 requires Mac OS X 10.2 (Jaguar) or higher, and Windows 2000 or Windows XP on the Wintel side. The product will ship next week. You can find more information on QuarkXPress 6 at Quarkis site, or on Appleis Mac OS X site.