Ghent, Belgium – April 6, 2005 – Apago, Inc. is now an official member of the Ghent PDF Workgroup (GWG), an international assembly of graphic arts professionals established to create, test, and disseminate best practices and specifications for publishing workflows. “Apago was the first software company to offer a PDF/X preflight and correction tool and we continue to be actively involved in the development of standards to make reliable document exchange and reproduction possible,” says Dwight Kelly, president of Apago. “We understand how complex and intimidating many preflight tools can be to the normal user. The work being performed by the Ghent PDF Workgroup is very important. The group brings together software developers and end-users to develop a set of highly focused specifications and best practices that should greatly simply the effort required to produce reliable PDF files. We look forward to contributing to the Ghent PDF Workgroup.” Erwin Danis, GWG Chair says, “Apago is a welcome addition to the Ghent PDF Workgroup. Apago brings critical insight to the group and will be invaluable in continuing GWG’s efforts. We look forward to Apago’s active participation to help improve publishing workflows around the world. ” GWG opened membership to solution vendors in April 2004, and many prominent organizations have joined since that time. What are GWG specifications? In the world of GWG, a specification is a set of guidelines to which a PDF file should conform. A practical example of a guideline could be the color spaces allowed in a PDF file or the image resolution required for images in a PDF file. GWG defines a number of different specifications. Multiple specifications exist to support different market segments, different output processes, or different workflows. As a practical example, a magazine advertisement workflow will have totally different guidelines than a newpaper workflow. Enhancing the existing (ISO PDF/X) standards with practical, vertical market specifications and best practices allows for more secure and productive digital workflows. GWG comprises user representatives and vendors, who share ideas and test methods for the most practical, accurate, and convenient exchange of print-ready files between creators and producers of print.