GERMANY- Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG (HDDG.F) will release the industry leading PDF trapping tool from the PrinergyÅ workflow management system as a standalone application later this year. The new product offers all of the functionality of the original vector-based PDF trapping module in a cost-effective, independent application that runs on either the MacintoshTM or PC platform. It is the first AcrobatTM plug-in that allows users to interactively perform sophisticated trapping tasks, while retaining the open standard of native PDF files. Trapping by zones and semi-automatic functionlity is available, which enables the trapping of single and multi-page PDF's with a simple click of the mouse. Two versions of the trapping plug-in will be offered: a basic version which has all of the features required for commercial print trapping, and an advanced version which will include trapping functions designed specifically for package and label production. Heidelberg will market the trapping tools for commercial and packaging workflows as as SupertrapÅ and Supertrap PlusÅ, respectively. Supertrap is the commercial version; Supertrap Plus is the advanced version which includes features engineered for packaging workflows. The packaging version includes all of the standard features of Supertrap, plus adds the ability to modify trap geometry (including beveled, rounded, and mitered trap corners), as well as to modify the actual trap path descriptions using bezier curves. "This is the best tool I have seen in 5 years," says Hans-Peter Schiele, who is a Beta tester for Supertrap and the prepress manager at the company Kohl in Brackenheim, Germany. "We will order Supertrap as soon as it is available because it allows us to efficiently produce all jobs in-house," comments Schiele about the features of the new standalone tool. Based on Heidelberg¥s trapping technology from DaVinciÅ, Supertrap is a native PDF-to-PDF, object-based trapper with a wide range of trap creation and modification features. Complex traps are created as separate vector objects, and are based on the neutral density of adjoining vector or CT objects. Each trap object can be modified independently by adjusting any of the trap parameters such as width, direction, or color, for example. To simplify things, multiple traps can be selected by color and type and edited simultaneously. The trapping tool also enables the automatic mapping of all or indivdually selected spot colors to their process equivilants using ICC standards. The standalone trapping tool Supertrap is the first AcrobatTM plug-in, that actually generates traps instead of merely specifying trap parameters. It is also the first and currenlty only trapping tool that traps a genuine PDF without converting it to an intermediate file format, such as PostScriptTM. The trapping plug-in will be released by the end of the year for both WindowsTM (95, 98, ME, NT and 2000) and MacTM OS platforms (PowerPC with System 8.5 or higher and min. 64MB RAM).