1. Transactional & Variable Content Document Solutions
Good morning/afternoon,
Over the next minutes, I’m going to be speaking to you about transactional and variable content document and more importantly trying to help you see why we – that’s Objectif Lune - feel that when it comes to variable data the only solution you need is PlanetPress Suite 4.
PlanetPress V4-DV

2. Transactional Documents
Design
Printing
(Committing ££
to forms)
Shipping
Storage
One form of competition for PlanetPress is the traditional business forms process.
It begins at the design stage and then goes on to the printing stage where a large volume commitment is the only way to reduce the cost per form or set of forms. Shipment, often to a central storage location then takes place prior to more local deliveries before the forms finally arrive at their intended destination.
At this point the actual printing process takes place and in the case of line printers and multi-part stationery, labour intensive bursting and decollation occurs before the relevant forms can be mailed to the intended end user.
The known costs associated with this analogue process include warehousing, transportation and filing but the most dramatic part of this process is the costs associated with making a change (Telephone numbers, postcodes, new offices etc.). The disposal of old stock, the miscommunication arising from the use of out of date forms whilst the new ones are being printed and redundancy in the fact that not all parts on a multi-part set are always used.
Changing forms
requires disposal
of old stock
Mailing
Printing, Bursting
& Decollating
Distribution

3. Variable Content Documents
Design
Template
On PC
Attach &
position
Data
Perform
Merge on PC
MBytes
Another form of competition for PlanetPress is mailing.
The traditional mail merge process requires a PC based template to be created, and the data from a spreadsheet or database to be positioned within it using field identifiers. When complete, the PC is then used to create the complete multi-page job by creating a unique page for each record from the data. This process can take hours and there is always the risk that the PC will not have enough resources to complete the exercise causing the whole process to be terminated prematurely. This problem is very similar to that of a some printer/copier that runs out of hard disk space in the preparation of a large print job – such printer being referred to as Document printers.
However, if the multi-page job is successfully created, then the print file will be huge, resulting in the clogging up of the network during transmission to the printer and almost certainly print speeds far less than that required by the user.
Basically using this system there is no point in supplying customers with a fast print engine, because the size of the data stream will govern the net print speed.
For example: The fastest & most commonly used network in these applications is a 100base T network with a maximum transmission speed of 100 Megabits per second which is equivalent to approx. 125,000 Bytes per second (100,000,000 / 8). In practical terms this might realistically deliver 80,000 Bytes per second.
A typical word document with no signatures or graphics might produce a document of around K Bytes per page making it possible to deliver anywhere between 2 and 4 pages per second to the printer - this will therefore support printers up to 4 x 60 = 240 pages per minute. However, add a signature or a logo and things change quite considerably. The document will not increase to 80K per page or more meaning that only 1 page can be delivered per second (60 pages per minute). Extend this still further and you can see that any template that is to make use of variable images, graphics will soon reach a size that will limit the print speed due to the vast size of the job being produced.
Send data
to printer
Create Job
for printer
Print job

4. Two Markets – One Solution
Transactional Documents
Extensive data and print file support
Import PDF forms for fast development
Sophisticated conditional printing
Variable Content Documents
Fast and easy to use development tool
Scalable to complex documents
Extensive dynamic image support
Since there are two very different variable data markets, we have had to take time to understand the requirements of each before we were able to create one product that could be comfortable in both. Our strategy was to create one solution for both markets.
Transactional documents require a product that can handle …….
Whilst Variable content documents require a product that is ….

5. The PlanetPress Suite Concept
Document Design
Document Workflow
The result of our efforts was a sophisticated design tool for document composition – we call this PlanetPress - along with a document workflow module that could be configured to meet a wide variety of unique business processes – PlanetPress Watch.
Together they provide a PlanetPress Suite – a complete solution for transactional and variable content document production and workflow.
A C o m p l e t e S o l u t i o n

6. The Possibilities … AFTER
With no change to the host system, output a personalised cover letter, invoice, pick ticket, shipping label, and so much more!
Let’s take a look at a transactional example…
As you’ll see the raw data on the left would traditional be sent to a line printer to be printed onto pre-printed stationery.
On the right you can see the output produced by PlanetPress. With no change to the host system we are able to produce personalised letters, invoices, pick tickets and shipping labels in the most suitable format in the most suitable location.
BEFORE
Raw data from host usually printed on legacy or impact printers.

7. Statements and Billing
… More Possibilities
Variable Data Printing
High Speed Mail Merge
Statements and Billing
With 1:1 Marketing
Grey Bar Reports
Multi-Part Forms & Labels
Here we can see other documents all produced by PlanetPress from a multitude of variable data sources.
Cheques

8. How It Works: Development Workflow
Host
Typical Data
Streams
Impact Printer Data
VIPP Data
Line Data
Database Data
DJDE
CSV
ERP/CRM
Revenue Cycle S/W
Commercial Print Apps
Simple application development in PlanetPress
Compile application to the printer
Form becomes resident on the printer’s HDD
Data Sample
Form
So, how does it work?
During the design phase, we take some sample data from a host system and then use PlanetPress to create our documents. When we’ve finished, we simply download the Intelligent Document onto the printer’s hard disc drive.
Once there, the document composition phase is complete!!
Mainframe
AS-400
UNIX
PC (NT/2000/XP)
Linux Etc..

9. How It Works: Production Workflow
Host:
PlanetPress forms run inside the Printer
Production Documents print fast
Data
Output
Benefits:
Minimal Network Traffic
Maximum print speed
High quality documents
Mainframe
AS-400
UNIX
PC (NT/2000/XP)
Linux Etc..
Now, in a live environment, the data can be sent directly from a host system to any printer that has been ‘empowered’ with the PlanetPress document.
Since the printer can contain multiple documents, we need to add a simple document identifier called a ‘trigger’ to the start of the data to ensure that the we always use the correct document. This can be done by modifying the printer queues on the host or, as we’ll see later on, using our PlanetPress Watch workflow module to recognise the document type from the data stream automatically.
Now when the data arrives in the printer, the PlanetPress documents starts to merge, RIP and print inside the printer.
The benefits we get from this kind of system is ….

10. Workflow Management
Now, we come to PlanetPress Watch – probably the most powerful output management tool in the world!!!

11. Architecture Options: Direct Printing
Host Computer
Production Printer
Documents are compiled to the
Printer. No server required
between the Host and Printer.
PlanetPress
Design Station
First, it’s important to re-iterate that we can print directly from any host providing we can put a trigger at the start of the data. However, with direct printing we do loose the ability to do many other things ….

12. Architecture Options: Watch Printing
Host Computer
PlanetPress
Watch Server
Production Printer
PlanetPress
Design Station
By placing a PC Server in between our host systems and our output devices, we now have the ability to provide a true document workflow business solution.
PC Server Running
2000 / NT / XP

13. PlanetPress Watch I/O INPUT OUTPUT PlanetPress Watch Server LPR
Windows Print Queue
Directory
PDF (archive, )
IP Printing
Fax
MAPI
FTP
SMTP
LPD
Paused Windows Print Queue
Shared Directory
Serial
MAPI
POP3
Telnet
FTP
PlanetPress
Watch Server
It goes without saying that any PC sitting between a host and it’s output, needs to be able to handle the relevant connectivity and protocols. This slide shows the standard and more recent input and output protocols supported by PlanetPress Watch 4.

14. Architecture Options: Distributed Printing
Host Computer
PlanetPress
Watch Server
Distributed Printers
Department Printers
Documents are imaged on the
printer, minimizing network bandwidth
and enabling distributed colour and B&W printing.
Once PlanetPress Watch has captured the data from the host it can be used to distribute the data to any printer on the WAN or LAN. Since the form is stored on the printer’s hard disc, only the raw data is sent keeping network bandwidth to the absolute minimum.
Local / Production Printer

15. Architecture Options: Extended Options
PDF via
Host Computer
PlanetPress Watch Server
Hardcopy
Fax
PlanetPress
Design Station +
PDF Archive
PlanetPress
Design Station
What’s more, by adding the optional modules PlanetPress Fax and PlanetPress Image, for creating faxes and archival images provide a complete set of outputs formats.
So, whether you need to output to , hardcopy, fax, PDF archive of to external document management system, PlanetPress Suite can do it all.
PlanetPress Fax +
Integration with EDM System
PlanetPress Image

16. Transactional Printing & Workflow
Streamline the workflow
Print documents where they are needed
Auto Archive / / fax
Auto collate / assemble document sets
Add value to the documents
Conditionally add promotions
Print conditional T’s & C’s
Feed documents into a Document Management System
So, looking at the transactional marketplace, you can see how PlanetPress Suite can be used to streamline workflow by producing documents where, when and in the format that they are needed.
The Intelligent nature of PlanetPress documents can add true value to printer based document production by creating making document content dynamic on either a document or page level.
And finally the documents produced by the Suite can be easily integrated into existing document management systems so that users can continued to access them as they do today.

17. 1:1 Promotional Documents
Simple applications
Supports both an ASCII stream and any ODBC Database
The data merge occurs on the Printer, very fast!
In the variable content or 1 to 1 market place, promotional documents can be produced very easily because the data is usually very simple whether its in ASCII or an existing database format.
More importantly, the most processor intensive part of the document production process – the merge – take place inside the printer very very fast – thanks to our ability to cache document resources.

18. Statements and Billing
Applications
Variable Data Printing
High Speed Mail Merge
Statements and Billing
With 1:1 Marketing
Grey Bar Reports
We should just take another look at the kind of things that the PlanetPress Suite of Product can do ….
That’s it – any questions?
Multi-Part Forms & Labels
Cheques