The Pongrass Editorial Tracking System is a suite of programs enabling multiple workstations to collaborate on newspaper and magazine page creation, ready for PDF or imagesetter output. At its core is an SQL-compliant Editorial Database that tracks and controls all production aspects, including graphics, stories, pictures, ads, and standing elements. InDesign connects directly to this database, facilitating quick page generation for editions. Folios and other elements are placed automatically, and ads are positioned according to the database layout.
PEPL™ is the plugin that connects InDesign to the database. PEPL loads all the ads for an issue in a single operation. Ads can be loaded before they are produced, and on final production will automatically appear on the correct page, printable and fully previewed. Late ads and moved ads are handled automatically.
All elements to be used in the system are registered in the database. Extracted information such as Captions, Headline, Keywords and Category are applied to the database along with thumbnail and other preview data during the registration process. The Story Allocator feature allows users to easily drag and drop photos onto pages.
The tedium of housekeeping is at an end. Purging and archiving are now background processes controlled from the database.