The Apache Software Foundation Announces Apache FOP Version 1.0

Redesigned, Stable Version of Pioneering XSL Formatting Objects Processor Rounds Out Apache XML Software Stack

FOREST HILL, Md., July 21 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Apache Software Foundation (ASF) – the all-volunteer developers, stewards, and incubators of nearly 150 Open Source projects and initiatives – today announced the Version 1.0 release of Apache FOP, the Open Source XSL Formatting Objects Processor.

An Apache project since 1999, FOP is one of the industry's first print formatters driven by W3C-standard XSL Formatting Objects created to display, convert, and print to formats such as PDF, PostScript, SVG, RTF, and XML. In addition, FOP is among the most commonly-used output-independent formatters.

The Apache FOP code base has grown over the past decade under the guidance of a Project Management Committee (PMC) who oversee its day-to-day activities and community development.

"FOP v.1.0 provides a good subset of the W3C XSL-FO 1.0/1.1 specification. Its stable, 1.0 designation provides added recognition as the productive tool it has been for years," said Jeremias Marki, member of the Apache XML Graphics Project Management Committee. "Its redesign and improved features in the layout engine makes it an even better experience for the many developers and users who produce millions of pages each year."

Apache FOP is in use at Accenture, Airbus, Australia Post, BNP Paribas, Capgemini, Credit Suisse, CSC, Denic, European Patent Office, FedEx, Ford, HP, IBM, IntelliData, Marriot International, Morgan Stanley, Polaris, Siemens, Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property, Tecra, US Army, US House of Representatives, and Wyona, among many others. In addition, FOP is the default implementation bundled in XML editors such as XSLfast, Oxygen, and XMLSpy.

"Thunderhead relies on open standards, and FOP is at the heart of our innovative NOW platform. We are proud to have been able to play a part in its development," said Glen Manchester, CEO of Thunderhead. "As long-time supporters of FOP, our congratulations go to the whole FOP team at Apache on reaching the Version 1.0 milestone."

The release of FOP v.1.0 completes a free XML software stack, comprising: Apache Xerces, Apache Xalan, and Apache FOP. The ability to insert graphics into one's print output is possible using Apache Batik. The Apache XML stack makes transforming and formatting XML data (for example DocBook XML) a viable option for individual and start-up users without business cash flow.

"Some 'overnight successes' take ten years or more," said James Governor, Analyst and Founder of RedMonk. "Apache FOP seems to be one of them."

"The training wheels are long gone," said Apache XML Graphics PMC Chair Simon Pepping. "FOP's popularity is undisputed; FOP is used from an individual developer's pet project to large-scale document production. FOP is not yet 'feature complete', and work on it is continuing. We hope this important step forward will motivate skilled developers to jump in and help us make Apache FOP even better."

Availability

FOP v.1.0 is released under the Apache Software License v2.0. Downloads, documentation, and related resources are available at http://xmlgraphics.apache.org/fop/.

About The Apache Software Foundation (ASF)

Established in 1999, the all-volunteer Foundation oversees nearly one hundred fifty leading Open Source projects, including Apache HTTP Server — the world's most popular Web server software. Through the ASF's meritocratic process known as "The Apache Way," more than 300 individual Members and 2,300 Committers successfully collaborate to develop freely available enterprise-grade software, benefiting millions of users worldwide: thousands of software solutions are distributed under the Apache License; and the community actively participates in ASF mailing lists, mentoring initiatives, and ApacheCon, the Foundation's official user conference, trainings, and expo. The ASF is funded by individual donations and corporate sponsors including Basis Technology, Facebook, Google, HP, Microsoft, Progress Software, SpringSource/VMware, and Yahoo!. For more information, visit http://www.apache.org/.

SOURCE Apache Software Foundation

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