About the client:

Managing Editor Inc. (MEI) is providing innovative software solutions to a rapidly evolving publishing market. The company delivers a variety of automated pagination and workflow solutions to newspaper and magazine publishers, as well as to other print and electronic publishing markets.
MEI is a portfolio company of Adobe Systems Inc.

Requirement:

To create a Plug-in that can work with their existing systems like Ad Layout System (ALS) and Classified Layout System (CLS) so that it can import the layout information from ALS, AdForce, CLS and ClassForce documents into InDesign.

Ad Layout System (ALS):

ALS lets you control and manage the advertising side of your publication.

Classified Layout System (CLS):

CLS allows you to create classified pagination with the most advanced feature sets.

MetaOption provided solution with following features:

Ad Import Plug-in

• The Ad Import Plug-in creates a graphic frame in the InDesign document for each ad placed in ALS. If the ALS document includes valid file paths for the ads, their graphics are automatically linked to picture Boxes in the InDesign document.

• For CLS documents, the Ad Import Plug-in creates the frame type specified for each object type in the CLS type’s manager.

• The Plug-in works for both Intel and Macintosh systems.

Architecture:

InDesign is a small host application with features implemented through client plug-ins. InDesign defines an architecture that determines how a plug-in interacts with the host. It also provides the building blocks from which each plug-in is made.

Object Models:

An object model is a set of rules or conventions that describes how objects are created and handled within a system. The C++ language implements an object model, describing an object as a contiguous block of memory (at its most basic level) and defining how that object is instantiated, behaves during its lifetime, and can be destroyed.

Object models can be used to map out how large, complex systems behave. The Microsoft® COM (Component Object Model) defines objects with functionality that is accessible through interfaces, making it possible to have distributed components.

Model-View-Controller (MVC)

The model-view-controller (MVC) architecture formalizes the relationships among input, output, and data processing.

InDesign Plug-ins uses COM Object Model, MVC architecture and various Design Patterns like, Observer, Façade, Chain of Responsibility, and Command etc.

Technology and Environment:

• Adobe InDesign CS3 SDK

• C++

• Development Environment:
  • Visual Studio .Net 2005
  • XCode 2.4.1

• Operating System:
  • Windows:
    • Windows XP or later
  • Macintosh (Power PC/MacIntel):
    • Mac OS X 10.4.9 or later