/t5/indesign-discussions/vdp-plugin-for-indesign/td-p/11734698Jan 07, 2021
Jan 07, 2021
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I'm looking for a variable data printing (VDP) plug-in or software that works directly and seamlessly with Adobe InDesign. Can anyone here on this Community Support page point me in the right direction? Thanks in advance.
I used DesignMerge years ago and it was very powerful. At the time I reviewed it for Layers Magazine in 2008, it cost between $1000-$3000 US. The price is not listed on the website so it's hard to say if the cost went down or up.
I have previewed DesignMerge Pro and find it not very user friendly. Awkward multiple pull-down menus, and much much slower than other programs I have used. I definitely did not like that you have to create a separate inDesign file to impose for printing.
I agree. I ended up with DesignMerge Pro anyway. The dealbreaker was XMPie could not generate one PDF per record. We do a lot of financial statement and our clients want individual PDFs back so they can post on their user’s online accounts.
Alternatively, if you have an HP Indigo press, SmartStream Designer was great albeit always a few years behind from the current InDesign. Alas they would not sell without an HP Indigo press. Since we switched, we were out of luck here.
DesignMerge Pro wasn’t perfect, but it was the only one that ticked off all the requirements for us.
Yes! We HAD and HP Indigo press and SmartStream Designer has me spoiled! I'm waiting for a response from DesignMerge to see if you can impose a variable data booklet for saddlestitching in printer's spreads. I have not found anything in the menus or documentation that provide that function.
The last I heard, which was mid-December 2023, was this wasn’t available yet, but they were actively working on this update and would push it out once available.
Greetings, this is a direct reply about our DesignMerge software because questions have been asked about the software on this thread. I am stating this to avoid being flagged for promoting our software. So in any case ... please have a look at the latest version of DesignMerge for InDesign 2025. We spent more than a year optimizing the software for PDF/VT efficiency and caching and have added many new features. Plus free online video training is now available. And since you were asking about it, we have introduced DesignMerge PDF Imposer, an incredibly fast imposition tool that works completely within Adobe InDesign (and of course has been integrated with DesignMerge Pro VDP software). All developed by our engineers right here in the USA! We appreciate your support and woud be happy to arrange for a demo or a trial license. Just Google "DesignMerge" and you'll find us at Meadows Publishing Solutions (heaven forbid I put a copy of our URL in this reply). Also by the way, you may notice that Konica Minolta has licensed the DesignMerge technology under their AccurioPro brand, and recently it looks like our competition is even using the DesignMerge brand in their keyword searches. I guess we are doing something right! Thank you again for your support.
/t5/indesign-discussions/vdp-plugin-for-indesign/m-p/11735004#M409900Jan 07, 2021
Jan 07, 2021
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You should look at the uDirect products from XMPie. They were the first to produce such a plug-in that directly outputs PDF/VT-1 for high speed, high quality printing from digital presses. In fact, I personally generated the official PDF/VT-1 sample files hosted on the PDF Association's website about 7 years ago using InDesign with the XMPie uDirect plug-in for InDesign (desktop version).
It is not inexpensive, though!
- Dov Isaacs, former Adobe Principal Scientist (April 30, 1990 - May 30, 2021)
Thanks for sharing your Insights. I bought the DesignMerge Pro Lite version in 2021 (I have not used it yet). I plan to use it with a series of personalized periodical publications in print. My question is what is the difference between PPML and PDF/VT-1 in a use case whereby I would be outputting the finished publications to a Xeikon digital press?
I wish I could share something with you but I have yet to actually use the plugin since I purchased it in August 2021. In my case, I realized for my application I actually need InDesign Server because I am building a Web-2-Print solution (like a Canva for Personalized Newspapers type of app). So now I am on the path to figuring out InDesign Server, buying a development license for that, etc. Essentially down another rabbit hole of discovery. Sorry, I can not answer your question directly. Also, I think the official name of the software version I have is DesignMerge Pro "Starter" and not "Lite" as I called it.
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