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View Full Version : Open source QuarkXPress editor...



HateEternal
August 2nd, 2005, 06:28 AM
I am looking for something open source that can view and edit a QuarkXPress file (.qxd i believe). I know it is a proprietary format, but so is .psd and GIMP can use those just fine.

If anyone knows that would be great, it doesn't really matter if it is PC or Mac, I would rather it be for Mac but I have a PC too so whatever. I only really need it for a one time use.

Natobasso
August 2nd, 2005, 07:53 PM
A good place to start:
http://www.linuxdevcenter.com/pub/a/linux/2004/09/02/scribus.html

elander
August 3rd, 2005, 02:27 AM
A good place to start:
http://www.linuxdevcenter.com/pub/a/linux/2004/09/02/scribus.html


No, it isn't. Scribus doesn't open or save in QuarkXPress format files.

The only application that opens and saves QXP documents is QuarkXPress, and sometimes not even QuarkXPress will do it. QuarkXPress 6 will not open a QXP 4 document for example...

If you need to edit a QuarkXPress document, you'll have to get hold of a copy of the application, preferrably of the same version that was used to create it.

A silly way would be to use a Hex editor, but that would probably make your head explode (I know it would make mine do so).

Natobasso
August 3rd, 2005, 11:29 AM
Okay, to be more exact I found something that referenced quark, but nothing open source that would open quark files.

Not sure how InDesign/Adobe gets away with it, but I'm pretty sure Quark wouldn't want there to be a free program out there that could open its files…

elander
August 3rd, 2005, 03:24 PM
Quark probably doesn't mind that much that others can open files created with QXP, but they sure as h**ll don't want anyone else to be able to save in their format.

Adobe managed to reverse engineer the old format (QXP 3.3 - 4.11) so InDesign can open and convert those files. However, InDesign won't open versions 5 and 6. It'll be different in version 7 i guess, since that is supposed to be entirely based on XML. Anyhow, InDesign will not save to QXP-format, and it isn't open source either...

Natobasso
August 3rd, 2005, 06:07 PM
All true.

HateEternal
August 3rd, 2005, 06:26 PM
XML is teh savior, I wish there was something. I need to design some CD art and the presser guy has a template that would make it a lot easier to get the dimensions right with. Oh well.