Blueridge Announces New Cross-Platform Version of OPTIX WORKFLOW®; Works With Both Windows and Macintosh Computers
Flint Hill, VA - May 1, 1995 - Blueridge Technologies, "The Internet Document Management Company," announced that OPTIX Workflow, the leader in workflow software for the Macintosh, now includes support for IBM-compatible PCs running Microsoft Windows 3.1 (or better). This makes OPTIX the first complete electronic document management system to include workflow, document imaging, natural language text search and work across platforms to support both the Macintosh and IBM-compatible PC's.
Workflow allows businesses to move documents electronically and automatically along a user-definable routing path, from one workstation to the next, around an entire local area network or even a wide-area network that spans the globe. OPTIX Cross-Platform Workflow goes this one better by allowing both Macintosh users and Windows users to be part of the same workflow. Gone are the headaches of moving documents across platforms. Gone is the nuisance of having to treat Macintosh users and Windows users as if they were from different worlds. With OPTIX Cross-Platform Workflow, both sets of users inhabit the same world. Documents move across platforms automatically, from one workstation to the next, regardless of whether that workstation is a Mac or an IBM-compatible PC.
For example, imagine a large insurance company that receives thousands of claims forms every day. These forms are scanned in a mailroom equipped with Macintosh computers. Then the electronic images of the claims forms are routed from workstation to workstation - automatically - through as many steps as it takes to process the claims. A user at one step might wish to view the scanned images on an IBM-PC, then add a Microsoft Word document or perhaps a Lotus 123 spreadsheet to the electronic 'package', and move the package along to the next user. The next user might wish to view these documents on a Macintosh, perhaps in another building across town. When that user is done, he or she simply hits the "Next" button and the documents are automatically routed to a third user, this one manning an IBM-compatible computer in an office clear across the country.
With OPTIX Cross-Platform Workflow, the distance and the type of computer platform no longer make a difference. Not only do you eliminate the physical barriers that limit the flow of documents from desk to desk and city to city, but you also eliminate the electronic barriers that limit the flow of documents from one kind of computer to another. Gone are the delays and bottlenecks that become so frustrating when you're shuffling paper. Gone are the even more frustrating delays and bottlenecks that occur when you have to shuffle between computers. With OPTIX Cross-Platform Workflow, you can even dial-in to your workflow server from anywhere in the world - from a Mac or a PC - and participate in a workflow route as if you were right there at your desk.
OPTIX Cross-platform Workflow is one of the most scalable workflow systems on the market. With our UNIX/SQL-based client-server architecture, your initial system can start small, with a single inexpensive server, and then be expanded all the way to a super mini-computer or mainframe.
Founded in 1988, Blueridge Technologies is one of the industry's oldest and most respected providers of electronic document management systems (EDMS). Long the leading industrial-strength document imaging and workflow system for Apple Macintosh computers, in 1994 OPTIX became the first electronic document management system to offer workflow, document imaging, document control, COLD (Computer Output to Laser Disk), and natural language text retrieval for both Windows and Macintosh workstations. Via the new OPTIX WEB interface, OPTIX also supports popular Web browsers, including Netscape Navigator, Internet Explorer from Microsoft, Mosaic, and all the client platforms these products support, including Windows, Macintosh, and UNIX workstations. An online demo of OPTIX WEB is available at http://www.optixweb.com. Blueridge Technologies is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Metters Industries.
OPTIX systems begin in the range of $40,000 and include server software, client software for both Macintosh and Windows, installation, training, and support.
