Apache FOP gets a 1.0 release

The Apache Software Foundation announced today that the Apache Formatting Objects Processor (FOP) has finally reached version 1.0. Originally developed by James Tauber who donated it to the Apache Foundation in 1999, it is one of the industry's first print formatters to use the W3C standard XLS-FO. FOP is an open source Java application that converts XSL Formatting Objects (XSL-FO) files to PDF or other printable formats.

Jeremias Märki, member of the Apache XML Graphics Project Management Committee said of the release that "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. 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."

The free Apache XML Stack, comprised of Apache Xerces, Apache Xalan, and Apache FOP, makes it viable for the individual developer, or small start-up without substantial capital, to transform and format XML data (for example DocBook XML).

Although FOP is not yet feature complete and is, like so many software projects, a "work in progress", it is already in widespread use by companies such as 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. It's also the default implementation bundled in XML editors such as XSLfast, Oxygen, and XMLSpy.

FOP v.1.0 is released under the Apache Software License v2.0. Downloads, documentation, and related resources are available from the project's site.

(trk)