Altova Introduces Release 3 of its Industry-leading v2006 XML Tools Product Line; Altova XML Suite Version 2006 Release 3 Includes All New StyleVision 2006 Plus Key Feature Enhancements to XMLSpy 2006 and MapForce 2006

Business Wire, June 1, 2006

BEVERLY, Mass. -- Altova(R) (www.altova.com), creator of XMLSpy(R) and other leading XML, data management, UML, and Web services tools, today announced general availability of version 2006 release 3 (v2006r3) of its XML tools product line, which includes the totally revised Altova StyleVision(R) 2006 visual stylesheet designer. In addition to numerous usability enhancements, StyleVision now includes cascading stylesheet (CSS) and JavaScript support. V2006r3 also delivers many valuable new features to its other top-selling XML products, including powerful new XML validation and error tracking capabilities for XMLSpy 2006, the industry-standard XML development environment, and seamless integration with Microsoft(R) Visual Studio(R) .NET and Eclipse for MapForce(R), its graphical data integration and Web services implementation tool.

"The improvements in v2006r3 of the Altova XML product line are a real boon to our customers," said Tim Hale, Director of Marketing for Altova. "The new features, like CSS support in StyleVision, hyperlinked error messaging in XMLSpy, and Visual Studio and Eclipse integration for MapForce, increase XML development capabilities to the point that this release is a must for progressive developers."

New in StyleVision 2006

Altova StyleVision (http://www.altova.com/products_xsl.html) features a unique visual design interface for creating stylesheets to transform XML and database data into multiple output formats, such as HTML pages, PDF reports, RTF documents, and Altova Authentic(R) electronic forms. What's more, it can create all of these output types from a single design. StyleVision 2006 represents a significant upgrade from its previous 2005 version. The complete set of new features includes:

--User Interface Enhancements - Offers numerous usability improvements including windows that can be customized, floated, and docked as required; support for working with multiple designs at one time; and a new Design Tree window for viewing and expanding all the specifics of a design in one place. Also includes a new Style Repository window that makes it easy to organize and apply styles including those from external CSS files, and a Local Properties window for viewing and editing the properties for each element and output format as a design is created.

--CSS Support - Provides support for cascading stylesheets, enabling users to specify more precise visual styling rules to transform XML and database content into HTML pages. Users can import existing CSS files into the new Style Repository Entry Helper and apply the CSS styles easily using drag-and-drop functionality.

--Multiple Source Stylesheet Design - Enables the design of stylesheets that use multiple sources, such as two or more XML files, an XML file and a database, etc. Allows users to combine data from multiple sources and output it simultaneously in HTML, RTF, and PDF formats.

--JavaScript Support - Adds interactivity to HTML pages with a built-in JavaScript editor for composing JavaScript code that StyleVision can automatically insert into the corresponding XSLT 1.0 or 2.0 stylesheet.

New in Authentic 2006

Altova Authentic 2006 is a free XML and database content editor that allows business users to directly access and edit XML documents and databases through a WYSIWYG interface. Available in Desktop and Browser editions, Authentic presents non-technical users with electronic forms that enable them to enter and view valid XML and/or database data without being exposed to the underlying technology. These Authentic forms are created by designers using Altova StyleVision 2006, and all of the usability enhancements to StyleVision, described above, will result in easier electronic forms design and richer Authentic forms for end users.

New in Altova XMLSpy 2006

Altova XMLSpy (http://www.altova.com/products_ide.html) is the world's best-selling XML editor and integrated development environment (IDE) for modeling, editing, transforming, and debugging XML-related technologies. In addition to its advanced XML, XML Schema, DTD, XSLT 1.0/2.0, XPath 1.0/2.0, XQuery, WSDL, SOAP, and code generation capabilities, new features included within XMLSpy 2006 release 3 include:

--New XSLT 2.0 and XQuery Profilers - Monitor XSLT 2.0 or XQuery code as it runs and records how long each process takes. Developers can promptly see which parts of the code take the longest time to process and optimize it more easily by focusing on problem areas. Helps create more efficient and robust code quickly.

--Enhanced Error Handling - Presents detailed messages about each error in a new validation window, including hyperlinks to errors and relevant troubleshooting information. Makes project management and problem resolution considerably faster and more effective.

--Tracepoints in XSLT debugger - Allows you to trace the output of any instruction node to verify that your XSLT code is producing the desired output. This feature helps developers perfect their XSLT code more efficiently than ever before.