DETEC 1986-2009

In addition to its software products for output managements on mainframes as well as extensions to the data base system DB2, the firm begins with the development of its own brand software product, LaserSoft during the development phase of the firm. In 1991, the first product version is released for large computers; the first users come from Germany, Austria and Switzerland. In 1993, DETEC founds the LaserSoft user group, which conducts an annual two-day conference since then.

Between 1993-1996, various new mainframe product versions are launched on the market. Parallel to this, the LaserSoft series is developed for client-server systems. LaserSoft/UNIX, first presented in 1996, supports all major Linux and Unix platforms. The windows-using world is incorporated in 1998 with LaserSoft/NT.

The LaserSoft system is familiar to the non-German speaking world as “LibertySoft” since 1998. Marketing and customer service partners are acquired in the Benelux countries, France, Italy, the U.K. and Scandinavia. A marketing agreement is concluded with an American partner in 1999.

LaserSoft is extended by the components LS/Designer and LS/Mail-NT in 1999. LS/Designer is a layout environment with a graphical user interface (GUI) for the design of documents in Windows and Linux. PDF documents can be sent together with personalized letters automatically by e-mail using LS/Mail-NT.

In 2001, the LaserSoft system is given functions for sorting and distributing documents to printers, fax and e-mail interfaces as well as archive systems. The documents can be designed individually for every receiver. Since 2002, documents can be issued in XML format. Since 2003, they can also be issued in HTML format. Document view is now provided via a normal web browser. The product range is supplemented by the LS/View, providing a print preview of the documents.

DETEC demonstrates the flexibility of the LaserSoft system at an information day in early 2003: For the first time, it is possible to supplement documents during the production procedure with contents from external applications (e.g. web services). Thus the items on the deposit statements generated by LaserSoft are supplemented with the latest prices (to the second) produced via web-access to the current stock prices.

Development of the successor to the LaserSoft for client-server platforms begins in 2003. High flexibility, easy maintenance, transparency and performance are formulated as aims. Object-oriented design as the basis of the design, Unicode as the structure of all internal editing, the application of a graphical user interface (GUI) for all user configuration and layout tasks and the object-oriented realization of the product in C++ are agreed.

All the main components – integrated configuration environment, process control, data- and document styler – have been developed by 2005 and the product is named “DoXite“ following an internal tender. A prototype is presented at the annual conference 2005 and it is announced that LaserSoft users with a current maintenance agreement will receive a free upgrade.

In 2006, parallel to the development of the new flagship DoXite, smaller software products are developed in co-operation with external developers, including mySPAD for decentralized printer administration in SAP systems and their synchronization with the printer definitions in the output management system. With myPDFconvert, DETEC presents an ISO-conform solution for producing and converting documents into PDF/A format for long-term archiving.

In co-operation with their partner secrypt (Berlin), PDF/A conform documents can also be marked digitally, through which DETEC is able to develop the applications area "E-billing."

At the beginning of 2007, myPDFconvert is available for sale. An insurance company is just one customer, purchasing 40,000 myPDFconvert single-user licenses.

Following test runs in April and July 2007, DoXite 1.0 is released for use in December 2007. The new project is presented at DoXite information events for LaserSoft users and in customer workshops. In February, SAP AG issues the new DoXite product with all the certificates necessary for external document formatters. Training seminars and the presentation of first DoXite product applications also constitute the central topic of the annual DETEC user group conference held in May 2008.