Upgraded software elevates book design experience with improved creative control, new design tools, integrated support

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Blurb®, the creative publishing and marketing platform that enables anyone to design, publish, share and sell bookstore-quality books, today announced the release of Blurb BookSmart® 2.5, available for download now at www.blurb.com. BookSmart 2.5 includes many new features that give the Blurb community even more control in the customization of their book layouts; improved guidance and workflow during book creation; and increased stability of the application itself.

"For me, BookSmart has really made the leap in 2009," said Dan Milnor, professional photographer. "I need total control over every pixel -- I'm a working photographer and this stuff makes the difference to my clients, and to the bottom line of my business. With each release of BookSmart I wield more control over the creative process, and the work I sell back to my clients continues to look better and better."

Blurb recently introduced flexible containers that allow bookmakers to control the size, location, layers and content type of all elements on the page. BookSmart 2.5 takes these capabilities to new levels:

• Content preview in layout editor. View your text and images while designing your layouts. Make exact content changes the way you want them, the first time.

• Snap to grid. Automatically align image and text containers to grids, whether you're working in centimeters, pixels, or inches.

• A variety of design tools to make layout creation quicker, including the ability to set an image as the page background, auto-resize, and aspect ratio locking.

Blurb has also introduced several changes to make the book creation process faster and easier with features like:

• Improved image library management. View your entire image library from any source in a single location. Quickly find the images you need with improved sorting and filtering options, and take a closer look in the new pop-out library.

• Contextual resource library. Get help on the topics you need where you need it with improved step-by-step guidance, updated tooltips, and a full contextual help library right in BookSmart.

• Guidance for trim lines and safe area to ensure your critical content is not cut off during production.

Blurb recently announced PDF to Book workflow, which gives creative professionals complete creative control to design books using the application of their choice, save the file as a PDF, and upload it directly to Blurb. PDF to Book and Blurb BookSmart 2.5 elevate the bookmaking experience and offer extended flexibility for advanced users and consumers alike.

For more information and to download Blurb BookSmart 2.5, please visit http://www.blurb.com/make/booksmart.

About Blurb
Blurb® is a creative publishing and marketing platform that unleashes the creative genius inside everyone. Blurb's platform makes it easy to design, publish, market and sell professional-quality books, using Blurb's free, award-winning Blurb BookSmart® software, or the design tool of your choice. Use Blurb's bookstore and online marketing tools to market and sell your books, and keep 100% of your profit. Use Blurb's social and community features to create and share Blurb books with your friends and colleagues with ease.

Blurb was founded by Eileen Gittins in 2005, and includes a team of design, Internet and media veterans who share a passion for helping people bring their stories to life. Blurb is based in San Francisco with offices in London, and is funded by Canaan Partners and Anthem Venture Partners. For more info, visit http://www.blurb.com.