nd is a daily newspaper that specifically uses open-source digital solutions to produce and manage content. ppi Media has assisted the publisher in adding professional print integration to its environments.

Newspaper publishers are increasingly moving away from monolithic architectures and turning their attention to micro-services, whereby independent programs and features are connected through the integration of various applications. The daily newspaper nd, which has been organized as a cooperative of employees and readers since 2022, has not only done away with its monolithic editorial solution, but is also using open-course components such as the WCMS WordPress as part of its editorial workflows.

ppi Media provides print integration for open-source environment

As a software developer for publishers and media companies, ppi Media has been taking a modular approach to its publishing solutions for more than 35 years. ppi Media has now provided nd with its WordPress-to-InDesign module (tohoop), its browser-based planning interface (CX planner) and its e-paper solution (CX epaper). By introducing tohoop, which creates an effective connection between a publisher’s own databases or WCMS solutions and Adobe InDesign, nd has added reliable print integration to the open-source environment of its online and print content, effectively expanding the open-source WCMS it was using into a fully-fledged editorial system.

Digital and print combined

tohoop allows content to be effectively exchanged between online and print media, intelligently translating WCMS formatting into Adobe InDesign. The tohoop interface is supplemented by a web-based planning interface, CX planner, enabling content to be effectively placed on InDesign documents in the browser – without the need for copy and paste or a local InDesign client.  

nd’s editors can now access InDesign templates when writing articles in the WCMS – and the exact content created in the online editor can later be used in print. This is also facilitating the newspaper’s continuous move towards online-first publishing – without any costly adjustments or processes. 

“We were looking for a solution that would allow us to create and store online and print content in one single system while expanding our creative options for the print edition with InDesign. In ppi Media, we’ve found a partner who shares our vision and provides us with targeted publishing components to make our dream a reality”, says Rouzbeh Taheri, Head of Publishing.

Taheri adds: “2021 and 2022 have been eventful years for nd. After moving our production from Neues Deutschland Druckerei und Verlag GmbH to nd.Genossenschaft eG, our company has had to cope with additional challenges brought about by the pandemic and the war in Ukraine. So we’re delighted that ppi Media and property company Franz-Mehring-Platz 1 have stood by our side throughout the process to ensure a smooth and successful transition”. 

The daily newspaper nd has been produced entirely with tohoop since May 2022.