Convert text and Runoff .MEM output files to PostScript.

restrictions

This utility is supplied only with the PMDF-FAX optional layered product.

Syntax

PMDF PS input-file-spec [output-file-spec]

Qualifiers	Defaults
/BOTTOM_MARGIN=margin	/BOTTOM_MARGIN=72
/CALCULATE	None
/CHARSET=charset_name	/CHARSET=US-ASCII
/COLUMNS=columns_per_page	/COLUMNS=1
/END_PAGE=page_number	See text
/FONT=font	/FONT=COURIER
/FORM=form_type	/FORM=LETTER
/HEIGHT=form_height	/HEIGHT=11
/ITALIC	/UNDERLINE
/LANDSCAPE	/PORTRAIT
/LEFT_MARGIN=margin	/LEFT_MARGIN=72
/LINES=lines_per_page	None
/MAIL	None
/NUMBER_PAGES	/NONUMBER_PAGES
/PORTRAIT	/PORTRAIT
/SIZE=font_size	/SIZE=12
/SPACING=spacing_factor	/SPACING=1
/START_PAGE=page_number	/START_PAGE=1
/TOP_MARGIN=margin	/TOP_MARGIN=72
/UNDERLINE	/UNDERLINE
/WIDTH=form_width	/WIDTH=8.5

prompts

Parameters

input-file-spec

The name of the text or Runoff .MEM file to convert to PostScript. Only a single file can be specified; wildcards cannot be used.

output-file-spec

An optional parameter specifying the name of the file to which to write the PostScript. If no file name is specified, then the output file will have the same name as the input file but with a file extension of .PS.

Description

PS converts normal text files to PostScript (PS) files that can be printed or displayed on PostScript devices. The PS utility can also translate Runoff .MEM files to Postscript.

PostScript graphics can be inserted into the text at any point. The PostScript graphics should be in a separate file and referenced in the text file being converted using the command sequence

`~`~{include file-spec}

with file-spec the name of the file containing the PostScript graphics (or commands) to insert. This command sequence can occur anywhere in the file and as often as desired. PS sets the PostScript coordinate system so that (0,0) corresponds to the position on the page where the next text to be converted to PostScript will be positioned, and then merges the PostScript code from the file into the PS output stream. The effect of this is that the lower left corner of the included image will appear just where the command sequence appeared in the text. The command sequence itself is removed and does not appear in the output. No blank space is reserved for the image; you must do this yourself in the text file.

PostScript commands can also be inserted directly into the text input file being processed. To do this, use the command sequence

`~`~{insert PostScript commands}

The inserted PostScript commands sequence will be preceeded by a save operator and followed by a restore operator. As with the include command, space is not reserved for the output of the inserted PostScript commands.

Note PS is part of the PMDF-FAX product. It is not part of the base PMDF distribution.

Qualifiers

/BOTTOM_MARGIN=margin

This is the distance, in points, from the bottom of the sheet of paper to the bottom of the last line of text which is to appear on the page. The default is 72 points (1 inch).

/CALCULATE

When supplied with a value for /LINES, /CALC will calculate the font size so that your output will fill the page less the top and bottom margins. /CALCULATE will only make the font size large (or small) enough to fit the number of lines you specified onto the page. It will not check to see whether the horizontal length of your lines will fit within the left and right margins. This command must be used with the /LINES qualifier and cannot be used with the /SIZE qualifier.

/CHARSET=charset_name

The character set used in the input text. Many character sets are supported; see the complete list in the file PMDF_TABLE:CHARSETS.TXT. PMDF PS will construct an appropriate encoding vector to render the character set as well as possible in PostScript. Note that the selection of fonts can affect whether or not all characters can be correctly displayed. The Courier font works quite well; other fonts can lack some accented characters.

/COLUMNS=columns_per_page

/COLUMNS allows you to select the number of columns that your text will be printed in on a single sheet of paper. The default is 1 column per page.

/END_PAGE=page_number

This is the page number of the last page that will be included in the PostScript output file. The default is to print the entire file.

/FONT=font

By default, PS will set the document in the Courier font. With this qualifier, an alternate font can be selected. The name of the font to be used must be selected from the list shown in Table 9-1 ---the thirty-nine fonts listed in the table include the standard "Adobe 35" plus four additional fonts representing four faces of the Charter font family from Bitstream. Note that not all of these fonts are available on all printers; consult the printer documentation for information about what fonts a given printer supports.

Table 9-1 Font Names Recognized by the PS Utility

AvantGarde-Book, AvantGarde-Demi, AvantGarde-Oblique, AvantGarde-DemiOblique
Bookman-Light, Bookman-Demi, Bookman-LightItalic, Bookman-DemiItalic
Charter-Roman, Charter-Bold, Charter-Italic, Charter-BoldItalic
Courier, Courier-Bold, Courier-Oblique, Courier-BoldOblique
Helvetica, Helvetica-Bold, Helvetica-Oblique, Helvetica-BoldOblique
Helvetica-Narrow, Helvetica-Narrow-Bold, Helvetica-Narrow-Oblique, Helvetica-Narrow-BoldOblique
NewCenturySchlbk-Roman, NewCenturySchlbk-Bold, NewCenturySchlbk-Italic, NewCenturySchlbk-BoldItalic
Palatino-Roman, Palatino-Bold, Palatino-Italic, Palatino-BoldItalic
Symbol
Times-Roman, Times-Bold, Times-Italic, Times-BoldItalic
ZapfChancery-MediumItalic
ZapfDingbats

/FORM=form_type

Specifies a form type that the output device is currently using. The possible values are given in Table 9-2. A letter size form (8.5 inches wide by 11 inches long) is the default. The size of the output page can also be set using the /HEIGHT and /WIDTH qualifiers.

Table 9-2 Form Names Recognized by the PS Utility

Form name	Dimensions (vertical height x horizontal width)
LETTER	8.5 x 11 inches
LEGAL	8.5 x 14 inches
LEDGER	11 x 17 inches
GLETTER	8 x 10 inches
GLEGAL	8 x 13 inches
FOLIO	8.3 x 13 inches
A0	841 x 1189 millimeters
A1	594 x 841 millimeters
A2	420 x 594 millimeters
A3	297 x 420 millimeters
A4	210 x 297 millimeters
A5	148.5 x 210 millimeters
A6	105 x 148.5 millimeters
B0	1000 x 1414 millimeters
B1	707 x 1000 millimeters
B2	500 x 707 millimeters
B3	353 x 500 millimeters
B4	250 x 353 millimeters
B5	176 x 250 millimeters
B6	125 x 176 millimeters
A	8.5 x 11 inches
B	11 x 17 inches
C	17 x 22 inches
D	22 x 34 inches
E	34 x 44 inches
LP	13.7 x 11 inches
VT	8 x 5 inches

/HEIGHT=form_height

Specifies the height in inches of the form to use. The default is 11 inches (792 points). The height is also set by the /FORM qualifier. The /HEIGHT qualifier will override the /FORM qualifier if both are specified.

/ITALIC

/ITALIC mode is used with Runoff files. /ITALIC will replace all text that is flagged for underlining with italicized print. The default is to underline text flagged for underlining.

/LANDSCAPE

This option produces output that is wider than it is tall. This may or may not actually rotate the image; it depends on the size of the form that is used. With letter size output (the default), the output is rotated. Choose this option when you have very long lines to print, but do not want to set the size of your font very small or when using /COLUMNS=2.

/LEFT_MARGIN=margin

With this qualifier, you can specify, in points, the distance from the left edge of the sheet of paper to the left margin of your text. The default is 72 points (1 inch).

/LINES=lines_per_page

This is the number of lines to appear on a page, starting at the top margin. By default, PS merely attempts to place as many lines on the page as possible; each line displaced vertically below the previous line by amount font_size * spacing_factor; font_size has the default value of 12 points (10 points for FAXes) and spacing_factor has the default value of 1.

/MAIL

This qualifier instructs PS that no file is to be processed. Instead, the qualifiers specified on the command line will modify any text-to-PostScript conversions performed by the PMDF message distribution system (e.g., messages processed by the PMDF-FAX channels). This is achieved through the use of the PMDF_X_PS_QUALIFIERS logical which PS will set. Currently, the only application which makes use of this logical is the optional layered product PMDF-FAX. Any mail subsequently sent that gets converted into PostScript will be converted in the manner specified. Any settings made by a previous use of the /MAIL qualifier are lost. Settings only last for the life of a given login session; they must be re-established in subsequent sessions (this can be done in a LOGIN.COM file if desired).

/NUMBER_PAGES

/NONUMBER_PAGES (default)

Pages will automatically be numbered when the /NUMBER_PAGES qualifier is specified. By default, pages are not numbered.

/PORTRAIT (default)

This option produces output that is taller than it is wide. This may or may not actually rotate the image; it depends on the size of the form that is used.

/SIZE=font_size

This is the size, in points, of the font to be used. The default size is 12 points for converted documents; mail system text-to-PostScript conversion defaults to 10 points. The minimum size is 4 points; the maximum size is limited to the size of a normal letter size sheet of paper. Note that /SIZE is not restricted to integer values---a font size of 10.5 is both acceptable and often times useful.

/SPACING=spacing_factor

This qualifier specifies the vertical line spacing. /SPACING=2 yields double-spaced output while /SPACING=3 results in triple-spaced output. Spacing factor can be any positive number and is not limited to integral values. The actual spacing in points between lines is giving by the product font_size * spacing_factor.

/START_PAGE=page_number

This is the page number of the first page that will be included in the PostScript output file. The default is to print the entire document.

/TOP_MARGIN=margin

This is the distance, in points, from the top of the sheet of paper to the first line of text. The default is 72 points (1 inch).

/UNDERLINE (default)

/UNDERLINE mode is used with Runoff files. To generate PostScript to underline the text in a Runoff .MEM file that is flagged for underlining, use the /UNDERLINE qualifier.

/WIDTH=form_width

Specifies the width, in inches, of the form to use. The default is 8.5 inches. The width is also set by the /FORM qualifier. The /WIDTH qualifier will override the /FORM qualifier if both are specified.

EXAMPLES

$ PMDF PS THESIS.TXT
      

In this example, the name of the output file is omitted. Consequently, the output will be stored in a file named thesis.ps.

$ PMDF PS/FONT=BOOKMAN-LIGHT THESIS.TXT
      

This command illustrates the use of the /FONT qualifier to select an alternate font.

$ PMDF PS/COLUMNS=2/LANDSCAPE/SIZE=8 THESIS.TXT
      

This last command shows how to format the file THESIS.TXT for printing in two columns. When more than one column is requested, use of the /LANDSCAPE qualifier is recommended. Furthermore, the font size should be reduced with the /SIZE qualifier so as to keep lines of text from running into adjacent columns or off of the page.