v04INF1: PostScript Sources monthly FAQ v1.13 04-30-95 [1 of 3]
Allen Braunsdorf
Introduction to comp.sources.postscript
(the comp.sources.postscript FAQ v1.13)
Allen Braunsdorf
This FAQ is formatted as a digest.
Most news readers can skip from one question
to the next by pressing control-G. GNUs uses
C-c C-n to skip to the next question.
To contribute sources, read the section ``Submitting
Sources''.
Newsgroup-related mail that is not a submission should be
sent to me at postscrip...@cc.purdue.edu
Related FAQs: comp.lang.postscript, comp.sources.misc,
comp.text, comp.text.tex, comp.fonts, comp.graphics.
The comp.sources.postscript archives are available by ftp
to ftp.sterling.com in /usenet/comp.sources.postscript/ or
ftp.ips.cs.tu-bs.de in /usenet/comp.sources.postscript.
There is an index in the last section of this FAQ.
This FAQ and the indexes are available by anonymous ftp to
wilma.cs.brown.edu:pub/comp.sources.postscript. You can get
the comp.lang.postscript FAQ by anonymous ftp to
wilma.cs.brown.edu:pub/comp.lang.postscript. Both come in
ASCII, LaTeX, DVI, and PostScript formats.
Table of Contents
1 About comp.sources.postscript
2 What to Expect
3 Getting Sources
3.1 How to Get a Program from Usenet
3.2 Using the Comp.sources.postscript Index and Archive
3.3 Using the PostScript interpreters and utilities index
3.4 How to Display PostScript
3.5 How to Report Bugs
4 Submitting Sources
4.1 Content of Comp.Sources.Postscript
4.2 Where to Post your Source
4.3 Guidelines
4.4 Copyright
4.5 Index and Submission Information
4.6 How to Submit a Program
4.7 Header Lines for Your Posting
4.8 After Posting
5 PostScript Interpreters and Utilities
5.1 How can I find a program?
5.2 How can I browse through PostScript programs?
5.3 Keywords
5.4 Interpreters
5.5 Utilities
6 comp.sources.postscript Index to Volume 1
7 comp.sources.postscript Index to Volume 2
8 comp.sources.postscript Index to Volume 3
9 comp.sources.postscript Index to Volume 4
10 Acknowledgements
1 About comp.sources.postscript
This moderated newsgroup is for the distribution of source
code for utilities and pictures in PostScript, and for
PostScript-related programs.
You can post programs here, but they won't show up right
away. All postings to the newsgroup get sent to me, the
moderator, for approval. Then the sources get tested,
packaged, and posted. All other posts (such as requests and
discussion) will be returned to the sender.
comp.lang.postscript is the Usenet newsgroup for
discussions. comp.sources.d is the Usenet newsgroup for
sources requests.
2 What to Expect
On comp.sources.postscript you will find utilities (in
PostScript and other languages), clip art, fonts, and
examples of PostScript programming. All pictures in
PostScript are also programs, so when I say program or
source throughout this document, think ``picture or
utility''.
3 Getting Sources
There are three ways to get a program from this group:
* directly from Usenet postings,
* through the comp.sources.postscript index and archive,
* and through the PostScript interpreters and utilities
index.
3.1 How to Get a Program from Usenet
Each posting in comp.sources.postscript is called an
``issue''. There are generally 100 to 125 issues in a
volume. The division is arbitrary. There are three types of
articles in comp.sources.postscript: source postings,
informational postings, and the monthly summarized request
list. They can be distinguished by the subject line.
Subject: v02INF1: PostScript Sources monthly FAQ v1.00 03-03-93
This first word in the title identifies this as the first
informational posting of volume one. Similarly, the subject
line shown below:
Subject: v02i072: schlep - PostScript interpreter in PostScript, Part01/02
identifies this as the 72nd source article in Volume 1. In
the above example, the Part01/02 indicates that this is the
first part of a two part posting. The first few lines of an
article after the USENET required headers are the auxiliary
headers that look like this:
Submitted-by: j_rando...@athena.mit.edu (J. Arthur Random)
Posting-number: Volume 1, Issue 72
Archive-name: schlep/part01
The ``Submitted-by'' line in each issue is the author of
the program. If you have comments about an issue published
in comp.sources.postscript, this is the person to contact.
The ``Archive-name'' is the official name of this source in
the archive.
All source postings are treated as multi-part postings,
which are archived in a subdirectory within the volume
directory. Postings have names that look like this:
Source posting
Archive-name: schlep/part01
Patch posting
Archive-name: schlep/patch01
Informational (INF) postings, such as the posting you are
currently reading, are not stored in a subdirectory as are
source postings. INF postings have archive names such as
indx33v02-07 and patchlog33. From an archiving perspective,
archive names for all INFormational postings are specified
so as to store the INF postings directly in the volume's
base directory. Archive names for source postings are
specified so as to store the sources in subdirectories
within the volume's base directory.
When we start having patches, I'll add information here
about patches. They'll look like the ones in
comp.sources.misc.
The Environment: auxiliary header line lists the language
and operating system requirements for the program. Check
this line before taking the time to unpack a posting, to
make sure you will be able to run the program.
Environment: syntax
Environment: Keyword [, keyword ..]
Environment: example
Environment: PostScript, GhostScript, PBMPLUS, C++
The keyword's usage is case insensitive. There is also a
not indicator (e.g. !AIX) so that the moderator can specify
that the package runs on everything but the specified
keyword.
The following is a list of keywords used within articles
that have been posted to comp.sources.postscript and their
meanings. Keywords are added to this list on a first-use
basis.
ANSI C
- Runs in the C programming language. ANSI standard C.
PostScript
- Requires a postscript printer/viewer.
UNIX
- as far as I know, operates on any unix system
3.2 Using the Comp.sources.postscript Index and Archive
The first comp.sources.postscript index will be posted next
month. By then, there should be an archive on ftp.uu.net,
probably in /usenet/comp.sources.postscript. If you decide
to archive the group, please let me know so that I can
inform people that your archive exists.
3.3 Using the PostScript interpreters and utilities index
This index lists all know PostScript programs, regardless
of whether they have been posted to
comp.sources.postscript. Unlike the one-line descriptions
of the comp.sources.postscript index, this index contains
full descriptions and references. Look in the index itself
for where to get the programs.
You can find this index in the last section of this FAQ.
3.4 How to Display PostScript
If the program is a PostScript picture, just send it to a
PostScript printer, or view it on screen with a PostScript
interpreter. If you have no PostScript printer or
interpreter, I recommend using GhostScript, which is free
and reliable. GhostScript runs on MS-DOS, UNIX, Macintosh,
VMS, X windows, and the Atari-ST. On the Amiga, use Post.
Check the PostScript interpreters and utilities index for
more information about these previewers.
3.5 How to Report Bugs
To report bugs, contact the person listed in the
Submitted-by: header. If the bug is important, post also to
comp.sources.bugs so that other people will learn about it.
If the bug makes the program unusable, write me so that I
can get the author to correct it and have a new version
posted.
4 Submitting Sources
If you'd like to submit a PostScript source, thank you!
Please read this section of happy hints first. The benefits
of submitting your program include: free archiving and
distribution, testing (by me, but much moreso by readers),
and the name recognition you deserve for bringing free
software to the world.
Even if you post your program somewhere else, or if it is
commercial or shareware, you should still write me with a
description of the program for the PostScript interpreters
and utilities index, which lists everything in the
PostScript world.
4.1 Content of Comp.Sources.Postscript
This newsgroup is for posting programs written in
PostScript as well as PostScript-related programs written
in other languages. These programs could be utilities,
fonts, or graphic images of use to a wide audience.
Clip Art:
Hand-made PostScript programs, converted binaries, or the
machine generated output from drawing tools, representing
a graphic image.
Utilities:
Programs written in PostScript, or those written in other
languages that either generate or operate on PostScript
programs.
Examples:
"How-to" examples are encouraged.
Fonts:
Fonts that can be used with the PostScript language. This
would include both Type 1 and Type 3 fonts. Since
TrueType fonts can't interact with PostScript, that would
preclude them.
Specific information, such as a new weathermap in
PostScript posted daily, is more like a binary than a
source, and is not appropriate. Also, text documents
formatted in PostScript are not appropriate.
4.2 Where to Post your Source
If you are unsure where to post your program, the closest
newsgroups to comp.lang.postscript are:
comp.sources.misc
will accept source under any programming language, and
has a wide distribution and a large audience.
alt.sources
is an unmoderated source group, which would allow you to
instantly post your source. Unfortunately, it is not as
widely read because alt.* groups are not available at
many sites.
comp.sources.unix
accepts UNIX programs of all kinds.
comp.lang.postscript
is a fine newsgroup to post an example program that aids
discussion or answers a question, if it is small (a page
or two). However, please consider posting to
comp.sources.postscript, as a way to have your example
archived and available to help people in the future.
If you have a previously posted program, it is probably
best to continue posting it to the original newsgroup,
which is where your current users will expect to find it. I
can put a reference to your program in the PostScript
interpreters and utilities index. Of course, if you do
decide to switch newsgroups, your program will be welcome
here.
Shareware will not be accepted. Try posting to alt.sources
or comp.sources.misc, and give me a reference to place in
the PostScript interpreters and utilities index.
Alternatively, consider making your program free.
Please don't send me executables. There are comp.binaries.*
newsgroups for that. Only send binaries if they are
important to the program and cannot be sent in source
format. If your program goes along with a song or startup
picture, its OK to include the uuencoded song or picture
binary.
4.3 Guidelines
If your program is a picture, please consider Encapsulated
PostScript and Document Structuring Convention conformance.
Little wood elves will visit you in your sleep and thank
you for it. You can learn about these things from the
comp.lang.postscript FAQ. There are tools which make
conformance easy, too. You are welcome to consider a
preview bitmap, which would make an EPS file into an EPSI
file.
Well-commented code is encouraged. It will allow others to
learn from your examples, and to make improvements to the
code that you can use. Thousands of people who do not know
you will have their only contact with you through your
program. It's worth making a good impression.
It would be nice if you included a Makefile, man page (or
other documentation), a README file which describes the
project and what each file does.
If your program is an example of PostScript programming, it
should actually do something. An example of centering a
string should be a program that actually centers a string.
Similarly, if you submit a library, please include example
files which use the library.
You must be (or have permission from) the author of the
program you submit.
4.4 Copyright
Your program should have an explicit copyright. If you
don't believe in copyrights, then protect that belief with
a copyright directed towards free software. Otherwise,
someone else may steal your program and claim authorship.
Something like the following might be appropriate:
Copyright (C) 1993, J. Arthur Random
Permission to use and modify this software and its
documentation for any purpose other than its
incorporation into a commercial product is hereby
granted without fee. Permission to copy and
distribute this software and its documentation only
for non-commercial use is also granted without fee,
provided, however, that the above copyright notice
appear in all copies, that both that copyright
notice and this permission notice appear in
supporting documentation. The author makes no
representations about the suitability of this
software for any purpose. It is provided ``as is''
without express or implied warranty.
4.5 Index and Submission Information
When you submit a program, or make a reference to one,
please tell me:
* What is the name of the program?
* What does it claim to do, and does it do it well? Is it
worth using? If not, why not?
* Where is it available? What ftp sites can I get it from?
* How much does it cost? Is it free?
* What kinds of computers does it run on?
* Who is the author and does the author give an email
address?
* Does it handle PostScript 2?
* What other software does it rely on?
* If it is clip-art, what is it clip art of?
* If it is an example, what is it an example of?
If the program is a PostScript interpreter, then the I also
need to know:
* Does it let you go backwards one page?
* Does it display the number of pages in the document?
* Does it let you print PostScript to a non-PostScript
printer?
* What formats can it convert to?
4.6 How to Submit a Program
First, format your program for posting. Please keep
filenames to 12 or fewer characters in length.
I don't care what format you submit your program in,
although if you happen to pack your program using shar in
chunks of less than 55K, I'd be very happy. cshar would be
even better. Otherwise, I will reformat it myself. If you
post in plain ASCII, please make sure that you give me the
right filenames.
Post your program to comp.sources.postscript, and it will
automatically be sent to me. Alternatively, you can just
email it to posts...@ccc.purdue.edu
I will notify you by email when I receive your program. I
do most of my PostScript work on weekends, so it may take a
few days.
Have patience -- your article will not show up in the
newsreader until I approve it and package it. I'll try to
do this as quickly as possible.
4.7 Header Lines for Your Posting
The Subject: line should describe the entire program in 60
characters, to be used for the archive index.
The Reply-To: line should list the email address for
whomever comments and questions should be sent to.
The Organization: line is optional. It lists what
organization you belong to. Obviously, you must have the
organization's approval if you post software which belongs
to them, even if you helped write it.
The Summary: line describes in one or two sentences what
the program is. Also please include blurb which describes
what the posting is/does/contains. This should only be a
paragraph or two.
Put a blank line and then have the following lines:
The Archive-name: line should have the package name that
you want the submission archived by. The package name
should be in the format packagename/partname. The package
name and partname must not be more than 12 characters long.
The package name will be used as a directory name. The
partname should look like a series of files part01, part02,
part03, if there are many parts to your program. If there
is only one part, still make it ``part01''.
The Environment: line lists what operating systems,
languages, and packages are needed. If your program is
entirely PostScript, then the environment is
``PostScript''.
The Keywords: line provides a nice way to search for your
program. I'll make up some standard Keywords when I get an
idea what the types of sources postings are. For now, just
pick what you think is best.
For example, your post might look like this:
Newsgroups: comp.sources.postscript
Subject: schlep - PostScript interpreter in PostScript, Part01/02
Reply-To: j_rando...@athena.mit.edu (J. Arthur Random)
Organization: Student Information Processing Board
Summary: schlep is a fully functional PostScript interpreter with
color and PostScript 2 capability, written entirely in
PostScript. Runs as fast as most compiled interpreters!
Archive-name: schlep/part01
Environment: PostScript
Keywords: postscript interpreter, color, level-2
Schlep is a very useful PostScript interpreter. It is every bit as
good as the commercial interpreters, plus it is written in everyone's
favorite language.
#! /bin/sh
# This is a shell archive. Remove anything before this line, then unpack
# it by saving it into a file and typing "sh file". To overwrite existing
# files, type "sh file -c". You can also feed this as standard input via
# unshar, or by typing "sh <file", e.g.. If this archive is complete, you
# will see the following message at the end:
# "End of shell archive."
# Contents: schlep.ps
# Wrapped by j_arthu...@binkley.mit.edu on Wed Mar 3 12:26:38 1993
PATH=/bin:/usr/bin:/usr/ucb ; export PATH
if test -f 'schlep.ps' -a "${1}" != "-c" ; then
echo shar: Will not clobber existing file \"'schlep.ps'\"
else
echo shar: Extracting \"'schlep.ps'\" (84 characters)
sed "s/^X//" >'schlep.ps' <<'END_OF_FILE'
X(Schlep Version 1.00 by J. Arthur Hacker\n) print
X(Processing your program\n) print
END_OF_FILE
if test 84 -ne `wc -c <'schlep.ps'`; then
echo shar: \"'schlep.ps'\" unpacked with wrong size!
fi
# end of 'schlep.ps'
fi
echo shar: End of shell archive.
exit 0
Again, note the blank line between Summary and
Archive-name. The second posting might look like (shown for
completeness):
Newsgroups: comp.sources.postscript
Subject: schlep - PostScript interpreter in PostScript, Part02/02
Reply-To: j_rando...@athena.mit.edu (J. Arthur Random)
Organization: Student Information Processing Board
Summary: schlep is a fully functional PostScript interpreter with
color and PostScript 2 capability, written entirely in
PostScript. Runs as fast as most compiled interpreters!
Archive-name: schlep/part02
Environment: PostScript
Keywords: postscript interpreter, color, level-2
#! /bin/sh
# This is a shell archive. Remove anything before this line, then unpack
# it by saving it into a file and typing "sh file". To overwrite existing
# files, type "sh file -c". You can also feed this as standard input via
# unshar, or by typing "sh <file", e.g.. If this archive is complete, you
# will see the following message at the end:
# "End of shell archive."
# Contents: schlep.doc
# Wrapped by j_arthu...@binkley.mit.edu on Wed Mar 3 12:26:38 1993
PATH=/bin:/usr/bin:/usr/ucb ; export PATH
if test -f 'schlep.doc' -a "${1}" != "-c" ; then
echo shar: Will not clobber existing file \"'schlep.doc'\"
else
echo shar: Extracting \"'schlep.doc'\" (238 characters)
sed "s/^X//" >'schlep.doc' <<'END_OF_FILE'
XBasically, just prepend schlep.ps to the PostScript program that you
Xwant to interpret, and run the schlep program in an interpreter.
XNote how quickly schlep interprets your program, even though it is
Xwritten in an interpreted language!
X
END_OF_FILE
if test 238 -ne `wc -c <'schlep.doc'`; then
echo shar: \"'schlep.doc'\" unpacked with wrong size!
fi
# end of 'schlep.doc'
fi
echo shar: End of shell archive.
exit 0
4.8 After Posting
You should subscribe to comp.sources.bugs and
comp.sources.d to learn about problems with and comments on
your program, and even improvements made to it.
10 Acknowledgements
I am indebted to Kent Landfield, the comp.sources.misc
moderator, for his help in forming the newsgroup and making
this FAQ (parts of which are copied from his with
permission), and to Jonathan Monsarrat for doing the rest.
This FAQ is copyright (C) 1995 by Allen Braunsdorf.
Permission is granted to freely edit and distribute as long
as this copyright notice is included.
This document was written with the LaTeX language and
formatted by LameTeX, the PostScript hacker's LaTeX.
---
Allen Braunsdorf comp.sources.postscript Moderator
postscrip...@cc.purdue.edu PostScript FAQ maintainer