Gold Fish 2/goldfish_vol2_cd1.bin/files/text/print/hwgpost/readme.first

Text File | 1994-11-13 | 15.3 KB | 408 lines

HWGPOST is not PD or 'free' SW!
*******************************

Users of previous HWGPOST versions, please note: This text has changed in
some places. Please read it again.


What is this?
=============

What you get here is the fifth version of HWGPOST that is publically
available. It is rather raw. My intention is to abuse you as beta
tester. ;^)

HWGPOST is project that I started because I had some problems with
post.library 1.7 (and 1.86 where post.library stayed the same) not handling
some PostScript code correctly. So I built on the post 1.7 source. HWGPOST
is IMHO a major step towards PostScript Level 2 already and as time and
motivation permits it will hopefully become a R&W book compliant PostScript
Level 2 interpreter library with maybe some Display PostScript extensions.

Currently this archive is probably mostly useful to users of post.library
up to 1.7.


Major new features for HWGPOST beta 5
=====================================

    - transparent DOS EPS file with binary headers handling.
    - heavy magic to make old FreeHand files work.
    - A fix to make cvi/cvr more flexible.
    - HWGPOST.datatype
    - default font lookup if a font is not available.

Sorry, setsystemparams and setpagedevice still have to wait.


Requirements
============

OS:      >=V37 (= KS2.04)

Memory: As much as possible. HWGPOST tends to need noticeable more memory
        than post.library 1.7 for complex PostScript files. You should have
        at least 2MB to have fun with it.

HD:     Suggested


Compatibility
=============

HWGPOST should be compatible to all applications using post.library 1.7
with the exception of the "callextfunc" and some other special non standard
operators, e.g. I have found no problems with PostView. If you have any
compatibility problems, please report them to me.

    AmigaTeX

        The AmigaTeX postscript files installPSfont.pro, psfilt.pro, and
        pstopk.pro (in TEX:ps) contain redefinitions of the "findfont"
        operator. If you comment out these definitions and replace the
        init.ps, AmigaTeX works well with HWGPOST.


Legal stuff/Distribution/bla
============================

I need to explain something first. I built on the post 1.7 sources by Adrian
Aylward. He did an amazing job with post up to and including 1.7.  I do not
claim to having put it all together myself from the the very first byte.
But I have thrown out or reworked almost every single line of it and there
is not much left that is not replaced or truly unchanged. Adrian
Aylward set up many useful concepts. I reworked most of them and threw
some out completely for going towards PostScript Level 2.

While it may not look so from the outside, HWGPOST is a major step away from
its origins, and so I claim the right to have something new here. Note that I
did not take over any code from other sources than post 1.7 except for
some fixes to post 1.7 that people sent me (Thanks especially to Tom
Rokicki for his fixes and other unrelated things). No GNU code, no IBM
code, nor anything else. To be honest I tried to look at some ghostscript
code once for a particular feature, but I found it so ugly that I threw it
out faster than you can say "out" (I never even found the code for the
feature I was looking for). This means, that all that you read in the
history file is only related to my work.

Because of all the above, there will be different rules on HWGPOST that
start out right _now_ even with this beta version:

    - Unlike with post 1.7, I am restricting commercial use somewhat:

          For use in commercial products or claims of compatibilty to
          HWGPOST to enhance the value of a commercial product, you need to
          contact me first to work something out.

          (Except for Tom Rokicki. He may use HWGPOST whenever he finds it
           acceptable for AmigaTeX)

    - If you are just a user of HWGPOST, consider it Giftware. I like
      money, too, but it doesn't have to be money. Anything nice will do.
      Books, A3k-Accelerator/Networking boards, Ax000s, HDs, SW, non
      technical things, whatever. If you intend to use HWGPOST and forget
      about me intentionally, don't expect any support or bug fixes.

    - If you want to use HWGPOST commercially (e.g. to make money by using
      it in your office), I feel that you should consider this very fact
      when thinking about a gift. If you think HWGPOST to be good enough to
      support you making a living, you should value it as such.

!!  - ANY USER OF HWGPOST IS REQUIRED TO REGISTER the use of HWGPOST
!!    with me via email or smail.

All (important) rights reserved, so to speak. This is currently a private
undertaking for fun, but I have not yet lost hope that there is maybe some
reward in it for me, too. :-)

If you don't like the above, I don't want you to use HWGPOST. In fact I
dare to declare use of HWGPOST then outright illegal. You should live with
post 1.7 or something else then.

Oh well, if you are one of those using pirated [KS/WB] SW, don't bother
asking for help. I won't help you and I specifically _don't_ allow you to use
HWGPOST either in this case.



Why this beta?
==============

A lot of stuff is in place within HWGPOST already even though it is
probably still far from completion. Actually it is so much that I hope to
find bugs with your help now. I do not have test cases and PostScript files
anymore to test all that PostScript Level 2. You will read some "untested"
comments in the history file. I have checked for basic functionality with
all my changes, but nobody knows where the bugs hide yet. So I am asking
you for bug reports to make HWGPOST get better.

I am interested in:

    - Enforcer hits, mungwall problems, reproducable crashes
    - deviation of behaviour compared to Adobe Level 2 products
    - Short and precise PostScript example files that break with HWGPOST

and I need your complete computer and OS configuration with any bug report
including any non C= WB things that you run like
MagicMenu/ReqTools/CpuBlit.

I am also interested in a short note if you have files using specific
Level 2 features available with HWGPOST that _don't_ break.

Thank you for your help!


Common Problems, Q&A
====================

This will evolve into a list of problems people run into that are
definitely not a problem with HWGPOST.

    Problem: PS files fail because the name "SymbolEncoding" is not known.

    Solution: Throw out the "Symbol" font you have, buy the Adobe Type
              Manager and/or install a working Symbol font. You are using a
              Symbol font that violates Adobe PostScript specs by relying
              on an external definition of SymbolEncoding. This name does
              not exist in the standard. Your current Symbol font is broken.

    Problem: A font does not work right or causes errors.

    Solution: Have you preregistered it correctly in HWGPOSTResources? If
              you depend on the PATH_FONT feature, is the name truly
              correct including case? Have you double checked?

              NOTE: If there is a bug with fonts, I will need the font
                    to fix it. If it is a commercial font, you have to
                    smail me one legal copy for my own use if I don't have
                    it already. I won't and can't buy fonts just to get
                    your problems fixed.

    Problem: A PS file causes "undefinedresource" errors.

    Solution: The most likely cause is that a font could not be found.

              Depending on your setup do some of this:

                - check what fonts are needed (by reading the PS file
                  or checking on the font search with a tool like
                  snoopdos)

                - if you do't have the font, you need to get it.

                - Check if the HWGPOSTResources entry is correct if
                  applicable.

                - Check if ENV:HWGPOST/PATH_FONT is set up correctly
                  if applicable.

                - Set /@DefaultFontName (as in init.ps) to a default
                  font name of your choice.


What should a bug report look like?
===================================

I prefer bug reports created with the C= 'report' tool. Any bug report
_must_ contain step by step instructions to reproduce the bug on a standard
WB setup. Telling me "You need to install this pack of special OS hacks to
make the bug appear or those non standard libraries from somewhere"
usually leads to no result. If it is a bug related to a PostScript
program, I'd need a short example program to reproduce it. If the bug
is dependent on the exact layout of the program (e.g. with eexec
problems), you should think about using lha and uuencode to preserve
any spaces, tabs, newlines, or other special characters in the file
that might otherwise be lost in email.

_AN_ABSOLUTE_MUST_ is the output of C:VERSION FULL (or a version comment in
the file or printed in a window if C:VERSION does not yield useful
results) _and_ C:LIST for any program involved. This includes but is not
limited to:

    - The OS (Use ShowConfig)
    - The frontend (post, postband, postview, etc)
    - The library post.library
    - The support files init.ps, HWGPOSTResources
    - For printing, the printer driver

If you don't give me this information with each bug report, I might decline
to look at it.

Oh, and please don't swamp me with hundreds of kilobytes email without
asking first. Thank you.


What is included?
=================

    - README.FIRST      (This file)

    - post.library      (Using C= IEEE libs for all Amigas)

    - post.library.20   (Compiled for >=68020 using inline coprocessor math)

    - History           (Informal overview on the changes since post 1.7)

    - init.ps           (A new init.ps. You _will_ have to use it)

    - HWGPOSTResources  (Example declaration of available external
                         resources, e.g. fonts. Referenced by init.ps)

    - PATH_FONT         (Example file to demonstrate automatic font lookup
                         by the resource mechanism. This should be copied
                         into a directory "ENV:HWGPOST".)

    - postlib.h         (The include file with some infos on how to use
                         new features of HWGPOST)

    - hwgpostlib.doc    (Docs on how to use the programmers interface of
                         HWGPOST for your own programs)

    - post              (A hacked up post 1.7 frontend to try out HWGPOST.
                         Nothing fancy)

    - devs/datatypes/PostScipt
    - devs/datatypes/PostScipt.info
    - devs/datatypes/PostSciptBIN
    - devs/datatypes/PostSciptBIN.info

                        (The datatype descriptor files for >= OS 3.0.
                         To be placed into DEVS:datatypes)

    - classes/datatypes/HWGPOST.datatype

                        (The datatype for >= OS 3.0. To be placed into
                         SYS:classes/datatypes)


Don't ask me for my sources. Currently I have no plans whatsoever to
release them in full or part to anyone. After reading through the History
you might understand why.


Special note on the 'post' frontend
===================================

The included 'post' frontend is a major (ugly) hackup of the original
(ugly) source to suit my testing needs. It may or may not do what you
expect and it might or might not be compatible to the original 'post'.
Anything can happen. If you don't get the output you expect, please send me
a detailed bug report and fall back on PostView or the old 'post' frontend
for now.

To get more information on the supported options try 'post ?' and type
another '?' at the command line template. For gray scale displays,
play with the MAXDEPTH option. On an A2024, 'MAXDEPTH=2' and
'DISPLAYID 0x41000' give rather nice results compared to the standard
B&W setup.

You won't be able to use your display HW to the fullest as the hacked up
frontend does not check the display database at all.


Special note on the HWGPOST.datatype
====================================

The datatype will render all PS files per default with 75 dpi in B&W.
If no BoundingBox comment can be found in the file header the data
type will currently default to an A4 page size (this might change
though). You should read the History file for now to find out what
kind of PostScript files the datatype will accept. Reading the History
file might not be a bad idea in any case.

You can override this behaviour by setting an environment variable.
These are the docs taken straight from the History file:

        - The datatype now optionally handles color displays,
          densities and other default sizes. How? Via a new
          environment variable: "ENV:HWGPOST/DATATYPECONFIG"

          The first line of this environment variable is evaluated in
          DOS ReadArgs() style with this template:

              COLORS/K/N,BPC/K/N,XDEN/K/N,YDEN/K/N,DENSITY/K/N,
              DEFWIDTH/K/N,DEFHEIGHT/K/N

            COLORS:     Either 1 or 3. Only B&W or RGB supported!
            BPC:        Bits per color. Anything from 1 to 8. Note
                        that BPC*COLORS must be <= 8 or strange things
                        may happen due to the OS limit of 8 bitplanes.
            XDEN,YDEN:  Densities (dpi). Default is 75 dpi.
            DENSITY:    Convenience operator to set both densities.
            DEFWIDTH,
            DEFHEIGHT:  If no bounding box is specified in the file,
                        these values are used. You need to specify
                        them in units of 1/100 inch though, not in
                        1/72 inch like PostScript likes it. The
                        default values for these parameters will give
                        an A4 like bitmap size.

           This environment variable should do the job for a while.

Note that the datatype will always display only the first page of any
file. This is intentional as there is no reliable, easy, or fast way
to render an arbitrary page.

I tested the datatype only with OS 3.1


Installation
============

1. Save your existing post.library, init.ps, and post. HWGPOST might break your
   setup and I don't want you to be out in the cold.

2. I am sure you have the POST: and PSFONTS: assigns that are needed for post 1.7.
   If not. Create them, and put all your type 1 fonts into PSFONTS:

3. Put init.ps, HWGPOSTResources, and (if you want to) post into POST:

3.1 Edit HWGPOSTResources for _your_ font setup in PSFONTS: You'll probably
    need to throw out and add some lines.

3.2 Put PATH_FONT into "ENV:HWGPOST". Edit it to suit your needs. For a
    permanent setup, copy it into ENVARC:HWGPOST, too!

4. Copy your choice of post.library[.020] into LIBS:

5. Shut down any running applications using post.library and do an "avail
   flush".

6. If you run >= OS 3.0, you can install the datatype files. You might
   want to reboot after doing so to be on the safe side.

7. Try HWGPOST and send me detailed bug reports with reproducable examples!


My TODO list
============

Well, lots of stuff as time permits:

    - Finish up Binary Object Sequences
    - User path operators
    - missing filters
    - device parameters
    - insideness operators
    - missing color spaces
    - rest of the Level 2 graphics stuff
    - VM garbage collection
    - whatever else is needed for a languagelevel of 2


My Address
==========

 *  Heinz Wrobel
 *  Karlstr. 16
 *  82131 Gauting
 *  Germany
 *  FAX [phone] (I don't like phone calls)
 *  <[e-mail]>

Have fun!

Heinz Wrobel