EPS Fixer is a small utility that allows you to view the PICT preview
resources that are present in most Macintosh EPSF (Encapsulated
PostScript) files. If for some reason no PICT resource is present, then
EPS Fixer will try to create one. Starting with version 1.1 of the
software, you can paste or drag pictures into EPS Fixer windows to create
a preview resource. As of version 1.2, EPS Fixer can read PICT files and
use the contents as the preview. EPS Fixer will also allow you to correct
any discrepancies between the boundary of the PICT preview and the
bounding box information within the PostScript data. Finally, EPS Fixer
can change the file types between ╘TEXT╒ and ╘EPSF╒ to simplify importing
EPSF files into word processing or desktop publishing programs. These
options are described in greater detail below.
New in Version 1.2:
There is now a preferences option in the Edit menu. The preferences dialog
allows you to set the status window so that it does appear every time you
start the program. In addition, you can set the program to automatically
adjust either the PICT rectangle or the bounding box. There are also some
bug fixes in this version. For a complete listing of changes and bug fixes,
please see the file titled ╥Version History╙.
System Requirements:
EPS Fixer requires a Macintosh running System 7.0 or later. EPS Fixer
supports Macintosh Drag and Drop and AppleScript. In addition, Balloon
Help is available for the various menu items. Version 1.2 includes an
Apple Guide, titled EPS Fixer Guide for users running System 7.5. If you
are using System 7.1 or earlier, you can delete this file.
The archive you received should contain versions of the software for 68xxx
Macintoshes and Power Macintoshes. Simply delete the folder that does not
apply to your machine. I╒m distributing the code this way because some
people don╒t like fat binaries due to the extra disk space required. On
the other hand, some people like them because they run applications over a
network, or have PPC upgrade cards in their 68K Macs. If you would like a
fat binary version, please send me EMAIL. Or better yet, register the
software, and include a note saying that you would like a fat binary
version. I will EMAIL it to you.
Power Macintosh Notes:
If you don╒t have it already, there is a version of EPS Fixer that runs in
native mode on Power Macs. To use this version, you must have the
╥ObjectSupportLib╙ in your Extensions folder. This is a shared library
that is part of the AppleScript distribution that comes with your Power
Mac system software. The shared library is located in the following folder
if you are installing from the System 7.1 distribution:
Apple Extras:AppleScript 1.1:AppleScript¬Setup:Apple's Scripting
System:RISC Support
Background Information
EPSF files are PostScript files that contain bounding box information that
a page layout program can use when importing the file. A valid EPSF file
must contain the following two lines:
%!PS-Adobe-3.0 EPSF-3.0
%%%BoundingBox: 1 1 200 300
The numbers following "EPSF" and the bounding box may be different than
that shown above. Besides the bounding box, these files may also contain
PostScript preview information that can be used to display the file. This
PostScript preview is usually a bitmap written as text. EPSF files created
on a Macintosh can contain a ╘PICT╒ preview resource along with the PostScript preview. The ╘PICT╒ preview allows a Macintosh program to rapidly display
the image without needing a PostScript interpreter.
Several people have asked me if EPS Fixer can convert normal PostScript
files to Encapsulated PostScript files. I am seriously looking at
incorporating this into the next version. It╒s not in this one, because I
wanted to get this out the door due to the bug fixes.
Viewing and Creating the PICT Resource
When EPS Fixer opens an EPSF file, it will immediately try to display the
PICT resource. If no PICT resource is present, then the program will
attempt to create one by reading the PostScript preview data in the file.
If the PostScript information does not contain preview information in a
readable format, EPS Fixer will create a place-holder that has the proper
dimensions. Saving a file after displaying it will save the PICT resource
without modifying any of the PostScript information in the file.
Of the various types of PostScript previews within an EPSF file, the ones
that EPS Fixer can read are marked by the following strings:
%%BeginPreview:
%%Note: Object
%%BeginBinary:
The three strings listed above denote three different preview formats. Of
these formats, the first is the one most likely to be handled correctly by
EPS Fixer. The other two are not strictly EPSF previews, but are used by
the PostScript interpreter when printing the file. If EPS Fixer finds a
preview that it cannot read, it will create a place-holder PICT resource.
The place-holder resource is simply a box containing the name of the EPSF
file.
EPS Fixer displays a floating status window that lists the coordinates of
the bounding box and the PICT preview for the frontmost window. This
status window also gives information on what EPS Fixer was able to
accomplish when it was reading the file.
Starting with version 1.2, EPS Fixer allows you to create a PICT preview
from an existing PICT file. To do this, open the EPS file, and then select
Insert PICT╔ from the File menu.
Fixing the Bounding Box
Some Macintosh programs create EPSF files that have bounding boxes that do
not agree with the PICT resource they insert into the file. The menu items
under the ╥Fix╙ menu will correct this. The ╥Set Bounding Box to PICT╙
menu item will set the bounding box coordinates to the PICT coordinates.
The ╥Set PICT to Bounding Box╙ item will adjust the PICT resource so that
it matches the bounding box.
Changing the File Type
EPS Fixer will also change file types between ╘TEXT╒ and ╘EPSF╒. These
conversions are available in the file menu.
Drag and Drop Support
EPS Fixer supports the Macintosh Drag Manager, which allows you to drag a
preview to a drag savvy application without using the clipboard. This will
work if you have installed the Macintosh Drag and Drop extension, or if
you are using System 7.5 or later. To drag a preview, click on the
picture, and without releasing the mouse button, drag the preview to the
Finder or to another application that supports Drag and Drop. In versions
1.1 or later of EPS Fixer, you can drag a picture from another application
into an EPS Fixer window. This new picture will become the preview
resource. You may need to adjust the rectangle of the PICT resource to
match the bounding box. There are options in the ╥Fix╙ menu to do this.
Note: Although SimpleText can display normal PICT files and supports Drag
and Drop, it won╒t let you drag a PICT file. I am mentioning this because
at least one user has tried it.
AppleScript Support
The program is also somewhat scriptable. An AppleScript ╥droplet╙ is
included in the distribution. This droplet allows you to create the
preview resource without explicitly opening and saving the EPSF file. If
you drop a group of files on the droplet, EPS Fixer will process each file
in turn. The first time you use this droplet, it may ask for the location
of EPS Fixer. After it has found it once, it should not need to do so
again.
Limitations
EPS Fixer will correctly display color PICT previews, but will not create
them.
Future Plans
These depend on the shareware response. If you like the software, and send
me suggestions, I will try to implement them. Next on the list is to add
color support when creating the PICT previews. As stated earlier, if a
color PICT already exists, the program will display it correctly. However,
EPS Fixer cannot create them yet.
I would also like to add more AppleScript support.
Acknowledgements, etc╔
I wrote this program using Metrowerks╒ CodeWarrior C++ compiler and the
PowerPlant class library. PowerPlant made including the support for both
AppleScript and Drag and Drop unbelievably painless.
CodeWarrior and PowerPlant are trademarks of Metroworks Inc.
PostScript¬ is a trademark of Adobe Systems Inc.
AppleScript¬ is a trademark of Apple Computer
Shareware Information
If you decide to use this software for more than 30 days, please pay me
for it. Single machine licenses are $10. Site licenses are available at a
cost of $10 for the first machine, $7 for each machine thereafter. Please
contact me if you would like a site license. We can probably work
something out. Upgrades, if there are any, are free. You can use the form
at the end of this documentation to register. Please include any changes
or enhancements you would like to see in the next version of the software.
If you choose not to register, please let me know why.
Please register if you haven╒t already.
Legal Stuff
This software is ⌐1994 by David C. Schooley.
This software is offered as is. The author makes no warranty regarding the
usefulness or usability of this software. The liability of the author for
any damages resulting from the use of this software is limited to the
registration cost of one copy of the software, regardless of the form of
the claim. The author accepts no liability whatsoever if the shareware fee
has not been paid.
Please copy and distribute this software by way of every method possible.
However you must:
Keep the program and its accompanying documentation and auxiliary files
together.
Obtain written permission from the author if any fee is to be charged for
the distribution of this software. You may also obtain permission via
EMAIL.
Contacting the author:
Please submit bug reports, feature requests, etc╔, to
