🚀 go-pugleaf

Matthew Sean Thyer (mthyer@cairo.anu.edu.au) wrote:

: The program does export to HPGL format but the text quality is not good
: enough as it writes all text in Courier font!... most unsatisfactory

: So what I really need is a UNIX program that can do high quality postscript
: to HPGL conversion.  Failing that I'll be happy with PCL to HPGL conversion.

This may be a problem. A few years ago, I did an HPGL to PS converter, which
is not too bad because the HPGL commands are so simple. However, PostScript
is not simple, so it may not be possible to replace all PostScript constructs
with equivalent HPGL commands.

For example, my reference on HPGL (an old generic HP plotter manual) only
allowed mono-spaced fonts, which explains the use of Courier. Your printer
may have provisions for fancier fonts, but I would be surprized.

: Please email me if you can help..  We are willing to pay money for a high
: quality solution so any suggestions are welcome.

If you're willing to spend money, why not buy a PostScript printer. They're
not too expensive anymore, and the flexibility and portability you get with
PostScript is better than any other printer or plotter languages.

: Thankyou


: -------
: Matthew Thyer.
: AIX 3.2.3e System Administrator

Matthew Sean Thyer (mthyer@cairo.anu.edu.au) wrote:
: Help!

: I'm at a loss...

[stuff deleted]

I'm affraid you are.  In general PostScript to HPGL is not possible.
In a few (very limited) cases it might be possible to convert PostScript
vectors to HPGL vectors.  However text is a NO GO, and so would any
bitmapped information.

: -------
: Matthew Thyer.
: AIX 3.2.3e System Administrator

Tim.
--
Timothy L D Collins	| phy6tc@gps.leeds.ac.uk
			| phy6tc@phys-irc.novell.leeds.ac.uk

Matthew Sean Thyer (mthyer@cairo.anu.edu.au) wrote:
> Help!

> I'm at a loss...

> I need to drive a Hewlett Packard DraftPro EXL plotter from a program
> called Applixware (a word processor / spreadsheet / graphics / mail)
> program for UNIX.  My problem is that this program will only print to
> postscript or PCL5 printers but I need to generate HPGL (Hewlett
> Packard Graphics Language) to run the plotter.

GhostScript is claimed to support postscript -> HPGL but your plotter
will be run as a ruster device and thow will produce much noise and little
throwput and GS fonts are ugly. But if you will use this only a few times 
it should work, else is better to buy a postscript laser.

Matthew Sean Thyer (mthyer@cairo.anu.edu.au) wrote:

: I need to drive a Hewlett Packard DraftPro EXL plotter from a program
: called Applixware (a word processor / spreadsheet / graphics / mail)
: program for UNIX.  My problem is that this program will only print to
: postscript or PCL5 printers but I need to generate HPGL (Hewlett
: Packard Graphics Language) to run the plotter.

: The program does export to HPGL format but the text quality is not good
: enough as it writes all text in Courier font!... most unsatisfactory

  You need the manufacturer of the program to fix this limitation.

: So what I really need is a UNIX program that can do high quality postscript
: to HPGL conversion.  Failing that I'll be happy with PCL to HPGL conversion.

  This is going to be incredibly difficult since the DraftPRO is a pen
  plotter and PostScript is targeted to very sophisticated printers that are
  primarily dot-oriented.  Commands in PostScript such as font definitions,
  grayscales, raster images, etc, have no meaning to a pen plotter.  

  One might try to emulate a dot printer and send HPGL commands to lift and
  drop the pen for every dot created by a Postscript interpreter but this
  would hammer the pens flat in a few minutes.

--

                  ________________________________
         ________|         Bill Hassell           |________
         \       |     HP Customer Support        |       /
          \      |    blh@hpuerca.atl.hp.com      |      /
          /      |________________________________|      \
         /__________)                          (__________\

Matthew Sean Thyer (mthyer@cairo.anu.edu.au) wrote:
> Help!
>
> I'm at a loss...
>
> I need to drive a Hewlett Packard DraftPro EXL plotter from a program
> called Applixware (a word processor / spreadsheet / graphics / mail)
> program for UNIX.  My problem is that this program will only print to
> postscript or PCL5 printers but I need to generate HPGL (Hewlett
> Packard Graphics Language) to run the plotter.

Opium from Stream Technologies Inc. supports PS -> HPGL conversion
directly at the vector level.  Type 1 fonts are fully supported as 
is mapping of color to different pens.

For more information send mail to "info@sti.fi".

Disclaimer: I work for STI and am one of the authors of Opium.

Timo
       ____/ ___   ___/    /		Valkjarventie 2
      /           /       /		FIN-02130 Espoo, FINLAND
   ____  /       /       /	Phone:	+358 0 4357 7340
  Stream Technologies Inc.	Phax:	+358 0 4357 7348
 ______/     __/     __/ 	X.400:	C=fi;A=fumail;P=inet;O=sti