Return to BSD News archive
Path: sserve!newshost.anu.edu.au!harbinger.cc.monash.edu.au!yeshua.marcam.com!usc!howland.reston.ans.net!agate!agate!usenet
From: andreas@knobel.knirsch.de (Andreas Klemm)
Newsgroups: comp.os.386bsd.announce
Subject: New apsfilter V2.3 - lpd input filter, filetype auto recognition
Followup-To: poster
Date: 24 Apr 1994 21:41:53 -0700
Organization: Andreas Klemm, 41469 Neuss, Germany
Lines: 222
Sender: cgd@agate.berkeley.edu
Approved: 386bsd-announce-request@agate.berkeley.edu
Message-ID: <2pdooq$gl@knobel.knirsch.de>
NNTP-Posting-Host: agate.berkeley.edu
Summary: new version of input filter is released...
Keywords: aps apsfilter aps-2.3 lpd printer filter printcap
If you are interested in easy handling of printing postscript,
ascii and TeX dvi files with no trouble on PS and NON-PS printers
then read the next sections about aps-2 ;-)
(1) New features
(2) WHAT IS APS-2X
(3) What do I need for APS-2
(4) Linux specific
(5) AUTO CONFIGURATION EXAMPLE
(6) enhanced A2PS
(7) CHARACTER SETS, GERMAN "Umlaute"
(8) Get it via ftp mail
(9) Get it via ftp
(10) Future Work
(1) New features
============
*** An INSTALLATION SHELLSCRIPT, that asks you questions about
your printer an sets up /etc/printcap, the spool directories
and the symbolic links - needed for apsfilter - to turn on or
off certain a2ps and apsfilter features.
*** The installation script shows you details about printer
filters, so it's no problem anymore to choose between the
different filters (i.e.: deskjets).
*** Support for real Postscript printers ...
*** Further modifications to a2ps ! The page header now contains
Filename and the username !!!
*** Support for dvips' feature to include postscript files
into TeX/DVI Documents (i.e. X11 screenshots using xgrab or
xfig images !!!
*** New search database, automatically updated by cron.
Contains search paths for dvips (updates TEXINPUTS variable
for apsfilter) where to look for PS-images.
*** print "RAW"
Print text with FULL SPEED to the printer without processing
through "a2ps" first. Certain lpr options are again recognized.
i.e. "-p" to pipe your document through pr(1) first.
*** NO TEMP FILES needed any more .... a simple utility REWINDSTDIN
allows dvips to read data from a pipe. This SAVES SPACE and makes
things FASTER !
*** AUTO-CONFIURATION: After file type auto recognition the next
logical step for me was "auto configuration".
That means that in general there is no need to "hack" the filter
itself for configuration. No need to edit it. You configure it
now by naming the filter using a fixed naming scheme !!!
The new installation script knows about that features and
installs everything (all features) in printcap and makes
all possible symlinks in the /usr/lib/apsfilter tree ...
[ Printer type, paper format, file type auto recognition and
"force printing ascii" (for PS sources) can be selected
by creating a symbolic link to apsfilter using a special name.
See (5) AUTO CONFIGURATION EXAMPLE. ]
For this and future releases I plan additional feature flags.
*** Using a2ps to print ascii files.
a2ps puts a nice banner around a file and prints
two pages on one sheet. That's a very attractive feature.
I'll include further options in the next release, that
allows enabling or disabling of the "two pages on one" feature
for those people, who think, that the font is too small.
But you can make modifications very easily in the script.
The man page for a2ps is available in the a2ps source
directory: /usr/lib/apsfilter/src.a2ps.
(2) WHAT IS APS-2
=============
aps-2 is an lineprinter input filter for Unix Systems with Berkeley
alike printing system (configuration using /etc/printcap).
Main features are AUTOMATIC FILE TYPE RECOGNITION for the filetypes:
* ASCII
* DATA
* POSTSCRIPT
* DVI
The user needs no knowledge how to print dvi files on his printer
or how to print postscript files on his non postscript printer.
You only need a lineprinter (laser, ink or matrix), that is supported
by gs the free (-> GPL) Postscript interpreter. Since gs has a lot of
drivers, it is usually no problem, to get it running.
(3) What do I need for APS-2
========================
The best is a Unix System with the following packages included:
- gs 2.4 (ghostscript ps emulator)
- dvi2ps
This is - for example - the case for Linux Slackware 1.2.0 and
future releases. Perhaps I can convince Patrick Volkerding in
the near future, to include it into Slackware.
(4) Linux specific
==============
Since I use a2ps (ascii to postscript) to print ascii files (a compiled
and patched version + sources + diffs are included in this package)
you either must have a Linux System with the new libc.so.4.5.24
(as in Slackware 1.2.0) to use the binary in the package or you must
have a C compiler installed to recompile it, no matter what libraries
you have in use.
(5) AUTO CONFIGURATION EXAMPLE:
* You have a deskjet 500
- You have the paper format DIN A4
* You want filetype-auto-recognition
* you want the option two pages on one without print-header
Then create a symbolic link to apsfilter using the scheme
aps-PrinterType-PaperFormat-PrintMethod-PrintFeature
LIBDIR is usually /usr/lib/apsfilter
Valid PrinterTypes are described in $LIBDIR/doc/printer
"laserjet deskjet ..."
Valid Paperformats are described in $LIBDIR/doc/paper
"a3 a4 letter ..."
Valid PrintMethods are described in $LIBDIR/doc/method
"auto ascii"
Valid PrintFeatures are described in $LIBDIR/doc/feature
"1 2 1n 2n"
So: ln -s apsfilter aps-djet500-a4-auto-2n
does the configuration trick.
In /etc/printcap you say, that your input filter for the wanted
purpose is
if=/usr/lib/apsfilter/aps-djet500-a4-auto-2n
The valid paperformats, supported printers and useful hints
are part of the shellscript itself.
(6) enhanced A2PS
=============
All filters after aps-20 use a2ps to print ascii files. I patched a2ps
so you can select paperformat, print margins, filename and username on the
commandline instead of compiling it in.
I mailed the diffs to the author of the package, but still received no answer.
Therefore aps-22.tgz comes with the patched source ready for compiling it.
The diffs are also included.
(7) CHARACTER SETS, GERMAN "Umlaute"
================================
Using a2ps's -8 option enables the printing of the ISO Latin Characterset.
So it's no Problem to print special characters ;-)
(8) Get it via ftp mail:
====================
File: aps-23.tgz Size: ~168 KB.
mail archive-server@germany.eu.net
Subject: <none>
uuencode
send os/Linux/Incoming.EUnet/aps-23.tgz
quit
(9) Get it via ftp
==============
ftp ftp.Germany.EU.Net
login: ftp
password: -yourmailaddress
binary
hash
get /pub/os/Linux/Incoming.EUnet/aps-23.tgz
quit
(10) Future work
===========
Get rid of a static and dynamic TEXINPUTS database that is currently
updated by cron at a time intervall that you can choose during installation.
Next release of apsfilter will scan a users home dir, if there are
ps include files for dvips, when printing a dvi file ...
And there will be a $HOME/.apsfilter init file for user customizable
TEXINPUTS paths ... where each user has the possibility (and the
permissions !) to change paths without asking the superuser ...
BTW: Thanks to sledge@hammer.oche.de (Thomas Bueschgens), who worked a lot
on the dvips TEXINPUTS part and saved the last days of my holidays ;-)
There will be a great Version 2.4, really ;-)
Have fun
Andreas ///
--
Andreas Klemm /\/\____ Wiechers & Partner Datentechnik GmbH
andreas@knobel.knirsch.de ___/\/\/ andreas@wupmon.wup.de (Unix Support)
--
Please send submissions for comp.os.386bsd.announce to:
386bsd-announce@agate.berkeley.edu