Tips on Creating PostScript® Files

Because Print dialog boxes can vary from application to application, it is difficult to provide specific instruction for creating a PostScript file from each application. For specific instructions on creating a PostScript file from the application you are using, see your application's user manual.

Keep in mind the following guidelines when creating PostScript files:

Give a PostScript file the same name as the original document, but with the extension .ps. When Distiller creates the PDF file, it replaces the .ps extension with .pdf. This makes it easy to keep track of the original, PostScript, and PDF version of the document.

Color and custom page sizes are available if you use one of the Acrobat Distiller 4.0 PPDs. Choosing a PPD from some other printer may result in PDF files that do not contain appropriate color, font, or page size information. In other words, if your source document is intended for PDF rather than directly for print, use the AdobePS printer driver and the Acrobat Distiller PPD to create your PostScript files.

To create PDF files with custom page sizes, select a printer that supports custom sizes. The Acrobat Distiller PPDs support custom page sizes.

When using FTP to transfer PostScript files between computers, send the files as 8-bit binary data to avoid conversion of line feeds to carriage returns or vice versa.

In Mac OS, do not select Substitute Fonts, Smooth Text, or Smooth Graphics in the PostScript Options panel of the Page Setup dialog box. If you select these options, the printer driver smoothes graphics by adding many tiny images to the document. This may result in a large PDF file that takes a long time to display and print.

 

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