The Ghostscript Solution    Download & Install   Using GSview

The Postscript Issue 

Adobe Postscript is a page description language used by some printers and systems. The problem with Postscript can be summarised thus:

• Unix users, some Desktop Publishers and Printers use Postscript as graphic document standard.
• most PCs do not use Postscript.
• PC users occasionally receive Postscript files and cannot read them.

The 'Ghostscript' system gets round this problem by providing a Postscript interpreter and a viewer called 'GSview'.

The Ghostscript Solution 

Ghostscript is a 'freeware' Postscript interpreter. This is how it works:

1. install the Postscript language interpreter called Ghostscript on your PC.
2. install the GSview program on your PC.
3. run GSview and open the Postscript file to view and/or print it.

Downloading and Installing Ghostscript and GSview 

To download and install Ghostscript and GSView on Windows 2K/XP do the following:

1. Ghostscript and GSView Source (navigate to).
2. scroll down to the Windows section.
3. download the latest version of Ghostscript for W32 (Windows).
4. download the latest version of GSview for W32 (Windows).
5. install Ghostscript.
6. install GSview.
7. run GSview.
8. open* a Sample Postscript File

*In Internet Explorer - right click then click on 'Save target as' option.

Using GSview 

This is what you do:

1. click on the 'Start' button then 'Programs' then 'Ghostgum' option then the 'GSview 4.x' program option.
2. click on the 'File' menu, then the 'Open' option.
3. navigate the folder that contains your postscript file(s).0
4. click on a postscript file then click on the 'Open' button.
5. click on the + button to view the next page (if any).
6. click on the - button to view the previous page (if any).

Printing

The mswinpr2 printer driver uses the Windows printer drivers and should work with any printer with raster capabilities. Printer resolution cannot be selected from within GSview; use the Control Panel instead. The Windows printer driver used must be set to Portrait orientation.

This is what you do:

1. open the page(s) in GSview.
2. click on 'File' then 'Print' option.
3. under 'Device' choose 'mswinpr2' option.
4. under 'Queue' choose your preferred printer.
5. click OK - see document print.

GSview and Acrobat PDF Files

GSview can be used to view Adobe Acrobat PDF files. The quality is not as good as the free Acrobat Reader supplied by Adobe, so I am not recommending the procedure at the moment.

Follow the link information about Adobe Acrobat Reader.

A Postscript on Postscript

Before I quit this page, I feel I ought to redress the rather negative image of the Postscript system that you have picked up from reading this page. Postscript is a powerful page description language which enables a given page to be printed on different types of printer and look more or less identical.

This is in marked contrast to Hewlett Packard's PCL language. A given page printed on an HP DeskJet printer and a HP Laser printer be several lines longer. There can also be difference between different models of HP Laser printer

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