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From: jpd00964@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.programmer
Subject: Re: GEM --> Illustrator ?
Message-ID: <227700049@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu>
Date: 24 Oct 89 09:43:13 GMT
References: <926@mtk.UUCP>
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Nf-ID: #R:mtk.UUCP:926:uxa.cso.uiuc.edu:227700049:000:2058
Nf-From: uxa.cso.uiuc.edu!jpd00964    Oct 23 15:12:00 1989


/* Written 10:32 am  Oct 20, 1989 by marmar@mtk.UUCP in uxa.cso.uiuc.edu:comp.sys.mac.programmer */
/* ---------- "GEM --> Illustrator ?" ---------- */
>We have hundreds of EPSF files that we received from an outside contractor
>that were created using GEM Artline.  We use Adobe Illustrator.  We
>thought that since they were in EPSF, we could open them in Illustrator.
>This is not the case.  (Don't ask me how this all happened.  I'm trying to
>help another department.)
>
>Has anyone out there figured out how to do this?  The headers from both
>applications seem to conflict and Illustrator refuses to recognize the
>files as usable.
>
>Thanks for any help you can provide.
/* End of text from uxa.cso.uiuc.edu:comp.sys.mac.programmer */

Your not going to like this, but from my measly 1 year experience with 
Illustrator, and many many attempts to do what you are asking, I can only say
that there is no way to do what you want.  

What I have figured out, which I am sure Adobe will be "happy" to correct me
if I make any mistakes, is the following:
1>  The header info is only used to see if it is an Illustrator file.  It is
then ignored.
2>  The header info is used to explain to your printer what the illustrator 
tokens mean.  
3>  Your file actually needs to be in Illustrator tokens.  These are simple
to figure out.  

What you might be able to do (might is the key word) is manually insert 
your existing code into an illustrator shell, then go through and convert
their tokens into illustrator tokens.  This assumes they set their code up
similar to illustrator.  I have had marginal success at this method.

You also might want to try a different program.  FreeHand can import postscript,
but I think that is all it can do.  LaserTalk will load the file and allow you
to manipulate it, but it's a mess at that point since it is a postscript 
debugger, not a drawing package.  Or, you could just use the program the
figures were drawn in.

I will be very happy to help, If I am able to that is.

Michael Rutman
SoftMed
jpd@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu