Path: utzoo!utgpu!watserv1!watmath!att!rutgers!mailrus!wuarchive!cs.utexas.edu!execu!sequoia!rpp386!woody
From: woody@rpp386.cactus.org (Woodrow Baker)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.postscript
Subject: Re: Adobe PPD files
Summary: ppd again
Message-ID: <17399@rpp386.cactus.org>
Date: 4 Dec 89 12:59:48 GMT
References: <1025@maxim.erbe.se> <17380@rpp386.cactus.org> <1989Dec3.024451.11099@utzoo.uucp>
Organization: River Parishes Programming, Plano, TX
Lines: 58

In article <1989Dec3.024451.11099@utzoo.uucp>, henry@utzoo.uucp (Henry Spencer) writes:
> In article <17391@rpp386.cactus.org> woody@rpp386.cactus.org (Woodrow Baker) writes:
> >> >may aplications depend on server password to be the default of 0 and will
> >> >flat out fail. ...
> >> 
> >> In a shared environment, this is a feature, not a bug.  We *want* those
> >> applications to fail; we do not want them messing with persistent
> >> characteristics of the printer.  They have no damn business doing so anyway.
> >
> >I have to disagree with you.  Applications do have to do that.
> 
> No, they don't.  They choose to do so, and could (and should) be fixed not to.
> 
> >... Any program that downloads a
> >preamble and a resident portion has to exit to the server...
> 
> Correct.  The solution is not to download resident portions, or at least
> give the user the option of not doing so.  You are implicitly assuming
> that the printer is dedicated to that user and that application, which
> is unjustified arrogance on your part.

Perhaps it is arrogance, but there remains the nasty problem of not being
able to reset the password if you somehow screw it up, and the problems
that that engenders.  I do not work in a netword enviornment.  I have the
luxury of owning my own postscript printer, that is dedicated to my computer
(an AT by the way, running MS-DOS not UNIX), but there are many legitimate
reasons to exit the server.  Most apps do it, and because they do it, changing
the server password is tantamount (spelling?) to throwing the app out.  sure,
you can go in and change the preamble.  It might work.  In the case of MS-WORD
it checks to see if it has already been loaded.  The emulator that I wrote was
required to be persistant, as it is being used on a multi-user system, and ALL
of the software uses Diablo escape codes.  The company wanted the ability to
draw forms, but did not want to re-do all of thier software.  Especially, since
not all customers wanted the Postscript printer (due to the cost).  Given
the fact that some of the older versions of Postscript (v.23) had bugs in them,
and given the fact that the patches had to be downloaded permanently, one
must realize that various applications will try to do that.  Again, you want
the entire system to funtion smoothly, not barf on an app.  Certain utilites
are also desireable to have.  Examples include justification routines, and
utility routines.  Don Lancasters collection of handy routines is a case in
point.  The file is 20k or so.  One would not wish to download that each time
at 9600 baud, better to tuck it under the server so it is there, and so that
everyone using the printer knows it.  Perhaps the most compelling reason is the
erhandler proceedure.  Out of all of the thousands of programs that I own and
or use, only Pagemaker, MS-word, and Arts and Letters graphics designer use
Postscript natively.  No other apps use it.  I have 3 or 4 custom applications
that I have written that use it.  The rest of the time, I am writing in 
Postscript, without the benifit of any kind of tool except the erhandler and a 
text editor. I flat couldnot function without having erhandlr downloaded
persistantly.  I don't change persistant parameters in the printer however.

cheers

Woody

> -- 
> Mars can wait:  we've barely   |     Henry Spencer at U of Toronto Zoology
> started exploring the Moon.    | uunet!attcan!utzoo!henry henry@zoo.toronto.edu