Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!swrinde!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!decwrl!adobe!orthlieb
From: orthlieb@adobe.COM (Carl Orthlieb)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.postscript
Subject: Re: What is a good pathforall substitute??
Keywords: pathforall charpath
Message-ID: <14873@adobe.UUCP>
Date: 6 May 91 17:24:52 GMT
References: <1991May1.212603.7751@gmuvax2.gmu.edu> <1991May4.193113.24989@agate.berkeley.edu>
Reply-To: orthlieb@adobe.UUCP (Carl Orthlieb)
Organization: Adobe Systems Incorporated, Mountain View
Lines: 40

In article <1991May4.193113.24989@agate.berkeley.edu> deadman@garnet.berkeley.edu (Ben Haller) writes:
>In article <1991May1.212603.7751@gmuvax2.gmu.edu> mhovan@gmuvax2.gmu.edu (Mike Hovan) writes:
>>
>>	I am interested in placing text on a path created by a
>>charpath call.  Unfortunately the LRM says that pathforall operator 
>>is not allowed to operate on paths created with charpath.  What is
>>a good way to accomplish this?
>>
>>	Basically, I am trying to display text created with a small font
>>along the outline of text created with a much larger font.
>
>  As far as I know you can't, to answer the question.  On to more
>interesting points: as far as I can tell, this means that a non-PostScript
>printer used with ATM on a Macintosh is actually *more* powerful than a PS
>printer in some respects (according to Adobe, ATM 2.0 includes a
>programming interface to the ATM driver that allows a program to get the
>path of a character - essentially the "pathforall" information that
>PostScript is unable to provide).
>  Am I wrong?

Yes and no.  The ATM 'Backdoor' is available on both the PC and Mac versions
of ATM.  This allows a developer to create interesting font effects on
screen (rotate/non-uniform scale/skew) and get character outlines.

In order to get the outlines you pass ATM the character, a matrix,  and 
four call-back routines (moveto, lineto, curveto, closepath).  ATM takes it
from there, invoking your call-backs as appropriate.  Note that the character
outline is passed back unhinted.

There are two technical notes for the Mac available from our server:
	Documents ATM_mac_tips.ps
	Documents ATM_mac_advtype.ps

The first contains basic info on how to make sure that your app works 
with ATM.  The second is the backdoor documentation.  

The Windows ATM doc is still in draft.  Expect to see it on our server
soon.

Carl 8^)