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From: darrylo@hpnmdla.sr.hp.com (Darryl Okahata)
Newsgroups: comp.text.tex
Subject: Re: DVI TO ??? (was Re: PasTeX driver)
Message-ID: <9340003@hpnmdla.sr.hp.com>
Date: 19 Jun 91 17:39:57 GMT
References: <1991Jun18.232145.18900@unislc.uucp>
Organization: HP Network Measurements Div, Santa Rosa, CA
Lines: 52

In comp.text.tex, dave@unislc.uucp (Dave Martin) writes:

> A. I need a DVI to LASERJET converter in source form that works.  I have
>    tried the one from decus (my complements on writing portable code, much
>    better than GNU stuff IMO).  Unfortanately it runs off the right edge,
>    and seems to start too far right on the left edge.  This is the case
>    with this program running on both an amiga and a VMS VAX.
>
>    This is a LaserJet 2000 duplex printer by the way.
>    I have also tried DVIJEP for laserjet+ printers.  It gets the layout
>    right but overstrikes some lines with other lines and occasionally
>    causes memory overflow errors on the printer (it has 5 megabytes.)

     The "best" laserjet DVI driver is, in my opinion (and yours may be
different ;-), "dvi".  It was recently posted to comp.sources.misc, and
has the following features:

o       fast
o       written in C++
o       supports LaserJetII, LaserJetIID, LaserJet2000, and LaserJet+
o       supports double-sided printing on LJs which can do double-sided
o       supports landscape printing for slides
o       handles big fonts, like, for instance, SliTeX dumps
o       supports JTeX - the Japanese version of TeX which heavily
        exercises the font capabilities of the LJs and of "dvi"
o       allows selecting particular pages and page ranges from the
        command line (OK - it ain't clean or friendly, but it works)
o       supports various \specials for dumping raw PCL files - it is also
        pretty easy to add new specials
o       completely demand driven - not even the font info much less the
        info for a particular character is downloaded unless that
        character
        is actually going to be printed on the paper
o       does NOT send a hard-reset escape-sequence, which allows one to
        wrap anything around this dvi's output that one wishes
o       has cool (well - entertaining anyway) -v verbose mode
o       actually has a man-page
o       the price is right


     The only problems that people will run into are:

* Dvi is written in C++.  You may not have a C++ compiler.

* Dvi looks for fonts in strange places.

     -- Darryl Okahata
	Internet: darrylo%sr@relay.hp.com

DISCLAIMER: this message is the author's personal opinion and does not
constitute the support, opinion or policy of Hewlett-Packard or of the
little green men that have been following him all day.