Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watnot!watmath!clyde!bellcore!faline!scherzo!allegra!mit-eddie!husc6!seismo!mcvax!ukc!warwick!rlvd!news From: news@rlvd.UUCP Newsgroups: comp.graphics Subject: Re: GKS, Postscript questions (summary needed) Message-ID: <137@rlvd.UUCP> Date: Wed, 4-Mar-87 18:56:10 EST Article-I.D.: rlvd.137 Posted: Wed Mar 4 18:56:10 1987 Date-Received: Sat, 7-Mar-87 00:30:46 EST References: <1049@uwmacc.UUCP> Reply-To: pete@pyr-a.UUCP (Pete Randall) Organization: Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Informatics Division, U.K. Lines: 72 Keywords: GKS postscript In article <1049@uwmacc.UUCP> jwp@uwmacc.UUCP (Jeffrey W Percival) asks some questions about GKS: > ... Now, the GKS calls produce some generic information >(is this the VDI?) that is interpreted by "drivers", right? The mechanism by which GKS controls workstations is entirely up to the implementer and there is *NO* standard VDI, though many implementers use the VDI from Graphic Software Systems. >A driver can go from VDI to, say, a TEK4014 or a Versatec. >It could also go from VDI to a metafile. Is this metacode >part of the standard? The GKS standard defines one type of metafile in Annex E, but this doesn't have to be provided. You'll have to check your vendor's documentation and/or compare the output produced with the contents of the standard document (ISO 7942-1985. I don't know the ANSI document number). > ... Can I produce a metacode file using >vendor A's software, and plot it on a versatec using vendor >B's metacode-to-versatec interpreter software? If they both use the same metafile format, yes. > ... Is this picture flawed in any big way? No. The problem is that it'll be a couple of years, with luck, before the standards for this area are published. Until then you'll just have to be very careful about getting packages that use the same driver interface and/or metafile format if you want to get drivers from a third party and/or transfer metafiles between packages. >See, we have a GKS package from a vendor, without a postscript driver. >We also have a postscript printer. Do we need a whole new GKS >package with a postscript driver included, or is it sufficient >to advertise for a "metacode-to-postscript" driver? If your vendor's VDI is the GSS version, you may be able to get a third party driver. Whether or not you can link this into your GKS depends entirely on what your vendor wanted to allow when they wrote it. For this reason - as long as you can find one that understands the metafile format your GKS uses - I'd go for a metafile to PostScript translator. You could use this as a filter without hacking your GKS about. >Any GKS packages out there with postscript support? The only GKS I know of with PostScript support (in the form of an Apple Laserwriter driver) is Visual Engineering GKS. Their address is: Visual Engineering 2680 North First St. Suite 200 San Jose, CA 95134 When last I heard it was a level 2b GKS, written to the ANSI standard (ie the Aspect Source Flags default to INDIVUDUAL, rather than BUNDLED as in the ISO standard). I haven't used it myself and I don't know if they sell drivers separately. You can but try. Needless to say I am in no way connected with any company or group mentioned in this article, nor does anything above reflect the opinions or policy of my employers. Good Luck! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pete Randall. | Informatics Division. | Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, UK JANET: pete@uk.ac.rl.pyr-a | Chilton, DIDCOT, Oxon OX11 0QX. | UUCP: ...!mcvax!ukc!rlvd!pyr-a!pete | Tel: (0235) 21900 x 5707