Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!husc6!hao!oddjob!gargoyle!ihnp4!alberta!sask!skatter!kuo
From: kuo@skatter.UUCP (Dr. Peter Kuo)
Newsgroups: comp.text
Subject: Re: unix dvi to vms dvi conversion
Message-ID: <343@skatter.UUCP>
Date: 28 Dec 87 23:38:42 GMT
References: <77900003@uiucdcsp>
Organization: Accelerator Lab, Saskatoon, Sask.
Lines: 53

In article <77900003@uiucdcsp>, aslam@uiucdcsp.cs.uiuc.edu writes:
> 
> 
> Evidently, TeX dvi files generated on unix systems can not be printed
> under VAX/VMS. I suspect there is some kind of record format conversion
> required because VMS loves to decorate its files with all sorts of
> record attributes. Does someone have a program that runs under VMS and
> converts DVI files from unix-land to vms-island? I know I can always
> transport the TeX source and generate the dvi file; there have been cases
> where all I had was the dvi file.
> 
> Sohail Aslam
> Department of Computer Science
> University of Illinois
> arpa		aslam@a.cs.uiuc.edu
> csnet		aslam@uiuc.csnet
> usenet		{ihnp4,seismo}!uiucdcs!aslam

You may not need any programs to fix your problem, except CONVERT on the
VMS side. As I recall, VMS wants its DVI file in fixed-length records of
512 bytes. Since Unix doesn't care about that, that's probably why the two
are not comptable. First you need to pad your Unix-DVI file to some
multiple of 512 bytes; use hex FF as your padding (I think FF is the one
to use; I forget now, need to look at my pad program again (8-) since I
haven't used it for ages), then cook up a FDL file to convert your Unix-DVI file
to 512-byte fixed-length records and it should work. I ran across a simialr
problem with MicroTeX (from Addison-Wesley) v1.41A on my PC/XT and VMS. And the
FDL did the trick; the new version of MicroTeX (v1.51A) puts out files in
multiples of 512 bytes now.

Drop me a line if you still have problems. I can look up my padding program.

Peter/

p.s. Use VMS's DUMP to see what the last byte in the DVI file is, the
device drivers look for that byte! And use that as your padding character.


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Disclaimer: I don't know what I am saying, I'm only a physicist.
            Don't quote me on anything! I speak only for myself.

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