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This set of scripts addresses the need to get a non-postscript printer
working quickly, so that documentation files and manual pages can be
printed. The scripts work for printers using or compatible with PCL
(Hewlett-Packard's Printer Command Language). A few printers (the
Cannon Bubblejet, for example) use neither PCL nor postscript.
Some relatively simple scripts for printing a document (qp and qp.awk)
are provided, as well as qpm for printing manual pages. Basically these
short scripts convert unix line endings to ones PCL printers understand
and select a font to use.
Two more complex awk scripts--pcl.awk and pagin.awk--understand PCL
printer codes when encountered in a file, and thus it is possible,
when using these scripts, to change fonts, apply bold, underline, or
italic to a word or group of words, do footnotes, preserve a table,
and number pages in a default font. The scripts automatically adjust
for the font and size of type both horizontally (knowing how many
letters to print on a line) and vertically (line spacing). Using
pagin.awk it is also possible to double space, for example.
Files with printer codes are provided to make it easier to put printer
codes into documents. It is awkward neverthless, but it does what it
does in something like 32k of space instead of the multi-megabyte files
of more elaborate programs, such as the excellent apsfilter, which
enables the printer to emulate postscript. As WordPerfect becomes more
available for Unix platforms and maintains its interoperability with
Windows versions, it should become better and easier to use, as should
other components of its office suit and that of others.
In the mean time pclprint is free, takes little space, and does
a reasonably good job for many tasks.
-- Annelise Anderson <andrsn@andrsn.Stanford.EDU>
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