Re: printing imbroglio

["Ridder, Fred" <F -dot- Ridder -at- DIALOGIC -dot- COM>]

This whole episode is yet another example of the value of using PDF
or even PostScript rather than application source files when using
a print service.

In my experience, subtle changes _always_ appear when you
move a source file from one computer to another due to seemingly
minor differences in installed fonts, printer drivers, and even display
drivers. These subtle changes have a nasty habit of producing
dramatic ripple effects; for example one line breaking between
different words because of small differences in line length can
cause its paragraph to become longer by one line, which causes
the page to break differently by one line (or two or three, thanks
to widow/orphan control), which can cause the chapter to become
longer by two pages if the change in page breaks causes a break
to a new odd-numbered page. But if you print the document to a
PostScript file, you have a frozen image of each page. The line
breaks and paragraph breaks cannot change on you.

If you use PostScript files, there is the issue of having to use a
printer driver on your computer that is compatible with the service
bureau's output device (laser printer or Xerox Docutech). If you
distill the PostScript to PDF, the only real issue is whether the
service bureau has Acrobat Reader or Acrobat Exchange. But
since Reader is freely distributable, there really is no issue at all.

Fred Ridder  (mailto:f -dot- ridder -at- dialogic -dot- com)
Senior Technical Writer
Dialogic Corporation, Parsippany, NJ

And to keep our marketing people happy:
Get the Dialogic Edge at:  http://www.dialogic.com


> -----Original Message-----
> From: John Prince [SMTP:Tech_Writer -at- WEBTV -dot- NET]
> Sent: Thursday, June 25, 1998 4:52 PM
> Subject:      printing imbroglio
>
> First, please forgive me for venting; however, today I felt like I
> walked into the twilight zone when trying to get some Frame documents
> printed.
>