MathGroup Archive 2001

[Date Index] [Thread Index] [Author Index]

Search the Archive

Re: Unwanted color in postscript output

  • To: mathgroup at smc.vnet.net
  • Subject: [mg31342] Re: [mg31274] Unwanted color in postscript output
  • From: "P.J. Hinton" <paulh at wolfram.com>
  • Date: Mon, 29 Oct 2001 02:23:26 -0500 (EST)
  • Organization: "Wolfram Research, Inc."
  • Sender: owner-wri-mathgroup at wolfram.com

On Fri, 26 Oct 2001, Grischa Stegemann wrote:

> Once again I encountered some trouble in connection with the
> postscript output of Mathematica 4.0 for Linux.
>
> First I had the pretty common problem with the misprinted
> brackets in the MathFonts. After selecting
> "GraphicsPrintingFormat"->"RenderInFrontend"
> in the preferences I got the correct brackets into the postscript.
>
> But for what reason ever now some of the graphs in the notebook are
> colored pink in the postscript and thus become printed light grey on
> our b/w printer. No need to say that I have not used
> any single color directive in the entire notebook. Where do the pink
> color come from and how can I get rid of it?

This approach is not recommended for X Window System-based front ends.
Unlike MacOS and Windows, whose APIs for onscreen drawing and hardcopy
generation are tightly integrated, the X front end generates its own
PostScript.  Specifying "RenderInFrontEnd" can lead to some very bizarre
results.

This question comes up on the average of once a month in this forum, and
several replies to it are archived both on the MathGroup archives and the
Google Usenet archive.


It is probably more elegant to configure the rendering device to find the
Math fonts.  Under Ghostscript, this can be done through an environment
variable (GS_FONTPATH) or by properly editing the Ghostscript font mapping
file.  Making sure that fonts are downloaded to a PostScript printer may
be a little more tricky for an end user to accomplish successfully.  These
matters are documented on the Wolfram Research Technical Support website.

http://support.wolfram.com/mathematica/graphics/export/ghostscript.html
http://support.wolfram.com/mathematica/systems/allplatforms/manualfontdownload.html

If neither approach is appropriate for your situation, you can do one of
two things.  The first is a somewhat hackish approach.  The latter is more
satisfactory since it enables you to generate a wider variety of textual
forms in graphics.

1) Specify that the front end not use Math fonts for brackets and other
operator characters in graphics.  This is done by evaluating the following
expression:

$TextStyle = {
  PrivateFontOptions ->
    {"OperatorSubstitution" -> False}
}

2) Use the free toolkit emmathfnt to embed the Math fonts in the EPS files
as they are generated.

http://www.mathsource.com/Content/Enhancements/Graphics/General/0210-519

> BTW, honestly speaking I think the problems with PS and EPS still
> existing in 4.0 are a big shame. :-(

This issue is not a bug.  It stems from a misunderstanding on how
PostScript manages fonts.  The EPS generated by the front end includes
resource comments that state what fonts are needed by the rendering
device.  If proper steps are taken to ensure that the rendering devices
have ready access to the fonts, then this should not be a problem.

-- 
P.J. Hinton
User Interface Programmer                         paulh at wolfram.com
Wolfram Research, Inc.
Disclaimer: Opinions expressed herein are those of the author alone.



  • Prev by Date: Re: RE: Does Mathematica do transparent colors?
  • Next by Date: Re: Does Mathematica do transparent colors?
  • Previous by thread: Unwanted color in postscript output
  • Next by thread: SplineFit - Parametrization ?