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Epspdf and epspdftk
A multiplatform GUI- and command-line converter for [e]ps and pdf.
Siep Kroonenberg,
siepo at cybercomm dot nl
[1]Current online version of this page
Table of Contents
* [2]Features
* [3]Prerequisites
* [4]Installation
* [5]Preview programs
* [6]Files
* [7]Releases
* [8]User Manual
Features
* Distiller
* Works both for documents and for graphics
* Single-page selection
* Also converts from pdf back to PostScript and eps
* Removal of preview headers from eps files
* Cropping extra whitespace
* Grayscaling (sometimes)
* GUI- and command-line version
* GUI-configurable preferences
* Multiplatform: works unchanged on Windows, Unix/Linux and Mac OS X
* Support for TeX Live and MiKTeX
Epspdf has been created with TeX in mind. For TeX and its derivatives, eps
and pdf are the preferred graphics formats.
Ghostscript can convert PostScript to pdf. However, few people are
prepared to deal with the ghostscript command-line. Several command-line
utilities try to help out, e.g. epstopdf, a2ping, and the convert utility
from ImageMagick. But for most users this is still not good enough.
Epspdftk adds a GUI, with buttons to select options and with dialogs for
opening and saving files.
A lot more can be done if you can round-trip between PostScript and pdf.
Although Ghostscript can go from pdf to PostScript, pdftops does a much
better job converting text back to PostScript. This opens several new
possibilities: grayscaling and computing a better boundingbox for either
eps- or pdf graphics, and page selection from multipage PostScript- and
pdf documents. Epspdf will use pdftops if it can find it, and silently
does whatever back-and-forth conversions are necessary.
The command-line program epspdf is written in Ruby. Epspdftk, its GUI
companion, in Ruby/Tk.
Starting with the 2008 edition, epspdf is included in TeX Live as an
optional package, complete with wrapper scripts epspdf and epspdftk which
can be called from the command-line without further ado.
Prerequisites
These are the required and optional prerequisites, which will be checked
for when epspdf starts:
* Ghostscript
* pdftops from the xpdf suite, strongly recommended for better pdf to
PostScript conversions
* Ruby 1.8.x
* Tcl/Tk is only required for the GUI interface. Only version 8.4 has
been tested.
* Optional: viewers for PostScript and pdf
You may not have to install all of these yourself.
Linux
On a current Linux distribution you can almost certainly install
everything from your distribution's package repositories. You may have to
install Ruby's Tk bindings, in addition to Ruby and Tcl/Tk themselves. The
name of such a package might be e.g. libtcltk-ruby. As to PostScript- and
pdf viewers: epspdf tests for several popular viewers, but the
configuration screen also lets you specify viewers manually.
Mac OS X (Tiger and later)
Ruby and Tcl/Tk are already part of the operating system. Ghostscript is
included in MacTeX, but is also available via e.g. MacPorts. You can get
pdftops from MacPorts as part of either Poppler or xpdf. Another source is
[9]http://users.phg-online.de/tk/MOSXS/.
If you want to compile xpdf it yourself, which is not hard, you can ignore
warnings about X, Motif or FreeType not being found since these missing
libraries won't affect the compilation of pdftops.
Windows (Windows 2000 and later)
By itself, Windows lacks any of the prerequisites of epspdf. However, a
TeX installation may fill some of the gaps, and there is a special Windows
installer which includes a partial Ruby installation. See the table below:
TeX distribution Installer Zipfile
(1) MikTeX and TeX Live 2008 include a hidden Ghostscript which is always
installed, and which epspdf knows how to find. Caveat: although older
versions of TeX Live include a Ghostscript installer, it is not impossible
to install an older TeX Live without Ghostscript, in which case you have
to provide a Ghostscript yourself.
(2) With TeX Live >= 2008, you are better off installing the TeX Live
package, which also gives you wrapper batchfiles epspdf.bat and
epspdftk.bat. You still need to install Ruby and Tcl/Tk.
TeX Live[10](1) No additional Ruby, Tcl/Tk[11](2)
requirements
MiKTeX Pdftops (optional) Pdftops (optional); Ruby,
Tcl/Tk(optional)
Ghostscript, pdftops Ghostscript;
Other/None (optional) pdftops(optional), Ruby,
Tcl/Tk (optional)
URLs for the prerequisites
Ghostscript and GSview ([12]http://pages.cs.wisc.edu/~ghost/)
Contains sources and Windows binaries. The Windows binaries come
with standard GUI Windows setup programs.
XPDF ([13]http://www.foolabs.com/xpdf/)
Sources and Windows binaries. The Windows binaries are packaged
into a zipfile, which has to be manually unpacked. The Configure
screen of epspdftk lets you browse for the chosen location. You
have to do this only once.
XPDF, Mac OS X binaries ([14]http://users.phg-online.de/tk/MOSXS/)
These are universal binaries.
TeX Live ([15]http://www.tug.org/texlive/)
TeX Live 2008 includes epspdf as an optional install. For Windows,
this version doesn't require external copies of pdftops or
Ghostscript but does not include Ruby or Tcl/Tk.
MacTeX ([16]http://www.tug.org/mactex/)
MacTeX is based on TeX Live. Its set of add-ons includes
Ghostscript, and can be downloaded separately.
The MacPorts Project ([17]http://www.macports.org/)
MacTeX has Poppler- and xpdf packages either of which include
pdftops.
Ruby one-click installer for Windows (
[18]http://rubyforge.org/projects/rubyinstaller/)
Current versions (1.8.4 and later) require Tcl/Tk to be separately
installed.
Old releases of Ruby one-click installer (
[19]http://rubyforge.org/frs/?group_id=167)
Versions prior to 1.8.4 include Tcl/Tk.
Ruby source code ([20]http://www.ruby-lang.org/en/downloads/)
For those people who prefer to roll their own...
ActiveTcl from ActiveState (
[21]http://activestate.com/Products/ActiveTcl/
Get version 8.4, not 8.5.
Installation
First make sure that the prerequisites are met. Then:
TeX Live 2008
Use TeX Live's package manager tlmgr for installation.
Windows setup program
Download the [22]epspdftk setup program. You can run it in the usual way,
by double-clicking. The setup program will create entries in your start
menu for epspdftk and for the user manual.
Windows zipfile
Download the [23]epspdf zip file, unpack it somewhere and create a
shortcut for epspdftk.rbw. If you plan to use the command-line version,
put a batchfile in a directory on your path with the line
"<path_to_ruby.exe>" "<path_to_epspdf.rb>" %*
With such a batchfile, the caller has to take care of quoting:
epspdf "my file.eps" "my file.pdf"
Epspdf[tk] has been tested with Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows
Vista.
Unix/Linux
Download the [24]tar.gz archive and unpack it in some directory. All files
should be in the same directory; that is how they find each other. If you
plan to use epspdf.rb from the command-line, then create a shell script
epspdf such as
#!/bin/sh
<path_to_epspdf>/epspdf.rb "$@"
and put it somewhere on your path.
You can do the same for epspdftk. The first command-line parameter will be
interpreted as startup directory for the file browser.
Mac OS X
You can install as for Unix/Linux. Here, too, all files should be in the
same directory.
There is also a compressed disk image epspdf.x.x.x.dmg.gz which wraps
epspdftk into a Max OS X app. Double-click once to expand, a second time
to mount, then drag epspdftk.app to the Applications folder.
Epspdf mostly duplicates functionality of Preview. But having an alternate
conversion engine means that you can have another shot at problem files.
Preview programs
Windows
Epspdftk will use the default Windows programs for PostScript and pdf. If
you have TeX Live 2008 or later then you can assign <TeX Live
root>\bin\win32\psv.bat as previewer for .ps- and .eps files. For Windows
only, there is an additional View with... button to select a viewer
yourself.
Unix/Linux
Supported PostScript viewers include evince, gv, gsview and okular. These
are also listed as pdf viewers. Additional pdf viewers are xpdf, gpdf,
epdfview and acroread/Adobe Reader. You can also specify a previewer
manually in the configuration screen; see the [25]user manual..
Mac OS X
Epspdftk will always use the default pdf viewer under OS X, usually
Preview or Adobe Reader.
Files
* [26]epspdf.0.4.1.tgz preferred for Unix and Mac OS X
* [27]epspdf.0.4.1.zip preferred for Windows
* [28]epspdf.0.4.1.exe Windows setup program, including Ruby/Tk subset
* [29]epspdftk.0.4.1.dmg.gz compressed disk image with epspdftk wrapped
into a Mac OS X app
Older releases
* [30]epspdf.0.3.0.tgz for Unix and Mac OS X
* [31]epspdf.0.3.0.zip for Windows
* [32]epspdf.0.3.0.exe Windows setup program
* [33]epspdf.0.2.12.tgz for Unix and Mac OS X
* [34]epspdf.0.2.12.zip for Windows
* [35]epspdf.0.2.12.exe Windows setup program
* [36]epspdf.0.2.11.tgz for Unix and Mac OS X
* [37]epspdf.0.2.11.zip for Windows
* [38]epspdf.0.2.11.exe Windows setup program
* [39]epspdf.0.2.01.tgz for Unix and Mac OS X
* [40]epspdf.0.2.01.zip for Windows
* [41]epspdf.0.2.exe, Windows setup program
* [42]epspdf_app.0.2.01.zip Mac OS X applet for starting epspdftk.rb
Releases
0.4.1
Current version. Documentation: added section on bitmaps. Windows
setup program: added missing Tcl/Tk licenses. Mac:
double-clickable epspdftk.app with included epspdftk replaces
double-clickable epspdf.app add-on.
0.4.0
Optionally uses hires boundingbox. Faster startup due to simpler
testing of prerequisites. Grayscaling: support for HSB color
model, although I yet have to encounter a PostScript file using
this. Manual converted to texinfo format. Windows: new View
with... button; support for MikTeX's built-in Ghostscript;
streamlined Ruby subset, with Tcl/Tk compiled from source.
0.3.0
Under Windows, now recognizes whether it is embedded in TeX Live
2008 and then can use ghostscript/pdftops from TeX Live. Also
added TeX Live wrapper scripts. Uninstaller for Windows setup
program. Bug fixes: now accepts non-numerical version strings for
pdftops. No longer checks for viewers under Mac OS X.
0.2.12
Bug fixes: log rotation now works. Under Windows, sometimes
boundingboxes couldn't be calculated. This was caused by double
quotes within backquotes. This is now avoided by using short
filenames within backquotes. Minor changes in user guide.
0.2.11
Minor fixes. Changes in documentation.
0.2.10
A computed boundingbox is now expanded by one point in all
directions. This should prevent too-tight cropping. There is no
interface for changing this amount; it can only be changed by
hand-editing the bb_spread option in the .epspdfrc file or in the
HKCU\software\epspdf registry key.
The File Open dialog remembers the last directory visited (between
calls, not between program sessions).
Changes in documentation.
0.2.01
Fixes to the Applescript applet epspdf.app for starting up
epspdftk under Mac OS X. It picks up the terminal search path and
no longer requires correct settings in
$HOME/.MacOSX/environment.plist. Epspdf.app is now packaged
separately, under Mac OS X, and now has an intact resource fork.
It has been removed from the other archives.
0.2
Original release
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Last revised: March 12, 2009
References
Visible links
1. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/
2. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/index.html#features
3. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/index.html#prerequisites
4. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/index.html#install
5. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/index.html#preview
6. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/index.html#files
7. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/index.html#releases
8. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/epspdf.pdf
9. http://users.phg-online.de/tk/MOSXS/
10. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/index.html#tlnote
11. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/index.html#tlzipnote
12. http://pages.cs.wisc.edu/~ghost/
13. http://www.foolabs.com/xpdf/
14. http://users.phg-online.de/tk/MOSXS/
15. http://www.tug.org/texlive/
16. http://www.tug.org/mactex/
17. http://www.macports.org/
18. http://rubyforge.org/projects/rubyinstaller/
19. http://rubyforge.org/frs/?group_id=167
20. http://www.ruby-lang.org/en/downloads/
21. http://activestate.com/Products/ActiveTcl/
22. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/epspdf.0.4.1.exe
23. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/epspdf.0.4.1.zip
24. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/epspdf.0.4.1.tgz
25. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/epspdf.pdf
26. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/epspdf.0.4.1.tgz
27. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/epspdf.0.4.1.zip
28. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/epspdf.0.4.1.exe
29. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/epspdftk.0.4.1.dmg.gz
30. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/epspdf.0.3.0.tgz
31. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/epspdf.0.3.0.zip
32. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/epspdf.0.3.0.exe
33. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/epspdf.0.2.12.tgz
34. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/epspdf.0.2.12.zip
35. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/epspdf.0.2.12.exe
36. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/epspdf.0.2.11.tgz
37. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/epspdf.0.2.11.zip
38. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/epspdf.0.2.11.exe
39. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/epspdf.0.2.01.tgz
40. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/epspdf.0.2.01.zip
41. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/epspdf.0.2.exe
42. http://tex.aanhet.net/epspdf/epspdf_app.0.2.01.zip
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