[comp.text.desktop] Text going round in circles?

leo@hoss.unl.edu (Leo Chouinard) (03/22/91)

I'm interested in finding out what packages for MS-DOS can put characters 
at various angles and positions, so that for example you can create a logo
with characters in a semicircle.  Are there desktop publishing packages
which do this directly, or in order to do this are some graphics programs
more appropriate?

mjf@cunixb.cc.columbia.edu (Michael J Flory) (03/22/91)

Probably better to program your printer than your computer for this one!
The Postscript Language Tutorial book by Adobe (Addison-Wesley, paper)
includes circular text as "Program 10."  Have fun!

Michael Flory (mjf@cunixb.cc.columbia.edu)

leo@hoss.unl.edu (Leo Chouinard) (03/23/91)

In <1991Mar22.054557.31236@cunixf.cc.columbia.edu> mjf@cunixb.cc.columbia.edu 
(Michael J Flory) writes:

>Probably better to program your printer than your computer for this one!
>The Postscript Language Tutorial book by Adobe (Addison-Wesley, paper)
>includes circular text as "Program 10."  Have fun!

Good idea!  But alas, some of us don't have a Postscript printer.  Mine's a 
LaserJet IIP (2.5 Meg memory, but no add-on cartridges).

If it comes down to Postscript, would a software emulator be a reasonable
solution for limited Postscript use like this, or would it be advisable to
go the whole nine yards and buy a Postscript cartridge?

dhosek@cbrown.claremont.edu (Don Hosek) (03/23/91)

In article <1991Mar21.205018.28277@hoss.unl.edu>, leo@hoss.unl.edu (Leo Chouinard) writes:
> I'm interested in finding out what packages for MS-DOS can put characters 
> at various angles and positions, so that for example you can create a logo
> with characters in a semicircle.  Are there desktop publishing packages
> which do this directly, or in order to do this are some graphics programs
> more appropriate?

TeX and MF (there are nearly a dozen PD and commercial
versions--see [anonymous.tex.site-info]tex-for-ibm-pc.txt on
ymir.claremont.edu for capsule summaries) can handle this. There
is an article in TUGboat 11#2 (or 11#1, I forget which) detailing
this.

For information about the TeX Users Group and TUGboat, contact
  TeX Users Group
  P.O. Box 9506
  Providence, RI 02940-9506
  401-751-7760
  tug@math.ams.com

-dh

-- 
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Quixote Digital Typography | with a line saying send [DIRECTORY]FILENAME
714-625-0147               | where DIRECTORY is the FTP directory (sans 
---------------------------+ "anonymous") and FILENAME is the filename, e.g. 
"send [tex]00readme.txt". There is a list of files in each directory under the 
name 00files.txt. Binary files are not available by this technique.

mjf@cunixb.cc.columbia.edu (Michael J Flory) (03/25/91)

leo@hoss.unl.edu points out quite rightly that my Postscript suggestion
for printing circular text isn't much use without a Postscript printer.
Don't know why I supposed *he* had one when I don't have one myself...
I got the Postscript books as a sort of wishful thinking (and we do have
a couple of coin-op Apples at school).  Anyway, I've been reading reviews
of emulation software myself.  I see that GoScript has shown up for $60
in one of those penny-software catalogs I get (I don't have it here -- 
sorry) -- anyone have any experience with it or the others?  I've thought,
too, of getting a IIP, or perhaps just a DeskJet 500.  I know that some
of the emulators are recommended for the LJ series but that's as far as
I've gotten.

Michael Flory (mjf@cunixb.cc.columbia.edu)

preston@lll-crg.llnl.gov (David R Preston) (03/25/91)

In article <1991Mar21.205018.28277@hoss.unl.edu> leo@hoss.unl.edu writes:
>I'm interested in finding out what packages for MS-DOS can put characters 
>at various angles and positions, so that for example you can create a logo
>with characters in a semicircle.

Are you using MS Windows?  The best thing I've heard of is Adobe Type
Align, which basically lets you define an arbitrary path for the type
to follow.  It's not available for Windows quite yet, but should be
soon.  If you're using MS-DOS and don't have a Postscript printer, you
should think about getting MS Windows and Adobe Type Manager.  ATM lets
you use Type 1 postscript fonts.  I've seen Windows and ATM bundled
together for around $140. (you must have Windows in order to use ATM
or Type Align on a pc-compatible, if I haven't made that clear)
-david


        preston@lll-crg.llnl.gov
	[the United States has] "no opinion on your border
	dispute with Kuwait"  - U.S. Ambassador April Glaspie, July, 1990
        D. R. Preston  584 Castro St. #614 SF CA 94114 USA

leo@hoss.unl.edu (Leo Chouinard) (03/26/91)

In <93891@lll-winken.LLNL.GOV> preston@lll-crg.llnl.gov (David R Preston) asks
me:

>Are you using MS Windows?  The best thing I've heard of is Adobe Type
>Align, which basically lets you define an arbitrary path for the type
>to follow.  It's not available for Windows quite yet, but should be
>soon.  If you're using MS-DOS and don't have a Postscript printer, you
>should think about getting MS Windows and Adobe Type Manager.  ATM lets
>you use Type 1 postscript fonts.  I've seen Windows and ATM bundled
>together for around $140. (you must have Windows in order to use ATM
>or Type Align on a pc-compatible, if I haven't made that clear)

Thanks for the suggestion.  The specific answer to your question is no,
I'm not using Windows at present.  It's several hundred dollars down the
line (my hard disk is almost full, and from what I hear, I'd probably
also better have 4 Meg of RAM rather than 2 Meg).  But someday a few 
months down the line, maybe that will change.

I have been appreciating each of the many suggestions I've gotten.  Thanks,
all!

philba@microsoft.UUCP (Phil BARRETT) (03/29/91)

In article <1991Mar22.165703.6737@hoss.unl.edu> leo@hoss.unl.edu writes:
>In <1991Mar22.054557.31236@cunixf.cc.columbia.edu> mjf@cunixb.cc.columbia.edu 
>(Michael J Flory) writes:
>
>>Probably better to program your printer than your computer for this one!
>>The Postscript Language Tutorial book by Adobe (Addison-Wesley, paper)
>>includes circular text as "Program 10."  Have fun!
>
>Good idea!  But alas, some of us don't have a Postscript printer.  Mine's a 
>LaserJet IIP (2.5 Meg memory, but no add-on cartridges).
>
>If it comes down to Postscript, would a software emulator be a reasonable
>solution for limited Postscript use like this, or would it be advisable to
>go the whole nine yards and buy a Postscript cartridge?


several packages come to mind.  CorelDraw from corel, Arts and
Letters from CSC and Designer from Micrographx.  All have reasonably
sophisticated capabilities in this area. Personally, I prefer
CorelDraw.  All three packages run under MS Windows.  However, they
are not cheap -- $300-$400 street price.


The above does not reflect the views of my employer. so there.

phil

preston@lll-crg.llnl.gov (David R Preston) (03/30/91)

In article <71581@microsoft.UUCP> philba@microsoft.UUCP (Phil BARRETT) writes:
>
>several packages come to mind.  CorelDraw from corel, Arts and
>Letters from CSC and Designer from Micrographx.  All have reasonably
>sophisticated capabilities in this area. Personally, I prefer
>CorelDraw.  All three packages run under MS Windows.  However, they
>are not cheap -- $300-$400 street price.


Does anyone have any information about Adobe Type Align for Windows?  All
I know is that it is going to be released and the price will be comparable
to that of ATM ($100 retail, $60 "street price").  I've never used Type
Align for the Mac, but it sounds like the perfect thing for those of us
who only want that functionality, and not a full-fledged illustrator.

        drp%dosbears.uucp@ingres.com or drp%dosbears.uucp@pyramid.com
        If you slowed down to read this, you saved gas.
        D. R. Preston  584 Castro St. #614 SF CA 94114 USA