[comp.sys.next] Mac Adobe Illus -> NeXT PS

u-sgreen%peruvian.utah.edu@cs.utah.edu (Scott Greenman) (09/07/90)

I am trying to get some files from Adobe Illustrator on the Macintosh
(Adobe Illustrator 88 1.9.3) to show up on my NeXT.  I can easily transfer
the files from the mac to the NeXT, and when I open the files with
edit they appear to contain PostScript code, but when I try to open them
with Preview or Yap, I get just a blank page.  In case it's important, the
files are originally from SuperPaint on the Mac, saved as PICT, then ran
through the DrawOver program that comes with Adobe Illustrator.  Adobe
Illustrator opens them fine after that.  Any suggestions?

Scott Greenman
Univ of Utah

glenn@heaven.woodside.ca.us (Glenn Reid) (09/07/90)

In article <1990Sep6.161153.27908@hellgate.utah.edu> u-sgreen%peruvian.utah.edu@cs.utah.edu (Scott Greenman) writes:
>I am trying to get some files from Adobe Illustrator on the Macintosh
>(Adobe Illustrator 88 1.9.3) to show up on my NeXT.  I can easily transfer
>the files from the mac to the NeXT, and when I open the files with
>edit they appear to contain PostScript code, but when I try to open them
>with Preview or Yap, I get just a blank page.  In case it's important, the
>files are originally from SuperPaint on the Mac, saved as PICT, then ran
>through the DrawOver program that comes with Adobe Illustrator.  Adobe
>Illustrator opens them fine after that.  Any suggestions?

If you use Illustrator with its default page setups, the PostScript origin
is in the TOP LEFT of the page.  That means that all the Y coordinates in
your drawing will typically be negative numbers.  When you print from
Illustrator, it supplies the correct tranlation to land your drawing on
the page.  But if you just try to print (or view) the document, it is all
off the bottom.

That's just a guess as to what might be the problem.  To test this theory,
you might add a line to the PostScript code somewhere after the initial
comments that looks like this:

	0 892 translate

If this turns out to be the problem, it is best to fix it on the Mac
side, in Illustrator.  If you turn on the rulers and grab the little
rectangle where the rulers intersect and drag this out onto the page,
you will see cross-hairs that represent the PostScript origin.  Drag
this down to the bottom-left corner of the page.

I hope that helps.  You might also try placing the Illustrator files into
something like FrameMaker.  I do it all the time with no problem, so it
should be something fairly simple that's the matter.

/Glenn

-- 
 Glenn Reid				RightBrain Software
 glenn@heaven.woodside.ca.us		PostScript/NeXT developers
 ..{adobe,next}!heaven!glenn		415-851-1785

glenn@heaven.woodside.ca.us (Glenn Reid) (09/07/90)

In article <268@heaven.woodside.ca.us> I write:

>	0 892 translate

Oops.  That should have been 792.  I still have trouble touch-typing
those numbers around 6,7,8.  Sorry.

-- 
 Glenn Reid				RightBrain Software
 glenn@heaven.woodside.ca.us		PostScript/NeXT developers
 ..{adobe,next}!heaven!glenn		415-851-1785