Ghostscript is a suite of software based on an
interpreterIn computer science, an interpreter normally means a computer program that executes, i.e. performs, instructions written in a programming language...
for
Adobe SystemsAdobe Systems Incorporated is an American computer software company founded in 1982 and headquartered in San Jose, California, United States...
'
PostScriptPostScript is a dynamically typed concatenative programming language created by John Warnock and Charles Geschke in 1982. It is best known for its use as a page description language in the electronic and desktop publishing areas. Adobe PostScript 3 is also the worldwide printing and imaging...
and
Portable Document FormatPortable Document Format is an open standard for document exchange. This file format, created by Adobe Systems in 1993, is used for representing documents in a manner independent of application software, hardware, and operating systems....
(PDF)
page description languageA page description language is a language that describes the appearance of a printed page in a higher level than an actual output bitmap. An overlapping term is printer control language, but it should not be confused as referring solely to Hewlett-Packard's PCL...
s.
Features
Ghostscript can be used as a
raster image processorA raster image processor is a component used in a printing system which produces a raster image also known as a bitmap. The bitmap is then sent to a printing device for output. The input may be a page description in a high-level page description language such as PostScript, Portable Document...
(RIP) for raster
computer printerIn computing, a printer is a peripheral which produces a text or graphics of documents stored in electronic form, usually on physical print media such as paper or transparencies. Many printers are primarily used as local peripherals, and are attached by a printer cable or, in most new printers, a...
s—for instance, as an input filter of
line printer daemonThe Berkeley printing system is one of several standard architectures for printing on the Unix platform. It originated in 4.2BSD, and is used in BSD derivatives such as FreeBSD, NetBSD, OpenBSD, and DragonFly BSD...
—or as the RIP engine behind PostScript and PDF viewers.
Ghostscript can also be used as a file format converter, such as PostScript to PDF converter; this is often combined with a PostScript printer driver in "
virtual printerA virtual printer is a piece of computer software whose user interface and API resemble that of a printer driver, but which is not connected with a physical computer printer....
" PDF creators. It also supports
PDF/APDF/A is an ISO-standardized version of the Portable Document Format specialized for the digital preservation of electronic documents.PDF/A differs from PDF by omitting features ill-suited to long-term archiving, such as font linking...
and
PDF/XPDF/X is an umbrella term for several ISO standards that define a subset of the PDF standard. The purpose of PDF/X is to facilitate graphics exchange, and it therefore has a series of printing related requirements which do not apply to standard PDF files. For example, in PDF/X-1a all fonts need to...
-3.
As it takes the form of a language interpreter, Ghostscript can also be used as a general purpose programming environment.
Ghostscript has been
portedIn computer science, porting is the process of adapting software so that an executable program can be created for a computing environment that is different from the one for which it was originally designed...
to many operating systems, including
UnixUnix is a multitasking, multi-user computer operating system originally developed in 1969 by a group of AT&T employees at Bell Labs, including Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, Brian Kernighan, Douglas McIlroy, and Joe Ossanna...
,
LinuxLinux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of any Linux system is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released October 5, 1991 by Linus Torvalds...
,
Mac OSMac OS is a series of graphical user interface-based operating systems developed by Apple Inc. for their Macintosh line of computer systems. The Macintosh user experience is credited with popularizing the graphical user interface...
,
OpenVMSOpenVMS , previously known as VAX-11/VMS, VAX/VMS or VMS, is a computer server operating system that runs on VAX, Alpha and Itanium-based families of computers. Contrary to what its name suggests, OpenVMS is not open source software; however, the source listings are available for purchase...
,
Microsoft WindowsMicrosoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
,
MS-DOSMS-DOS is an operating system for x86-based personal computers. It was the most commonly used member of the DOS family of operating systems, and was the main operating system for IBM PC compatible personal computers during the 1980s to the mid 1990s, until it was gradually superseded by operating...
,
FreeDOSFreeDOS is an operating system for IBM PC compatible computers. FreeDOS is made up of many different, separate programs that act as "packages" to the overall FreeDOS Project...
,
OS/2OS/2 is a computer operating system, initially created by Microsoft and IBM, then later developed by IBM exclusively. The name stands for "Operating System/2," because it was introduced as part of the same generation change release as IBM's "Personal System/2 " line of second-generation personal...
,
Atari TOSTOS is the operating system of the Atari ST range of computers. This range includes the 520 and 1040ST, their STF/M/FM and STE variants and the Mega ST/STE. Later, 32-bit machines were developed using a new version of TOS, called MultiTOS, which allowed multitasking...
and
AmigaOSAmigaOS is the default native operating system of the Amiga personal computer. It was developed first by Commodore International, and initially introduced in 1985 with the Amiga 1000...
.
Frontends
Several
graphical user interfaceIn computing, a graphical user interface is a type of user interface that allows users to interact with electronic devices with images rather than text commands. GUIs can be used in computers, hand-held devices such as MP3 players, portable media players or gaming devices, household appliances and...
s have been written for use with Ghostscript which permit a user to view a PostScript or PDF file on screen, scroll, page forward and backward, and zoom the text as well as print single or multiple pages.
- Ghostview runs under Unix/X11. Ghostview has an unusual (and arguably counter-intuitive) user interface
The user interface, in the industrial design field of human–machine interaction, is the space where interaction between humans and machines occurs. The goal of interaction between a human and a machine at the user interface is effective operation and control of the machine, and feedback from the...
feature: dragging the mouse over the image pans the image in the opposite direction (the mouse moves the viewport over the image, rather than the image underneath the viewport). The effect is similar to having invisible scroll bars all over the image and is approximately the opposite of panning in Google MapsGoogle Maps is a web mapping service application and technology provided by Google, free , that powers many map-based services, including the Google Maps website, Google Ride Finder, Google Transit, and maps embedded on third-party websites via the Google Maps API...
and other applications.
- gv runs under Unix/X11. gv is a visually improved version of Ghostview. Its behaviour is similar to Ghostview.
- mgv runs under Unix/X11. It is a Motif
In computing, Motif refers to both a graphical user interface specification and the widget toolkit for building applications that follow that specification under the X Window System on Unix and other POSIX-compliant systems. It emerged in the 1980s as Unix workstations were on the rise, as a...
based front-end to Ghostscript. It features a more conventional user interface, with regular menus, a toolbar, and scrollbars.
- GSview runs under Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
, OS/2OS/2 is a computer operating system, initially created by Microsoft and IBM, then later developed by IBM exclusively. The name stands for "Operating System/2," because it was introduced as part of the same generation change release as IBM's "Personal System/2 " line of second-generation personal...
, and Unix-likeA Unix-like operating system is one that behaves in a manner similar to a Unix system, while not necessarily conforming to or being certified to any version of the Single UNIX Specification....
operating systems. It is best known for its Windows and OS/2 versions. On UNIX it uses the GTK+GTK+ is a cross-platform widget toolkit for creating graphical user interfaces. It is licensed under the terms of the GNU LGPL, allowing both free and proprietary software to use it. It is one of the most popular toolkits for the X Window System, along with Qt.The name GTK+ originates from GTK;...
toolkit. Although under a public license, it also employs a nag screen to urge users to register so as to support the development of GSview. The registration fee is A$The Australian dollar is the currency of the Commonwealth of Australia, including Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent Pacific Island states of Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu...
40. The latest version was released in November 2007. The Ghostscript documentation states, concerning its installation under Windows: "After installing Ghostscript, it is strongly recommended that you install the GSview previewer, which provides an easier to use graphical interface for Ghostscript."
- PDF Blender is a cross-platform application that converts and merges documents to and from PostScript and PDF formats.
- Moonshiner is a graphical front-end for using Ghostscript to convert from PostScript to PDF, aiming to be a Linux work-alike for Adobe's Distiller.
Adobe Acrobat is a family of application software developed by Adobe Systems to view, create, manipulate, print and manage files in Portable Document Format . All members of the family, except Adobe Reader , are commercial software, while the latter is available as freeware and can be downloaded...
- KGhostView runs under Unix/X11. It is KDE3 port of Ghostview.
- Okular runs under Unix/X11 and Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
(using KDE4 for Windows). It is a KDE4 application.
- PDFcreator
PDFCreator is an application for converting documents into Portable Document Format format on Microsoft Windows operating systems. It works by creating a virtual printer that prints to PDF files, and thereby allows practically any application to create PDF files by choosing to print from within...
runs under Microsoft WindowsMicrosoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
and creates a local printer
History
Ghostscript was originally written by
L. Peter DeutschL Peter Deutsch or Peter Deutsch is the founder of Aladdin Enterprises and creator of Ghostscript, a free software PostScript and PDF interpreter....
in 1986 for the
GNU ProjectThe GNU Project is a free software, mass collaboration project, announced on September 27, 1983, by Richard Stallman at MIT. It initiated GNU operating system development in January, 1984...
, and released under the
GNU General Public LicenseThe GNU General Public License is the most widely used free software license, originally written by Richard Stallman for the GNU Project....
; later, Deutsch formed Aladdin Enterprises to license Ghostscript under a proprietary license. Ghostscript is currently owned by Artifex Software and maintained by
Artifex Software employees and the worldwide user community. The current version of Ghostscript is again available under
GPLThe GNU General Public License is the most widely used free software license, originally written by Richard Stallman for the GNU Project....
but Ghostscript can be also licensed
for use in proprietary projects for a fee.
Variants
- GPL Ghostscript is the canonical variant available under the GNU General Public License
The GNU General Public License is the most widely used free software license, originally written by Richard Stallman for the GNU Project....
, which is a free software license. Before June 2006, the leading edge of Ghostscript development was distributed as AFPL Ghostscript (formerly named Aladdin Ghostscript) under the Aladdin Free Public LicenseThe Aladdin Free Public License, abbreviated AFPL, is a license written by L. Peter Deutsch for his Ghostscript PostScript language interpreter.-History:The license was derived from the GNU General Public License, but differs on two key points:...
, which restricts commercial use. AFPL Ghostscript is now abandoned.
- GNU Ghostscript is part of the GNU project
The GNU Project is a free software, mass collaboration project, announced on September 27, 1983, by Richard Stallman at MIT. It initiated GNU operating system development in January, 1984...
and is now derived from GPL Ghostscript.
- ESP Ghostscript was distributed by Easy Software Products
Easy Software Products is the vendor who originally invented the Common Unix Printing System and HTMLDOC software. It was founded near Washington, D.C. in 1993 and is now located in Morgan Hill, California. ESP sold CUPS to Apple Inc. in 2007 but still develops and sells its HTMLDOC...
under the GPL. It was based on GPL Ghostscript and contains several modifications to improve compatibility with ESP's Common Unix Printing SystemCUPS is a modular printing system for Unix-like computer operating systems which allows a computer to act as a print server...
. This version is no longer developed, since it was merged with GPL Ghostscript.
- Ghostscript is the current commercial proprietary version licensed by Artifex Software for inclusion in closed-source
Proprietary software is computer software licensed under exclusive legal right of the copyright holder. The licensee is given the right to use the software under certain conditions, while restricted from other uses, such as modification, further distribution, or reverse engineering.Complementary...
products.
The GPL version is also used as the basis for a
Display Ghostscript, which adds the functionality needed to fully support
Display PostScriptDisplay PostScript is an on-screen display system. As the name implies, DPS uses the PostScript imaging model and language to generate on-screen graphics...
.
Free fonts
There are two sets of
freeFree software, software libre or libre software is software that can be used, studied, and modified without restriction, and which can be copied and redistributed in modified or unmodified form either without restriction, or with restrictions that only ensure that further recipients can also do...
fonts supplied for Ghostscript:
- 35 basic PostScript fonts contributed by URW++ Design and Development Incorporated, of Hamburg, Germany in 1996 under the GPL
The GNU General Public License is the most widely used free software license, originally written by Richard Stallman for the GNU Project....
and AFPLThe Aladdin Free Public License, abbreviated AFPL, is a license written by L. Peter Deutsch for his Ghostscript PostScript language interpreter.-History:The license was derived from the GNU General Public License, but differs on two key points:...
. It is a full set of Type1 fonts similar to the classic Adobe set: Bookman L (BookmanBookman or Bookman Old Style is a serif typeface derived from Old Style Antique and designed by Alexander Phemister in 1858 for Miller and Richard foundry. Several American foundries copied the design, including the Bruce Type Foundry, and issued it under various names. In 1901, Bruce refitted...
), Century Schoolbook L (New Century Schoolbook), Chancery L (Zapf Chancery), Dingbats (Zapf DingbatsZapf Dingbats is one of the more common dingbat typefaces. It was designed by the typographer Hermann Zapf in 1978 and licensed by International Typeface Corporation....
), Gothic L (Avant Garde), Nimbus Mono LNimbus Mono is a monospaced typeface created by URW Studio in 1984, and eventually released under the GPL and AFPL in 1996 and LPPL in 2009. It features Normal, Bold, Italic, and Bold Italic weights, and is one of several freely licensed fonts offered by URW++...
(CourierCourier is a monospaced slab serif typeface designed to resemble the output from a strike-on typewriter. The typeface was designed by Howard "Bud" Kettler in 1955...
), Nimbus Roman No9 L (TimesTimes New Roman is a serif typeface commissioned by the British newspaper The Times in 1931, created by Victor Lardent at the English branch of Monotype. It was commissioned after Stanley Morison had written an article criticizing The Times for being badly printed and typographically antiquated...
), Nimbus Sans L (HelveticaHelvetica is a widely used sans-serif typeface developed in 1957 by Swiss typeface designer Max Miedinger with Eduard Hoffmann.-Visual distinctive characteristics:Characteristics of this typeface are:lower case:square dot over the letter i....
), Palladio L (PalatinoPalatino is the name of a large typeface family that began as an old style serif typeface designed by Hermann Zapf initially released in 1948 by the Linotype foundry.In 1999, Zapf revised Palatino for Linotype and Microsoft, called Palatino Linotype...
), Standard Symbols L (SymbolSymbol is one of the four standard fonts available on all PostScript-based printers, starting with Apple's original LaserWriter . It contains a complete unaccented Greek alphabet and a selection of commonly used mathematical symbols...
).
- A miscellaneous set including Cyrillic, kana, and fonts derived from the free Hershey fonts, with improvements by Thomas Wolff (such as adding accented characters).
See also
- Common Unix Printing System
CUPS is a modular printing system for Unix-like computer operating systems which allows a computer to act as a print server...
- Foomatic
Foomatic is a configurable printing filter. It uses PPD files as configuration to generate appropriate output for a given printer. It is intended to be used with the Common Unix Printing System . It uses ghostscript in the background, using options according to the PPD file of the printer...
- PostScript Printer Description
PostScript Printer Description files are created by vendors to describe the entire set of features and capabilities available for their PostScript printers.A PPD also contains the PostScript code used to invoke features for the print job...
- Printer driver
In computers, a printer driver or a print processor is a piece of software that converts the data to be printed to the form specific to a printer...
- pstoedit
External links