Sender: lockhart@hub.org
Message-ID: <375BE341.C9841F1C@alumni.caltech.edu>
Date: Mon, 07 Jun 1999 15:20:33 +0000
From: Thomas Lockhart <lockhart@alumni.caltech.edu>
MIME-Version: 1.0
To: Petter Reinholdtsen <pere@hungry.com>
CC: Postgres Documentation List <docs@postgresql.org>
Subject: Re: PostgreSQL User's Guide as A4 Postscript?
References: <199906071452.QAA30722@lee.Cc.Uit.No>
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> > No, I have not generated one. To make hardcopy, I generate an RTF
> > file, then import into ApplixWare, insert graphics, clean up page
> > breaks, and insert page numbers into the table of contents. This
> > last step must be done manually (e.g. typing *all* of the page
> > numbers in) due to an apparent mishandling of the RTF by Applix. If
> > I can get that fixed some day then it should be fairly easy to
> > generate an A4 version.
> Sounds like a ugly way to do it.  What is the original document
> format?

The original document format is DocBook sgml. It is processed by jade
into RTF, which I then use to clean up page breaks etc, and finally
save a Postscript file.

The process is actually quite reasonable, since imho no completely
automated scheme will do the best job of setting page breaks. The only
ugliness is the problem with getting a proper ToC from the imported
RTF. Applix does not propagate the styles correctly to the headers and
body of the text, making all text "Header1" in style and therefore
unable to pick out the actual headers to make a new ToC.

I recall that importing into M$Word gets the styles marked, but there
were other problems which seemed to even things out.

> > If someone wanted to take on A4 hardcopy as a project, I would be
> > happy to support them.
> Maybe I will, depending on the document format. :-)

If I can get the ToC problem solved, then generating A4 is almost
trivial. To duplicate my doc generation environment would require a
jade/docbook installation, and the purchase of ApplixWare (relatively
inexpensive; SuSE linux comes with it). 

However feel free to explore other possibilities for RTF->hardcopy
with formatting adjustments.

                       - Thomas

-- 
Thomas Lockhart				lockhart@alumni.caltech.edu
South Pasadena, California