From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Path: news.gmane.org!not-for-mail From: Stefan Monnier Newsgroups: gmane.emacs.devel Subject: Re: Printing Date: Wed, 01 Apr 2009 10:36:34 -0400 Message-ID: References: <5f0660120903280331y780c80b7i57a8115dc4b029eb@mail.gmail.com> <5f0660120903281352v5d7ab83cy44fcff3cbf4581cb@mail.gmail.com> <87ljqnkvn9.fsf@jehiel.elehack.net> NNTP-Posting-Host: lo.gmane.org Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii X-Trace: ger.gmane.org 1238596646 4651 80.91.229.12 (1 Apr 2009 14:37:26 GMT) X-Complaints-To: usenet@ger.gmane.org NNTP-Posting-Date: Wed, 1 Apr 2009 14:37:26 +0000 (UTC) Cc: michael@elehack.net, emacs-devel@gnu.org To: Eli Zaretskii Original-X-From: emacs-devel-bounces+ged-emacs-devel=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Wed Apr 01 16:38:44 2009 Return-path: Envelope-to: ged-emacs-devel@m.gmane.org Original-Received: from lists.gnu.org ([199.232.76.165]) by lo.gmane.org with esmtp (Exim 4.50) id 1Lp1a4-0007rz-07 for ged-emacs-devel@m.gmane.org; Wed, 01 Apr 2009 16:38:16 +0200 Original-Received: from localhost ([127.0.0.1]:55761 helo=lists.gnu.org) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.43) id 1Lp1Yg-0002NJ-3g for ged-emacs-devel@m.gmane.org; Wed, 01 Apr 2009 10:36:50 -0400 Original-Received: from mailman by lists.gnu.org with tmda-scanned (Exim 4.43) id 1Lp1Ya-0002N5-8B for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Wed, 01 Apr 2009 10:36:44 -0400 Original-Received: from exim by lists.gnu.org with spam-scanned (Exim 4.43) id 1Lp1YU-0002MC-RM for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Wed, 01 Apr 2009 10:36:43 -0400 Original-Received: from [199.232.76.173] (port=46700 helo=monty-python.gnu.org) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.43) id 1Lp1YU-0002Lx-Gp for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Wed, 01 Apr 2009 10:36:38 -0400 Original-Received: from ironport2-out.pppoe.ca ([206.248.154.182]:60895 helo=ironport2-out.teksavvy.com) by monty-python.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.60) (envelope-from ) id 1Lp1YS-0001J2-Ct; Wed, 01 Apr 2009 10:36:36 -0400 X-IronPort-Anti-Spam-Filtered: true X-IronPort-Anti-Spam-Result: AmgFAHIY00nO+Lq2/2dsb2JhbACBU88Jg3sGhH8 X-IronPort-AV: E=Sophos;i="4.39,306,1235970000"; d="scan'208";a="36039396" Original-Received: from 206-248-186-182.dsl.teksavvy.com (HELO pastel.home) ([206.248.186.182]) by ironport2-out.teksavvy.com with ESMTP; 01 Apr 2009 10:36:35 -0400 Original-Received: by pastel.home (Postfix, from userid 20848) id 0EB638446; Wed, 1 Apr 2009 10:36:35 -0400 (EDT) In-Reply-To: (Eli Zaretskii's message of "Wed, 01 Apr 2009 06:14:59 +0300") User-Agent: Gnus/5.13 (Gnus v5.13) Emacs/23.0.92 (gnu/linux) X-detected-operating-system: by monty-python.gnu.org: Genre and OS details not recognized. X-BeenThere: emacs-devel@gnu.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.5 Precedence: list List-Id: "Emacs development discussions." List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Original-Sender: emacs-devel-bounces+ged-emacs-devel=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Errors-To: emacs-devel-bounces+ged-emacs-devel=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Xref: news.gmane.org gmane.emacs.devel:109964 Archived-At: >> > I hope you are not saying that ps-print machinery is the only way >> > Emacs will be able to print in the future, i.e. rely on PostScript >> > support of the OS infrastructure. >> Yes, that's what I'm saying. > Then, if history teaches us anything, we will probably having this > discussion 10 years from now as well. Note that I'm not opposed to implementations that use some other way of printing than Postscript. I'm just saying that AFAICT in the foreseeable future, Emacs's printing will be based on Postscript. And in this regard, it works OK on Free systems where Postscript is always supported by the printing system (so the only problems on such systems have to do with Emacs's own ability to produce the right Postscript code). >> > Because if you do, the history of that until today should tell us this >> > is not necessarily a good idea. >> What other way to print are you thinking of? > The way every modern platform does that: through a printer API, > whereby you select fonts and layout, then render text to some device, > and the text gets printed to the printer you select. Under GNU/Linux, the above goes through Postscript: the app generates a Postscript file and then passes it to the printing subsystem (typically CUPS) along with options such as color/bw, duplex/simplex, ... so generating Postscript is not at all contradictory with the desire to provide the usual printer dialog. > Since Emacs already knows how to render text, it shouldn't be too hard > to teach it do so to something other than a screen. That sounds good as well, but someone has to write the code. Stefan