Re: PDF backend for (Open)Jade

[Brandon Ibach <bibach@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Quoting Christof Drescher <drescher@xxxxxxxxxxxx>:
> The backend (called fot2pdf) is written in JAVA and can be used on most 
> platforms easily. It is deliberately NOT to be included in the standard 
> OpenJade source tree, but runs separately taking the generated FOT file 
> as input. The backend has been used to produce several documents now 
> and runs stable and produces a rather good quality (at least I think 
> so). As a small drawback, it is fixed to western style texts 
> (left-to-right/top-to-bottom) and fonts in the standard Adobe encoding.
> 
> [...]
> 
> I expect to have the DSSSL community give their input to the further 
> development of this backend once it's available; also, since formatting 
> is not limited to the capabilities of any meta-format (like rtf etc.), 
> there is a chance to have more features becoming implemented now. 
> 
   I have to echo Matthias' comment... this is great!  I'd have to say
the most difficult step in creating a more advanced backend based on
Postscript/PDF is just getting something started.  Now that there's
something to build on, the potential is great.
   As far as Matthias' remark on the need for two-way communication
with the DSSSL engine, I'd have to think that the potential exists for
an interface to be created for that purpose, without totally
reengineering what you have.  Basically, I would think it possible to
replace the portion that reads in the FOT with a module to interface
to OpenJade through the normal backend mechanism.
   By creating an interface that would be appropriate for either the
FOT reader or the OpenJade interface, the same code could be used
either way.  Part of the interface would be a way for each
implementation to indicate to the rest of the backend whether it
supports indirect flow objects.  (I *love* Java!)

> P.S.: If someone has good place to keep this backend for downloading 
> (e.g. on the OpenJade-pages), please let me know; if there should be 
> enough interest, I could make it available maybe to the end of next 
> week.
> 
   You could either create it as its own SourceForge project, as Peter
has done with his Braifo backend, or we might be able to create it as
a "subproject" under OpenJade, there.  Matthias (or Didier)?

-Brandon :)


 DSSSList info and archive:  http://www.mulberrytech.com/dsssl/dssslist