| Re: CGM files [message #17647 is a reply to message #5238] |
Thu, 04 November 1999 00:00   |
Mark Hadfield
Messages: 783
Registered: May 1995
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Senior Member |
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Justin <Justin_Ashmall@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:7vp9bo$ml8$1@jura.cc.ic.ac.uk...
> IDLers,
>
> I'm attempting to produce a CGM file of a plot, however the resulting file
> gives a square image rather than the landscape shaped plot I'm after and
> also has some over-lapping text. Producing an encapuslated postscript file
> with the same plot commands works fine (i.e. the correct aspect ratio, no
> overlapping text).
>
> Ultimately I want to get the plot into Word (I don't want to use .eps
since
> I'm not using a PS printer). If I resize the CGM file the text becomes
> distorted. Outside of IDL I've tried using Ghostview to convert the .eps
> file to a windows meta-file which works except the resolution is very
poor,
> leading to my curves becomes badly jagged.
>
> Any suggestions?
If you DID have a Postscript printer, then by far the best way would be to
use the IDL PS device to generate EPS output. You can add a TIFF preview, if
you want, in IDL or with GSview (on Windows) or maybe Ghostview (which I
haven't used).
Without a PS printer you don't have too many satisfactory options.
The CGM device is pretty much useless for importing into Word, as you have
noted.
Ideally you want WMF (Windows Metafile) format but IDL does not have a WMF
driver. (Surely it wouldn't be that hard for them to write one!)
You could import EPS files into Word and then try to solve the problem at
the output end. You could print from Word to a file using a Postscript
driver, then print that to your non-PS printer using Ghostscript or GSview.
I don't know how well that works. If you had Adobe Acrobat Distiller, you
could print from Word through the Distiller driver to generate a PDF file,
which can then be printed to a non-PS printer. I don't know how well that
works either, and Distiller is not free.
Otherwise you could try to convert the EPS files before importing them.
There is a program called pstoedit
( http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/Network/1958/pstoedit /) which can
take EPS files and convert them to other vector forms. The win32 version can
now generate WMF format, which can be imported into Word. Pstoedit does have
some limitations, however, in particular it can't handle images.
Rumour has it that IDL 5.3 will be able to generate Windows Metafile output,
but only for Object Graphics and only on win32.
---
Mark Hadfield
m.hadfield@niwa.cri.nz http://katipo.niwa.cri.nz/~hadfield/
National Institute for Water and Atmospheric Research
PO Box 14-901, Wellington, New Zealand
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