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###############################################################
# #
# README file for GP ver. 2.5 #
# #
# Copyright (C) 1997-1998 UEDA Hiroyuki, NAKAI Hideyuki. #
# All Rights Reserved. #
# #
# 15th Jan. 1998 #
# #
###############################################################
1. What's GP?
GP is an application for Unix and provides GUI interface
of Unix Printing System. With GP, you can print easily and
stably on Unix. BSD system, which is one of Unix systems,
has commands (such as lpr, lpq, or lprm) for printing, and
ensuring/removing print queues. These commands, however, are
complicated for Unix novices. When a printer registered
"/etc/printcap" has several filters, it makes them more
complicated, and some novices may print PostScript files as
Text files. Then you know what happens and it wastes lots of
papers and time.
To avoid this situation, use GP ver 2.5. When a file is
selected, GP determines its filetype automatically by its
filename extension and it also determines the appropriate
printer. GP has Windows95-like user interface, which is
employed in Tcl/Tk's minor version is the late of 1996.
GP Ver 2.5 has GUI interface, so you can use GP easily. GP
also has the following characteristics : You can avoid
miss-printing because GP automatically recognize a file type
and a default printer for the file by checking its file
extension.
You can preview a file before printing. When GP users try to
print files and those files are specified not to be printed by
the administrator, the users cannot print those files.
Because File Selection Menu has a Windows95-like interface,
Unix novices can use GP easily.
2. Environment for GP
GP is an script written in Tcl/Tk, so you need
Tcl7.6p2/Tk4.2p2 or later version
(Latest release version is Tcl8.0p2/Tk8.0p2)
But Tcl8.0/Tk8.0 has a menu bug and the bug has not been
fixed any official patches from Sunscript, so I recommend
you to use Tcl7.6p2/Tk4.2p2. According to Sun Microsystems,
the bug will be fixed in next major release version.
3. Print Filter Applications
GP provides you a GUI for BSD print commands, such as lpr,
lprm, lpq. Most printers need some applications when you
print Text files, TeX DVI files, PostScript files, Image
files etc... For GP, we name such applications the filter
and there are following types :
Conversion to PostScript file
Conversion to Printer Dependent Language file
I use Canon BJC-400J(BubbleJet Printer) printer, so all files
are converted to PostScript file for printing with Ghostscript.
The filters I use are following :
For Text file files ... a2ps(C/perl version)
For DVI files ... dvi2ps
For PostScript files ... psutils
For Image files ... convert command of ImageMagick
Any other filters can be used by GP with writing filter
configuration files. If your filter can't work with GP,
please contact me.
4. How to Install GP
Please Refer to "Install" file in Doc directory.
5. How to Execute GP
GP execution grammar is following (Options in "[ ]" can be
omitted) :
GP [-geometry +X+Y] [-vertical|-horizontal]
"-geometry" specifies GP appearance coordinates(of X Window
System). "+0+0" means the upper left and "-0-0" does the
lower right. "-vertical" or "-horizontal" specifies the icons
order.
You can execute GP after starting X if you write following
to ~/.xinitrc :
GP -geometry -0+0 -vertical &
6. How to Use
See HTML manual "index.html" in "Manual" directory with your
favorite browser.
7. Notices
(1) Method of Paper Scaling
Even if a filter can use only a few kinds of papers, GP
with psutils can use many kinds of papers, such as
A3, A4, A5, B5, Letter, Legal, Tabloid, Statement,
Executive, Folio, Quarto, 10x14
On scaling papers, GP use a default paper media of the
filter as a standard size. If a default paper media of
a filter is A4 and you want to print on A3, the filter
makes A4 paper, GP magnifies/shrinks it, and you get
A3 paper.
(2) Strange Range of Paper Printing
When you print part of a file, you maybe obtain strange
part rarely. This is because of specifications of psutils.
So check part of a file with PS preview if you can.
(3) Clean Large Temporary Files in TMPDIR
GP makes temporary files in TMPDIR directory when you preview
or print a file as a PostScript file. Generally GP remove them
when you quit GP correctly, but GP leaves large files in TMPDIR
directory if you quit GP abnormally. So you should clean TMPDIR
directory with "cron".
8. Copyright
Copyright (C) 1997-1998 UEDA Hiroyuki, NAKAI Hideyuki
This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify
it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or
(at your option) any later version.
This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
GNU General Public License for more details.
You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
along with this program; if not, write to the Free Software
Foundation, Inc., 675 Mass Ave, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
9. How to Contact the Author
If you find bugs and/or you have opinions about GP, please
send a E-mail to following address :
mailto:hueda@kamome.or.jp
10. Information of GP
You can find information of GP on following URL :
http://www.kamome.or.jp/hueda/GP/index.html
Also I have registered my free soft on Tcl Contributed Sources
Data Base, which has been maintained by Neosoft Com.
(http://www.neosoft.com/tcl), refer to it, too.
11. Thanks
I have no word to express my gratitude to KIRIYAMA Kazuhiko,
who is one of FreeBSD ports maintainer and very active.
Without his encouragement, I couldn't have completed GP
ver. 2.5. Now any FreeBSD user can easily install GP with
a ports made by him.
FUJIMORI Kazuhiro is also indispensable for making GP
ver. 2.5. He tested GP and gave me nice advice.
And I deeply appreciate many people who have made nice,
great and useful file conversion programs. During making
GP, I printed out GP sources with GP and some file conversion
program.
15th Jan. 1998
UEDA Hiroyuki <hueda@kamome.or.jp>