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PrinterPS Preferences Editor

The PrinterPS Preferences editor, illustrated in Figure 9-5, allows you to control text and graphics printing on PostScript printers. Use this editor only if you have a PostScript printer and if you choose PostScript in the Printer Preferences editor.

Figure 9-5.

PrinterPS Preferences Editor Window

The PrinterPS Preferences editor has an additional item in the Settings menu: Measuring System. Its submenu lets you select Centimeters, Inches, or Points. The selected units are used to display values of your width, height, and margin settings. The default setting is Inches.

The PrinterPS Preferences editor contains the following gadgets:

Driver Mode

Driver Mode lets you select either PostScript or Pass Through. In PostScript mode the driver converts any text output it receives to PostScript and sends the results to the port selected in the Printer Preferences editor. The Pass Through option bypasses the PostScript driver and sends data directly to the port. The Pass Through option lets programs that output PostScript send their PostScript code directly to the printer.

Copies

This specifies the number of copies of each page to print, from 1 to 99.

Paper Format

Paper Format lets you define the size of the paper to be used: U.S. Letter, U.S. Legal, DIN A4, and Custom. Clicking on this gadget sets the values in the Paper Width and Paper Height cycle gadget to match the named format.

Paper Width and Paper Height

The Paper Width and Paper Height gadgets let you specify the exact paper dimensions for custom page sizes. These two gadgets are ghosted unless Custom is selected in the Paper Format gadget.

Horizontal DPI and Vertical DPI

The Horizontal and Vertical DPI gadgets allow you to specify the dots per inch to use in the printout. The driver uses this resolution for all its dithering and other processing. Using different DPI settings from those of your PostScript printer can result in printouts with a distorted aspect ratio.

Panel Cycle Gadget

The Panel cycle gadget lets you select from four additional option panels: Text Options, Text Dimensions, Graphics Options, and Graphics Scaling. The panel selected determines the set of gadgets displayed.

Text Options

Text Options gadgets are illustrated in Figure 9-6.

Figure 9-6.

PrinterPS Preferences Window/Text Options

Font

Select the font to use in your printout. These are built-in printer fonts and are used whenever text is sent to the printer.

Pitch

Select either Normal, Compressed, or Expanded character width.

Orientation

Select between Portrait or Landscape printing. Use Landscape printing for envelopes.

Tab

Specify how to handle tabs in the printed file. The available selections are 4 Characters, 8 Characters, 1/4 Inch, 1/2 Inch, and 1 Inch. Use inch settings with proportional fonts.

Text Dimensions

Text Dimensions gadgets are illustrated in Figure 9-7.

Figure 9-7.

PrinterPS Preferences Editor Window/Text Dimensions

Margin Gadgets

Specify all four margins for text printing. The values entered are relative to the respective edges of the paper, given the paper's width and height values specified previously.

Font Point Size

Specify the size of the font to use whenever text is sent to the printer.

Line Leading

Specify the amount of leading between lines of text. This is the distance in points from the bottom of one line to the top of the following line.

Lines Per Inch

Displays the approximate number of lines per inch, based on the values of the Font Point Size and Line Leading options.

Lines Per Page

This text displays area shows the number of lines printable per page, based on the values of the Font Point Size, Line Leading, Paper Height, Top Margin, and Bottom Margin.

Graphics Options

Graphics Options gadgets are illustrated in Figure 9-8.

Figure 9-8.

PrinterPS Preferences Editor Window/Graphics Options

Edge/Dimension Gadgets

Similar to the four Margin gadgets, but specifying the print region used for graphics printing.

Image

Positive/Negative.

Shading

Select between Black & White, Grey Scale, and Color.

Dithering

Select Default, Dotty, Vertical, or Horizontal dithering when Grey Scale shading is selected. Default is standard halftone shading. Dotty is similar to halftone shading, but with very large dots for a special effect. Vertical and Horizontal represent grey shades with closely-spaced vertical and horizontal lines of varying thickness.

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