Hello
I have a problem with creating a .pdf file from the .ps file using Adobe Distiller. I receive .ps files from the client. When generating a pdf file, I get the information as shown in the attached screenshot. I conclude that the font is a problem. The question is, is it possible to change the font in the .ps file to a different font? When editing such a file in Notepad + I see the source code, so maybe just add a piece of code that would do this? Does anyone of you know what to add in the code or how to repair such a corrupted .ps file?
Regards
1: Holy shit I thought we were behind the times.
2: Quick look and I see it unhappy with times new roman. Try loading that see if it works.
3: Tell your customer how to make a PDF. Distiller Was killed by adobe in 2013 so it's time.
It would be helpful to know what program the client is using initially to create the .ps file - then you can either find instructions online to show the client how to make a .PDF -OR- make a step-by-step instruction for them... Clearly if the client is still making .ps files, they are old and stuck in their ways - so talking them through it on the phone will not be easy. Step-by-step instructions with screen grabs of what to click on is going to be the best way to teach them...
That's my $.02 and I'm sticking to it. :ninja:
Yeah unless you are really comfortable (and good at) editing PS code in a text editor I would avoid it at all costs. This is a fix best fixed at the beginning of the process. Not the end.
My only thought on this...RUN!!!
Thank you for the information.
Unfortunately, the Client can only send .ps files and it is impossible to force files in a different format. Files are generated by some aplication that uses java scripts, and unfortunately I do not know anything about coding to analyze such a script. The most interesting is that if I get the file of one mailing client, I can convert it to pdf and then in Pitstop I can replace the fonts and fix my file. I get hundreds of files from the Client and for now I have no idea how to create a module that would automatically replace fonts for each of the individual files. Or maybe there is one in Pitstop, maybe some action script in Adobe Acrobat? At the moment when I receive files of different clients combined into one, I can not create a pdf file anymore because there is a problem that can be seen on the screen. Unfortunately, the Client sends one large mailing file in .ps format. It follows that the module he uses to connect individual files into one large one breaks everything.
If you are looking to handle volume you could use PitStop Server, that would help throughput as it will handle multiple files at the same time.
Available on subscription and a 30 day trial if you want to kick the tyres on it.
Not sure it's going to help with the big ps file though, maybe look at the font options in Distiller when you do the PDF conversion.
metlife, you should ask your client if they can provide the fonts then. It would be a one time thing, and then when you Distill them to PDF, you should be good and not have to worry about any font errors.
The thing is that it's really one font that the .ps file interprets as if it were 100 different Times New Roman font styles even though it's really one and the same font style. I have no reason to ask for a font from the customer because I already have it. The .ps file somehow corrupted this font. I thought that Pitstop Server could do the job, but I do not know if my company will agree to buy another software. I can always ask.
what program are they setting the original file up in? Can they simply outline all the fonts before making the .ps? Or what might be simplest, can you get the software they are using and open up the original working file and see if you can do something better?
Quote from: metlife on January 24, 2018, 01:54:48 AMHello
I have a problem with creating a .pdf file from the .ps file using Adobe Distiller. I receive .ps files from the client. When generating a pdf file, I get the information as shown in the attached screenshot. I conclude that the font is a problem. The question is, is it possible to change the font in the .ps file to a different font? When editing such a file in Notepad + I see the source code, so maybe just add a piece of code that would do this? Does anyone of you know what to add in the code or how to repair such a corrupted .ps file?
Regards
By default standard fonts are not embedded via postscript into a PDF like any font in the Ariel or Times New Roman family.
Quote from: Dov Isaacs (Adobe Engineer)Adobe PDF PostScript printer driver instance exempt certain "system fonts" from being embedded ... and those fonts include all those in the Times New Roman and Arial families plus others.
What you can try is to add the problem font(s) into the 'Always Embed Font' in your Distiller settings and see if that helps. What may prevent that from working is for some reason, and I've noticed this on files created on Windows, is it puts those random letters at the beginning of the name of the font. In your case that would be AAFSBD+.
Quote from: metlife on January 26, 2018, 06:21:39 AMI have no reason to ask for a font from the customer because I already have it.
You may have a Times New Roman, but you might not have THE Times New Roman that they used.
Ahhh. The old days....of having to worry about having the specific foundry, version and date of a font to make things work with PostScript. It was never enough to just "have" the font. You needed the specific font, which you might be running up against. It's like that with all programing languages, they are VERY particular with everything. Which is a huge PITA, but in the end it's a GREAT thing, cause you know things will work.
Except most designers don't know how a package a job. If I had a nickel for every time I said "collect for output" or "package" and they answered, What? I wouldn't have to work in prepress anymore.
Those letters in front of the font name are because the font is subsetted. If the font is embedded and subsetted more than once the code in front of the font name changes.
For an explanation have a look at section 9.6.4 Font Subsets of the PDF specification ISO 32000-1:2008:
"For a font subset, the PostScript name of the font — the value of the font's BaseFont entry and the font descriptor's FontName entry — shall begin with a tag followed by a plus sign (+). The tag shall consist of exactly six uppercase letters; the choice of letters is arbitrary, but different subsets in the same PDF file shall have different tags.
EXAMPLE EOODIA+Poetica is the name of a subset of Poetica®, a Type 1 font."
Would it be possible to get a sample of the postcript file that fails?
Also what os are you running distiller on?
Quote from: pabney on January 26, 2018, 11:16:59 AMThose letters in front of the font name are because the font is subsetted. If the font is embedded and subsetted more than once the code in front of the font name changes.
For an explanation have a look at section 9.6.4 Font Subsets of the PDF specification ISO 32000-1:2008:
"For a font subset, the PostScript name of the font — the value of the font's BaseFont entry and the font descriptor's FontName entry — shall begin with a tag followed by a plus sign (+). The tag shall consist of exactly six uppercase letters; the choice of letters is arbitrary, but different subsets in the same PDF file shall have different tags.
EXAMPLE EOODIA+Poetica is the name of a subset of Poetica®, a Type 1 font."
Would it be possible to get a sample of the postcript file that fails?
Also what os are you running distiller on?
I'll take your word for it. :rotf:
But thanks. It is nice to hear the exact documentation of why it does that. It might help the OP if he can get the people making the PS file to fully embed all fonts instead of subsetting. Of course the PS file will be bigger but disk space is cheap and bandwidth is crazy fast in most places these days.
It may help in another way. It is conceivable to fix the postscript file by stripping out the subsets and embedding a full version of the font. I haven't had to work on a .ps file in quite some time, but I am willing to give it a shot. If we are only dealing with this one font issue, and it is the same issue every time. But I would need a copy of the .ps file in order to even begin to try.
Hello all
@Wonderings @pabney
I do not know, unfortunately, in which program this .ps file is generated. In our company, the implementation department received such a file from the client and because they could not deal with it, they sent it to me. Unfortunately, the privacy policy in our company does not allow me to forward this file, because it contains confidential data of target customers. Certainly, I can't outline all the fonts because then our devices will not be able to use the file search modules to add appropriate control codes to the appropriate client. So far, there have been no problems with the files from this client, and now suddenly one file has crashed. Even a new file has the same error. I run Distiller on the Windows platform. I will check if the method with embedding the whole font will solve the problem. From what I see, the implementation department in our company processes such a file through "iText 2.1.7". Perhaps the solution would also be updating the modules in this application "iText 2.1.7"? As I mentioned earlier, for now the only proven way is to substitute fonts in individual files from the Pitstop level. Then combining such files into one large one and generating a .ps file. Then everything works, but we have a lot of such files, and I would not do anything else but to "heal" files.
@Joe
I've already tried this method with embedding the entire font in the Distiller you gave. Unfortunately, it also did not help.
@Farabomb
I also often meet with the fact that the graphic agency does not attach all things to the project. Especially since you can include fonts by saving the package in Indesign. Unfortunately, in the environment in which I turn, no one does it.
Always makes it more difficult when they are not using a standard for creating their files. I looked at iTexts website and I cannot even figure out what the software is used for or why anyone producing files for print would need iText when the industry standards work perfectly well.
No solution for you, all I would do is go back to the customer and say we cannot use the file you provided, please resend as a PDF and give the specs you need. Looks like you will just be wasting your time trying to solve this when there is possibly no solution for it as is.
I think the topic can be ended. As I mentioned earlier, I am saved by Pitstop at the moment, but we sent the client comments on how to prepare .pdf and .ps files. I devoted so much time to this topic as I could and I treated it more as a curiosity that can be solved and somehow some solution and conclusions were drawn. Thank you very much for your time and attention.
I would only have a question outside the subject. Do you know any free application in which you could modify the pdf file? I mean cutting to any size, it would be the main function of such an application and possibly checking the color separation.
Regards and have a nice day ;)