Problem with generating PDF from .ps file in Distiller

Started by metlife, January 24, 2018, 01:54:48 AM

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metlife

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

Farabomb

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.
Speed doesn't kill, rapidly becoming stationary is the problem

I'd rather have stories told than be telling stories of what I could have done.

Quote from: Ear on April 06, 2016, 11:54:16 AM
Quote from: Farabomb on April 06, 2016, 11:39:41 AMIt's more like grip, grip, grip, noise, then spin and 2 feet in and feel shame.
I once knew a plus-sized girl and this pretty much describes teh secks. :rotf:
They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.
         —Benjamin Franklin

My other job

ninjaPB_43

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:
People will notice the change in your attitude towards them, but won't notice their behavior that made you change.  -Bob Marley

Joe

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.
Mac OS Sonoma 14.2.1 (c) | (retired)

The seven ages of man: spills, drills, thrills, bills, ills, pills and wills.

scottrsimons

"Your superior intellect is no match for our puny weapons!" - Homer J. Simpson

metlife

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.

abc

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.

scottrsimons

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.
"Your superior intellect is no match for our puny weapons!" - Homer J. Simpson

metlife

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.

wonderings

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?

Joe

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+.
Mac OS Sonoma 14.2.1 (c) | (retired)

The seven ages of man: spills, drills, thrills, bills, ills, pills and wills.

scottrsimons

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.
"Your superior intellect is no match for our puny weapons!" - Homer J. Simpson

Farabomb

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.
Speed doesn't kill, rapidly becoming stationary is the problem

I'd rather have stories told than be telling stories of what I could have done.

Quote from: Ear on April 06, 2016, 11:54:16 AM
Quote from: Farabomb on April 06, 2016, 11:39:41 AMIt's more like grip, grip, grip, noise, then spin and 2 feet in and feel shame.
I once knew a plus-sized girl and this pretty much describes teh secks. :rotf:
They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.
         —Benjamin Franklin

My other job

pabney

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?

Joe

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.
Mac OS Sonoma 14.2.1 (c) | (retired)

The seven ages of man: spills, drills, thrills, bills, ills, pills and wills.