[cups] setting margins when printing a ps (postscript) file

[Johannes Meixner]

Hello,

On Feb 19 16:07 Helge Blischke wrote (excerpt):
> the following PPD modification will settle the issue (tested):
...
> insert the line:
>
> *JobPatchFile 1: "<</BeginPage {pop -24 0 translate}>>setpagedevice"
>
> and revert to the original imageable area line.
>
> This will every rendered line shift 24 points to the left (adjust
> the ?24? to your real needs).

But this translates every PostScript input for this print queue
and not only the problematic PostScript from Istvan Gabor's
proprietary program.

In contrast if ps2pdf or ps2ps somehow "magically" makes the
problematic PostScript print o.k. it should not change the
printout of any other PostScript.


> That your PDF workaround really works on your system is,
> I think, a design bug in the pdftopdf filter

There is no pdftopdf filter in openSUSE 12.2 with CUPS 1.5.3.

The pdftopdf filter is provided by cups-filters.

But openSUSE 12.2 with CUPS 1.5.3 uses the traditional
PostScript workflow where PDF gets converted to PostScript
by the traditional CUPS filter /usr/lib/cups/filter/pdftops
that is provided by CUPS <= 1.5.4.

The traditional CUPS filter /usr/lib/cups/filter/pdftops is
only a wrapper that calls the system's "pdftops" executable
/usr/bin/pdftops which is provided by the poppler-tools RPM:
-------------------------------------------------------------------
# echo Hello | a2ps -1 -o- | ps2pdf - - | lp -d testy
[stdin (plain): 1 page on 1 sheet]
[Total: 1 page on 1 sheet] sent to the standard output
request id is testy-48 (0 file(s))

# grep PID /var/log/cups/error_log
I [23/Feb/2015:14:17:51 +0100] [Job 48]
  Started filter /usr/lib/cups/filter/pdftops (PID 6801)
D [23/Feb/2015:14:17:51 +0100] [Job 48]
  Started filter pdftops (PID 6802)
D [23/Feb/2015:14:17:51 +0100] [Job 48]
  Started filter pstops (PID 6803)
D [23/Feb/2015:14:17:51 +0100] [Job 48]
  PID 6803 (pstops) exited with no errors.
D [23/Feb/2015:14:17:51 +0100] [Job 48]
  PID 6802 (pdftops) exited with no errors.
D [23/Feb/2015:14:17:51 +0100]
  PID 6801 (/usr/lib/cups/filter/pdftops) exited with no errors.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Note the two 'pdftops' processes.
PID 6801 /usr/lib/cups/filter/pdftops calls
pdftops (PID 6802) where the latter is /usr/bin/pdftops.

The pstree output looks like this:
-------------------------------------------------------------------
  |-cupsd -f
  | `-pdftops 58 root (stdin) 1 finishings=3 number-up=1 ...
  |   |-pdftops -level2 -origpagesizes /var/spool/cups/d00051-001 -
  |   `-pstops 58 root (stdin) 1 finishings=3 number-up=1 ...
-------------------------------------------------------------------

Perhaps the '-origpagesizes' is the crucial thing here.
"man pdftops" reads:
-------------------------------------------------------------------
  -paper size
    Set the paper size to one of "letter", "legal", "A4", or "A3".
    This can also be set to "match", which will set the paper size
    of each page to match the size specified in the PDF file.
    If none the -paper, -paperw, or -paperh options are spoecified
    the default is to match the paper size.

  -paperw size
    Set the paper width, in points.

  -paperh size
    Set the paper height, in points.

  -origpagesizes
    This option is the same as "-paper match".
-------------------------------------------------------------------


> How the ImateableArea line from the PPD modifies the trim box,
> I could not determine; I suspect that is due to a SuSE specific
> patch.

In openSUSE 13.2 where cups-filters exist, there is not any patch.
We provide cups-filters "as is" from upstream.

But even in openSUSE 13.2 the default is still CUPS 1.5.4
with its traditional PostScript workflow.

Experienced users who like it can manually switch
to the PDF workflow with cups-filters and optionally
also to CUPS 1.7.5 or CUPS 2.0.2 as they like it.
The RPMs are available from the openSUSE build service
development project "Printing":
https://build.opensuse.org/project/show/Printing


Kind Regards
Johannes Meixner
-- 
SUSE LINUX GmbH - GF: Felix Imendoerffer, Jane Smithard, Jennifer Guild,
Dilip Upmanyu, Graham Norton - HRB 21284 (AG Nuernberg)