Disappearing Character When Printed

[Dov Isaacs]

For the record, all production of PDF from FrameMaker is currently done via
distillation of PostScript into PDF, regardless of whether that is accomplished
automatically via the FrameMaker "save as PDF" function, printing to the
"Adobe PDF PostScript Printer Driver" instance, or manually printing PostScript
to "FILE:" and then invoking the Distiller to convert the PostScript to PDF.

In theory, all these methods generate the same PostScript which should
yield the same PDF. The difference is that the "save as PDF" method attempts
to fully automate the procedure and simultaneously provide additional non-print
functionality via post-processing of the resultant PDF file. It is in the 
hand-shaking conventions that the "save as PDF" method sometimes fails; the
underlying PostScript is no different than the other methods.

There is no "PDF Maker" for FrameMaker nor are there any other paths that
produce PDF from FrameMaker other than via "regular PostScript" (or "irregular
PostScript" whatever that might mean).

In Windows, there is only one "PostScript driver." A PostScript driver for
some ancient Agfa printer is the same driver used for a brand new Xerox Phaser
7500 printer which is the exact same driver used by the Adobe PDF PostScript
Printer Driver instance. The only DIFFERENCE between these driver "instances"
is in the PPD file that "table drives" the driver in terms of device-dependent
PostScript used for paper size and tray selection as well as other printer-
specific features and operations. For generation of PostScript for proper
creation of PDF files via distillation, one should never use anything other
than the PPD file associated with the Adobe PDF PostScript Printer Driver
instance.

There is an option in the "Adobe PDF Settings" pane of both the "Printing
Preferences" and the "Printing Defaults" panes of the Adobe PDF PostScript
Printer Driver instance "Printer Properties" labeled "Rely on system fonts only;
do not use document fonts." In general, the most efficient and reliable PDF
will be generated if that option is enabled. In very rare instances, that option
might need to be disabled such as when using FrameMaker documents that have EPS
files with embedded fonts. But the need to switch that option off or on would
not result in the symptom originally described.

Note that if you need to apply the Windows fix for Windows XP or Vista (not
necessary for Windows 7) as suggested by others responding to this issue, go to <http://support.microsoft.com/kb/952909/en-us> for the fix.

	- Dov




> -----Original Message-----
> From: eli marcus
> Sent: Tuesday, December 29, 2009 11:57 PM
> Subject: RE: Disappearing Character When Printed
> 
> Hi Eric,
> this sounds to me like a Postscript/printer driver issue.
> Years ago, while working at a digital printing shop, I discovered that certain characters (in a
> foreign language) would disappear in printing, and often the whole sentence between such characters
> would also disappear.
> The issue was the Postscript definitions of the printer driver (at the time it was an industrial HP 5
> series printer).
> 
> I suggest trying to use a different postscript driver for printing both to PDF and to the physical
> printer.
> One of the good old standbys that always worked for me was an Agfa postscript driver that is in the
> native Windows library of printer drivers installed with Windows.
> 
> Another avenue to explore may be the "include fonts" settings in the Acrobat/PDF distiller settings -
> and it is always recommended to print to postscript when creating a PDF, rather than use the PDF Maker
> or other plugins, which create PDF by a different path than the regular postscript.
> 
> 
> 
> --
>   Eli Marcus
>   www.EliMarcus.com
>   blog: http://elisblues.blogspot.com
>   http://www.myspace.com/elisblues