Adobe Systems has revised its flagship page description language. Postscript 3 adds direct printing of PDFs, including AES-encrypted PDFs, and is the first Postscript release to feature separate editions for commercial printing systems such as digital color presses, and small-footprint embedded devices such as workgroup printers. Both versions support Linux.

PostScript was created in 1984, and was used in Apple's new Macintosh computers and LaserWriters, where it enabled document designers for the first time to print out text and images on the same piece of paper. This capability helped launch a desktop publishing revolution that subsided only with the advent of the commercial Web a decade later. Adobe recently published a snazzy PDF file outlining the history of PostScript.

According to Adobe, new features in PostScript 3 include:

• The ability to directly print more file types, including PDF files up to version 1.6, introduced with Acrobat 7, and JPEG 2000 files, without using an application (i.e., lpr file.jp2).
• Support for transparent artwork in PDF 1.4, and PDF layers in PDF 1.5
• Superior PDF printing thanks to a shared “Adobe Imaging Model” architecture between PDFs and PS
• Multi-threaded rendering

Embedded Edition

According to Adobe, the new Embedded Edition will enable PostScript 3 to squeeze into a larger number of office laser printers and multi-function peripherals, including low-end devices.

Additional new features in the Embedded Edition include support for Adobe Acrobat 7.0 security features, such as AES encryption and printing of digital signatures for office workgroups. The Embedded Edition is available for MontaVista Linux or VxWorks, Adobe says.

Host Edition

The new Host Edition, meanwhile, adds high-end print workflow features aimed at commercial printing systems. Additional features in the new Host Edition of PostScript 3 include support for 16-bit color images, file sizes greater than 2 GB, paper sizes greater than 200 inches, 2D PDF rendering of 3D images, and support for Job Definition Format (JDF), an XML-based standard for print workflow automation. The Host Edition supports Mac OS X, Linux, Microsoft Windows, IBM AIX, and Sun Solaris.

Angele Boyd, IDC's group vice president of imaging research, said, “This new version of PostScript is significant for two reasons. It speaks to the important role PDF plays in document production and distribution, and the need for direct PDF printing. It also speaks to the need for cost-effective PostScript with direct PDF printing in entry-level color devices.”

 
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