Network Working Group Jacob Palme Internet Draft Stockholm University/KTH draft-palme-int-print-02.txt Sweden Category-to-be: Informational Expires: February 1998 August 1997 Making Postscript and Acrobat Files International Status of this Memo This document is an Internet-Draft. Internet-Drafts are working documents of the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), its areas, and its working groups. Note that other groups may also distribute working documents as Internet-Drafts. Internet-Drafts are draft documents valid for a maximum of six months and may be updated, replaced, or obsoleted by other documents at any time. It is inappropriate to use Internet-Drafts as reference material or to cite them other than as ``work in progress.'' To learn the current status of any Internet-Draft, please check the ``1id-abstracts.txt'' listing contained in the Internet-Drafts Shadow Directories on ftp.is.co.za (Africa), nic.nordu.net (Europe), munnari.oz.au (Pacific Rim), ds.internic.net (US East Coast), or ftp.isi.edu (US West Coast). This memo provides information for the Internet community. This memo does not specify an Internet standard of any kind. Distribution of this memo is unlimited. Differences between version 01 and 02 of this document Only minor revisions. Abstract Certain text formats, for example Postscript (extension .ps, Mime-type application/postscript) and Adobe Acrobat (extension .pdf, Mime-type application/pdf) specify exactly the page layout of the printed document. The commonly used paper format is different in America and the rest of the world. America uses the 'Letter' format, while the rest of the world mostly uses the ISO-standard 'A4' format. This means that documents formatted on one continent may not be easily printable on another continent. This memo gives advice on how to produce documents which are equally well printable with the Letter and the A4 formats. By using the advice in this document, you can put up a document on the Internet, which recipients can print without problem both in and outside America. A very short summary of the advice in this document: If you are using U.S. Letter paper format, ensure that both the left and right margins are at least 21 mm (0.82 inches). If you are using A4 paper format, ensure that both the top and bottom margins are at least 33 mm (1.30 inches). Table of contents 1. Introduction 2. Two methods for printing on different paper formats 2.1 Method 1: Use wider margins 2.2 Method 2: Print with reduced size 3. References 4. Author's Address 1. Introduction Certain text formats, for example application/postscript (extension .ps) and Adobe Acrobat (extension .pdf) specify exactly the page layout of the printed document. The commonly used paper format is different in America and the rest of the world. America uses the "Letter" format, while the rest of the world uses the "A4" format. The American Letter format is 8.5 x 11 inches (216 x 279 mm) while the ISO standardised A4 format is 210 x 297 mm (8.27 x 11.69 inches). The Letter format is thus 5 mm (0.19 inches) wider, while the A4 format is 19 mm (0.75 inches) taller. This means that documents formatted on one continent may not be printable on another continent. It is oboviously desirable that documents put up on the Internet are printable on all continents. This paper gives advice on how to achieve this. This memo is not intended for HTML documents, but the advice may be of value also of HTML developers in case they are using fixed-size graphics and fixed WIDTH sizes of objects in HTML documents. 2. Two methods for printing on different paper formats 2.1 Method 1: Use wider margins Paper format you use when converting the document Suggested minimal margins to Postscript Paper or Acrobat orien- Suggested change Left Right Top Bot- format tation of margins tom ------------ ----------- ----------------- ----- ----- ----- ----- A4 Portrait Add 18 mm (0.8 15 mm 15 mm 33 mm 33 mm (upright, inches) to the top 0.59" 0.59" 1.38" 1.38" vertical) of page and bottom of page margins A4 Landscape Add 18 mm (0.8 33 mm 33 mm 15 mm 15 mm (lying, inches) to the 1.38" 1.38" 0.59" 0.59" horizontal) left and right margins Letter Portrait Add 6 mm (0.2 21 mm 21 mm 15 mm 15 mm (upright, inches) to the 0.82" 0.82" 0.59" 0.59" vertical) left and right margins Letter Landscape Add 6 mm (0.2 15 mm 15 mm 21 mm 21 mm (lying, inches) mm to the 0.59" 0.59" 0.82" 0.82" horizontal) top of page and bottom of page margins The reason why you have to add 18 respectively 6 mm to both the top and the bottom margin is that you do not know what kind of printer the recipient uses, and different printers feed paper in different ways, requiring the margin to be added either at the top or the bottom of the paper. Note: Ensure that also headers, footers and page numbers are within the suggested minimal margins. Many word processors put headers, footers and page numbers outside the specified text margins. 2.2 Method 2: Print with reduced size This is a method useful for the recipient of a document with the wrong paper size: The recipient sets the printer to print with reduced size. When the sender produces the Acrobat or Postscript files, the sender should "print" with 100 % size, but when the recipient prints the Acrobat or Postscript files, and if the program for printing Acrobat or Postscript files allows this, the recipient should print the document with 94 % or less of full size. Many programs for printing Postscript files do not allow this. In that case, the recipient can convert a Postscript document to Acrobat format and then print it with the Acrobat printing program. This requires, however, that the recipient has the Acrobat Distiller program, which is not freeware. Some versions of the freeware ghostscript can also convert to Adobe Acrobat format. The user may also have to specify the paper size as the actual paper size loaded in the printer, not the paper size specified when the document was converted to Acrobat or Postscript format. It is also possible to edit the Postscript file, and add a scale command to it, before sending it to the printer. Method 2 can be more difficult for the recipient, who has to manage these settings himself. However, manufacturers of printing software may in the future make method 2 easier by making this service automatic, perhaps controlled by a "shrink to fit paper size" checkbox in the printing window and a "default shrink to fit paper size" preference setting. 2.3 Method 3: Buy paper in the A4 size People in America who often need to print European document might choose to buy paper in the A4 size. It is available in the U.S. from many large paper distribution company, and almost all laserprinters support it. 3. Acknowledgements Markus Kuhn has provided helpful suggestions on this document. 4. References Marcus Kuhn: International Standard Paper Sizes. URL http://www.ft.uni- erlangen-de/~mskuhn/iso-paper.html. 5. Author's Address Jacob Palme Phone: +46-8-16 16 67 Stockholm University and KTH Fax: +46-8-783 08 29 Electrum 230 E-mail: jpalme@dsv.su.se S-164 40 Kista, Sweden