Xref: utzoo comp.lang.forth:572 comp.lang.postscript:975 comp.windows.news:792 comp.windows.misc:704
Path: utzoo!dciem!trigraph!john
From: john@trigraph.UUCP (John Chew)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.forth,comp.lang.postscript,comp.windows.news,comp.windows.misc
Subject: Re: Why you should use NeWS as a tool to learn PostScript
Message-ID: <403@trigraph.UUCP>
Date: 22 Sep 88 14:52:53 GMT
Article-I.D.: trigraph.403
References: <13655@mimsy.UUCP> <2407@uhccux.uhcc.hawaii.edu>
Reply-To: poslfit@gpu.utcs.toronto.edu
Followup-To: comp.lang.postscript
Organization: Trigraph Inc., Toronto, Canada
Lines: 44
Summary: try lasertalk on a mac

In article <2407@uhccux.uhcc.hawaii.edu> 
  lee@uhccux.uhcc.hawaii.edu (Greg Lee) writes:
>Maybe not all readers of this discussion know that you can do a
>certain amount of playing around without NeWS.  The PS interpreter
>inside the Apple LW, at least, has an interactive mode.  You can
>can have it calculate and display values on your screen, so long
>as the values have string values.  For images, you have to wait
>for a page to print, though, so that slows things down.
>
>		Greg, lee@uhccux.uhcc.hawaii.edu

If you have a Mac, another good way to learn PostScript is to buy
a copy of LaserTalk, by Emerald City Software (with whom I have no
connection, other than by virtue of being a satisfied customer).

LaserTalk is a PostScript programming environment with basic
debugging features (breakpointing, stepping and tracing through
code, dictionary browsing, continuous display of a user-configurable
set of status variables), a reasonable editor, and an online hierarchical 
copy of the operator summary in the Red Book.  You can also preview
a page image on your screen at varying resolution without running off 
hardcopy.  

I could not do any serious PostScript work without LaserTalk or
something like it.  

Programming PostScript blindly and running off hardcopy to test it
is an obscene idea from the dark ages of batch programming and
punched cards.

Connecting a terminal to a LaserWriter and talking to its interactive
interpreter is still a pretty sick idea.  It's like debugging a
graphics program in C without a debugger or a raster device.

I wish I had an opinion on NeWS, but that'll have to wait until
we get a Sun here....

John Chew

-- 
john j. chew, iii  poslfit@utorgpu.bitnet
    trigraph, inc. poslfit@gpu.utcs.toronto.edu
  toronto, canada  {uunet!mnetor!utzoo,utgpu,utcsri}!trigraph!john
  [it is my opinion that these are solely my opinions.]