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PDF —
utilities
| - postscript |
: usage, macros, tips and examples. |
| - latex |
: usage, tips and resources. |
| - zathura |
: minimalistic file viewer: pdf, cb, djvu, ps. |
Other viewers are available such as mupdf or xpdf.
| mupdf |
: minimalistic viewr, similar to zathura. |
|
o is mentioned in the manpage to display outline panel
and highlight links. |
|
- This binding doesn not appear to work on Slackware nor
OpenBSD. |
|
- This was tested with versions 1.27 and 1.28 on
Slackware. |
|
- This was tested with version 1.27.2 on OpenBSD. |
| xpdf |
: can open multiple files but is not as minimalistic as zathura. |
| - mandoc is able to export to PDF, however, the formatting options are
minimal. |
| - groff has more formatting options through momPDF and the syntax is
more similar to roff/mdoc but images can only be PDF images. |
| More formatting options are available using PostScript or (La)TeX.
The choice depends on the needs of the document,
knowledge of the user and time considerations.
|
| Available information: |
there is more documentation available on the web for (La)Tex. While more
information allows the user to find the necessary information, less
information available does not imply a lack of information, simply may not
be needed and the quality of the information can be better. |
| Formatting: |
While both can change formatting options (margins, fonts, etc.) and
(La)TeX has more information available, examples in a web search show most
documents having the same style as defined by the selected document type,
therefore, finding information about formatting can sometimes be more
difficult. |
| Images: |
there's information about PostScript images using jpg, however, all
parameters need to be set and the image may need converting, (La)TeX has
more image options available. |
| macros: |
PostScript allows creating macros as needed, (La)TeX has prebuilt macros
as packages, which requires installing packages to use most formatting
options. A (La)TeX installation (macro packages) can vary beween 1GB and
6GB while PostScript has no extra requirements other than a text editor
and core utilities to export to PDF. |
| Platform: |
There are Windows programs available for (La)TeX, such as MiKTeX and
TeXworks, while PostScript needs a command line processor like
ghostscript. |
| Properties: |
PostScript can be set to display the document properties when using a
PDF viewer, I have not yet found a way to do that with (La)TeX. |
| - (La)TeX may be a better choice for the non-tech user, on Windows, if
time available is to be considered, if a more simplistic approach to
images or headers with logos are needed. |
| - PostScript may be a better option when the content, simplicity and
presentation are the primary focus or available disk space is not enough
for the potential (La)TeX usage. |
(back to top)
| 2026-07-11 |
: Added viewers: zathura, mupdf, xpdf. |
| 2026-03-30 |
: Created. |