Post Script files created in Word 6 and Word 2003

Question

Greetings!We have an ordering application which uses .ps files which serves as templates to generate a .pdf order contract form using Adobe Distiller. The .ps template file are created by 'print to file' a template Word document using Word 6 (pretty old) which saves a .prn file and it is later renamed to .ps. These template word document contains certain tags (delimited text), which will also be present in the .ps file as is. The application later parses these .ps files to replace these tags with its corresponding values from business objects and passes the stream to Adobe distiller which returns a PDF file.In Word 6 [67 0 0 -67 0 0]/Helvetica MF(Order Number: $sOrderNumber$)116 677 MSWhen the same word document is 'print to file' using Word 2003, the tags ( and all the text ) are encoded in the .prn file as below: In Word 2003 [83 0 0 -83 0 0]/Helvetica MF(O)116 731 MS (r)181 731 MS (d)209 731 MS (e)255 731 MS (r)301 731 MS ( )329 731 MS (N)352 731 MS (u)412 731 MS (m)458 731 MS (b)529 731 MS (e)575 731 MS (r)621 731 MS (:)649 731 MS ( )672 731 MS ($)695 731 MS (s)741 731 MS(O)783 731 MS (r)848 731 MS (d)876 731 MS (e)922 731 MS (r)968 731 MS (N)996 731 MS (u)1056 731 MS (m)1102 731 MS (b)1173 731 MS (e)1219 731 MS (r)1265 731 MS ($)1293 731 MS We use 'HP LaserJet 5Si/5Si MX PS' printer driver to print to file to create the .prn file. Now we are bound to move to Word 2003 or later version of Office. Is there any possibility of getting Word 2003 to generate .ps files without this encoding of text?

Dov Isaacs · Answer

(1) You should not use an "HP LaserJet 5Si/5Si MX" printer driver printing to "file" for this purpose. This produces ancient PostScript for language level 2, not language level 3 which has been prevalent for over a dozen years now. Print to the "Adobe PDF" PostScript printer driver instance automatically installed with Acrobat.

(2) Microsoft Word doesn't directly control the PostScript generated. However, looking at the PostScript generated, I would almost guess that somehow pair kerning is being applied with Word 2003 as opposed to the earlier version. Try turning pair kerning off and you might see the text return to a single string.

(3) Word 2010 is to be released within a few months and you are just moving to Word 2003?

- Dov

PS: It is "PostScript" and not "Post Script"

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