Skip to main content
justgoldwa
Participant
June 13, 2017
Answered

Acrobat : Support for Adobe PostScript 5

  • June 13, 2017
  • 1 reply
  • 938 views

I’m reviewing your Acrobat (DC/XI) software, and I am just wondering Acrobat can support:

1. PostScript language level 5; and

2. "live" and "flattened" transparency

Any comments would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you in advance for your attention.

This topic has been closed for replies.
Correct answer Dov Isaacs

There is no such thing as PostScript Language Level 5!

There were only three PostScript language levels, the original PostScript (language level 1), PostScript Level 2 (language level 2), and PostScript 3 (language level 3). PostScript was never updated to include support for live transparency. There will not be any language levels beyond 3!

In terms of transparency, PostScript does not support transparency in any of its versions. PDF does support live transparency beginning with PDF 1.4.

If you are creating PDF via distillation of PostScript, any transparency in the original document must be flattened into opaque objects in order to generate PostScript for the distillation. The resultant PDF will obviously only consist of opaque objects (i.e., flattened or what we call “ruined” transparency.

          - Dov

1 reply

Dov Isaacs
Dov IsaacsCorrect answer
Legend
June 14, 2017

There is no such thing as PostScript Language Level 5!

There were only three PostScript language levels, the original PostScript (language level 1), PostScript Level 2 (language level 2), and PostScript 3 (language level 3). PostScript was never updated to include support for live transparency. There will not be any language levels beyond 3!

In terms of transparency, PostScript does not support transparency in any of its versions. PDF does support live transparency beginning with PDF 1.4.

If you are creating PDF via distillation of PostScript, any transparency in the original document must be flattened into opaque objects in order to generate PostScript for the distillation. The resultant PDF will obviously only consist of opaque objects (i.e., flattened or what we call “ruined” transparency.

          - Dov

- Dov Isaacs, former Adobe Principal Scientist (April 30, 1990 - May 30, 2021)
justgoldwa
Participant
June 15, 2017

Dear Dov

Thank you for all your assistance.

I appreciate it. Cheers.