Community Expert

Question

Virtual PostScript Printer on macOS

Forum|Forum|11 months ago
March 17, 2025
5 replies
2109 views

How do you install a virtual PostScript printer driver on current macOS?

How to

Mike Witherell

Author

Community Expert

Thanks, Dave,

I am going to run with this macOS "Print to PDF" virtual printer app and see how far I can take it in the context of having a generic PostScript printer on a current macOS for a self-paced study guide that is talking about prepress practices. Thanks for the assist!

Mike Witherell

Author

Community Expert

Thanks Peter,

I had tried that. The page still exists but the download does not.

download from https://helpx.adobe.com/indesign/kb/add-acrobat-ppd.html

I also tried googling another source for that file, but couldn't locate anything.

Mike Witherell

Peter Spier

Community Expert

you can download it from me at https://spaces.hightail.com/receive/yzPMgVsXKD

Let me know if that doesn't work either...

Mike Witherell

Author

Community Expert

Ah, so it does still exist! To your knowledge, does it still install in macOS Sequoia 15.3?

Mike Witherell

Author

Community Expert

I'm in research mode. I'm preparing a learning module all about prepress things. Color Separations, screen frequencies, trapping, and the like. I want a learner to follow along, so I want to simulate something the prepress folks would see. Therefore, I think I need a generic PostScript printer driver to do a series of show and tell moments. I need to show these things for both Windows and macOS. Windows doesn't mind if I install a printer driver even though I don't really have the physical printer hooked up to the computer. But macOS will not allow me to install a PostScript printer driver unless I really have the physical device connected to the computer.

Mike Witherell

Peter Spier

Community Expert

Would the Acrobat distiller driver do it?

Mike Witherell

Author

Community Expert

Would that give me a printer driver interface where I could show and tell sheet size and all the rest of the many details in a print dialog box? It seems possibly not.

Mike Witherell

Peter Spier

Community Expert

Why do you need a virtual Postscript printer?

Dave Creamer of IDEAS

Community Expert

Can't InDesign's built in Device Independent PostScript driver work?

David Creamer: Community Expert (ACI and ACE 1995-2023)

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