File: pslib_readme.txt

PSLib V0.03
============
Portable PHP library for dynamically generating PostScript files,
with support for the PHP scripting language.

Copyleft (c) 1999-2000 Vilson Cristiano Gartner (vgartner@univates.br)
of the Univates's SAGU Team.

The PSLib distribution is available from:
English:
http://pslib.sourceforge.net
Portuguese:
http://www.univates.br/sagu/pslib.html
http://codigoaberto.org.br (recently installed, based on the SourceForge. Thanks.)

THIS IS PUBLIC SOFTWARE RELEASED UNDER THE LGPL
see http://www.gnu.org for details on this license.


Overview
========
PSLib is a PHP library for generating PostScript files for the PHP free 
scripting language. It offers an easy way of generating PostScript text 
and graphics with (so far) limited support for drawing. Call PSlib
functions from within your PHP script and voila: dynamic PS files!

The functions should be quite self-explainable and somehow mimic the well
known proprietary PDFlib which generates dynamic PDF files. 

Take a look at History, and make the changes to your old code.


Supported Programming Environments
==================================
The PSLib was developed for usage within a PHP script only. Along with 
this distribution there is an example called historico.php3 where PSlib is
used.  


PSLib Features
==============
- basic drawing
  lines, rectangles, ...
- text
  text in different fonts and sizes, formatting,
  built-in font metrics, support for international (Latin, European) 
  character encoding (must have the included acentos.ps)         
- image file formats
  support for PostScript files (use the GPL software GIMP to generate or
  convert other well known graphic formats to PS) 


Supplied Library Clients
========================
TODO


Platform support
================
PSlib requires a working PHP environment and will run on any platform
that supports PHP.


Where to start?
===============
Read the included example historico.php3 (This example is actually what 
originated PSLib.) and functions.txt


PSLib resources
===============
PSlib is a work in progress. You can ask questions or contribute through
the e-Mail vgartner@univates.br 


External libraries used in PSLib
=================================
Mostly TODO.
The acentos.ps was extracted from a file generated by the html2ps open 
source (GPL) program.


Submitting Bug Reports
======================
Send your bug reports to vgartner@univates.br


TODO
====
Clipping Text - formatting text inside a box
Multiple Text FX
Direct PS programming
Any other thing you may find useful. We are really open for contributions. 


Licensing and Copyleft
======================
THIS IS LGPL SOFTWARE!

Read the LGPL license at http://www.fsf.org

Copyleft (c) 1999-2000 PSlib Vilson Cristiano Gartner (vgartner@univates.br) of the Univates' SAGU Team. 


History
=======
Version 0.03 - December 21, 2000
------------
Major Change: PSLib uses now PHP Class
Lib file name is now: pslib.class. The included pslib.php if for compatibility with
files that require version 0.02 of pslib

Version 0.02 - October 26, 2000
------------
Lib file name changed to pslib.php
Major Bug fixed: page number/count

Other changes:
- Function PS_open: now the parameters are ($file, $author, $title,
  $orientation).
- Function PS_begin_page: now the parameters are ($file, $page)
- Function PS_set_acent: are called directly by PS_open.

Version 0.01 - September 1, 2000
------------
First Release.
Functions: PS_begin_page, PS_close, PS_end_page, PS_line, PS_moveto,
PS_moveto_font, PS_open, PS_open_ps, PS_rect, PS_rect_fill, PS_rotate,
PS_set_font, PS_show, PS_show_eval, PS_show_xy, PS_show_xy_font, PS_set_acent

Thanks to:
---------
Ericson C. Smith, for his contribution in the conversion to class