At 14:10 +0000 1998/12/14, Sebastian Rahtz wrote:
>do you really want to open this can of worms? :-}

Here we go... :-)

>many people will reply that "xdvi is the best viewer I know" or "i can't get
>acrobat for my platform". but are those "advantages of dvi"

I think that Netscape comes with a PDF plugin, for inline PDF displays.

At 08:54 -0600 1998/12/14, Randolph J. Herber wrote:
>If one remains with the almost universal Apple LaserWriter basic 13 fonts
>and the TeX bitmapped fonts, then the files are more portable than when
>Adobe PDF is used.

I do not think one is required to include the fonts in PDF; at XXX, one can
even choose what fonts one wants to use (Mac PS CM or regular CM).

>An Adobe PDF can not be repaired readily with the
>usual UNIX command line tools; most Adobe PostScript files can be repaired
>by such means..

I think there is a binary PS, too, which would be as difficult to repair as
any other binary format...

At 08:57 -0600 1998/12/14, Randolph J. Herber wrote:
>|...my .tex files compile into PDF, thanks...
>Address that problem by using dvips and then ps2pdf, or dvipdf, if it exists.

This does not work with embedded links.

Clearly the disadvantage with PDF is that it is a commercial product, and
that it is somewhat too primitive to be used as a WWW-bytecode standard.

  Hans Aberg
                  * Email: Hans Aberg <mailto:[log in to unmask]>
                  * Home Page: <http://www.matematik.su.se/~haberg/>
                  * AMS member listing: <http://www.ams.org/cml/>