Equation differences between AdobePS versions

[Michael Cudmore <mcudmore@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

System info:
------------
Windows 95 OSR2 or 98 SE
FrameMaker 5.5 for Windows 
AdobePS 4.1 
Acrobat 3.01RA with Distiller upgraded to 3.02
HP LaserJet 4 with postscript kit (6 MB)

The situation:
--------
Testing the AdobePS 4.2.6 driver, with a view to upgrading from the
4.1 version.

The problem:
------------
When I change printer drivers from 4.1 to 4.2.6, the positioning of
some elements in FrameMaker's equations changes quite dramatically.
With the 4.2.6 driver installed using the same PPD, and using the same
fonts in the same FM document, some of the equation elements, such as
superior/inferior tilde and arrow (i.e. vector notation) are spaced a
lot further from the normal position text than they were with the 4.1
driver. In many cases the tilde or other element is cropped by the
anchored frame, where it fit quite comfortably under the old driver. I
see this both onscreen and in PDF and direct laser prints from FM. No
new fonts have been installed, removed or changed, and I have matched
the driver font substitution table with the previous settings. The
equations use the default symbol family listing in the mathchar.cfg
file to set font and character for each equation element. 

It is worth noting that I see much smaller (but still present)
differences in spacing of this type of math element when I switch
between the Microsoft/Adobe pscript 4.00 driver and the AdobePS 4.1
driver, which are able to be installed on the same machine
concurrently.

Has anyone else seen this behaviour? I presume this is a font metrics
issue. The same font files are used with both versions of the driver,
so perhaps 4.2.6 reads the font metrics file differently, or makes
different assumptions about the character sizes? Is there any way out?
I do not want to have to rewrap all equations and reflow every
document just because of a minor ps driver upgrade.

I am not aware that I currently need any specific features of the
4.2.6 driver, and the 4.1 seems to work well, but I may soon be
supplying FM 5.5 files to a printer for separation, and they may use
4.2.6, so I need to get to the bottom of this. 

Thanks,
michael


--
Michael Cudmore
Project Development Manager
National Educational Advancement Programs (NEAP) Pty Ltd
58 Pelham St  Carlton  Vic  3053   AUSTRALIA
Tel:    +61 3 9663 2523    Fax:  +61 3 9663 7182
e-mail: (work)    mcudmore@neap.com.au
        (pers)    mcudmore@email.com

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