[Fsf-friends] Re: PDF issues

[Tathagata Banerjee]

On Wednesday 29 September 2004 16:57, Ramanraj K wrote:

> It is not too difficult to see that some of the pdf files are addressed
> to authorities believed to be predominantly using non-free software, and
> using pdf format could be necessary to enable them to read until
> migration to free software takes place, and other formats like TeX or
> LaTeX are more widely used.
>
> pdf was non-free in the past, but free these days. Please see
> http://www.masternewmedia.org/2002/03/31/creating_pdfs_without_adobe_acroba
>t_part_ii.htm

> pdfTeX at http://www.tug.org/applications/pdftex/ or like free software
> could be used to create pdf files.
>
> GNU TEXMACS http://www.texmacs.org/index.php3 could be a good tool to
> create TeX files, and export them to other formats including pdf.
>
> Probably, the pdf files could be left alone, as they are, and could be
> published in other formats as well.

dear ramanraj k,
the issue is not with the pdf file format as such, which can of course be 
created using free software, but with the bangla script, for which there are 
only rudimentary tools in the free software domain. there is no practical 
method of writing a book-length bangla work with the help of free tools. the 
integrated bangla support in certain recent versions of kde and gnome is very 
immature, and other solutions like bangtex by prof.palash baran pal are too 
cumbersome for sustained use. dipankar das's book was created using microsoft 
office on microsoft windows, and pdf-ed directly from there because the fonts 
were windows-specific. this is the problem that faces us now - whether we 
should own up to this or not.
'hope this clears up the issue for you.

- t.
-- 
cogito, ergo es.