Baslinux mailing list

[<keesan2 AT cyberspace.org>]

On Thu, 1 May 2003, Neo Sze Wee wrote:

> On Wed, Apr 30, 2003 at 09:59:33AM -0400, sindi keesan wrote:
> > There is a pdf2html which displays images as well as text.
> > Slackware 7.1 has an xpdf package for xpdf 0.90.
> > There is a newer version (2.02) at
> > ftp.foolabs.com/pub/xpdf/xpdf-2.02-linux.tar.gz
> > 
> > I was surprised to find that it was compiled for Kernel 2.2 and glibc
> > 2.1.3.  It is about 6M.  
> 
> Very big. It should about 1-2M. Maybe it includes fonts.

The stripped version of foolabs pdftotext (static) was about 500K.  No
fonts, this produces only plain console text.  Doug has now sent me a 387K
pdftotext which does not have any dependencies at all.  The foolabs
version needed mkstemp which BLS does not have.  The Slackware version
needed several other things. 

> Does it run in 16 bit DOS?

Pdftotext for DOS (170K) ran on my 386.  I don't recall whether it needs
cwsdpmi (a DOS extender used by Arachne to let it run in 32-bit mode). 
There is a DOS version of pdftotext posted somewhere online which you can
download and try on your computer.  Arachne also offers a DOS version for
download but I don't know how to unpack it without using Arachne.  Let me
know if you have trouble finding the DOS version.  If all else fails I can
mail you a copy of mine.

Sorry not to answer sooner but for some reason all of your emails arrive
NOT marked New so I think I have already read them (with Pine).  Strange.
 
> > Has anyone tried ghostscript (console version) as a pdf viewer for lynx?
> 
> Moreover, can it be run without X?

I think there are both X and non-X versions of ghostscript.  I installed
the non-X version which probably needs svgalib. I have not tried it yet
with Linux.  The DOS version displays (very poor quality) preview of the
page or sends the file (or selected pages of it) to the printer.  If you
convert to ps (pdftops) you can view it with psv (postscript view) for
DOS, which lets you scroll, magnify, and also print.  Is there a psv for
Linux console? 

You would probably not want to use ghostscript as a viewer because the
resolution is too poor to actually read the text.  It shows a whole page
on your screen.  There are pdftopbm or pdftoimage if you want to view
images in pdf files.  

> > I also have Lynx set up (at my bbs) to use Links as a downloader - if you
> > hit a page with frames or tables and want to view it with Links, you
> > download the page and Links appears on the list of choices (save to home
> > directory, mail it, print it, view with links...).  This loads links
> > automatically for you, views the page, and unloads it, I think.  

No automatic unloading, you need to hit Q to exit Links.


Add to lynx.cfg
DOWNLOADER: View page with links:links %s:TRUE


When you download a page you then have the option of saving it to disk or
viewing with links.