PostScript

PostScript is a page description language created by Adobe. Its main use is as an embedded language in many laser printers. Programs are created in PostScript (usually generated automatically, but they can and sometimes are generated by hand) and sent to the printer to be run. The result of running the program is an image of what will eventually be placed onto a sheet of paper.

More recently, some vendors have been adding what's called Display PostScript to their X servers. This extension allows the creation of complex on-screen images by merely sending a PostScript program to the server where it is run just like it would be in a printer.


Jeff Bailey / bailey@mcs.kent.edu