Print as/Save as/Export : monochrome TIF

[Michael Uplawski]

This is a request that I had formulated a few times, years ago, probably in the German speaking forum.

Hope dies last.

PSE consider an export function for SoftMaker Office, at least the text processor. The reason for *me* to ask for such a feature is quite simply this:
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-rw-rw-r-- 1 michael michael 152K 1. Jun 08:56 'bw_Heures de travail Mai 2025.pdf'
-rw-rw-r-- 1 michael michael 515K 1. Jun 08:52 'Heures de travail Mai 2025.pdf'
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The detour via monochrome TIF produces much smaller PDF-files. But as at least two additional tools have to be employed, I consider my self-knitted solution less future-proof than an option integrated into Office components. As a side-effect, font-problems do never occur on the side of the PDF-reader, when the file bases on a picture file. In the above example, the resolution of the TIF is also quite high, you can enlarge the PDF on the screen and won't see pixel effects.

I use this procedure for long years and find it completely adequate for storing & transmitting text-documents and occasional spreadsheet tables. My convictions are hardened to the point that I must ask for solid counter-arguments to understand any potential opposition.

These PDFs are not easily manipulated and only by means of graphics software. This is no argument as such manipulation is itself a special case in a vast number of possibilities.

PSE consider. TY.

Edit: Either WordPerfect or an old Word version that I had to use a few decades ago had such a print-as-image option.

[Woody44]

I am not certain that I understand your request, since TextMaker and PlanMaker already have a function to export to PDF. But, based on this statement:

As a side-effect, font-problems do never occur on the side of the PDF-reader, when the file bases on a picture file. In the above example, the resolution of the TIF is also quite high, you can enlarge the PDF on the screen and won't see pixel effects.

... I think you are asking for a function to export and convert text files into PDFs that are essentially the same as scanned images.

The disadvantage I see immediately is that such PDFs cannot be searched. I work with PDFs every day, as part of my job. And almost every day I have to run searches -- through some VERY long documents (300 to 500 pages) -- to find key words or phrases. A PDF that's a scanned image and which cannot be searched by word is useless.

[Michael Uplawski]

... I think you are asking for a function to export and convert text files into PDFs that are essentially the same as scanned images.

No. I just want to export to TIFF, which is an image format. You do with am image whatever you want. My own use of the function would be the creation of PDFs but I do not impose anything to anybody.

As regards the uses of PDF, there are many and I still do not impose my own perception of the technology to anybody else.

All I say is that my smaller PDF-files that do not contain any font and *are not meant to be modified*, are the result of a transformation via an intermediate TIFF file. If SoftMaker provided the tiff directly, everything would be easier. But, of course, if PDF shall replace all other Office file-types, my request is a moot point, we forget Office and content with PDF-editors.

[martin-k]

Ghostscript, Imagemagick and Poppler can create TIFFs from PDFs in Linux. Probably you can even set up TIFF creation as a custom printer driver in CUPS.

[Michael Uplawski]

Ghostscript, Imagemagick and Poppler can create TIFFs from PDFs in Linux. Probably you can even set up TIFF creation as a custom printer driver in CUPS.

I use Ghostscript, imagemagick and the libtiff-tools. That is how I created the example from my OP, above. I will check the custom printer option but the documentation I found on the topic is very old. Still searching ...

[Michael Uplawski]

After the consultation of a few sources, not always on the topic of writing Cups filters, I venture that there can be a way to “print to Tiff” via Cups.
However, I am unable to put the pieces together.

I have started a thread In a German newsgroup but do not give it much hope.

If anybody knows writing filters for Cups, I would like hints on the basics and then also on the precise task of obtaining Tiff-output.

Edit: Kraut2English & 7h10 CEST

[Michael Uplawski]

It looks like ...
a CUPS-filter cannot do what I want.

Such a filter needs input as Postscript or PDF and calls any kind of converter that you wish to deploy in the process, meaning that the procedure with a custom printer is almost identical to my own current solution with a script. When you want to also change the color space, you need to convert the intermediate PDF or my intermediate Tiff-file.

There is no advantage in configuring a Tiff-Printer.

I am disappointed that a simple requirement as mine needs an arsenal of diverse tools. The most straightforward way that I can imagine to transform an office file into a Tiff image is to work on the XML-code and write the output programmatically. This is also the most complicated solution that I could come up with.

Technology is overrated. Ω

[lgsl]

You could just write a bash script to convet it from pdf to tiff then delete the pdf via poppler, imagemagik or something like that...

To be honest, the golden years of tiff are long gone, there is no real value from using the format now days.

[Michael Uplawski]

You could just write a bash script to convet it from pdf to tiff then delete the pdf via poppler, imagemagik or something like that...

I do that with ghostscript for the converion to tif, convert for the conversion to monochrome tif, tiffcp to assemble multi-layer tiffs then tiff2pdf for the final production of my PDF-file.

To be honest, the golden years of tiff are long gone, there is no real value from using the format now days.

Depends on the uses. As the production of PDF from tiff is easier or has been considered for longer than with other image formats, I still prefer it as an intermediate file format. As regards long-time storage of photos, without compression, tiff is the closest to most of the proprietary raw-formats and the easiest to read.

Anything is okay which serves you well. If I exclude ImageMagick and the convert tool, which other newer image format would be as easy to convert to multi page PDF-files? I love Avif and use it for storage of reworked photos or their transmission. The originals I keep in a raw-format or as Tiff to avoid losses. Public archives do the same.

I have nothing against being in opposition to my time and to say “No” from time to time...