pdftops converts some documents as a picture

[Daniel Betschart]

On some PDF documents pdftops converts some or all pages to pictures with a low resolution. But it should not convert the text into a picture. The output of the postscript file differs extremeley from the original PDF file. And this postscript file is sent to the printer if the printer understands postscript.

I detected this problem with a postscript printer. But using pdftops on the command line with the same PDF gives the same result in the PS file as printed. Taking the temporary file from /var/spool/cups/tmp it shows me the same. Therefore it is not a problem with the postscript printer, instead it ist in pdftops.

Attached a PDF file and the resulting PS file using pdftops. Pages 1 and 2 are pictures, pages 3 to 5 are OK, page 6 is a picture. Perhaps this is the cause of the difference in the file size.

Note if I use pdftocairo this problem does not exist. But I can't change cups to use pdftocairo instead of pdftops.

lsb_release -rd
Description: Ubuntu 12.04.4 LTS
Release: 12.04

apt-cache policy poppler-utils
poppler-utils:
  Installiert: 0.18.4-1ubuntu3.1
  Kandidat: 0.18.4-1ubuntu3.1
  Versionstabelle:
 *** 0.18.4-1ubuntu3.1 0
        500 http://ch.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ precise-updates/main amd64 Packages
        500 http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ precise-security/main amd64 Packages
        100 /var/lib/dpkg/status
     0.18.4-1ubuntu2 0
        500 http://ch.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ precise/main amd64 Packages

[Daniel Betschart (dbet1)]

One can switch the renderer from pdftops to gs with lpadmin -o pdftops-renderer-default=gs. The output looks a bit different, but ghostscript make the same fault as pdftops: somtimes the output is a picture.

I have tried it on Ubuntu 14.04. The problem still exists here. This is unusable. Printers that do not support postscript are better supported today. But printers for offices are mostly postscript printers.

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

Status changed to 'Confirmed' because the bug affects multiple users.