[OS X TeX] Why this .ps file can not be viewed?

[David Watson]

On Mar 15, 2010, at 4:25 PM, Ross Moore wrote:

> Hi Themis, and Leo,
> 
> On 16/03/2010, at 7:32 AM, Themis Matsoukas wrote:
> 
>> On Mar 15, 2010, at 3:56 PM, Leo wrote:
>> 
>>> Hello all,
>>> 
>>> A .ps file exported from Emacs somehow can not be viewed in Preview.app.
>>> If I run pstopdf in Terminal.app to convert it into .pdf file, it can
>>> not be viewed either.
>>> 
>>> Any .ps expert can shed some light on this? I have attached a sample .ps
>>> file.
>> 
>> I am not a .ps expert but when I tried to open your file in Illustrator CS3 I got the message "The operation cannot be completed because of an unknown error," which seems to imply there is a problem with the ps file itself.
> 
> Themis,
> at least you were able to save and attempt to open it.
> 
> For me Apple's  Mail.app  tried to convert it for display within
> the Mail window.  Of course it fell into a loop, thus freezing the
> application and forcing me to (eventually) Force Quit.
> On reopening Mail all I could do was reduce the viewing window
> to nothing and delete the email -- no opportunity to save the
> attachment.
> 
> Doubtless something similar has happened to others on this list.
> 

Actually, I get what appears to be the lower half of a box with a border.
No crash, just a few seconds to convert the eps.
I do have 8 GB RAM though.

> Leo,
> what makes you think that it is sensible to include an image which
> you know is bad, within an email message ?
> You should place it on a website and post the URL to it.
> 
> This way anyone who is interested in trying to help you can get it,
> with all safety measures in place. Furthermore, you do not interfere
> with the email software of those who have no interest at all.
> 
> If this situation is not already covered by the "etiquette" rules,
> as linked-to below, then it certainly should be.
> 

> 
> Sorry for sounding a bit grumpy, 'cos I am at this one.