Where can I get GhostView?

Ghostview (also called GSView) is a Windows program for viewing the PostScript documents (.ps) and Encapsulated Postscript images (.eps). It is not required if you use pdflatex as described previously. New users can skip this section. However, it is very useful for various tasks at the advanced level, such as tweaking images.

GhostView is actually two programs, GhostView and Ghostscript. The most common installation fault is to confuse these two. The installation programs make it relatively easy, though. Proceed as follows:

The following notes are based on Ghostview 4.6+Ghostscript 8 running on Windows XP. Your specific setup may vary. These are only intended to be a quick getting-started guide, together with some hints for customization - please see the official Ghostview documentation (FAQ's, mailing list, installation notes) in the event of problems. After downloading any new system components, you should always scan your disk for viruses.

  1. Create a folder c:\archive\ghostview in which to download GSView and Ghostscript.
  2. The Ghostview viewer will be gsv??w32.exe (where "??" represents a version number).
    Download Ghostview (alternate site)
  3. The Ghostscript interpreter will be gs???w32.exe.
    Download GhostScript (alternate site)
  4. Run the Ghostscript executable just downloaded (gs???w32.exe) by double-clicking on its icon. It is recommended that you accept all defaults. It will install itself to c:\Aladdin, Close the windows opened up by the setup program.
  5. Run the Ghostview executable just downloaded (gsv??w32.exe) by double-clicking on is icon. It is recommended that you accept all defaults. It will install itself to c:\Ghostgum. Close the windows opened up by the setup program.
  6. Start Ghostview by using selecting "Start-programs-ghostgum-gsview". The first time you run it, a configuration wizard will start. It is recommended that you accept all the defaults.
  7. If you wish, for ease of use you may create a shortcut to GSView. Do this by right-clicking on the desktop, then "new-shortcut", "browse", then navigate to c:\Program Files\Ghostgum\gsview\gsview32.exe
  8. Start Ghostview, and open one of the PostScript (.ps) files under gstools\gs. Try golfer.ps and colorcir.ps. You will probably want to decrease the resolution by clicking on the magnifying glass Decrease Resolution ("circled minus") icon a few times, as well as moving the window boundary so that the page fits on your screen.
  9. Use GSView to view the PostScript file sample.ps created at the end of the LaTeX section. The on-screen resolution appears poor, as it's meant for previewing, not reading. However, the print quality is excellent. Again, you can use the magnifying-glass icons to increase or decrease the resolution.
  10. To setup printing, select print, then select device. Choose the closest hardware device to your printer - this may require some experimentation. Use a resolution of 300DPI or better. You should only need to set up the printer configurations once. Ghostview may also be used for creating PDF files - see the section "Making PDF Files " under "Advanced" in these LaTeX pages.
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