Preview App on macOS Ventura Drops Support for PostScript Files

[woolypants]

Yikes! This is very dumb. Worryingly, it shows Apple doesn't understand why quite a lot of people use macOS.

I work in design. The use of EPS files is widespread. Being able to quickly render them and then output a PNG, for example, is invaluable. This kind of convenience is literally one of the reasons I use a Mac—and can justify the cost to my employer.

The alternative would be to run the EPS through Photoshop, which has its own set of problems, mainly that it's clunky.

 

[woolypants]

Instead of lifting iOS to the level of macOS, they continue to bring the macOS level down to iOS/iPadOS.

It's because the most talented developers go to Apple to work on mobile tech. They don't want to work on macOS. Effectively, and in practice, macOS is a dead technology at Apple. It's effectively seen as being in the category of maintenance, rather than active development. It is not nascent.

The managers at Apple get around this by bringing iOS/iPadOS "innovations" to macOS too. This is literally all they can do to avoid the rot. The thought of macOS getting a new, innovative and UNIQUE feature is laughable.

 

[MajorFubar]

Apple has limited resources and puts them to use as they see fit.

A $2.4 trillion dollar company has limited resources?
Ok...

 

[solouki]

Thanks for the reply. Makes sense but I suppose Skim also support .ps files and was wondering if it is impacted by this change.

Hi apple2me,

I just tested Skim.app from the TeXLive distribution, and it is still capable of converting .ps files and viewing them. One can also use McGimp-2.10.22.app to convert .ps files to numerous other formats, albeit a suboptimal solution.

 

[msackey]

Wow, another dumb move from Apple.

 

[msackey]

This is probably a security move. Old formats seem Like they would make a great way to slip in under the radar.

Is postscript and EPS old formats. I think at least postscript is still used

 

[aleksander]

What is this dumbfoolery? EPS is everywhere in the design industry!

 

[NightFox]

Apple will never stop supporting pdf. It's a world standard that will likely never be replaced...

So was the headphone jack on mobile phones

 

[gvanvoor]

Does this mean that safari will finally stop adding a .ps extension to downloaded .ai files?

 

[Asbow]

Compatibility with Old abandoned formats from 30 years ago sounds like an invitation for hacking.

EPS isn’t an abandoned format. It’s used heavily in design.

 

[Rychiar]

Most stock sites still sell vectors in EPS format and it’s incredibly annoying that I can’t see the previews the last few years without having to use adobe for everything

 

[msackey]

Does this mean that safari will finally stop adding a .ps extension to downloaded .ai files?

A bit of a sidetrack here, but .AI files are .PS in nature, aren't they? Well, it's been a really, really long time since I used Adobe Illustrator; close to a decade, I think. Eep! But, I somehow recall that .ai files can be read as postscript files because that's what they are?

 

[chrfr]

A bit of a sidetrack here, but .AI files are .PS in nature, aren't they? Well, it's been a really, really long time since I used Adobe Illustrator; close to a decade, I think. Eep! But, I somehow recall that .ai files can be read as postscript files because that's what they are?

Illustrator files nowadays are more akin to a PDF than a PostScript file.

 

[matsan]

Yep, the new Ventura Settings looks like a copy from iPadOS.

Yeah and the organization of Settings in iOS and iPadOS is a miracle of organization and easy-of-use.... 🤪

 

[StevieD100]

I suspect this is security related. PostScript is basically a programming language and could make some software vulnerable. I recall a toy program implemented in postscript ages ago. There may have been the possibility of Unicode hacks that could result in arbitrary code execution, etc.

The same could be said for PDF or any XML-based document.

 

[macleod199]

While it's not .ps/.eps, the first thing I thought of was this hack from last year:

A deep dive into an NSO zero-click iMessage exploit: Remote Code Execution

Posted by Ian Beer & Samuel Groß of Google Project Zero We want to thank Citizen Lab for sharing a sample of the FORCEDENTRY exploit w...

googleprojectzero.blogspot.com

Someone exploited the fact that iMessage would render an older, little used (much less used than ps/eps) format to own iphones. They had to work a lot harder than one would with a clearly turing complete language like postscript - they used the image format to 'print' logic gates and build up a computer from there. It's wild.

"JBIG2 doesn't have scripting capabilities, but when combined with a vulnerability, it does have the ability to emulate circuits of arbitrary logic gates operating on arbitrary memory. So why not just use that to build your own computer architecture and script that!? That's exactly what this exploit does."

So I see both sides of this. I still use LaTeX for most of my writing, although I mainly use PDFs and PNGs for graphics now, rather than EPS. Meanwhile, having support for a scripting language that's not much looked at baked right into the file manager could seem like an unnecessary risk for the 99+% of people who never use that kind of file.

 

[benwiggy]

I work in design. The use of EPS files is widespread.

PDFs are drop-in replacements for EPS in the vast majority of cases.

CUPS is moving to using PDF as its default file format, if it hasn't already; most modern printing devices can interpret PDF natively. Type 1 fonts as a file format are on their way out.

My father used to hand-code his own PostScript, so he'll be turning in his grave.

 

[nt5672]

Yeah and the organization of Settings in iOS and iPadOS is a miracle of organization and easy-of-use.... 🤪

In iOS I can never find what I am looking for because stuff is hidden 2 layers deep and the organization makes no sense at all. On a small device that makes sense, on macOS it certainly does not.

 

[WestonHarvey1]

Can't you write a QuickLook plugin for PS/EPS?

 

[smaffei]

I suspect this is security related. PostScript is basically a programming language and could make some software vulnerable. I recall a toy program implemented in postscript ages ago. There may have been the possibility of Unicode hacks that could result in arbitrary code execution, etc.

That may be the case. The OS still processes PostScript at some level because PDF (which Ventura still handles) contains embedded PostScript streams.

 

[aleksander]

PDFs are drop-in replacements for EPS in the vast majority of cases.

CUPS is moving to using PDF as its default file format, if it hasn't already; most modern printing devices can interpret PDF natively. Type 1 fonts as a file format are on their way out.

My father used to hand-code his own PostScript, so he'll be turning in his grave.

It's not about producing EPSes, rather receiving them. There is a TON of these files out there — stock libraries use it pretty much exclusively for distributing vector files, 90% of companies send you their logo in EPS format, etc. etc. So it's a big productivity issue.

 

[woolypants]

PDFs are drop-in replacements for EPS in the vast majority of cases.

Aaaannnd with one fell swoop you just showed you don't work in design

For fun I'm very tempted to hand over a PDF to a colleague who's expecting an EPS...

To give you an idea, I work at a huge corporation that recently undertook a very large and very costly rebranding exercise using top agencies. Every asset provided in the new library was EPS.

 

[benwiggy]

Aaaannnd with one fell swoop you just showed you don't work in design

I've been working in print production since the 90s. Publishing houses, advertising, you name it.

Tell me what you do with an EPS file that you couldn't do with a PDF of it?

 

[benwiggy]

For anyone wanting a little app that opens and QuickLooks EPS files, here's one:

https://cdn.etresoft.org/EPSView.zip

The author can be acknowledged/thanked here:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1512170659861909510

 

[woolypants]

I've been working in print production since the 90s. Publishing houses, advertising, you name it.

Tell me what you do with an EPS file that you couldn't do with a PDF of it?

And you think you can swap an EPS with a PDF?

I'm sorry but I think you're trolling here and I won't reply any more.