[scribus] Mac Render Frame Problem

[john Culleton]

On Fri, 21 Jun 2013 09:46:11 -0400
Gregory Pittman <gpittman at iglou.com> wrote:

> On 06/21/2013 08:27 AM, Martin Costabel wrote:
> > On 21/06/13 12:39, john Culleton wrote:
> >> On Thu, 20 Jun 2013 18:49:36 -0600
> >> Alvin Revzin <the-editor at mindspring.com> wrote:
> >>
> >>> Unlike previous versions, Scribus 1.4.2 works well on my Mac Mini
> >>> with OSX-10.8.4 but if and only if Ghostscript and Scribus are in
> >>> the Applications folder. There is one major problem, though. If I
> >>> try to insert a render frame into a document, I get an error
> >>> message that says "The application "pdflatex --nonstopmode"
> >>> failed to start. Please check the path:" and then nothing further.
> >>>
> >>> This message makes no sense as there is no way to check the -
> >>> unspecified - path. Also, IIRC, many years ago there was a
> >>> "pdflatex" in the usual MacTeX distribution but it is nothing
> >>> like it is in my current (2012) distribution (also in the
> >>> Applications folder).
> > 
> > What do you mean? The standard MacTeX distribution puts its
> > executables into /usr/texbin, which is a symlink to something like
> > /usr/local/texlive/2012/bin/x86_64-darwin. It also provides code
> > that places /usr/texbin on your PATH.
> > 
> >>> Is this soluble or is it JAMI (Just Another Mac Incompatibility?
> > 
> >>
> >> Pdflatex is an older component of the TeX distribution. You can
> >> download the full ditribution in the form of a dvd. Google on
> >> texlive.
> > 
> > pdflatex is a standard component of all recent TeX distributions.
> > In any case, it comes with MacTeX 2013, and it would be very
> > surprising if the 2012 distribution didn't have it, too. It is, in
> > fact, a symlink to pdftex.
> > 
> I had this same message recently with my Fedora 18 recently -- I
> figured it out, but will see if I can recall what I figured out and
> get back when I do.
> 
> So it's not a Mac issue per se. I think there was some single
> texlive-something or other I had to get.
> 
> Greg
> 
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I downloaded, burnt the dvd and used the package texlive dated 2012, as
I have in many previous cases.
 
As I recall the same dvd can be used for Windows, Mac and so on. My
distro, Linux Slackware 14 64 bit, comes with a hopelessly obsolete 
TeX ditribution called tetex. It lacks all the recent refinements such
as hanging punctuation, microtypography, use of OTF fonts through
luatex and xetex and so on. 

For typesetting fiction I use pdftex or luatex. For typesetting
non-fiction a use a package called Context, a successor to LaTeX.
I also have used on occasion pdflatex with the brilliant Memoir class
accompanied by the equally brilliant documentation of that class by its
creator Peter Wilson. I am reminded of the poem "Ozymandias" by Shelley
which begins:

"My name is Ozymandias, king of kings, look on my works and despair."

I could not hope to equal this level of documentation, in content or
formatting, ever. The first three chapters dealing with book design in
general have been broken out as a separate work. Interested parties can
search any recent texlive distro for:
memdesign.pdf (the first three chapters)
memoir.pdf (The full book, all 700 or so pages.)

Many on this group have not used TeX. But it sets the gold standard for
both features and convenience in interior book typesetting. Scribus is
WYSIWYG and readily uses all fonts found on the system. Scrbus also
handles the placement of graphic elements er, handily. But in other
respects for book interiors IMO TeX is still the Gold standard. I watch
with respect and admiration as Scribus adds capabilities to match
modern versions of TeX. We are not there yet but getting closer. 
 
-- 
John Culleton
Wexford Press
Free list of books for self-publishers:
http://wexfordpress.net/shortlist.html
PDF e-book: "Create Book Covers with Scribus"
available at http://www.booklocker.com/books/4055.html