1MPAGE(Local)                                                      MPAGE(Local)
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NAME

6       mpage - print multiple pages per sheet on PostScript printer
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SYNOPSIS

10       mpage  [-1248aAceEfHloOrRStTuUvVxX]  [-b papersize]  [-B[num[lrtb]]...]
11       [-C  [encoding]]  [-da|p]  [-D dateformat]  [-F fontname]   [-h header]
12       [-j first[-last][%interval]]         [-J startpageno]        [-L lines]
13       [-m[num[lrtb]]...]   [-M[num[lrtb]]...]    [-p[prprog]]   [-P[printer]]
14       [-s tabstop] [-W width] [-z printcmd] [-Z printcmd_args] [file ...]
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DESCRIPTION

21       mpage reads plain text files or PostScript documents and prints them on
22       a PostScript printer with the text reduced  in  size  so  that  several
23       pages  appear  on one sheet of paper.  This is useful for viewing large
24       printouts on a small amount of paper.  It  uses  ISO  8859.1  to  print
25       8-bit characters.
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27
28       The  following  options  are recognized (note that arguments to options
29       may be separated from the option by spaces, except for -B, -m,  -M,  -p
30       and  -P):  Also when mpage encounters -- as option it will stop parsing
31       arguments and the remaining arguments are interpreted as filenames.
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33
34       -1     Print 1 normal page per sheet (included for symmetry).
35
36
37       -2     Print 2 normal pages per sheet.
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39
40       -4     Print 4 normal pages per sheet (default).
41
42
43       -8     Print 8 normal pages per sheet.
44
45
46       -a     Toggle layout of the pages on the  sheet  so  that  successively
47              numbered  pages run down the sheet, as opposed to left to right.
48              (default updown) .
49
50
51       -A     This option is deprecated, see -b.  Prepare output for A4  sized
52              paper.  For default see 'mpage -x'.
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54
55       -bpapertype
56              Prepare output for selected paper type.  Papersize can be A3 for
57              European A3, A4 for European A4, Letter for US Letter  or  Legal
58              for  Legal sized paper.  For default see 'mpage -x'.  To see the
59              list of currently available types, just give the 'mpage -bl'  or
60              'mpage -b?' command (Note: mpage exits after finding such option
61              use.)
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63
64       -B[<num>[lrtb]*]
65              Setup a box around a particular part of your page.  Specify text
66              box  margins  and  line  thickness.   The  default  is 0 columns
67              (lines) for both left and right (top and bottom) margins  and  0
68              line  thickness.   Specifying  -B solely toggles printing of the
69              box.  l, r, t or b set the left, right,  top  or  bottom  margin
70              respectively  to  <num>  columns (lines).  Not specifying any of
71              the sides, will set the line thickness when <num> is given.  For
72              example  -B1  sets the line thickness to 1.  Sides with negative
73              margins will not print.
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75
76       -c     Toggle concatenation off pages from different  files  on  single
77              sheets (default off).
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79
80       -C[encodingfile]
81              Specify  the character encoding file.  The file should be in the
82              mpage library directory (/usr/share/mpage).  Mpage has an inter‐
83              nal  default  encoding  based  on  Latin-1  or IBM codepage 850.
84              Depending on compile time option this encoding definition is  on
85              or not.  Not specifying an encodingfile will toggle the usage of
86              the internal encoding.
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88
89       -da|p  Force input to be taken as ascii (a)  or  postscript  (p)  text.
90              This  way  you  can print your postscript code as text, or print
91              postscript code that mpage does not recognise. When  using  -dp,
92              make sure that the the postscript code contains %Page page sepa‐
93              rators or else things will probably look odd.
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95
96       -Ddateformat
97              Set the date format as in strftime(3) to be  used  in  date/time
98              representations  (e.g.  in  headers).   (Note:  to be useful you
99              probably need the -H option.)
100
101
102       -e     Print 2 normal pages per sheet in duplex mode. Every  first  and
103              fourth  page  or  on  one side and every second and third on the
104              other side. This is more or less a combination of the -O and  -E
105              option but then in one pass.
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107
108       -E     Print  2 normal pages per sheet. However, this option will print
109              every second and third page of every set of  four  pages.   This
110              option  will  ignore  -a and -l.  See also the -O option.  Using
111              these options double sided  prints  can  be  created  without  a
112              duplex printer.
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114
115       -f     Toggles folding lines longer than page width (default off) .
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117
118       -Ffontname
119              Specify  font.   (default  Courier). Check your printer for sup‐
120              ported fonts. Note: this has almost nothing to do with the fonts
121              used for your X-windows/KDE/Gnome environment.
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123
124       -hheader
125              This is used only when the -p or -H switch is used and is passed
126              as the "-h header" option to pr(1) or as the header for -H.
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128
129       -H     Create header line for each logical  page  separated  from  page
130              text  by  a horizontal line. Unless -h is given, the header con‐
131              sist of last file modification time, filename and  page  number,
132              all  in bold and slightly larger font.  This option only applies
133              to non-postscript files.
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135
136       -Iindent
137              Indent text by indent characters.
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139
140       -jfirst[-last][%interval]
141              Print just the selected sheets, specified by a number,  starting
142              at  1.   Here  last  defaults to the end of data, interval to 1.
143              Several -j options can be given (upto MAXJARGS, default 100)  to
144              create  a  complex  selection of pages.  Thus -j1-10 selects the
145              first 10 sheets, while  -j  1%2  prints  just  the  odd-numbered
146              sheets and -j 2%2 prints just the even ones.
147
148              You can do double-sided printing, in two passes, as follows.  If
149              you use 3-hole punched paper, put it in the  printer  such  that
150              the  holes will appear at the top of the page -- on the right as
151              you pull out the printer tray,  in  our  Laser  writer  II  NTX.
152              Print the odd-numbered sheets with
153
154                   mpage ... -j 1%2 ...
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156              Note  the number of pages it reports.  (Only half this many will
157              really be printed).  When printing finishes, if  mpage  reported
158              an  odd  number  of  pages,  remove the last one from the stack,
159              since there will be no even-numbered sheet to  match  it.   Then
160              arrange  the stack of paper for printing on the other side.  (If
161              it's punched, the holes will now be on the  left.)   On  our  II
162              NTX,  the  paper comes out blank-side up; replace it in the tray
163              still blank-side up but rotated 180 degrees.  For  other  print‐
164              ers,  you  figure it out.  Now print the even-numbered sheets in
165              reverse order with
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167                   mpage ... -r -j 2%2 ...
168
169              hoping no one else reaches the printer before you do.
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172       -Jstartpageno
173              Set the start value of  the  sheet  page  count  to  startpageno
174              instead of 1.
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176
177       -k     When  mpage  finds  a %%TRailer or %%PSTrailer in the postscript
178              input file it normally assumes this is the end of the postscript
179              file  and  stops  reading  the  input file. But when the PS file
180              includes EPS files, %%Trailers might  be  anywhere.  Using  this
181              option ignores the %%TRailer and %%PSTRailer lines.
182
183       -l     Toggle printing landscape or portrait mode.  Landscape pages are
184              55 lines long by 132 characters wide by default.  Portrait pages
185              are  66  lines  long by 80 characters wide by default.  (default
186              portrait.)
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188
189       -Llines
190              Adjust the page reduction parameters so that  lines  lines  will
191              fit in the space of one page.  This overrides the default values
192              normally supplied.  (See -l.)  If used in  conjunction  with  -p
193              then  this  value  is  passed  to  the pr(1) as well.  As a side
194              effect this changes the font  size  as  well  (as  will  the  -W
195              option.)  So  while  there  is  an option to change font family,
196              there is no explicit option to change font size!
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198
199       -m[<num>[lrtb]*]
200              Specify sheet margin. The default margin  is  20  points.   Only
201              specifying  -m  sets left margin to 40 points.  l, r, t or b set
202              left, right, top or bottom margin respectively to <num>  points.
203              Not specifying any of the sides will set all sides when <num> is
204              given.  <num> defaults to 40 points. For example -m10  sets  all
205              margins  to  10  points.  -ml50tb sets left margin to default 40
206              and top and bottom margin to 50 points.  -m50l25bt30r set bottom
207              and  top  margin to 25, left margin to 50 and right margin to 30
208              points.  Margins can have negative numbers.
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210
211       -M[<num>[lrtb]*]
212              Specify  logical  page  margins.  For  syntax,  see  -m  option.
213              Defaults  are  4 for -M solely, and 8 for <num>.  Margins can be
214              negative.  This way large white  borders  in  your  (postscript)
215              documents can be reduced.
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217
218       -o     Toggle  printing  of  outlines around each reduced page (default
219              on).
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221
222       -O     Print 2 normal pages per sheet.  However, this option will print
223              every  first  and  fourth page of every set of four pages.  This
224              option will ignore -a and -l.  See also the  -E  option.   Using
225              these  options  double  sided  prints  can  be created without a
226              duplex printer.
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228
229       -p[prprog]
230              Pipe input through prprog command (including specified  options)
231              before  printing  (assumes  the  input is a text file).  When no
232              command is specified, it defaults to pr(1).
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234
235       -P[printer]
236              Specify the printer to which the PostScript output will be  sent
237              (e.g.lpr  -Pprinter).  Using  -P  with no printer specified will
238              send the PostScript to the default  printer  queue  (e.g.  lpr).
239              Using  -P-  will  return output to stdout, useful in combination
240              with MPAGE environment variable. Without -P output will be  send
241              to standard output.
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243
244       -r     Reverse  printing.  The last sheet is printed first.  The way of
245              arranging reduced pages on the sheets doesn't change.
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247
248       -R     Switch to left to right mode, starting first page on left bottom
249              corner.   This  might  be useful for landscape postscript files.
250              (Note: using -l after -R undoes -R, and switches to normal land‐
251              scape mode.
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253
254       -stabstop
255              Set tabstop width (default 8 characters).  Should by >= 2.
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257
258       -S     Accept  non-square page reduction.  By default, pages are shrunk
259              equally in X and Y, even if this wastes some space on the sheet.
260              With  -S, reduced pages are larger but slightly distorted. (only
261              used when printing postscript files.)
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263
264       -t     Toggle printing on both sides of the paper.   This  will  toggle
265              duplex  mode  of  the  printer.   Use  this  option only if your
266              printer is capable of printing in duplex mode.  (default off).
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268
269       -T     Toggle tumble of every second  pages  when  printing  in  duplex
270              mode.  Use this option only if your printer is capable of print‐
271              ing in duplex mode and together with -t.
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273
274       -u     Toggle checking for UTF-8 input  (not  relevant  for  postscript
275              input).
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277
278       -U     This option is deprecated, see -b.  Prepare output for US Letter
279              sized paper.  For default see 'mpage -x'.
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281
282       -v     Toggle printing a count of the number  of  sheets  produced  for
283              printing (default off.)
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285
286       -V     Print version information and exit.
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288
289       -Wwidth
290              Adjust  the  page reduction parameters so that a line with width
291              characters long will fit in the space of one page.   This  over‐
292              rides  the default values normally supplied.  (See -l.)  If used
293              in conjunction with -p then this value is passed to the s  pr(1)
294              program as well.  See also the -L option on font sizes.
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296
297       -x     Force usage display, which also shows current defaults.
298
299
300       -X [header]
301              Print  header  on  the  left and the page number on the right of
302              each physical page (sheet).  If no header is given, the  default
303              is  the current filename (note influence of -c), the filename of
304              the first file on the page is used.
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306
307       -zprintcommand
308              Specify command to use to send output to.  Default  is  lpr  (1)
309              for  BSD  style spooler, lp (1) for SYSV style spooler.  You can
310              specify command line options, but note -Z.  For example -zlp for
311              system V Unix.
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313
314       -Zprintprog_queuename_arg
315              Specify  what option to use for the "-z printcommand" to specify
316              a printqueue.  For example -zlp -Z-d for system V Unix.  Default
317              is -P for BSD style spooler, -d for SYSV style spooler.
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ENVIRONMENT

321       mpage  examines the PRINTER (or LPDEST for SYSV style spooler) environ‐
322       ment variable to override its default printer.
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324
325       The MPAGE_LIB environment variable can be used  to  control  where  the
326       character encoding files (-C) can be found.
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329       mpage  also  examines the MPAGE environment variable for default option
330       settings.  Any option or combination of options can be specified in the
331       MPAGE  environment  variable.   For  example,  if  MPAGE  is set to the
332       string:
333
334              -2oPqms -L60
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336       it would (in the absence of other command line arguments) print 2 pages
337       per  sheet,  60 lines per page, with outlines, on the printer named qms
338       (overriding the PRINTER/LPDEST environment variable, if it exists.)  In
339       the  environment  variable, white space is used as an option delimiter,
340       and no quoting is recognized.
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342
343       Any command line options will override both the PRINTER and MPAGE envi‐
344       ronment variables.
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FILES

348       /usr/tmp/mpageXXXXXX
349       /usr/share/mpage
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BUGS

353       Suffers under the burden of far too many switches.  (But you wanted the
354       choices!)
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356       NULL characters in a postscript input file will cause mpage to crash!
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358       Many others, we're sure.
359
360       Mpage is year 2000 compliant, as long as the underlying operating  sys‐
361       tem is!!!
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VERSION

365       Version 2.5.7, Released June 2017.
366       Location:
367
368              http://www.mesa.nl/pub/mpage
369              ftp://ftp.mesa.nl/pub/mpage
370

AUTHORS

372       Marcel Mol <marcel@mesa.nl> (current maintainer).
373
374       Mark P. Hahn (Original author)
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377
378                                  2017/06/28                      MPAGE(Local)
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