Support for PDF/A output

[IMWal]

Hello,

I'm trying to output PDF/A files from JPEG or TIFF images with ImageMagickObject. I'm using ImageMagick-6.6.9-9-Q16-windows-dll, and I have not found any documentation on this feature in this version of ImageMagick. Is it implemented on the current version, and if so, how can compliance be set when running the convert program ?

I found a 2008 topic on this matter, but for an older version (6.3.9-2) and with no indication on how to proceed : viewtopic.php?f=2&t=10751

Thanks for your help, and sorry if I have overlooked any existing documentation or news on this subject.

[whugemann]

As far as I understand matters, you would only have to re-define the Ghostscript command line in the file 'delegates.xml', as Ghostscript would only need the -dPDFA option set (see http://pages.cs.wisc.edu/~ghost/doc/cvs/Ps2pdf.htm#PDFA).

Although I read http://www.imagemagick.org/Usage/files/#delegates I do however not quite understand how ImageMagick handles things: 'encode="pdf"' appears twice in the 'delegates.xml' file, one time combined with 'decode="ps"' and one time combined with 'decode="eps"'. I didn't quite get what's the use of the decode/encode pairs: Is it a kind of shorthand conversion for certain pairings of input/output formats? Do I have to alter both lines of the 'delegates.xml' file to ensure that I am converting to PDF/A?

One other question: Where do I have to place my privat 'delegates.xml' file under Windows, such that ImageMagick takes it into account?

[anthony]

the PDF and PS delegate entries in the delegates file are specially handled by the pdf and postscript coder modules.

Other delegates are convertsion pairs that define commands to convert from/to some unknown format to something Im can make use of.

Details are explained (to a degree) in IM Examples, File Handling
http://www.imagemagick.org/Usage/files/#delegates

NOTE security concerns of recent years have made delegate usage slow, as it has forced the use temporary files. It is a real shame as more direct delegate usage could speed things up enormously.

[whugemann]

I guess that ImageMagick generates PS or EPS output and feeds that to GhostScript. (I tried to figure that out by setting the -verbose option, but couldn't really interpretate what IM reported.) The point seems to be that you cannot generate PDF/A from a non-conform (E)PS file. So IM's PostScript wirting capabilities have to be enhanced, I guess.

I tried adding "-dPDFA -dUseCIEColor" to the two according lines in the 'delegates.xml' file, but did not succeed: The resulting PDF was still non-conform with PDF/A. (I have Acrobat Professional installed, as I have done a lot of pre-print work in recent years.)

I think that PDF/A support is an important issue in archive applications. Thus it would be nice if its support (as announce in viewtopic.php?f=2&t=10751 would be incorporated in future versions of ImageMagick.

[IMWal]

Okay, I realized I wasn't using the right command. After using "mogrify -format pdfa" instead of convert, I got announced PDF/A generated by IM without Ghostcript calls (PDF writing is coded in pdf.c).

But as the old post said, the generated PDF/A is not correct. It's PDF 1.6 whereas PDF/A is by definition PDF 1.4. There seems to be other problems as well according to PDF/A validators.

[magick]

We'll fix the version problem. Is there a free PDF/A validator? If so, we'll use it to ensure ImageMagick's PDF/A is conforming.

[IMWal]

There is no free or open source PDF/A validator as far as I know.

However there are some online demos of commercial products, these two are good ones :

- http://www.datalogics.com/products/call ... nedemo.asp

- http://www.pdf-tools.com/pdf/validate-pdfa-online.aspx

This one works by email, not tested :

- http://www.validatepdfa.com/online.htm?step=1

[magick]

We added PDF/A validation to our bug list. We do not have an ETA just yet for a patch.

[sudhashbahu]

Is there a way to convert to PDF/A that would pass the common online validators?

[magick]

The ImageMagick PDF/A passes the online validator we use for PDF/A-3b. Is there a specific PDF/A compliance you are looking for?

[pipitas]

As far as I understand matters, you would only have to re-define the Ghostscript command line in the file 'delegates.xml', as Ghostscript would only need the -dPDFA option set (see http://pages.cs.wisc.edu/~ghost/doc/cvs/Ps2pdf.htm#PDFA).

I don't think Ghostscript has any role when it comes to generating PDFs from raster image input.

(It does have a role when it comes to convert PostScript input to PDF, though.)

[homer65]

How can I convert a *.tiff File to PDF/A. For Example does "convert my.tiff my.pdf" build a PDF/A File?