Please can someone help, I have a question in my coursework that I don't know the answer to! Explain how PostScript fits into the design process?

Question

Please can someone help, I have a question in my coursework that I don't know the answer to! Explain how PostScript fits into the design process?

Answer 1

The simple answer is that today PostScript really doesn't fit at all into the Graphic Design process, at least in terms of what the graphic designer needs to know.
Historically, though, the PostScript imaging model, first introduced circa 1984 provided the basis for the initial publishing software including PageMaker, Illustrator, QuarkXPress, and even Ventura Publisher. This imaging model included support for continuously scalable text, vector, and raster imagery as well as the concepts of a current transformation matrix that allowed arbitrary scaling, rotation, etc. and multiple color spaces (grayscale, RGB, CMYK, spot, device independent, and color-managed).
The PostScript imaging model was effectively replaced by the PDF imaging model, a significant superset of the PostScript imaging model, by the time Illustrator 9 and InDesign 2 were released in terms of support of ICC color management, transparency, etc.
The fact is that a good graphic designed doesn't need to know anything about PostScript or PDF per sé, but rather about the basics of color (such as issues associated with color gamut and what how that affects display and printing), use of text versus vector versus raster images and why one should keep content at the highest level of abstraction all the way to the rendering (or screen) or RIP process for printing. Some knowledge of typography also helps.
          - Dov