PS vs RST
A detailed comparison of PostScript and reStructuredText — file size, quality, compatibility, and which format to choose for your workflow.
PostScript
Documents & TextPostScript is a page description language used in desktop publishing and professional printing.
About PS filesreStructuredText
Documents & TextRST (reStructuredText) is a lightweight markup language used in Python documentation.
About RST filesStrengths Comparison
PS Strengths
- Device-independent — same file prints identically on any PostScript printer.
- Vector-based at heart; rasterization happens at the printer's DPI.
- Programmable — dynamic pages, variable data, and procedural art all possible.
- Legacy standard in academic and print pipelines.
RST Strengths
- Rich directives for admonitions, code, math, and custom elements.
- Cross-references work within and across documents.
- Sphinx ecosystem offers best-in-class Python docs output.
- Standardized as part of Python PEP infrastructure.
- Plain text, version-controllable.
Limitations
PS Limitations
- Turing-complete = security hole; malicious PS files can hang printers or exploit vulnerabilities.
- Not a display format; browsers cannot render PostScript without conversion.
- Mostly superseded by PDF (which is PostScript's sandboxed, declarative descendant).
- File sizes can be enormous when embedding high-res images or fonts.
- Modern Illustrator (2020+) deprecated PostScript import for security.
RST Limitations
- Syntax denser than Markdown — higher learning curve.
- Less widely adopted than Markdown outside Python world.
- Multiple directive dialects (Sphinx, Docutils, custom) create fragmentation.
- MyST (Markdown + Sphinx) has pulled many Python projects toward Markdown.
Technical Specifications
| Specification | PS | RST |
|---|---|---|
| MIME type | application/postscript | text/x-rst |
| Extensions | .ps, .eps (encapsulated), .prn (print-ready) | — |
| Standard | Adobe PostScript Language Reference Manual (Red Book) | — |
| Language | PostScript Level 2 / 3 (Turing-complete, stack-based) | — |
| Successor | PDF (declarative subset, 1993) | — |
| Extension | — | .rst |
| Toolchain | — | Docutils, Sphinx, Read the Docs |
| Encoding | — | UTF-8 |
| Related formats | — | MyST (Markdown + RST directives) |
Typical File Sizes
PS
- Simple academic paper 100 KB - 2 MB
- Long paper with figures 5-30 MB
- Multi-chapter book source 50-200 MB
RST
- API reference page 5-50 KB
- Sphinx project chapter 20-100 KB
- Full library documentation 500 KB - 10 MB
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Frequently Asked Questions
PS (PostScript) is a document format used to store paginated text, with optional formatting, tables, images, hyperlinks, headers and footers. It sits in the documents & text family and is typically associated with a specific office suite or publishing pipeline that defined the format and ships the canonical reader.
PS (PostScript) is a document formato used to store paginated text, com optional formatoting, tables, images, hyperlinks, headers e footers. It sits no documents & text family e is tipicamente associated com a specific office suite ou publishing pipeline that defined the formato e ships the canonical reader.
Modern office suites — Microsoft Word, Google Docs, LibreOffice Writer, Apple Pages — open most PS files with reasonable fidelity. If your installed software does not support PS, convert to DOCX or PDF first using KaijuConverter; both open in virtually every reader, including free online viewers.
Modern office suites — Microsoft Word, Google Docs, LibreOffice Writer, Apple Pages — abrir most PS arquivos com reasonable fidelity. If your installed software does not support PS, converter to DOCX ou PDF first usando KaijuConverter; both abrir in virtually every reader, including grátis online viewers.
Upload the PS to KaijuConverter and pick DOCX, PDF, ODT, RTF, HTML, Markdown, or plain text. Our pipeline runs LibreOffice headlessly plus pandoc for text formats — the same engines behind professional document pipelines. Styles, tables, images, and hyperlinks survive the conversion intact.
Yes, to a high degree. Standard fonts, headings, lists, tables, images, hyperlinks and page structure transfer cleanly. Custom fonts substitute to the closest match if not embedded; obscure layout features unique to PS (frames, legacy macros) may flatten to static content in the target format.