The Text output converter converts the intermediate format of the input file to a Text output file. Text output files contain only textual content and minimal formatting such as line feeds, page breaks, and tabs. The output converter preserves formatting information to the extent possible. Page coordinates convert to the nearest character cell (line,column) position. All graphics, images, and text attributes in the input file are lost when converted to the text output file. Because a monospace font is used, it is possible some text may be lost due to overwriting to preserve the layout. Lines can be truncated if the specified page width is smaller than the page width specified in the document's format information. Neither of these cases occur when you use the OVERRIDE_FORMAT processing option because, in that case, the document's format information is ignored. The Text output converter supports the processing options listed below.
1 – ASCII_FALLBACK
ASCII_FALLBACK [ON,OFF] causes the Text output converter to output text in 7-bit ASCII. The fallback representation of the characters is described in the ASCII standard. If this option is not specified, the default is OFF; if this option is specified without a value, the default is ON.
2 – CONTENT_MESSAGES
CONTENT_MESSAGES [ON,OFF] causes the Text output converter to put a message in the output file each time a nontext element is encountered in the intermediate representation of the input file. If this option is not specified, the default is OFF; if this option is specified without a value, the default is ON.
3 – HEIGHT
HEIGHT value specifies the maximum number of lines per page in your text output file. If you specify zero, the number of lines per page will correspond to the height specified in your document. If you also specify OVERRIDE_FORMAT, or if the document has no inherent page size, the document is formatted to the height value specified by this option. The default height is 66 lines.
4 – OVERRIDE_FORMAT
OVERRIDE_FORMAT [ON,OFF] causes the Text output converter to ignore the document formatting information included in your document, so that the text is formatted in a single large galley per page that corresponds to the size of the page as specified by the HEIGHT and WIDTH processing options. If this option is not specified, the default is OFF; if this option is specified without a value, the default is ON.
5 – SOFT_DIRECTIVES
SOFT_DIRECTIVES [ON,OFF] causes the Text output converter to obey the soft directives contained in the document when creating your text output file. (Soft directives specify such formatting commands as new line, new page, and tab.) If this option is not specified, the default is OFF; if this option is specified without a value, the default is ON.
6 – WIDTH
WIDTH value specifies the maximum number of columns of characters per page in your text output file. If you specify zero, the number of columns per page will correspond to the width specified in your document. If you also specify OVERRIDE_FORMAT, or if the document has no inherent page size, the document is formatted to the value specified by this processing option. If any lines of text exceed this width value, the additional columns are truncated. The default width is 80 characters.