Re: PDF and Perl

[matthewb]

I have done this many, many times (despite advising clients that people don't typically like reading content in PDF format). Every time, I end up pulling my hair out trying to produce something that might be reusable in some way. There's a bunch of interesting modules on the CPAN but they all either fall short of the extensive requirements mandated by the designers involved or require a fairly intimate knowledge of the PDF specification.

That being the case, and I'm sorry to be cynical, I have found that the best solution for me, in terms of timescale feasibility and there being some way to realise my goals, is to produce the document in question using LaTeX and then use the pdflatex utility to generate the output.

While somewhat painful at first, the LaTeX language is learnable and quickly rewards your effort. If you're a Template Toolkit fan, there is a LaTeX filter in the distribution which, while not entirely without its problems, can ease the process a little.

Update: added linkage.