How PS Differs from EPS
PostScript (.ps) is a complete multi-page document- It begins with a %! header and typically contains one or more pages. It is designed to be sent directly to a PostScript printer or RIP.
EPS (.eps) is an Encapsulated PostScript file- A single-page, self-contained element meant to be included (embedded) inside a larger document. EPS includes bounding box information (%%BoundingBox) so host applications know its dimensions.
How to View PS Files
PS files cannot be opened in standard image viewers. The primary tool for viewing and converting PS is Ghostscript, a free and open-source PostScript interpreter available on Windows, macOS, and Linux. GUI front-ends like GSview or Evince (Linux) make Ghostscript more accessible. The command to convert a PS file to PDF is: gs -sDEVICE=pdfwrite -o output.pdf input.ps
Professional Print Workflow Use
In traditional prepress workflows, applications like QuarkXPress and early versions of InDesign generated PS files that were sent to an imagesetter to produce film separations for offset printing. The PS file was also the intermediate step in creating PDFs via Distiller. This workflow is now largely historical.
PDF Has Largely Replaced PS
PDF (Portable Document Format) is itself derived from PostScript but adds features that make it more portable: random page access, embedded fonts, standardised colour management (PDF/X), encryption, and interactive forms. Modern printers speak PDF directly. PS output from jpg.now is available for legacy print workflows that specifically require it.