Adobe created the PostScript page-description language, first released in 1984.
PostScript was developed by Adobe co-founders John Warnock and Charles Geschke. It described text, graphics, and page layouts in a device-independent programming language that printers could interpret. This made it possible for a document to be designed on one computer and reproduced consistently on different output devices.
Apple licensed PostScript and incorporated it into the LaserWriter printer, introduced in 1985. Combined with the Macintosh and desktop-publishing software, the technology helped launch the desktop-publishing revolution. It also contributed to the popularity of vector-based fonts and high-quality office printing.
PostScript is sometimes confused with PDF. Adobe developed PDF later as a document format that could preserve layout for viewing and exchange. PDF is based partly on PostScript concepts, but the two are not identical. Adobe also acquired Aldus, the company behind PageMaker, in 1994, strengthening its role in desktop publishing.