printer over ride to default

[Mike Reed]

Hi,
I have some code set to do some automatic printing for a report. The user selects the printer they want first using a dialog box. The dialog box is populated with a list of printers. Since the report is goig to be printed to 2 different printers depending on a value in the data.

This code is used to get values, etc then used to populate the dialog box
dim cprinter as c
dim cprinterset as c
dim ptr as P
dim ptr.dummy as L
ptr.dummy = .t.
cprinter = ui_printer_default_get()
cprinterset = ui_printer_settings_get(cprinter, ptr)

2 values are set in the dialog cprinter and yprinter.

When the printing is done then this command is issued in the script just ahead of the print command which is this:
report.print("Invoice_Logo","Accounts->Invoiceno = " + "'" + word(foo.value,-1) + "'","")

last_printer = :report.printer_override(cprinter) or
last_printer = :report.printer_override(yprinter)

It runs quite well, sending the reports to the proper printers, etc all automatically.
My problem is that when it is all done, I need to be able to set the printing back to a normal process. If I go to print a different report or letter, I don't get the normal windows pop up to select a printer. The report goes automatically to the whatever the last printer was assigned in the routine list above. So obviously we need to reset the Alpha Printing so that we can get the normal windows popup. The only way to get it back is to resstart Alpha. The help file has nothing on how to reset the printing to the defaults.

the help file say that using the command :report.printer_override(cprinter,oriprinter) the oriprinter is supposed to hold the original settings. But that doesn't work.


Anyone have any ideas?
Thanks,
mike

[CALocklin]

Re: printer over ride to default

Mike, I'm a bit confused by what you are doing. The way I read it, your script does this:

report.print("Invoice_Logo","Accounts->Invoiceno = " + "'" + word(foo.value,-1) + "'","")

last_printer = :report.printer_override(xxxxxx)

But there is no printer_override() statement before the report.print() statement so it should just use whatever printer is defined for that report. Basd on my vast experience (one time), you need a report.printer_override() statement before the report.print() statement to change the printer then again afterward to change it back. Also, fwiw, I don't believe the printer_override() will work with report.preview()

As best I recall, the printer_override() didn't work very well for me when I only gave it the printer name. I also had to pass the appropriate printer options via the pointer. (This may not be necessary - just reporting how I did it. However, I suspect that using just the name works only if all the other printer options are the same. In my case, one printer was a continuous feed label printer and the other was an 8.5x11 printer and the options were completely different.)

Assume you wanted to use a printer called "MyOtherPrinter" to print a report and you wanted to return to whatever the original printer was. I think the following would work - however, in the one case where I used printer_override, I think I ended up getting the printer options from the printer operating manual and hard coding them instead of using ui_printer_settings_get() - not sure if I had to or if I "just did it that way."

[COLOR=darkorchid]dim ptr as P[/COLOR]
ptr.dummy = .t.
[COLOR=blue]'This just sets the values in "ptr" - it doesn't return anything. (See "Interactive Window" notes)[/COLOR]
[COLOR=darkgreen]ui_printer_settings_get([/COLOR] "MyOtherPrinter", ptr )
delete ptr.dummy   [COLOR=blue]'may not be required - I like it because it keeps things cleaner.[/COLOR]

DIM orig_ptr as P
orig_ptr.dummy = "dummy"
[COLOR=darkgreen]last_printer_name = report.printer_override([/COLOR] "MyOtherPrinter", ptr, orig_ptr )
[COLOR=blue]'This should print to "MyOtherPrinter"[/COLOR]
[COLOR=darkgreen]report.print([/COLOR] "Invoice_Logo", "Accounts->Invoiceno = " + "'" + word(foo.value,-1) + "'", "" )

[COLOR=blue]'Now reset to the original printer.[/COLOR]
[COLOR=blue]'No need to get the last printer name/info in this case.[/COLOR]
[COLOR=darkgreen][COLOR=#000000]delete orig_ptr.dummy  [/COLOR][COLOR=blue]'Again, maybe not needed.[/COLOR]
report.printer_override([/COLOR] last_printer_name, orig_ptr )

Here's what you get when running ui_printer_settings_get() in the interactive window: (Hint - running new functions in the Interactive Window and be very useful sometimes.)

dim ptr as P
ptr.dummy = "dummy"
?ui_printer_settings_get("Alpha Five Printer", ptr )
= [B][COLOR="Blue"]<No data returned>[/COLOR][/B]
?ptr
= collate = .F.
color = "Color"
copies = 1
defaultsource = "Default bin"
dummy = "dummy"
duplex = "Simplex"
orientation = "portrait"
papersize = "Letter 8 1/2 x 11 in"
quality = "Draft"
truetype = "Substitute"

[Mike Reed]

Re: printer over ride to default

HI Cal,
Thanks for the info, I'm going to work on it later today.

Sorry also for the confusion. I printer override does come before the report.print command, I entered that wrong in my message.

I just have to be able to give the user back the choice to select their printer rather than having Alpha Five automatically print to the last one assigned by the :report.printer_override().
Unfortunately the help file doesn't offer much help there.

Thanks again, I'll post the outcome when I'm done.

mike

[CALocklin]

Re: printer over ride to default

I just have to be able to give the user back the choice to select their printer rather than having Alpha Five automatically print to the last one assigned by the :report.printer_override().

OK, I think I understand your problem better now. Try this:
report.Printer_override("")
No guarantees - I just did one quick test and that seemed to work.

[Raymond Lyons]

Re: printer over ride to default

What Cal says is usually correct. But if his suggestion does not work, you might look at two other things:

1) Someone not nearly as expert as Cal posted an printer override article on Learnalpha.com a couple of years ago. Some of the article is a bit obtuse but if you can get by that, then by using some of the code in the article (might have been a download sample) one can do just about anything regarding automatically printing to a specified printer, paper size, orientation, depending on the user, data items, etc. and then going back to whatever printer and setup the user began with. It works!

2) Probably much easier in your case would be to use Action Scripting (I know, the Gods forbid this!) to print a report, choose Options, choose Printer Override and make some choices, then convert the Action Script to Xbasic, copy the relevant code into your own situation and it is almost guaranteed to work for you. By the way, take what the Gods, any Gods, say about AS and much else with a grain of salt.

Raymond Lyons

[jkletrovets]

Re: printer over ride to default

Just another 2 pennies.....

I do this all the time, the user chooses from a radio box selection for the printer they want to print to....in this case a large format (11x17 printer). It is a little confusing...but in the end the help file is right on.

From the help file

last_printer = :report.printer_override("HPLaserJet 4P")
:report.print("invoices")
:report.printer_override(last_printer)

the help file say that using the command :report.printer_override(cprinter,oriprinter) the oriprinter is supposed to hold the original settings. But that doesn't work

You just need to make sure the 3rd line in the code from the help file above is set to "last_printer".....not your user's selected printer name. It is confusing because the help file has 2 different examples (one includes the old options if they were special). But, it sounds like you just want the normal printer dialog back. The example above does the trick for that. I have no doubt Cal's option works as well.....just wanted to share my experience.

Regards,

Jeff

[Mike Reed]

Re: printer over ride to default

Thanks for all your replies.
I worked through the issues based on your comments and got it working fine.

Thanks again,
mike

[CALocklin]

Re: printer over ride to default

Don't keep us in suspense! What was the solution?

[Mike Reed]

Re: printer over ride to default

Don't keep us in suspense! What was the solution?

Sorry for not making the note.

Your suggestion of using this:
report.Printer_override("") is what made it work.

At least so far,

[CALocklin]

Re: printer over ride to default

Oddly enough, I had to do some work with .printer_override() this afternoon and happened to open my own A5v5 XBasic Help file which has the Help from A5v4 (converted from the PDF), as well as A5v5 and some later functions, and in it the Printer_override topic says:

If printer_name is equal to a null string (""), then Alpha Five will use the Default Windows printer.

I guess they took that out for some reason when they created the newer Help file.