filepro & pdf files

[Bob Rasmussen]

On Wed, 18 Apr 2007, Richard Hane wrote:

> fp version fpODBC 1.0.13 running on a XP Pro workstation
>    
>   Question.....
>   I am having a problem generating a pdf output from filepro.  I use the PDF995 program.  Works well on windows programs.  The "printer" name as known to windows is "PDF995" and the port is "PDF995PORT".
>    
>   My printer definition is:
>   printer12: rickpdf, NOCODES, win: PDF995, PDF
>    
>   when I generate an output from filepro it produces a file called filepro document and hangs (does not print) in the printer spool.  Note: it is not generated as a PDF either.  Finally, it does not ask for a file name.
>    
>   Am I doing this wrong?  Should it be created to a file first?
>    
>   Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Depending on how you reference the printer in filePro, you may be simply 
sending the printer driver a stream of plain text. Most likely it can not 
handle input at this level, but instead wants data to be fed in via the 
Windows printing API. Other printer drivers exhibit this behavior, include 
The Microsoft Document Imaging driver and the Windows Journal driver (part 
of TabletPC). PaperPort may as well.

I believe there is a protocol in fP where you can refer to the printer as 
"WIN-something". I don't know if that would make a difference.

Even if you made this work, you would end up with plain text going into a 
PDF. Nothing would control font size, margins, or spacing.

OTOH, if you send this data to Print Wizard, with it configured to 
generate PDF, first of it will work. It will auto-fit the text to the page 
(in the PDF) and will also understand backspace-bolding, for instance. You 
can then stop using NOCODES and instead use a PCL printer definition, and 
PW will create PDFs with font settings, pictures, etc. Finally, you can 
have PW email the created PDFs.

Regards,
....Bob Rasmussen,   President,   Rasmussen Software, Inc.

personal e-mail: ras at anzio.com
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