Sending Files To The Printer - Digital Equipment DECcolorwriter 120ic User Manual

Sending Files to the Printer

When you want to print from a word processor, spread sheet, database, graphic
package or other application, always use the built-in print function they offer.
Do not attempt to send one of the package's work files directly to the printer, as
they rarely have a format which can be executed directly by the printer. The
only exception are line oriented editors.
If you need to print documents independent of the application package, use the
function "print to a file", which some (but not all!) packages offer. The data
written to this file is then exactly like the output otherwise sent to the printer.
You can now send these files to print from the operating system level with the
commands described already in the section "Printing Text Files".
When using an application package, the package itself usually takes care of the
correct setting of the page layout parameters, overriding those defined in SET-
UP. Some packages, however, do not; when using them, check that all the
selectable parameters are compatible, and bear in mind the following:
•
If your printer has a physical TOF and BOF margin, make sure your form
length definition falls WITHIN these pre-set margins. If not, you may
encounter the situation where the printer executes an automatic form feed
when printing arrives at the bottom margin and the software executes
another one just after the start of the next page.
•
When defining the line length for your print output, make sure the left
margin plus the line of text do not exceed physical line length. The amount
of printable characters per line varies, as it depends on the letter size and
spacing, but when the print carriage reaches its rightmost position and there
are some characters left, the printer may either ignore the excess characters
or automatically print them on the following line. This can destroy your text
layout.
Printer Controlling
C-9