Generic Text Ignores my Escape codes!

  • Thread starter Thread starter Tsunade
  • Start date Start date
T

Tsunade

Using windows 98, generic text follows my escape codes. But when I use
windows xp, it seems to ignore my font codes. Can anyone tell me how to
solve this problem?
 
Tsunade said:
Using windows 98, generic text follows my escape codes. But when I use
windows xp, it seems to ignore my font codes. Can anyone tell me how to
solve this problem?
Click to expand...
Printing with an application or the command prompt's COPY command?
 
RobertVA said:
Printing with an application or the command prompt's COPY command?
Click to expand...

Printing with the application's print button. The application was
created using Delphi 3. Any help?
 
Tsunade said:
Printing with the application's print button. The application was
created using Delphi 3. Any help?
Click to expand...
I'm still not quite sure what you are attempting.

As near as I can tell from a quick look at some Google search results
Delphi is a program development package for Windows published by
Borland. Windows is designed so that applications and their data files
don't need to (and SHOULDN'T) generate printer model or brand specific
codes to switch fonts or text attributes like boldface, italics,
underline or even page orientation. This even applies to often emulated
printers like Epson dot matrix printers and the early HP Laserjets. all
that model specific stuff is supposed to be taken care of by the
operating system's printer driver(s).

IF you are selecting the Generic Text "printer" for a windows
application's hard copy output, that driver is NOT intended to send
anything but printable characters and a FEW codes like carriage returns
and line feeds. It's really intended to be a way of generating an
unformatted version of a program's print output in the form of a text
file. As XP is derived from Windows NT instead of Windows 9x, it might
be a little more thorough at stripping the text down to basics than
Windows 98.

Try selecting the actual driver for your printer in the application's
print dialog. If you are printing from a button that bypasses the print
dialog, try setting the actual printer as the default printer in the
Windows XP control panel.

IF instead of the above you are trying to print a file that contains
print codes, have you tried setting your actual printer driver to
capture the LPT1: port and using the command prompt to copy the file to
LPT1: ?
 
There are provisions in the Generic/Text Only driver to define escape
sequences to change fonts. These are inserted into the driver using the
Properties dialogue for the printer driver.

If you do not have this driver installed already:
Navigate to Start Printers and Faxes Add a printer Local
printer.... Uncheck Automatically detect.... Click on Next.
Select the Generic appropriate port Select Generic Generic/ Text only
driver. Default printer yes or no as approrpriate.

Next, navigate to the driver Right click Font Selection and insert
the appropriate escape sequences for the fonts you need. You can insert
more than one sequence. e.g. set NLQ font and set 12 cpi.

In use, you specify the fonts from the font menu in the usual way. If you
select the appropriate fonts from the menu, printing will use a front
from the printer's ROM. If you select any other, the text is printed as
graphics.

Note that this only works for certain printer types, e.g. impact dot
matrix, some ink jets (if they have fonts in ROM-not all of them do.
Also, such printing was accomplished in Win9x systems by bypassing the
vertual device driver for the printing system and pushing the driver
output directly to the port. Win NT systems, icluding XP, do not allow
that.

{If you have in mind to use this driver because your printer is not
listed as having a Windows XP driver, you really need a compatible driver
not the Generic/ Text only driver.}


Let us know.

Tom
MSMVP
Windows Shell/User


: Using windows 98, generic text follows my escape codes. But when I use
: windows xp, it seems to ignore my font codes. Can anyone tell me how to
: solve this problem?
:
 
Back
Top