On Thu, 25 Nov 2004 at 15:52:10, Rich Mellor wrote: (ref: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>)
1) Some programs on the QL only allow you to print to ser1 or PAR and do not allow you to send data to a file. 2) It is more user friendly to have a printing process which is invisible to the user. If the user has to always print to a file then run another program to get output, they will soon get fed up of this process and abandon the QL altogether.For programs that allow printing to a file, one could write a background program that would search for files in a particular place, and then print them, and delete after printing. This would be ideal for hard disk users, but would work on floppy/romdisq too. .... or even ram if there is enough.
Yes, you are quite right it could do this. However, I think the problem is getting the PFF device to print to a file or a pipe as it cannot open one !! Therefore an interface between the PFF device and the filter programs is required.
The filter could be set up to handle all the special printer requirements. If the filename had a printer ID in it, it could even handle more than one printer at once connected to different ports.
ie win1_pfiles_deskjet_file_lis
Xchange would allow the long names. Other programs could use a re-directed name.
Except for those programs which only allow printing to SER or PAR.
-- Rich Mellor RWAP Services 26 Oak Road, Shelfield, Walsall, West Midlands WS4 1RQ
http://www.rwapservices.co.uk/
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