Exactly, that’s much the point I was trying to make – just think about what happens if there is a problem.
For me, I think I would move the file somewhere else and delete at some later date. I suppose that left in the print directory might be just as acceptable. I’m just wary of instant deletes - from past experience!! Regards, Alastair. From: Mike Byerley Sent: Tuesday, November 08, 2011 12:43 PM To: RBASE-L Mailing List Subject: [RBASE-L] - Re: Copying a file to a printer from within a timer Since RBase can't talk to the Printer, and the file is simply deposited into a "pickup" directory, how would RBase know when to delete the file (at lease using the methodology that Mike Sinclair is using in the example)? ----- Original Message ----- From: "Alastair Burr" <[email protected]> To: "RBASE-L Mailing List" <[email protected]> Sent: Tuesday, November 08, 2011 4:44 AM Subject: [RBASE-L] - Re: Copying a file to a printer from within a timer I would add one word of caution: Beware deleting the file _immediately_ after your copy/print command! (Actually that’s a line of caution – but never mind.) _If_ the print fails for _any_ reason the chances are you’ve lost the file and have to re-run the report (or whatever). Regards, Alastair. From: Mike Byerley Sent: Monday, November 07, 2011 10:59 PM To: RBASE-L Mailing List Subject: [RBASE-L] - Re: Copying a file to a printer from within a timer You can use an external form which can run autonomously within the RBase session. Use a Form timer. Use only this code in the Form Timer EEP: SET Var vchkfile = (CHKFILE('c:\main\mike.txt')) IF vchkfile = 1 THEN COPY c:\main\mike.txt \\servername\printername ERASE c:\main\mike.txt ENDIF put the initialization of the variable vChkFile in your onBefore Start EEP: SET Var vchkfile INTEGER Get in the habit of spelling VAR fully. RStyle won't correct it to VAR from just V. I know it's a habit but there might come a time when it is unacceptable and then you would have hoards of V's to find and fix. The form Timer is a low cost gizmo that runs in its own thread (just the same way windows scheduler runs). Set the timer for however many milliseconds you want to check for the file. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Michael J. Sinclair" <[email protected]> To: "RBASE-L Mailing List" <[email protected]> Sent: Monday, November 07, 2011 2:42 PM Subject: [RBASE-L] - Copying a file to a printer from within a timer Hi all, I want to have Rbase check for the presence of a file within a folder, and it if finds any file, I would like Rbase to send that file to the printer and then erase the file from the folder. Here is my code... LABEL start SET V vchkfile = (CHKFILE('c:\main\mike.txt')) IF vchkfile = 1 THEN COPY c:\main\mike.txt \\servername\printername ERASE c:\main\mike.txt ENDIF GOTO start RETURN Here is my question... Do I want to run the above file as a stand alone file, ie a continous loop OR would I be better off trying to use a TIMER EEP within a form? I assume the form would be better because I should be able to "turn off the code" by closing the form. What I don't uderstand is where I need to put the EEP. Would it be a "On Before Start EEP" or a TIMER EEP (what is the difference?) Does it matter if I start the form with EDIT USING formname vs ENTER USING formname? Does the interval specify how often the EEP runs (ie I don't need the LABEL start and GOTO start loop), or does the interval specify the time between the moment the form is started and the time the EEP fires (in which case I assume I would still need the LABEL start and GOTO start to make the code keep checking the folder for files? I am trying to quit using Rbase for DOS (even though I love it), this will get me one step closer! Any help would be great! Mike
