thorp@spudge.UUCP (Don Thorp) (03/07/90)
Does anyone know if there is a print spooler for the Amiga? I'm to the point
that I'm disgusted with copying files to the PRT: device and having to kill
the printer to stop a print job. Before I write a print spooler, I'd like
to know if one already exists.
Don Thorp
UUCP: ...!texbell!rwsys!{spudge|dreamer}!thorp
USENET: thorp@rwsys.lonestar.orgmnelson@vmsa.oac.uci.edu (03/08/90)
In article <11927@spudge.UUCP>, thorp@spudge.UUCP (Don Thorp) writes... >Does anyone know if there is a print spooler for the Amiga? I'm to the point >that I'm disgusted with copying files to the PRT: device and having to kill >the printer to stop a print job. Before I write a print spooler, I'd like >to know if one already exists. > >Don Thorp > for years i was continually annoyed by the fact that the printer takes FOREVER to time out (i.e. generate that cute little requester) if one does an accidental COPY FILENAME TO PAR: command. why oh why doesnt COPY respond to ^C? somebody told me that it has something to do with buffer sizes. more to the point, if one simply does a TYPE FILENAME TO PAR: instead, everything works as one would expect (yes, a simple ^C will stop the job). it took me four years to figure that one out. sometimes, ya just gotta feel stupid... as far as a real spooler goes, there have been some on the fish disk collection; sorry, but i really cant remember which number (you want it, so YOU look ;^). i have tried some of them, but they tend to be noticeably slower than the COPY or TYPE commands; by this i mean that you can notice a hesitation in between each line of print. a clever soul could probably figure out how to do print queueing in a script (maybe not, its just a thought...). good luck in your quests... -matt +-------------------------------------------------------------------------+ Matt Nelson, Physics Dept., University of California, Irvine, CA 92717 (714)856-6496 internet: nelson@psroot.ps.uci.edu bitnet: mnelson@uci +-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
usenet@cps3xx.UUCP (Usenet file owner) (03/08/90)
In article <25F5DC80.5028@orion.oac.uci.edu> mnelson@vmsa.oac.uci.edu writes: >In article <11927@spudge.UUCP>, thorp@spudge.UUCP (Don Thorp) writes... > >>Does anyone know if there is a print spooler for the Amiga? I'm to the point >takes FOREVER to time out (i.e. generate that cute little requester) if Well, ah I once wrote a printerdriver and set the timeout to something small. Guess what? I kept getting those damn requesters because the printer can't keep up with the computer. (yes the printer has a 2kbuffer). Smart alec respoce: Try "alias SPOOL run type [] to prt:", which of course only works one file at a time. hmm Should be able to do it with a shell script or two: In the file S:DOIT lab top list SPOOL: lformat="type *"%s%s*" to prt:" to t:xyz FILES execute t:xyz wait 1 min skip back top Then in the file S:SPOOLIT .KEY file/a copy <file> spool:tmp/<file> rename spool:tmp/<file> spool:<file> ;This avoids nasty conditions Remember to say "protect s:spoolit +s" and "protect s:doit +s" and "run doit" from your startup-sequence. This requires that SPOOL: is assigned someplace (like ram:) and that it have a subdir "tmp". These scripts should work, but I have not actually tried it (hell, I just thought it up just now) AmigaDOS question: the TYPE command is obviously VERY slow. Is this intentional, so as to allow people to see stuff before it zips of the top of a window? Joe Porkka porkka@frith.egr.msu.edu
dwl10@uts.amdahl.com (Dave Lowrey) (03/08/90)
In article <11927@spudge.UUCP> thorp@spudge.UUCP (Don Thorp) writes: >Does anyone know if there is a print spooler for the Amiga? I'm to the point >that I'm disgusted with copying files to the PRT: device and having to kill >the printer to stop a print job. Before I write a print spooler, I'd like >to know if one already exists. > >Don Thorp > I use PrtSpool, from Fish disk #216. It consists of a PRT: dos-handler, that copies your print files to a spool area. It then prints the spooled files. Since it replaces PRT:, it is totally transparent to application programs. It come with the PRT: handler, and a program you can use to control the spooled files, such as cancel a print, delete a spooled request, and start or stop the printer. It also comes with a print formatting program, that will page & line number your printout, if you wish. One of the really neat things about it is if you give the print file a file name when you open it, such as PRT:fish-xref, it will show up that way in the spool list. That way you know which file is which. If the printout is a graphic dump, the spooler is bypassed, and the graphic dump goes directly to the printer. The only real hassel is that it is binary only. I didn't like the print formating program, and ended up writing my own. I highly recomend this program. I have had NO problems with it. -- "This ain't Rock 'N Roll, | These be my words, not my employer's! this is Genocide!" |Dave Lowrey - Amdahl Corp. - Houston, TX David Bowie - |In Texas: {moray,uhnix1}!starsoft!david "Daimond Dogs" |The World: dwl10@uts.amdahl.com (amdahl!dwl10)
plav@cup.portal.com (Rick M Plavnicky) (03/11/90)
From article <11927@spudge.UUCP>, in which thorp@spudge.UUCP (Don Thorp) writes: >Does anyone know if there is a print spooler for the Amiga? I'm to the point >that I'm disgusted with copying files to the PRT: device and having to kill >the printer to stop a print job. Before I write a print spooler, I'd like >to know if one already exists. Yes, there are a number of them. As another poster wrote, you can check the Fish disks, etc. But the best one I've found so far is something called Dan's Print Spooler (Daniel L. Barrans, P.O. Box 522, Seabrook, MD 20706). I'll let (an excerpt from) the README describe it: Dan> This distribution contains a DOS handler, a print program, and a Dan> control program. The DOS handler sits and waits for stuff to be sent Dan> to it to be printed, just like you would send stuff to PRT: to be Dan> printed. The difference is that this handler makes a temporary copy Dan> of the stuff to be printed in a file on disk somewhere (you decide Dan> where), prints the copy at its leisure, then deletes the copy. The Dan> advantages to you are that you get your CLI prompt back faster, you Dan> can continue to edit and/or delete the original file without messing Dan> up what's being printed, and you don't need to worry about the Dan> printer being busy when you want to start another print job. The main Dan> disadvantage is that you need enough disk space available to hold the Dan> temporary files until they are printed. This can theoretically be in Dan> any filesystem in RAM, floppy, or hard disk. Dan> Dan> The print program is just a simple formatted print program I wrote a Dan> couple of years ago that I've adapted to use this handler. It can do Dan> line numbering and page headers, and looks at the current preferences Dan> settings to determine what it can fit on a page. Dan> Dan> The control program lets you do stuff like listing the files waiting Dan> to be printed, rearrange the order of printing, cancel print jobs, Dan> and suspend and resume the operation of the printer. Dan> Dan> The print and control programs need arp.library version 1.1 (or Dan> later) in your Libs: directory, but the handler itself does not need Dan> the ARP library. Since this question seems to come up from time to time and I cannot recall seeing it in c.b.a. I've fired it off to Tad for posting. >Don Thorp Rick Plavnicky {...}!sun!cup.portal.com!plav "I've got a bunch of bananas, and a bottle of bleach!"