Down To Earth - FAQ

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 Printer Setup

Fonts, margins, spacing, and queue choices can be confusing.   Link below for information re ASCII files, different paper Sizes and Orientation, common Escape codes,  Form Feeds, Margins, and system Queues and Managing Report files.

Can an operator print a DTE report as an ascii file to disk?

Yes.  Select “File” when prompted for the Printer options of any DTE report. Then, enter the logical assignment and name to assign to the report.

Use assigned system logicals followed by a colon, such as RPT:filename.ext , to land the report in a designated directory.  If not otherwise noted, the default file extension is .ddf. 

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Can I fit wide reports on a 8.5 x 11 paper?   Can I print in Landscape mode? Can I use Legal size paper?  Can I change the font?

Yes, Yes, Yes, and Yes. Down To Earth prints standard 132 character, 10 cpi for most reports. If you reduce the characters per inch to 16.5 and change the font to a sans-serif font, the 132 characters fit on an 8.5 x 11 page and are still easily read. This is done within the System Manager >> Printer definitions.  

Most printers such as Lasers, DeskJet, and Line printers, have the ability to receive ascii character escape sequences as print instructions. This allows the font to change, fit wide reports on 8.5 x 11 paper, or the printer to turn the orientation of the print to landscape. In the case of G/L Financial Statements, you can even print about 230 characters of data onto Legal size paper in the landscape mode.

If a report width (in characters) is more than the value defined in the Printer specification Width  field, the escape sequences in the Reduce  field are automatically executed. Once the report has completed printing, the escape sequences in the Normal  field are also automatically executed.

The same Reduce  and Normal  escape sequences can be used in the Report begin and Report end Printer specification fields and force the escape sequences, regardless of the width of the D2E report.

Consult your specific printer's manual for the exact escape codes recognized by your printer. For HP laser and jet printers or emulation, try the standards:

Use the same codes to define and return your printer to the Normal default settings.

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How can I force a Form Feed after the last page of a report?

Enter the ascii decimal value of 012.  Most printers recognize this decimal value as instruction for a Form Feed in the Report end field of the Printer specification. Decimal values used within printer definitions are identified as such by Down To Earth with a single left quote, the decimal code, then a single right quote:   ‘ 012 ’

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How can I adjust the Top margin?

The Report begin field within Printer Specifications maintenance (System Manager) is a good place to start.  For example, enter the following escape sequence to send a top margin value at the beginning of the "report." 

• $&l0E   -- where the l is a lower case "L" and the 0 is a zero for zero top margin lines
  
• $&l1E   -- where the l is a lower case "L" and the 1 is a one top margin lines

You can adjust the top margin usually with a range from 0 - 3. 

NOTE: DTE v7 series also has the Top offset field within the printer definition as an added adjustment option.

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How do I tell Down To Earth what my system queue name is?

The Device  field within Printer Specifications maintenance (System Manager) controls the system queue names or numbers for Down To Earth. The exact format of the Device  depends on the operating system on which Down To Earth is installed.

Because of the variety of operating systems available, Down to Earth must also offer a variety of methods for report output. For example, UNIX and some NT versions usually utilize the DBLOPT 22 provided with SynergyDE (DBL programming language). Windows servers can choose to print-preview with an API printer definition or use the /QNAME=QUERY/  option to query the operator for all system printers defined.

Details and options for many operating systems are provided along with examples in the System Manager User Reference manual, Printer specifications section. Additional assistance is available from our Technical Support department.

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How can I delete the report file from the hard drive after it's printed?

 If using /QNAME=  or /QNUM=  for the Device  field value of your printer specification, add /QDEL  at the end of the device statement. For example:

/QNAME=laser/QDEL

If using /QUE=  for the device (as with VMS operating systems), add /DELETE . for example:

/QUE = SYS$PRINT/FORM = 7/DELETE

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