BCI NET 2/BCI NET 2.iso/archives/utilities/print/aprf2_210.lha/Diffusion/APrf/APrfEnglish.doc

Text File | 1992-12-20 | 35.9 KB | 951 lines

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                  APrf2 - User's Guide





AboutThisDoc

      This file describes release 2.10 of the utility APrf2. This  program
  is (c)1989-1990-1991-1992 by Denis GOUNELLE, any commercial usage or selling
  without author's written authorization is strictly forbidden. You  can  copy
  and spread this program at the following conditions:

      - all the files must be provided
      - none of the file must have been modified
      - you don't charge more than $6 for copy fee

      "PowerPacker 2.3b"  is  (c)1989  by  PowerPeak  and  Nico  FRANCOIS.
  "PowerPacker Pro 3.0b"  is  (c)1990  by  PowerPeak  and  UGA  SoftWare.  The
  "powerpacker.library" library is (c)1990 by Nico FRANCOIS. AREXX is  (c)1987
  by William Hawes. The "reqtools.library" library  is  (c)1990-1991  by  Nico
  FRANCOIS.

      No warranty is made that there's no errors in  APrf.  YOU  USE  THIS
  PROGRAM AT YOUR OWN RISKS. In no event will I  be  liable  for  any  damage,
  direct or indirect, resulting of the use of APrf.

Introduction

      APrf2 is a new version of APrf which can use the  new  functions  of
  2.0 system release. This program still works under 1.3 system  release,  but
  without offering some of the new features.
      APrf is a printing utility, which allows  to    add  an  header  or  a
  footer, to set up margins, to have a multi-columns output, etc...  and  uses
  your Preferences settings. It also have an AREXX-compatible message port, an
  application window (or "AppWindow", under 2.0 system release only)  and  can
  load files compressed with "PowerPacker 2.3b" or "PowerPacker Pro 3.0b".

      You can send me your suggestions and criticism writing to:

                   M. GOUNELLE Denis
                    Boite 71
                  6, rue des cailloux
                 92110 CLICHY - FRANCE

      You can also send a message to  the  following  Internet  address  :
  [e-mail]. Note that this mailbox is not  mine,  so  please  send
  only short messages. As I don't have direct access to  the  messages,  don't
  expect an answer before a dozen of days.

      Many thanks to Serge HAMMOUCHE, Jean-Yves PROUX, Jean-Philippe RAPP,
  Jean ROUGELIN, Michel SCHINZ, and Pierre VITET for tests and ideas.

Running_from_CLI

      There's no need to use a "RunBack" or "ARun" utility, as  APrf  will
  detach itself from the CLI window. The command line is of the form:

      APrf [filename][-c#][-f#,#][-l#][-n#][-oF][-p#][-r#][-s#][-t#]
      [-x#][-A][-Cseq][-D#][-F{L|C|R}fmt][-H{L|C|R}fmt][-Ifont]
      [-N#][-Oopts][-P{p|e|f}][-Spages][-X]

      If you specify the <filename> argument, the corresponding file  will
  be taken as the file to print. Here's a description of the other  arguments:

      -c# (Columns number)
      Prints file in # columns.
      Default value: # = 1
      Minimal value: # = 1. Maximal value: # = 999.

      -f#,# (page Format)
      Selects page format and pages where to print    header    and/or
      footer. The first # can be one of:

          0   nothing
          1   header
          2   footer
          3   both header and footer

      Default value: # = 1.

      The second # can be one of:

          0   on all pages
          1   on all pages but the first
          2   on even pages
          3   on odd pages

      Default value: # = 0.

      You can modified only one of    these  parameters  :  "-f1,2",
      "-f1" and "-f,2" forms are accepted.  See  section  2.6  for
      more information.

      -l# (Left margin)
      Sets a left margin of # characters. Note  that  the  margins
      set up in Preferences is ALWAYS used.
      Default value: # = 0
      Minimal value: # = 0. Maximal value: # = 999.

      -n# (line Numbering)
      Numbers lines with # digits numbers.
      Default value: # = 0 (no line numbers).
      Minimal value: # = 0. Maximal value: # = 10.

      -oF (Output)
      Printing will be re-directed to file F.

      -p# (Page length)
      Sets page length to # lines.
      Default value: "Paper length" set up in Preferences.
      Minimal value: # = 5. Maximal value: # = 999.

      -r# (Right margin)
      Sets a right margin of # characters. Note that  the  margins
      set up in Preferences is ALWAYS used.
      Default value: # = 0
      Minimal value: # = 0. Maximal value: # = 999.

      -s# (column Spaging)
      Columns are separated by # spaces.
      Default value: # = 1
      Minimal value: # = 1. Maximal value: # = 999.

      -t# (Tabulation)
      Sets tabulation stop positions to #+1, 2#+1, 3#+1, etc..
      Default value: # = 8.
      Minimal value: # = 1. Maximal value: # = 999.

      -x# (copies)
      Prints # copies of the file.
      Default value: # = 1
      Minimal value: # = 1. Maximal value: # = 999.

      -A (Arexx mode)
      Sets AREXX mode (see section 3.3 for more information).

      -Cseq (Control sequence)
      Selects the control sequence "seq" (see section 3.5 for more
      information).

      -D# (Date format)
      Sets date format in header. # can be one of:

          0   AmigaDOS format (dd-mmm-yy)
          1   International format (yy-mm-dd)
          2   American format (mm-dd-yy)
          3   European format (dd-mm-yy)

      Default value: # = 0.
      See section 2.6 for more information.

      -F{L|C|R}fmt (Footer format)
      Specifies page footer format.
      See section 2.6 for more information.

      -H{L|C|R}fmt (Header format)
      Specifies page header format.
      See section 2.6 for more information.

      -Ifont (Internal font)
      Select the given font.
      See section 3.5 for more information.

      -N# (page Numbers)
      Sets first page number to #.
      Default value: # = 1.
      Minimal value: # = 1. Maximal value: # = 899.

      -Oopts (Options)
      Allows you to modify several    options.  "opts"  can  be  any
      combination of :

          l   letter quality
          d   draft quality
          8   8 LPI spacing
          6   6 LPI spacing
          F   fanfold paper
          S   single sheet paper
          t   truncate too long lines
          f   control characters filter
          a   ANSI sequences filter
          k   output buffer size of 1 Kbytes
          n   don't send "Form Feed"
          u   underline header

      See the description of "Options" menu, at section  2.5,  for
      further informations.

      -P{p|e|f} (print Pitch)
      Selects print pitch :

          -Pp pica
          -Pe eelite
          -Pf fine

      Default value : "Pitch" set up in Preferences.

      -Spages (Selection)
      Selects the pages to print. "pages" can be one of :

          x       only page x
          e       even pages
          o       odd pages
          x-y      from page x to y
          x,y,z,  pages x,y,z,... (up to 16 pages)

      You can  also  use  the  two    last  forms  together,    as  in
      "-S1,3,5-8" or "-Se,1,3".

      CAUTION:  the  page  numbers    that  you  specify  for   page
      selection must depend of  the  first    page  number  (see  -N
      option)

      -X (eXpress) Sets "eXpress" mode (see section  3.2  for  further
      information).

      If you make an error in your command line, a window will  appear  on
  the Workbench screen, with the message "Bad arguments". Click  in  the  "OK"
  gadget to make the window disappear, and correct your  command  line.  Then,
  run APrf once more.
      The  "Tools"  menu  has  a  command  that  gives  the  command  line
  corresponding to the current option settings (see section  2.5  for  further
  information).

Running_from_Workbench

      There's three ways to run  APrf  from  Workbench,  if  you  want  to
  specify the files that hare to be printed:

      - by double-clicking on a "Project" icon whose "Default  tool"  is
    APrf
      - by clicking on one or more file icons, holding    down  the  SHIFT
    key, and double-clicking on APrf icon
      - by clicking on APrf icon (and if required on some  file  icons),
    holding down the SHIFT key, and double-clicking on a file icon

      In any case, the selected files are transmitted to APrf. The program
  will display the first filename in the "File to print" gadget  (see  section
  2.4). The "Next file" command in the "Project" menu allows you  to  skip  to
  the next file (see section 2.5), and the "Default options"  command  in  the
  "Tools" menu allows to go back to the first file  in  the  files  list  (see
  section 2.5).

      As when you run APrf from the CLI, you can give  some  arguments  to
  modify default options. To do this, click on a  file    icon  and  select  the
  "Information" item in the "Icons" menu (on Workbench screen). Then click  on
  the "New" gadget in the "TOOL TYPES" field, and add the arguments  according
  to the following syntax:

      APRF=[-c#][-f#,#][-l#][-n#][-oF][-p#][-r#][-s#][-t#][-x#]
      [-Cseq][-D#][-F{L|C|R}fmt][-H{L|C|R}fmt][-Ifont]
      [-N#][-Oopts][-P{p|e|f}][-Spages]

      These options are described in section 2.1. If  you  run  APrf  from
  Workbench without arguments (i.e. if you just click twice  on  APrf's  icon)
  options will be taken from "TOOL TYPES" field of APrf's project icon. Please
  notice that -A (AREXX mode) and -X (eXpress mode) options can't be specified
  when running APrf from Workbench.



Getting_started

      APrf needs "reqtools.library" v2.0c, so you must  copy  it  in  your
  "LIBS:" directory (if not yet done) before trying to run this program.
      If all goes well, a new  screen  will  be  opened,  and  you'll  see
  several gadgets. The AREXX port is also opened (see section 3.3). Under  2.0
  system release, APrf will always open the application  window  (see  section
  3.4).
      Otherwise, a window will appear on Workbench screen with  a  message
  telling you what problem occurred. Click in the  "OK"  gadget  to  make  the
  window disappear, APrf stops and returns a value  of    10  (ERROR,  see  "IF"
  command of AmigaDOS).

      APrf can return a value of 10 without  displaying  any  message,  in
  only three situations:

      - APrf couldn't open "reqtools.library"
      - APrf couldn't open the error window
      - APrf couldn't open the Workbench screen

      Now, I will suppose that APrf is running  well.  The    two  following
  sections are going describe the gadgets and menus of APrf. If you are  using
  APrf for the first time I suggest to run the program, in order to understand
  these explanations.

Gadgets

      This section describes all the gadgets displayed on the screen, from
  the left top corner to the right bottom one:

      File to print

      This gadget shows the name of the file to print.
      To modify its value just click on  it:  a  file  requester  will
      appear. If you click on the CANCEL gadget of this requester,    or
      on the OK gadget without giving a file name, the  previous  name
      won't be modified.
      A '*' character will appear on the right of the file name,  when
      the file is loaded in memory (see section 4.1).

      Output file

      This gadget shows where a file will be printed.
      Default value is "PRT:", but can be changed with -o option  (see
      section 2.1).
      To modify its value just click on  it:  a  file  requester  will
      appear. If you click on the CANCEL gadget of this requester  the
      output file will become "PRT:".

      Page selection

      This gadget shows which pages will be printed.
      Default value is "*" (all the pages), but can be changed with -S
      option (see section 2.1).
      Please refert to section 2.8 to see how to modify the selection.

      The nine next gadgets allow to specify respectively: the left margin
  size, the right margin size, the tabulation size, the number    of  lines  per
  page, the first page number, the line numbers size, the number  of  columns,
  the column spacing, and the number of copies that have to be printed.
      Each gadget shows the current value of its corresponding  parameter.
  You can click on the value to modify it with the keyboard (press Amiga-X  to
  erase the old value, don't forget  to  press  RETURN  to  validate  the  new
  value). You can also increase the current value by clicking on the up arrow,
  and decrease it by clicking on the down arrow. If a  value  doesn't  change,
  you have reached the lower or the higher limit ! As long  as    you  keep  the
  left mouse button down, the value will be increased or decreased.

      Left margin: (see -l option in section 2.1)
      Default value: 0
      Lowest value : 0
      Highest value: 999

      Right margin: (see -r option in section 2.1)
      Default value: 0
      Lowest value : 0
      Highest value: 999

      Tabulation: (see -t option in section 2.1)
      Default value: 8
      Lowest value : 1
      Highest value: 999

      Page length: (see -p option in section 2.1)
      Default value: "Paper length" set up in Preferences
      Lowest value : 5
      Highest value: 999

      First page number : (see -N option in section 2.1)
      Default value: 1
      Lowest value : 1
      Highest value: 899

      Page selection will be lost each time you will change the
      first page number.

      Line numbers : (see -n option in section 2.1)
      Default value: 0 (no line numbers)
      Lowest value : 0 (no line numbers)
      Highest value: 10

      Columns: (see -c option in section 2.1)
      Default value: 1
      Lowest value : 1
      Highest value: 999

      Col. Spacing: (see -s option in section 2.1)
      Default value: 1
      Lowest value : 1
      Highest value: 999

      Copies : (see -x option in section 2.1)
      Default value : 1
      Lowest value : 1
      Highest value : 999

      The four next gadgets are used to choose a  value  between  severals
  one. Use the arrow-like gadget at the right of the value to  change  it.  If
  you hold down one of the SHIFT keys when selecting the  gadget,  the    values
  will change in reverse order.

      Print pitch

      This gadget indicates print pitch. Default  value  is  taken
      from "Pitch" set up in Preferences, but can be changed  with
      -P option (see section 2.1).

      Font

      This gadget indicates the internal font to use. Usually it's
      the defaut font, but this can be changed with -I option (see
      section 2.1). For more information, see section 3.5.

      Date format

      This gadget shows the date format in the header (see section
      2.6). By default, the format is  the    AmigaDOS  format,  but
      this can be changed with -D option (see section 2.1).

      Page format

      This gadget shows the  selected  page  format  (see  section
      2.6). By default, the format is "header", but  this  can  be
      changed with -f option (see section 2.1).

      on

      This gadget shows on which pages header and/or  footer  will
      be printed (see section 2.6) By default, its value  is  "all
      pages", but this can be changed with -f option (see  section
      2.1).

      The next gadgets allows you  to  personnalize  the  header  and  the
  footer.

      Header

      This gadget shows the format    of  the  three    parts  of  the
      header : the left part, the  central    part,  and  the  right
      part. Default value of each part  can  be  changed  with  -H
      option (see section 2.1).
      To modify the value of any part just click on it : a    window
      with a string gadget will appear.  Press  Amiga-X  to  erase
      current value, RETURN to validate, or click  on  the    window
      close gadget to abort.
      For more information, see section 2.6

      Footer

      Same as header gadgets, but for the footer. Default value of
      each part can be changed with -F option (see section 2.1).
      For more information, see section 2.6

      The two diamond-shaped gadgets on the bottom of  the    screen    allows
  you to start printing (left gadget) or  previewing  (right  gadget)  without
  having to play with the menus.
      You can also click on the main window's  close  gadget  (upper  left
  corner) to quit the program, or on the "zoom" gadget  (upper  right  corner,
  under 2.0 system release only) to iconify APrf.

Menus

      APrf has three menus: "Project", "Tools" and "Options". Each command
  can be selected by mouse or by a keyboard shortcut, but "Options" menu items
  must be selected by mouse. Here are the options of the Project" menu:

      Next file (Amiga-N)

      If you have run APrf from  Workbench    and  selected  several
      icons, this command allows you to skip to the next  file  in
      the list of selected files. The "File to  print"  gadget  is
      updated (see section 2.4), and the old file is removed  from
      memory (if it had been loaded, see section 4.1).

      Print (Amiga-P)

      Start printing.

      Palette...

      Allows to modify APrf  screen's  colors.  To  save  the  new
      palette immediatly, select the  "Save  config"  command  and
      enter "palette" as a configuration name. Otherwise, when you
      will quit the program, APrf will ask you if you want to save
      the new palette.

      About...

      Displays some informations about APrf. To close the  window,
      click inside it or press any key.

      Iconify (Amiga-I)

      APrf goes sleeping, freeing at least 32 Kb  of  CHIP    memory
      and some other workspace (the current file is  removed  from
      memory if it had been loaded). The  screen  is  closed  and,
      under 1.3 system release, a  small  window  which  title  is
      "APrf2 v2.10" will appear on the  top  left  corner  of  the
      Workbench's  screen.   Under   2.0   system   release,   the
      application window remains  opened.  In  both  cases,  AREXX
      messages are still waited for.
      To awake APrf, you must activate this window and click  then
      on the right mouse button. You can quit APrf without    having
      to awake it by clicking on the close    gadget    of  the  small
      window.

      Quit (Amiga-Q or ESCAPE)

      Quit APrf.  A  requester  will  apear:  click  on  "YES"  to
      confirm, or on "NO" to cancel.

  Here are the commands of the "Tools" menu:

      Default Options (Amiga-D)

      Restores the default options    (first  it  loads  Preferences
      then it scans the command line). If you have run  APrf  from
      Workbench and selected several icons, the first file of  the
      list becomes the file that will be printed.
      This command may be useful, for example, if you  modify  the
      Preferences settings and want APrf to know about it, without
      having to quit the program.

      Load file (Amiga-L)

      Loads immediately the file to print in memory. If  the  file
      was already in memory,  yet  this  command  reload  it  (see
      section 4.1).

      Unload file (Amiga-U)

      Removes the file to print from memory (see section 4.1).

      Preview (Amiga-V)

      Activates the preview function (see section 2.7).

      Command line (Amiga-K)

      Displays the argument list that you have to give in order to
      make the current options  beeing  the  default  options.  To
      close the window, click inside it or press any key.

      Save config (Amiga-S)

      Save the current options (except the name  of  the  file  to
      print) in a new line of the  "S:APrf.Init"  file.  A  window
      appears,  and  you  must  enter  the     name    of   the   new
      configuration. Close the window to cancel the operation. See
      section 3.5 for other informations.

      Doc Info (Amiga-X)

      Displays the page, line and character counts of  the    output
      file. Please notice that the character count will always  be
      an approximation. To close the window,  click  on  the  "OK"
      gadget.

  Here are the items of the "Options" menu:

      Letter

      Selects the printing quality: "letter" or  "draft".  Default
      value is taken from "Print Quality" set up  in  Preferences,
      but can be changed with -O option (see section 2.1).

      8 LPI

      Selects line spacing: "8LPI" or  "6PLI".  Default  value  is
      taken from "Spacing" set  up  in  Preferences,  but  can  be
      changed with -O option (see section 2.1).

      Fanfold

      Selects paper type: "fanfold" or "single". Default value  is
      taken from "Pitch" set up in Preferences, but can be changed
      with -O option (see section 2.1).

      Truncate

      If active, too long lines are  truncated  instead  of  being
      wrapped on several lines. By default, it is not active,  but
      this can be changed with -O option (see section 2.1).

      CTRL filter

      If active, the control characters (ASCII code lower than  32
      or greated than 126) found in the file to print are not send
      to the printer. By default, it is not active, but  this  can
      be changed with -O option (see section 2.1).

      ANSI filter

      If active, the ANSI sequences described in section 6 are not
      send to the printer. By default, it is not active, but  this
      can be changed with -O option (see section 2.1).

      Buffer 1Kb

      If active, the output buffer size will be 1 Kb  (instead  of
      one page). By default, it is not active,  but  this  can  be
      changed with -O option (see section 2.1).  See  section  4.2
      for more information.

      Send FF

      If active, a "Form Feed" character is  send  each  time  the
      bottom of the page is reached. By default, it is active, but
      this can be changed with -O option (see section 2.1).

      Und. header

      If active, the header will be underlined. By default, it  is
      not active, but this can be  changed    with  -O  option  (see
      section 2.1).

Header_and_footer

      APrf can add a header, a footer, or both,  on  your  documents.  The
  choice can be made when calling APrf (-f option, see section  2.1)  or  with
  the "Page format" gadget (see section 2.4). A header or a  footer  takes  to
  line on the page.
      When you ask for a header (and/or a footer) format,  APrf  uses  the
  values of the "Header"  (and/or  "Footer")  gadgets  to  build  this  header
  (and/or footer). The left gadget shows what will be on the left, the central
  gadget what will be centered, and the right  gadget  what  will  be  on  the
  right. Format specifications can include the following sequences :

      %a  name of the day (e.g. "Monday")
      %b  name of the month (full, e.g. "September")
      %B  name of the month (short, e.g. "Sep")
      %d  day of the month (01 to 31)
      %D  date as shown by the "Date format" gadget
      %f  basename of the file (e.g. "foo")
      %F  full name of the file (e.g. "RAM:Test/foo")
      %h  hour (00 to 11)
      %H  hour (00 to 23)
      %m  month of the year (01 to 12)
      %M  minutes (00 to 59)
      %n  page number
      %p  period of the day (AM or PM)
      %s  file size in bytes
      %S  seconds (00 to 59)
      %v  program release (e.g. "APrf v4.10")
      %w  day of the week (0 to 6)
      %x  copy number
      %y  year of the century (00 to 99)

      Default value for header is "%f" for the left part,  "Page  %n"  for
  the central part, and "%D" for the right part. Default value for  footer  is
  "Page %n" for the central p art, and nothing for the other  parts.  You  can
  also specify your own header (and/or footer)  format,  by  clicking  on  the
  gadget corresponding to the part you want to modify, or (when starting APrf)
  with -H (and/or -F) option : "-HLformat" modifies left part of  the  header,
  "-HCformat" modifies central part, and "-HRformat" modifies right part.
      Last, you can select on which pages you want header and/or footer to
  be printed, by clicking on the "on" gadget (see  section  2.4)  or  with  -f
  option (see section 2.1).

The_preview_function

      This function allows    you  to  see  the  final  aspect  of  a  text,
  depending upon the current option settings. To use it,  first  set  up  your
  printing settings, then choose the "Preview" command from the "Tools"  menu.
  A window will appear in the middle of your screen, and shows how  will  look
  the first selected page (window size is shaped by the page  size).  To  look
  the next page, click inside the window or press RETURN. To  stop,  click  on
  the window's close gadget or press ESCAPE.
      Please note that APrf won't be able to open the  preview  window  if
  page length value is very high : highest value for page length is  93  lines
  in NTSC mode (122 in PAL mode).

Modifying_page_selection

      To modify page selection, click on the "Selected  pages"  gadget:  a
  window will appear in the midle of the  screen,  showing  a  grid  with  one
  hundred numbers, each number corresponding to a page number.    These  numbers
  are written on a white background if the corresponding page is selected,  or
  on a blue background if not.
      If you click on a number, you will  change  the  selection  for  the
  corresponding page. You can also use the following gadgets:

      ALL          select all pages
      INVERT      reverse selection
      NONE          no page selected
      OK          accept new selection (or RETURN)
      UNDO          undo all changes (takes back old selection)
      CANCEL      abort modification (or ESCAPE)

      There's also a string gadget, in which you  can  enter  a  selection
  specification. This new selection will be added to the current  one.    Licits
  values for the string are:

      *          all the pages
      x          page x only
      e          even pages
      o          odd pages
      x-y          from page x to y
      x,y,z,...   pages x,y,z,...

      You can also use the two last  forms    together,  e.g.  "1,3,5-8"  or
  "e,1,3".

      Don't forget that page selection depends of the first  page  number,
  and that you won't be allowed to enter an empty selection (that is, with  no
  page selected).

Using_powerpacker.library

      APrf can use "powerpacker.library" according you have  installed  it
  in the "LIBS:" directory of your hard disk or Workbench  disk.  This  allows
  you to print any files compressed with "PowerPacker  2.3b"  or  "PowerPacker
  Pro 3.0b": the file will be decompressed automatically at loading.  If  data
  file has been encrypted, APrf will ask for a password.

The_eXpress_mode

      It can happen that you want to print a file quickly,    without  using
  the Intuition interface (if your Preferences are correctly set, it should be
  frequent). If you specify -X option when calling APrf, once the command line
  has been parsed, printing starts immediatly. APrf doesn't open  any  screen,
  and stops when printing is done. Error messages are displayed in  a  special
  window, on WorkBench's screen.

The_AREXX_mode

      When starting, APrf always open an  AREXX  compatible  port,    nammed
  "APrf_rexx", and waits for messages on this port. Valid messages are :

      quit      APrf closes the message port and terminates.
      wakeup  APrf closes the message port and open its screen.
      reset   APrf loads Preferences and sets all options to their
          default values
      load      APrf loads the file to print
      print   APrf starts printing

      Any other message will be considered as a command line,  and    scaned
  as described in section 2.1. If  any    error  occurs,    APrf  will  display  a
  message on the WorkBench's screen, and terminates.  If  you  send  a  "load"
  message and APrf don't know which file is to load, your command  won't  have
  any effect.

      Here    is  an     exemple   of    AREXX    program,   which   print   the
  "S:Startup-Sequence"  file  with  a  left  margin  of  10  characters,   and
  terminates APrf :

      /* Print S:Startup-Sequence */
      ADDRESS "APrf_rexx"
      "S:Startup-Sequence -l10"
      "print"
      "quit"

      Please note the " characters arround commands !
      If you specify -A option when calling APrf,  it  will  go  in  AREXX
  mode: only  the  application    window    (under  2.0  system  release)  or  the
  iconification window (under 1.3 system release) is opened, and  the  program
  works the same way as when iconified. From the Intuition interface  you  can
  go in AREXX mode just by selecting the "Iconify" command  in  the  "Project"
  menu (see section 2.5).

The_Application_Window

      When running under 2.0 system release, APrf automatically  opens  an
  application window (also called "AppWindow") on the Workbench  screen.  Then
  you will have the following possibilities:

      - if you select one or  several  icons  and  drop  them  over  the
    application window, APrf will eventually open it's  screen,  put
    it to front, and you will be able to print the file(s) as if you
    started the program from Workbench.
      - if you click on the close gadget of the application window,  the
    program will stop running (no confirmation in AREXX mode)
      - if you activate the application window and click on right  mouse
    button, APrf will open it's screen and normal interface will  be
    accessible (same as sending "wakeup" command from AREXX)
      - to save the current size and position of the application window,
    enter "appwin"  as  a  configuration  name  (see  "Save  config"
    command in section 2.5)

      Take notice that the application window replaces  the  iconification
  window.

The_APrf.Init_file

      When starting, APrf tries to load the "S:APrf.Init" file. This  file
  allows you to define    typical  configurations  and/or  fonts.  To  define  a
  typical configuration, you add a line of the form:

      name:options:sequence

  where "name" and "options" are strings of characteres ("name"  shouldn't  be
  longer than 8 characters),  and  "sequence"  is  a  list  of  decimal  codes
  separated by spaces. "options" and/or "sequence" strings may be empty.  Only
  the 8 first configurations will be used. Here are two examples:

      my8lpi:-p90 -O8:
      landscap:-p80:27 48 108 72

      Each name you gave will appear in  a    new  "Control"  menu.  If  you
  select one of these names, the "options" string will immediatly be parsed as
  a CLI command line. Also, at printing time, the characters whose ASCII  code
  is given in the corresponding sequence will be send to  the  printer    (after
  the initialisation sequences, but before the text itself).  You  can    select
  several names at the same time.
      When calling APrf from the CLI or from the WorkBench, the -C    option
  allows you to select a sequence at startup time. The "option" string will be
  parsed after the other calling options. If the sequence you specified in the
  -C option doesn't exist, the option will be ignored.

      The "S:APrf.Init" file can also give you access, from APrf,  to  the
  internal fonts of your printer. To define a font, you  add  a  line  of  the
  form:

      fontdef:name:sequence

  where "name" is the name of the font, and "sequence" the list  of  codes  to
  send to your printer to select the given font. Exemple :

      fontdef:Prestige:27 107 2 27 120 49

  You can enter any number of font. Font definitions should  be  specified  at
  the beginning of the file, before  typical  configurations  definitions.  To
  select a font, use either the -I option (see  section  2.1)  or  the  "Font"
  gadget (see section 2.4).

      Another line format allows to  specify  APrf    screen's  colors.  The
  format is:

      palette: c1 c2 c3 c4

  where "c1", "c2", "c3", "c4" are RGB color specifications. These values  can
  be in decimal or in hexadecimal (in the latter case,  add  "0x"  before  the
  value, like "0x0F00"). If there are several palette specifications, only the
  last will be used.

      Last, you can specify the  size  and    position  of  the  application
  window (under 2.0 system release only) with a line of the form:

      appwin: x y w h

  where "x" and "y" are the position of the upper left corner, "w"  the  width
  and "h" the height of the window. There is no check upon these values, if an
  error occurs the window won't be opened.

      You can  put    empty  lines  in  the  "S:APrf.Init"  file.  Any  line
  beginning with a semicolon character (";") is supposed to be a  comment  and
  is not interpreted.
      The "S:APrf.Init" file will be loaded again each time you select the
  "Default options" command in  the  "Tools"  menu.  In  "eXpress"  mode  (see
  section 3.2), the file "S:APrf.Init" will be loaded only if  required  (i.e.
  if you specified a -C or a -I option). Take notice that the  sequences  will
  be written with a PRD_RAWWRITE command, so they won't be interpreted by  the
  printer device.

Memory_management

      Before printing or previewing a file, APrf loads it in memory.  Once
  the file has been printed or previewed, it is kept in memory in prevision of
  another print or preview operation. The great advantage is that APrf has not
  to load a file each time you ask for previewing it,  or  when  you  ask  for
  printing it after a preview.

      A file is removed automatically from memory either  if  you  iconify
  APrf (see section 2.5), or if you choose to print another file (see  section
  2.4), or if you select the "Next file" command from the "Project" menu  (see
  section 2.5). It can be removed too (but  not  always)  if  you  select  the
  "Default options" command from the "Tools" menu.
      In addition, the "Load file" command from the "Tools" menu  enforces
  APrf to load a file (this will  be  reloaded  even  if  it  was  already  in
  memory), while the "Unload file" command in the "Tools" menu makes  APrf  to
  unload a file from memory.
      To let you know if a    file  is  or  isn't  loaded  in  memory,  APrf
  displays a "*" character on the right of the file name  when  this  file  is
  actually loaded in memory.

      This behaviour can present two inconvenients. First of all,  a  file
  occupies memory even if you don't need it anymore. A solution is to  iconify
  APrf (see section 2.5) or to select  the  "Unload  file"  command  from  the
  "Tools" menu.
      The second inconvenient is that if you modify a file on  your  disk,
  any changes could be ignored, because APrf don't load  the  file  again.  In
  order to avoid this, if APrf sees that the file has been modified,  it  will
  ask you if you want to reload it.

The_output_buffer

      APrf uses an output buffer in order to make less  "write"  commands.
  With a 1 Kb buffer, printing to a file is twice faster than with  the  first
  releases of APrf whose buffer contained only one line. Even if  printing  to
  printer doesn't seem to be faster, the number of "write" commands is divided
  at least by 5 (at most by 14 or 15). Tests have shown that system charge was
  greatly reduced, and that THE OTHER TASKS WERE LESS SLOWED DOWN.
      By default, APrf uses an output buffer of one page (see section 2.5,
  "Buffer" option from the "Options" menu). When you change  your  page  size,
  the output buffer is automatically re-allocated in order to  store  a  whole
  page. If there's not enough memory to allocate this one  page  buffer,  APrf
  will try to allocate a 1 Kbytes buffer (a  message  will  inform  you  about
  this). If there's still not enough memory, APrf  will  stop  with  an  error
  message "Not enough memory".

Miscellaneous

      This section is a bric-a-brac of some informations that didn't  find
  a  place  in    previous  sections.  It  deals    with  some  importants    points
  concerning how APrf works. I strongly advise you to read it  once  at  least
  and to remind to read it again if you think APrf is working oddly.

      If "Fanfold" option is not activated, here is the behaviour of APrf:
  before printing a page, the program  displays  a  requester  asking  you  to
  insert a new sheet of paper in your printer. When  you're  ready,  click  on
  "YES" to print the page. If you click on "NO" printing will be aborted.

      You can abort printing at any time, by clicking in the box where the
  current copy and page numbers are displayed. A requester will appear, asking
  you confirmation: click on "YES" to stop  printing  and  click  on  "NO"  to
  resume printing. If you abort printing, APrf will immediatly    stop  to  send
  data to the printer, and wait for the last  write  request  to  be  finished
  (this can be quite long !).

      To make your files have  a  better  looking,    you  can  include  the
  following ANSI sequences:

      ESC[0m  Normal character set
      ESC[3m  Italics on
      ESC[23m Italics off
      ESC[4m  Underline on
      ESC[24m Underline off
      ESC[1m  Boldface on
      ESC[22m Boldface off
      ESC[1"z Draft quality
      ESC[2"z NLQ quality

  All these sequences will be sent to your printer, but  the  characters  that
  compose them will neither be retained, nor be  displayed  when  APrf    is  in
  preview mode. Any other  sequences  will  be    not  recognized  and  will  be
  considered as part of text to be printed. You can filter these sequences  if
  you don't want them to be send  to  the  printer  (see  section  2.5,  "ANSI
  filter" item in "Options" menu).
      The size of these sequences is limited to 32    characters  by    OUTPUT
  line (not input line  !),  i.e.  to  6  or  8  sequences,  which  should  be
  sufficient in most case. If there's too much sequences on  an  output  line,
  the error message "Lines too long, printing aborted" will be displayed.





2.1 alias Running_from_CLI
2.2 alias Running_from_Workbench
2.3 alias Getting_started
2.4 alias Gadgets
2.5 alias Menus
2.6 alias Header_and_footer
2.7 alias The_preview_function
2.8 alias Modifying_page_selection
3.1 alias Using_powerpacker.library
3.2 alias The_eXpress_mode
3.3 alias The_AREXX_mode
3.4 alias The_Application_window
3.5 alias The_APrf.Init_file
4.1 alias Memory_management
4.2 alias The_ouput_buffer
5   alias Miscellaneous