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MR. LABEL
Version 5.2
USER MANUAL
Copyright (C) Thomas Gleason, 1986-1991
All rights reserved.
DataWave Software
P.O. Box 42213
Mesa, Arizona 85274-2213
(602) 820-8041
-----------------------------------------------------------
S H A R E W A R E V E R S I O N
-----------------------------------------------------------
You may copy MR. LABEL for the purpose of letting others
evaluate it. Non-profit user groups and BBS operators may
make evaluation copies available to their members.
Shareware vendors may charge a modest shipping/handling fee
but should write for the latest version. The Shareware
documentation (ML.DOC) is on disk but may be in a compressed
file called MANUAL.EXE. Copy the file to an empty disk and
type:
A> Manual.exe This will de-compress the file.
The registered version of MR. LABEL is $29. The
registration form is on disk (REGISTER.PRT).
Any office of the US Postal Service may use MR. LABEL free
of charge. This does not apply to any other governmental
agencies.
MR. LABEL is not public domain software. It is not to be
sold or distributed in conjunction with any other product.
The name MR. LABEL is a trademark. This software is
supplied "as is" without warranty of any kind, either
expressed or implied. DataWave Software expressly disclaims
any warranty of merchantability or fitness for any purpose
and is not liable for any direct or consequential damages
cause by your use of this software.
1
Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
SECTION I: GETTING STARTED . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
STARTING THE PROGRAM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
CONFIGURATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Changing Screen Colors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Selecting the Printer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Customizing the Reset Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
SECTION 2: THE MENUS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
MENU LINE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
F1: FORMATS MENU . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
F2: SETTINGS MENU . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
HOW TO CHANGE SETTINGS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
F3: FILES MENU . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
SECTION 3: FEATURES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
TYPING TEXT/MAKING CORRECTIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
THE EQUAL (=) COMMAND . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
THE ECHO (^E) COMMAND . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
SEQUENTIAL NUMBERING/AUTOMATIC INCREMENTING . . . . . 18
USING FIXED LINES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
ENVELOPES - DOT-MATRIX PRINTERS . . . . . . . . . . . 21
ENVELOPES - LASER PRINTERS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
LASER ENVELOPES - An example . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
USING FILES: An Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
PRINTING LABELS ACROSS: 1 to 9 UP . . . . . . . . . . 23
MICROSOFT WINDOWS & MR. LABEL . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
SECTION 4: PRINTERS & PRINTER COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . 26
LASER VS DOT-MATRIX PRINTERS . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
SETUP COMMANDS for LASER PRINTERS . . . . . . . . . . 26
PAGE DRIFT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
USING AVERY LABELS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
DOT MATRIX PRINTERS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
PRINTER COMMANDS - The Basics . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
TYPING ESCAPE SEQUENCES/PRINTER COMMANDS . . . . . . . 29
SENDING A PRINTER COMMAND . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
CPI - CHARACTERS PER INCH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
EXAMPLES of DOT-MATRIX PRINTER COMMANDS . . . . . . . 31
PRINTER ERRORS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
CLEAR/RESET . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
2
SECTION 5: FORMATS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
FORMATTING PRINTED TEXT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
The R (RIGHT) Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
The C (CENTER) Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
RULES FOR THE R AND C COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
NOTE TO LASER USERS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
RETRIEVING, CREATING AND EDITING A FORMAT . . . . . . 36
GET DISK FORMAT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
CREATE PRINTING FORMAT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
EXAMPLE: CREATING A FORMAT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
MODIFY FORMAT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
ADDING FIXED TEXT TO A FORMAT . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
SECTION 6: THE TEXT EDITOR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
USING THE TEXT EDITOR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
ESCAPE SEQUENCES IN THE EDITOR . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
COMMAND SUMMARY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
BASIC MOVEMENT COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
EXTENDED MOVEMENT COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
INSERT and DELETE COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
FIND and REPLACE COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
FILE COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
WINDOW COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
BLOCK COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
MISCELLANEOUS COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
FILES on the PROGRAM DISK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
APPENDIX A: DATABASE TO LIST CONVERSION . . . . . . . . . 53
CONVERT DATABASE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
JOINING LINES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
CONVERTING dBASE FILES TO ASCII . . . . . . . . . . . 55
APPENDIX B: ASCII CHART . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
APPENDIX C: LASER PRINTER ADDENDUM . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
APPENDIX D: THE POSTNET BARCODE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
3
INTRODUCTION
MR. LABEL is a dedicated labeling program that's loaded with
features. It works with all dot-matrix and laser printers and
all font cartridges. Use your printer like a typewriter to
create one-time labels or print from lists.
MR. LABEL can quickly print a mailing label or channel text
through a custom printing format. You'll find MR. LABEL to be
immediately useful for everyday labeling tasks and for special
projects. Included with your disk are several pre-written
formats for use with popular continuous forms. Owners of HP
LaserJet or compatible printers can use any brand of laser label.
MR. LABEL offers time saving features which are especially useful
to secretaries, business people, and professionals. The easy to
understand manual shows practical uses that everyone will find
useful. Here's a summary of features.
* Print up to 9 labels across
* Use any brand of label - Avery, Rediform, laser labels
* Use your printer's fonts - dot matrix or laser
* Repeat repetitive lines - avoid unnecessary typing
* Auto-Increment, Sequential numbering
* Automatic centering
* Up to 10,000 copies
* Border your labels - 4 styles
* Print letterheads, price tags, file folder labels, name
tags, inventory slips, Rolodex cards; disk and cassette
labels, anything!
* Design labels - any size; position text however you want
* Address envelopes; individually or continuous feed. Print
the return address and destination address in one
operation.
* Channel database records into printing formats
* Includes an easy to use, professional quality text editor
that lets you edit up to 6 lists simultaneously in a
full-screen mode. Includes search/replace and
cut/paste
* Prints the Postnet barcode on any 9 pin, 24 Pin or Hp
compatible printer.
MR. LABEL has many business and home uses - and it's easy to
learn. Combine MR. LABEL's capabilities with the speed and power
of your printer for fast, attractive results.
Page (4)
SECTION I: GETTING STARTED
MR. LABEL is adaptable to a multitude of professional and
personal uses. It has two major purposes:
1. To serve as a stand-alone labeling system. Text typed from
the keyboard or read from lists can be printed onto any type
of label, envelope, continuous form, or paper stock.
2. To process text that needs special formatting. Attractive,
custom labels, name tags, mailers etc are easy to create.
MR. LABEL is a labeling program. It is not designed to perform
database management. It will, however, process lists created
within Mr. Label or by any database program or word processor.
MR. LABEL excels at channeling lists into special printing
formats which make use of the full capabilities and fonts of your
printer. The program also has an excellent extraction utility to
pick needed data out of text database files.
Mr. Label's formatting features let you use any manufacturer's
labels or envelopes. You are not limited to using canned formats
that won't work with all labels. Mr. Label works with all
printers and can even access special laser fonts like barcodes
and OCR.
MR. LABEL has many features to fill a variety of needs but most
people won't need all of them. Just use what you need and don't
worry about the rest. Topics like Setup Files, Formats, and
Printer Commands are useful features and require an intermediate
skill level. If you only do basic labeling tasks on a dot-matrix
printer you can safely ignore these subjects.
Folks interested in creating custom printing formats or
extracting information out of databases should read those
sections of the manual. Be sure to read the section on the Text
Editor. The last page has some info about files on the disk.
There are several other documentation files on your disk.
1. README.DOC has any last minute documentation.
2. FORMATS1.PRT has examples of labels formatted for Epson
compatible dot-matrix printers.
4. QUESTION.PRT answers to common questions/problems
To print any of these files A> copy filename.ext prn
HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS
MR. LABEL requires an IBM-PC or compatible, one disk drive and
256K of memory. A graphics card is not needed. For the sake of
Page (5)
safety, make a backup copy of your program disk. As we discuss
features of the program in this manual, keys you need to press
will be enclosed within <>.
STARTING THE PROGRAM
To run the program from a diskette: turn on your printer, put
your DOS disk in drive 'A', and then turn on your computer. Take
your DOS disk out and replace it with the MR. LABEL disk. From
the A> prompt, type: <ML> and press the Enter key. The main
screen will appear. Hard drive users should copy all the disk
files to a new directory. If you attempt to print with the
printer off, your computer may lock up.
Pressing <Esc> anywhere within MR. LABEL will generally get you
out of the current menu or abort whatever you're doing at the
time.
CONFIGURATION
Mr. Label comes with a default configuration for grey text on a
black background. The default printer is an Epson 9 pin dot-
matrix. The screen colors and the printer can be changed by
entering commands on line 1.
Changing Screen Colors:
Press <Enter> from the Menu Line and you'll be at line 1. To
make the colors yellow text on a blue background you'd type:
^B1T14: The command starts with a '^' and ends with a colon. 'B'
must precede the 'T'. Type the color command and press <Enter>.
Dark Colors Light Colors
0: black 8: dark gray
1: blue 9: light blue
2: green 10: light green
3: cyan 11: light cyan
4: red 12: light red
5: magenta 13: light magenta
6: brown 14: yellow
7: light gray 15: white
Text can be any color but the background must be a dark color.
Monochrome monitors should use the default colors ^B0T7: To save
color changes, press <Enter> at F3:Save Configuration.
Selecting the Printer:
Selecting a printer is important because the reset command is
different for Dot-matrix and Laser printers. Also because Laser
printers and 9 and 24 pin dot-matrix printers all print the
Postnet barcode differently. Press <Enter> from the Status Line
Page (6)
of the main screen to put the cursor on line #1. Then on line 1
you type one of the following commands:
^P1: (9 pin dot-matrix - default)
^P2: (24 pin dot-matrix)
^P3: (HP laser and compatibles)
For example: 1: ^P2:
Now press <Enter> again. The printer has now been selected.
Press <Enter> at F3:Save Configuration to save the printer
selection. At the F2:Settings window either HP, 09, or 24 will
appear if you toggle the Postnet setting from 'No'.
Customizing the Reset Command:
When you select a printer above Mr. Label assigns a corresponding
reset command. It's unlikely but possible that your printer
requires a different command. Check your printer documentation
if F1:Clear/Reset doesn't work on your machine. Note: The IBM
Proprinter II does not have a software reset commnand.
To customize F1:Clear/Reset to send the correct reset command for
your dot-matrix or laser equipment, select <F1:Send Printer
Command> and type your printer's reset command preceded by a (^)
and followed by a colon. Then press <Enter>. The default reset
commands for the following printers and compatibles are:
HP LaserJet: ^<Esc>E:
Epson FX: ^<Esc>@:
95% of all printers will emulate one of the above so no change is
usually required.
To change the default reset command enter your codes. The <Esc>
character is typed by pressing <ALT E>. ASCII keyboard
characters can be typed or you may use the ALT # method of
entering commands. See the section "Typing Escape Sequences" for
an explanation of sending commands and changing the fonts of your
printer. To make the change permanent go to the F3 menu and
press "Save Configuration".
Page (7)
SECTION 2: THE MENUS
MENU LINE
The Menu Line is the top line on your screen and shows the menu
choices. The Status Box is in the center of the screen and shows
the current settings and filenames. The dashed line below the
settings represents an inch ruler. A white arrow below the
dashed line points at the right edge of your form. Here are your
menu line choices.
TYPE F1:FORMATS F2:SETTINGS F3:FILES F4:ED F5:DOS F10:QUIT
TYPE: When the cursor is on the Menu Line, press <Enter> and
begin typing. When the program displays your completed
label at the top of the screen and asks " Is text correct?
", press <N> and change your label text or press <Enter> to
print. The label is printed according to the displayed
settings. If you realize that a setting is wrong while
typing in text just press <Esc> to abort the label.
F1: FORMATS Displays a menu of options you can use to send
printer commands, create formats etc.
F2: SETTINGS Displays the SETTINGS window. From here you can
change the displayed settings.
F3: FILES Here you can elect to read information from a list
file rather than type it from the keyboard. Or you can send
your typed text to a file (create a list) rather than print
it. Here you may also save the screen colors and reset
command if you've changed them.
F4: EDITOR Pressing <F4> places you in MR. LABEL's text editor.
With the editor you can create, edit, append, and search
lists. In many situations, database programs may be over-
kill and present a formidable learning curve for infrequent
users. MR. LABEL's editor makes the job easy by letting you
edit lists in a full screen mode rather than as individual
records. See the section, The Text Editor, for details of
how to use the editor. Once in the editor, you can read a
file by pressing <Ctrl-K R>, save a file <Ctrl-K S>, and
exit the editor by pressing <Ctrl-K X>. Press <F1> to see a
short help screen. <Ctrl-K Q> quits the Editor without
saving the file.
Page (8)
F5: DOS The Dos Shell allows you to branch to Dos, run your own
word processor, database, or print setup files and then pop
back into Mr. Label right where you left off. Press <F5> to
jump to Dos. Type <EXIT> at the Dos prompt to pop back.
F10: QUIT Quits the program. All files are properly closed.
F1: FORMATS MENU
Pressing <F1> from the status line will offer some options.
These will be explained in greater detail later.
FORMAT MENU
--------------------
Printer Command
Directory
Create New Format
Get Disk Format
Modify Format
Convert Database
Clear/Reset
PRINTER COMMAND:
Sending printer codes will change how text prints. All text
lines will be affected. The 'R' and 'C' format commands
(explained later) can not be entered here. The printer must
be on. From this option you can send a command to your
printer to change the font for all lines or reset the
printer. On laser printers you can change the paper size,
tray type, or send a setup command. If part of your command
prints as text then the command was wrong. The printer may
burp a bit when it receives a printer command but should not
interpret any part of the command as text to be printed.
DIRECTORY:
Displays the files of any disk placed in the active drive.
The default directory can be changed. Format files created
with MR. LABEL have a '.FMT' extension. Previous versions
of the program used a .LBL extension. Setup files end with
.SET
CREATE NEW FORMAT:
Allows the text on each line of a label to be positioned
anywhere on a form and printed in any font. Formatting
allows you to create a custom printing format which can be
recalled for use at a later date. Thus, you can use
continuous business envelopes, or any other form, to do some
fancy stuff. For example: The format could print your fixed
return address in the upper left corner, get varying
customer addresses from a file and print them on consecutive
envelopes. The text on each line could even be in various
Page (9)
fonts. A formatting example later in the manual shows
exactly how to do this (letter.fmt).
GET DISK FORMAT:
Retrieve a saved printing format (*.fmt file) from disk.
When a format is active a white 'F' appears below the Status
box.
MODIFY FORMAT:
Previously saved printing formats or newly created ones can
be corrected or changed and then re-saved.
CONVERT DATABASE:
This is a great utility for the accomplished user or data
processing professional. Database row and column text files
with carriage returns as record delimiters can be converted
to a list. Useful lists can be created by snipping and
joining specified columns(fields) of data. Example:
Worth James E. becomes James E. Worth
CLEAR/RESET:
Resets the printer to power-up state, clears printing
formats and closes files, resets settings. For the few
printers that don't recognize the reset command, turn the
printer off, then on. Mr. Label comes configured to send a
reset for an Epson dot-matrix printer but that can be
changed. See CONFIGURATION.
F2: SETTINGS MENU
Pressing <F2> from the Menu Line displays a variety of label
settings in a window.
-------------------
Lines ....... 4
Start ....... 1
Stop ........ 4
Spaces ...... 2
Margin ...... 0
Width ....... 32
Copies ...... 1
Center ...... No
Pause ....... No
Border ...... No
Postnet ..... No
LINES: This is the number of LINES of printed text that you
want on each label. If the number of LINES exceeds 5 the
bottom half of the screen will scroll upward when typing
your text. Changing the LINES setting will also change STOP.
Page (10)
START/STOP The lines between START and STOP are called 'VARYING
LINES' because they vary with every label. The lines
outside the START and STOP range are 'FIXED LINES'. The
text on those lines will repeat for every label. The STOP
setting will always be the same as LINES unless you change
it. STOP will change if LINES is changed. Assume that we
have the following settings: lines=6, start=3, and stop=5.
Then lines 1,2, and 6 are fixed; you will enter text on
varying lines 3,4,5. Before changing the Start/Stop
settings, type any text you want to remain fixed.
Start and Stop lines must hold to some rules.
1. START can't be larger than STOP
2. LINES must be larger than START or STOP
Entering values that break the rules causes a 'START/STOP
ERROR' message.
SPACES: The number of blank lines between successive labels.
The paper is advanced by SPACES after the last line of your
label is printed. Since the standard mailing label has six
lines, the default settings are 4 LINES and 2 SPACES = 6.
The combination of Lines and Spaces will vary with your
label size and the number of Lines you are printing. Always
set SPACES = 0 when creating a list on disk.
MARGIN: The left MARGIN setting at which to begin printing. It's
best to set the margin to an even number.
The MARGIN setting causes the print head to space over the
set number of columns before printing. Warning: If your
printer hits the right margin before finishing a line of
text it will do a line-feed (ie. skip to the next line) and
continue printing. If you get blank lines or uneven margins
showing up on your printouts, it's probably because the
printer can't get it all on one line and so does a line
feed. The Margin setting goes up to 99 because in some
print modes (condensed) you can print over 80 characters on
a line.
COPIES: The number of identical COPIES of a particular label.
If the Pause setting is 'Y' the printer will wait before
printing the next copy. Press any key while printing copies
to stop. To print copies across a page, you must read the
text from a list file. The number of labels in the file
must be greater than the number of labels you want to print
ACROSS (3 UP needs 3+ labels in the file).
WIDTH: The Width of the label. Always set the Width to the size
of your form. The default setting is set for the standard
mailing label which holds 32 characters of text. The number
Page (11)
32 actually stands for 3.2 inches. The number of characters
that will fit on each line depends on the font used.
MR. LABEL will automatically make an adjustment based upon
the Width setting and the CPI (Characters Per Inch) of the
font to allow more or less characters on the line.
Remember, that the Width represents inches. The standard
print mode is 10 Characters Per Inch (CPI). Therefore, a 4
inch label will fit 4 x 10 CPI = 40 characters per line.
Some fonts print 5 to 20 characters per inch. With these
fonts you get more or less characters on the label line. At
5 CPI you get: 4 x 5 CPI = 20 characters per 4" label line.
At 18 CPI it is 4 x 18 CPI = 72. MR. LABEL will perform all
the print mode adjustments if you give him the proper Width
(inches x 10) and the CPI for the font you are using.
Entering the CPI will be discussed in detail.
C: CENTERING Centers text between the left MARGIN and the
selected Width of the label. If the Margin is set at 10 and
Width is at 50 then the text will be centered at column 35
(50 div 2 = 25... 25 + 10 = 35). The Center setting is
ignored when using a FORMAT. Formatted lines are centered
using the 'C' command.
P: PAUSE When pause is set to 'Y', the printer pauses before
printing the next COPY of a label and you'll be asked to
press a key. Press <Enter> to continue printing, <S> to
stop making copies, or <R> to run the list. The Pause
feature gives you time to position forms in the printer or
to inspect a few labels before printing a whole list.
BORDER: You may choose one of 4 different types of border or no
border. Choosing a border adds two lines to your label; one
above and below. So pre-adjust your Spaces setting to
account for these two extra lines. Using a border also adds
a character to the beginning and end of each label line.
The Borders setting is not directly available if using a
Format or if printing greater than 1-across.
It's not hard though to get borders around labels when
printing across. Simply type bordered labels to a list and
then read and print the list. Set the Border setting on,
set Spaces=0, and set the WIDTH setting to 2 less than the
width of your label's across columns. No Format should be
active. Using <F3:Print to a File>, type your bordered
labels to a list file. When done typing, <F3:Close/Save the
file>. The bordered labels now reside in a file on disk.
You could read this list into the Editor to take a look at
it. Now, <F3:Read List from File> and print as 2 or more
Page (12)
across. Since the border characters are now part of a file,
they're treated as regular text.
Be careful about trying to print a list of bordered labels
with a printing Format. If the font varies between lines
the border characters on each line will print in different
sizes.
If your laser printer won't print borders properly it's
because your selected font does not have border characters.
PN: Postnet Prints the Postal Service's Postnet barcode on the
first two lines of your label if a 9 digit Zip+4 zip code
(99999-9999) has been entered. The barcode speeds mail
processing. If Postnet isn't 'No' one of the following will
appear in the Status Box to designate the selected printer:
09 (9 pin dot matrix) 24 (24 Pin) HP (HP
LaserJet)
See CONFIGURATION in the manual to select your printer. You
can type the text or read it from a list. The last lines of
the label are checked from STOP towards START. Blank label
lines are skipped. If the zip code is not found then two
blank lines are printed to maintain label spacing.
Otherwise the barcode prints. Adjust your SPACES setting
accordingly. 9 pin dot-matrix printers make two printhead
passes to print the code and 24 pin printers make one pass.
At the present time this feature works only on 1 across
labels. You can change the MARGIN setting to position text
for envelopes or for the second column of multi-across
forms. The barcode can be used with Formats and various
fonts but will print in the column designated by the MARGIN
setting. Keep in mind that some printers print barcode
graphics slower than others. See Appendix D for more info
on Postnet and Mr. Label's implementation.
HOW TO CHANGE SETTINGS
From the Menu Line press <F2> to access the settings window.
Move the dark bar up or down using the arrow keys on your
keyboards keypad. When the bar is on the desired setting you can
change that setting. Toggle the Pause and Center settings to 'Y'
and 'No' by pressing <Enter>. The Border setting also toggles
through its options by pressing <Enter>. The Postnet setting
toggles between 'No' and an abbreviation of the selected printer
type - 09, 24, or HP. The numeric settings are changed by
pressing <Enter>, typing a value and pressing <Enter> again.
Each of the numeric settings has a range of values. Exceed the
value and you get a 'RANGE ERROR' message.
Page (13)
SETTING RANGES
-----------------
Lines 1..12
Start 1..STOP
Stop 1..LINES
Spaces 0..99
Margin 0..99
Copies 1..9999
Width 1..78
Center Y/No (On/Off)
Pause Y/No (On/Off)
Border 4 options or None
Postnet No/09/24/HP (None or printer type)
F3: FILES MENU
The Files Menu is accessed by pressing <F3> from the Menu Line.
This menu lets you read text from a file(a list) rather than
entering it from the keyboard. Or, you can send labels out to a
file rather than the printer. If a printer isn't available you
can print to a file and later use the file as a list. MR. LABEL
makes working with files easy but read this section carefully.
FILES MENU
-------------------
Close/Save Files
Print to a File
Read List from File
Save Configuration
Mr. Label info
CLOSE/SAVE FILES:
Any active files are closed, data remaining in the
computer's buffer is written to disk, input reverts to the
keyboard and output to the printer.
READ LIST FROM FILE:
Requests you to enter the name of an existing file which
holds label information such as mailing lists. The file
must be a text file and not a dBase.dbf file or some other
specialized file format. The label text in a file would
look similar to:
Bill Jones ;start of first label
123 W. Third St.
Mesa, AZ 85210
Susan Anderson ;start of second label
345 E. Center St.
Phoenix, AZ 85002
Page (14)
Press ENTER when the sliding bar is over 'Read List from
File'. Type the filename and any path. Example:
'c:\info\list.dat'.
If MR. LABEL finds the file, its name will be displayed at
the bottom of the window. A beep and error message will
occur if there was a problem finding the file.
After selecting the file name another menu appears. See the
section "PRINTING LABELS ACROSS" for the options.
If you select more than 1 label across FORMATS can not be
used. In most cases you'll want to print the whole list
immediately. But if you select 1 label across and "Process
Individually" = "Y", the labels will be read in one at a
time into the upper screen and the program will wait for you
to press <Enter> before printing. Press <Esc> and the
current label is skipped. Press <Enter> to retrieve another
label. This is useful for printing on special forms or
envelopes.
The number of lines read from the list for each label
depends on the settings for Start and Stop - the varying
lines.
(If the last label in a file won't print it's because there
needs to be a couple of carriage returns after the last line
in the file.)
PRINT TO A FILE:
Enter the name of a file and all text goes to that file
including any printer control codes if a FORMAT is active or
if a printer command has been sent from F1:Send Printer
Command. MR. LABEL won't append an existing file but will
overwrite it - you'll be asked if over-writing is OK. If
you want to append two similar files together, use the
Editor. Read the first file into the editor <Ctrl-K R>, go
to the end of the file <Ctrl Q C), and read in the next file
<Ctrl K R>. Then save the file under a new name <Ctrl K S>.
Printing your labels to a file is useful if a printer isn't
handy or if you want to use the list later in different
ways. IMPORTANT: Set SPACES = 0 to avoid blank lines in
your list. You don't want blank lines between labels in
your list because it makes the list more difficult to
process. Or, make your last line FIXED and containing a
semicolon. Because MR. LABEL ignores lines beginning with
semicolons, they will act as a visual label separator.
Your files can hold formatted text or lists. To keep your
files straight, you should use some naming conventions. Try
Page (15)
using a '.lst' suffix for list files and '.prt' for files
intended to be printed.
A file you create which contains printer control codes
created with a Format or the embedded Postnet barcode can
not be used in the future as a list file because of the
imbedded printer commands. (If you read a formatted print
file into MR. LABEL's editor, you may see some printer code
symbols displayed before each line of text).
All settings including COPIES, MARGIN etc will act on a file
exactly as on the printer. Text can be read from a List
file and directed to another file. Thus you can create
different formatted versions of a list to be used for
various purposes.
Text printed to a file is stored in a buffer and written out
in chunks. So always F3:Close/Save your files when you're
done typing your list. This insures the data is written to
disk. Exiting MR. LABEL with a F10 will automatically save
everything properly.
Files can also be printed from the DOS level. Adjust your
labels in the printer and type: <COPY FILENAME.EXT PRN>
This means 'copy the file to the printer(prn)'. This would
be very useful if your file contained text formatted with
printer codes. You could just print the file from DOS
anytime you needed more copies of those labels.
SAVE CONFIGURATION:
The MR. LABEL default colors and printer reset command are
stored in a file called ML.SYS. It's a good idea to change
these default values if your printer doesn't use the same
reset command as an Epson, <ESC>@, or if you don't like the
default colors ( grey on black ). See CONFIGURATION.
Page (16)
SECTION 3: FEATURES
TYPING TEXT/MAKING CORRECTIONS
Laser printer users may wish to read in Section 4 the paragraphs
on "Laser Printers" and "Using Avery Labels" before proceeding.
With the cursor on the Menu Line, press the <Enter> key and then
start typing an address. Use the cursor keys to move back and
forth on a line. Press the <Ins> key on the keypad to change
between Insert and Overwrite modes. Pressing only <Enter> at any
line will make it blank. (Press the <Esc> key and you'll quit
the label.) The number of characters allowable on a line depends
upon the Width setting and the CPI(characters per inch) of your
font.
When the last line is typed, the lower screen will clear and your
text will re-appear at the top. MR. LABEL prints the text
appearing in the upper screen. "Is Text Correct?" will now
prompt you. If you press <Y> or <Enter>, the label will print as
many times as you have requested copies. If you enter <N> it
will ask : Change which Line?. Enter the line number and type
the corrected line of text. Upon your approving the label it
will print.
MR. LABEL considers leading and trailing spaces to be part of
your text. So to get a slanted label such as:
The President
16 Pennsylvania Ave.
Washington, D.C 10045
...just pad the start of each line with spaces. There's a much
easier way to do this if you're going to be processing a lot of
labels this way. Use the 'R' (Right) command from within a
FORMAT (see SLANTED.FMT).
THE EQUAL (=) COMMAND
After printing your text the cursor returns to the Menu Line. If
you decide to type another label and the text on a line is the
same as the previous label, you don't have to retype it. Just
enter an <=> at the line number and press <Enter>. The old line
will be inserted in the label. If you are going to be creating a
lot of labels with repeating text, you should use MR. LABEL's
Fixed Lines feature.
Page (17)
THE ECHO (^E) COMMAND
Sometimes you'd like to copy a line on the current label to
another line rather than retype it. Simply put the command ^E#:
on a line; where # is the number of the line you wish to copy.
This command also works on the Format screen when you enter
printer commands - explained later. The command begins with a ^
and ends with a colon. In the label below lines 1 and 2 are
echoed to lines 3 and 4.
1. Double Vision, Inc. Double Vision, Inc.
2. The Eyeglass Experts The Eyeglass Experts
3. ^E1: --> Double Vision, Inc.
4. ^E2: The Eyeglass Experts
The above example is simple but remember, you can assign printer
font commands to each line (via a Mr. Label printing Format). So
line 3 could be: in a different font than line 1; centered; or
moved right. This Echo feature is very useful when using the HP
"Bar Code 3-of-9/OCR-A" font cartridge. In the examples below,
lines 1 through 3 appear in an OCR font, the number appearing on
line 3 is then echoed to the remaining lines and printed as a two
line barcode symbol.
Kelloggs Corn Flakes Handbook of Bar Coding Systems
Family Size Burke, Harry E.
*6233146* *HF 5416 B87*
|| | ||| | || | ||| | || ||| || | ||||
|| | ||| | || | ||| | || ||| || | ||||
Combine the Echo command with Mr. Label's AUTO-INCREMENT command
and you can produce thousands of laser quality, sequentially
numbered, OCR and/or Barcoded price tags, stock labels - you name
it.
SEQUENTIAL NUMBERING/AUTOMATIC INCREMENTING
This feature is only available for 1-UP labels. (You may,
however, print a sequentially numbered list to a file and then
retrieve the list and process as 3 Across.) One number appearing
anywhere on a label can be made to increment by any amount with
each additional COPY. This is done by placing some commands on
the LAST line of your label. This feature is useful for
automatically increasing a house address, part number or anything
that increases at a fixed rate.
Page (18)
An example of the increment command is: ^300C4A2L3: This
translates to:
start at the number 300
place it in (C)olumn 4
(A)dd 2 with each copy printed
place on (L)ine 3
As an example, let's say that you wanted to create 1000
sequentially numbered tickets for your drama club. The first
four lines hold the text for the ticket and the last line holds
the increment codes.
1: No: ****, ADMIT ONE
2: The TAMING of the SHREW
3: April 10, 1992
4. University Drama Group
5: ^1000C5A1L1:
The ^ character on line 5 is typed and does not mean to press the
CTRL key. The number 1000 will replace the four asterisks
starting in column 5 on line one. The labels will print as 1001,
1002 and so forth up to the number of COPIES you have set. Line
5 will print as a space(blank line) so take that into account
when making your Spaces setting.
The asterisks, or any padding characters you choose, specify
where we want the number to print. The number of padding
characters should equal the number of digits in the smallest
number of your sequence. Insert a couple space characters after
the last pad character if the number may increase in length.
Once MR. LABEL has examined the increment codes on the last line,
the codes are placed in memory. So, you can replace line 5 with
new text when your first label appears in the top of the screen -
perhaps a semicolon if writing to a file.
Increment Command Summary:
The increment code must be on the last line of the label. It
must start with the ^ character in column one and end with a
colon. The C, A, L must be in order or a beep occurs. Just
remember that the letters spell the name CAL.
USING FIXED LINES
Fixed lines are label lines that stay the same while other lines
vary. Varying lines may be typed from the keyboard or gathered
from a list. Fixed lines can be entered two ways:
Page (19)
1. By changing the Start and Stop settings so only certain lines
need to be typed. This method is more versatile but
requires typing the fixed text within the program.
2. By adding text directly to a printing Format. The text is
entered before or after any printer commands for a format
line and then saved permanently with the Format file.
Although the fixed text never has to be retyped, its
placement on a label or form is quite limited.
This section discusses method #1. Method #2 is discussed in
Section 5:Adding Fixed Text to a Format.
Imagine that you are a real estate agent and have sold a house at
2630 W. Oak. You want to send 100 of the neighbors a letter to
inform them of your success and hopefully attract more business.
The look of your first 3 1/2 inch by 15/16 mailing label would
be: Homeowner
2632 W. Oak
Phoenix, AZ 85022
Since the first and third lines will remain the same, wouldn't it
be nice if you could avoid typing them? Let's use Fixed Lines.
1. Enter these settings: Lines = 3, Width = 32, Spaces = 3.
2. Type and print your first label as above. This puts the fixed
text on the appropriate lines. ('Homeowner' and 'Phoenix, AZ
85022')
3. Press <F2> from the status line to change the START and STOP
settings. Make Start = 2, Stop = 2. Press <Esc> to go back
to the status line.
4. When you start typing, the only line requested will be line 2.
Lines one and three will repeat on each label.
MR. LABEL's AUTO-INCREMENT feature would also be perfect in the
above situation because you could set the house addresses to
increment automatically. (Example: 2632 W. Oak, 2634 W. Oak,
2636 ...). Then you wouldn't have to type anything!
If you want your labels to be Centered just toggle that setting
to 'Y'. The text will be centered between the left margin '0'
and the Width '32'... a center point of 16.
Now select F1:Printer Command and enter these characters exactly:
5/<Esc>W1 This is a command for a dot-matrix printer. The Esc
command is entered by pressing ALT-E. Press <Enter> to send the
command. Press the <Esc> key on the keyboard to exit back to the
Menu Line. Now type a label. The EXPANDED type font will print.
Commands sent from F1:Printer Command affect the entire label.
Notice how you can't type as many characters on a line. Since
this font prints twice as wide, MR. LABEL has made adjustments so
Page (20)
you can't print over the edge of your label. Excess characters
already on the lines will be truncated. Go to the F2 menu and
turn on Centering. Type another label and all the lines will be
in the larger font and centered. Turn on Borders and change the
Margin. Select <F1:CLEAR/RESET> when you're done experimenting.
ENVELOPES - DOT-MATRIX PRINTERS
To address continuous feed envelopes or forms, you need to set
the SPACES setting to the right amount. The printer must start
printing each envelope at the same horizontal row position. If a
form is 24 lines from top to bottom then the SPACE setting should
be: 24 - Lines Typed = Spaces. The address on a business
envelope starts at about column 40, so set Margin=40.
When addressing hand fed envelopes some dot-matrix printers will
sound a paper out buzzer and go off-line. The paper-out detector
can be turned off by a switch on some printers or by sending a
direct printer command. See 'Sending Printer Commands'. Some
printers don't have a way to turn off the buzzer.
ENVELOPES - LASER PRINTERS
Laser printers require a series of setup commands to print
envelopes. You must change the: job size, tray, page size, and
set the orientation to landscape. This can be done from the
printer control panel or very quickly with a setup file. Setup
files are discussed later in this manual. On the HP 2P the MP
Tray must be specified from the control panel.
LASER ENVELOPES - An example
The best way to print envelopes on a laser printer is with a
printing format. Section 5 discusses formats in detail. The
format on disk, HPENVLP1.FMT prints the return address in the
upper left corner, spaces down, prints your destination address
lines in column 40, and then advances to the next envelope. You
could run a list through this format rather than type the
addresses. It's also possible to assign a different font to each
line. To use this format:
1. Select the paper tray. Select Size = Com10 from the HP
control panel and load some 4 x 9.5 envelopes in the tray.
2. Press <F5:DOS> and from DOS A:> copy ENVELOPE.SET prn Type
<exit> to return to the program.
3. Type your fixed return address on lines 1 through 4 but do
not print it. Press <ESC> at "Is text Correct".
4. From <F1:Get Disk Format> enter <HPENVLP1>. Exit the Format
menu.
5. At the main screen type a few envelope addresses. (A blank
envelope will be ejected before the first one prints.)
Page (21)
USING FILES: An Example
Let's experiment with using files. Make sure Lines=4, Start=1
and that your printer is on. On your disk there is a sample data
file called 'Names.lst'. We'll process this list 1 label at a
time. Open the F3 menu and after selecting <Read List from File>
type <NAMES.LST> . Then at the Across menu move to 'Process
Individually' and press <Enter> to toggle to 'Y'. Press <Esc> to
return to the main screen.
This list consists of 4 line groupings of information. To read it
properly, START and STOP must span 4 lines. Normally START is at
1 and STOP equals LINES but this can be changed via the settings.
(If you look at the file 'NAMES.LST' from DOS by entering <TYPE
NAMES.LST> or by loading the file into the editor, here's what
the first 2 labels would be.)
; This is a comment line and will not print
Paul Stone
Monolith Corporation
234 Verybig Drive
Phoenix, AZ 85034
; Also a comment line
Jack Hill
1st State Bank
16 Main St.
San Diego, CA 80111
Press <Enter> and MR. LABEL reads the first 4 lines from your
file and displays them in the upper window. Press <Enter> to
print the label. If you pressed <Esc> at 'Is text Correct' the
displayed label wouldn't print. Press <Enter> again and the next
4 lines would be read from the file. Keep pressing <Enter> until
the computer beeps and the 'End-of-File' message appears.
The number of lines read from the list file for each label
depends on the settings for START and STOP. Lines from the file
are read into the lines between and including Start and Stop.
(MR. LABEL ignores lines beginning with a semicolon. They're
called 'comment' lines and can act as visual label separators.)
Here's how our first label for Mr. Stone would print if in
various ways we had changed the settings of Start and Stop.
Example #1: LINES=4, START=1, STOP=4
Paul Stone
Monolith Corporation
234 Verybig Drive
Phoenix, AZ 85034
(First 4 lines read from file. This is correct)
Example #2: LINES=4, START=1, STOP=3
Paul Stone
Page (22)
Monolith Corporation
234 Verybig Drive
Oops! Missed the City & State. Even worse the next label
will print as:
Phoenix, AZ 85034
Jack Hill
1st State Bank
Our whole list will be a mess because we're grabbing 3 lines
at a time from the file instead of 4.
Example #3: LINES=5, START=2, STOP=5
Paul Stone
Monolith Corporation
234 Verybig Drive
Phoenix, AZ 85034
The first 4 lines in the file are read into label lines
2,3,4,5. Line 1 is FIXED and could hold the word
'ATTENTION' or could be blank. This is fine.
When reading from a file all the settings perform exactly as if
the text was typed from the keyboard. Set the Width setting to
the width of your label. If a FORMAT is active and you're
printing 1-Up labels, the text will be printed according to the
printer commands in the format file.
You can create a list file with any word processor including MR.
LABEL's editor; by using MR. LABEL's 'Print to a FILE' option;
or by converting a database file (see CONVERT DATABASE under the
F1 menu). If using a word processor such as WordPerfect you must
save the list via "Text Out", "DOS Text".
PRINTING LABELS ACROSS: 1 to 9 UP
The standard print mode is one label across(1-Up). When reading
from a list file, MR. LABEL can print up to 9 labels across. You
can also change the Margin, Copies, Centering, and Pause settings
(see the section: 'Read List from File'). The number of labels
in the list file must be greater than the number of labels you
wish to print across. You'll need at least 3 labels in your file
to print 3 across. (When creating a list, you should always
avoid unnecessary blank lines between labels in your list file by
setting Spaces = 0.) The font type for all the lines can be
changed via F1:Printer Command.
Printing FORMATS can not be used when printing more than 1-Up.
(Formatted text can be printed in different columns by changing
Page (23)
the Margin setting and running paper back through the printer.
This technique is easier to do with laser printers than dot-
matrix printers.)
MR. LABEL will truncate lines read from a list if the text on the
lines exceeds the Width * CPI adjustment. This prevents writing
over the edge of the label. In other words, if Width=40 (a 4
inch label) and you have 5 CPI, there can be only 20 characters
per line as 5cpi x 4" = 20.
THE ACROSS MENU
After you select 'F3:Read List from File' and enter a file
name you are placed in another menu. The options and
default values are:
NUMBER OF LABELS ACROSS 1
WIDTH OF LABEL COLUMNS 32
PROCESS INDIVIDUALLY N
# ACROSS
One across is the default. Enter a number from 2-9 if you
wish. The "width of label columns" will automatically
change.
COLUMN WIDTH
This is the column width and defaults to the Width setting
if the # across is 1. It is not to be confused with the
Width setting. The "Width of Label Columns" refers to the
distance, the number of characters (in 10 CPI), between the
left edges of the adjacent columns of labels. (To put it
another way: How many character positions are there from the
left edge of the first label to the left edge of the
second.) You can use a ruler to measure the distance in
inches between columns and multiply by 10. So 2.6 inches x
10 = 26 character positions.
The number of columns(# of labels across) times the column width
(width of a label column) must be less than 80 for a standard
printer. If it goes over 80 the printer will start wrapping text
to the next line. So, to print 3 Up, the number of positions
must be 26 or less because (3x26=78) and (3x27=81). For 5 Up it
must be 15 or less (5x15=75).
Mr. Label assumes you're using an 80 column printer and will
automatically change the column width for you. (The Width
setting is automatically reset to 2 less than the 'across' column
width). If you are printing on a wide carriage printer, printing
in landscape mode, or using non-standard label stock, the
automatically calculated column width may not be correct - so
you'll have to manually change it. When printing in different
fonts, MR. LABEL will automatically calculate and print the
correct number of characters to fit your label columns.
Page (24)
Note: Set the Margin setting to zero before printing across -
unless you want a margin to the left of your columns.
PRINT INDIVIDUALLY
"Process Individually" works when the # across = 1. This
causes printing to pause after printing each label. This
feature is useful when printing from a list onto hand-fed
envelopes.
After selecting a list file and the # across, press <Esc> to exit
from the menus and the cursor will return to the Menu Line. You
may now review the Settings and make sure your printer is on-
line. Your list will print immediately upon pressing <Enter> at
the Menu Line. Press any other key and the list printing may
abort.
MICROSOFT WINDOWS & MR. LABEL
Mr. Label is not a Microsoft Windows program but can benefit from
being run in the Windows environment. By running Mr. Label in a
sized DOS window and in an adjacent window another version of Mr.
Label's editor (or any other program), you can copy and paste
selected addresses from other programs to Mr. Label. For
example, to copy an address from another program you:
1. Hold down the left mouse button and highlight the text from
the screen with your mouse cursor. Pick up the line
immediately above the start of the address even if it
contains unwanted text - that line will not print. End with
the last line of the address. (If not copying from a list
the process may differ and you'll have to play around a
bit.)
2. Press <ENTER> when the mouse selected text is highlighted.
Or you could click on the [-] in the upper left corner of
the Windows box for that program. Then select EDIT..COPY.
3. Switch to Mr. Label's window by clicking the left mouse
button on the Mr. Label screen. Then select [-
]..EDIT..PASTE
The selected text will enter Mr. Label just as if you had typed
it and will appear in the upper half of the screen. Just press
<ENTER> to print it. Make sure that LINES is set to the number
of lines you're copying.
Likewise you can copy screen data from Mr. Label into other
programs.
Page (25)
SECTION 4: PRINTERS & PRINTER COMMANDS
LASER VS DOT-MATRIX PRINTERS
A wide variety of label stock exists for Dot matrix printers.
They are the machine of choice for most labeling tasks because
they are fast, inexpensive, and reliable. Laser printers offer a
wider variety of fonts and produce higher quality output. But,
they require more preparation and special sheet labels.
Laser printers differ from dot-matrix machines in several ways.
1. Laser printers are page printers rather than line printers.
Paper is pushed through the machine once the sheet is filled
with text or graphics. Partially filled pages can be
ejected by doing a Form Feed at the printer console or via
software. Laser printers maintain a 1/2" non-printable
region at the top and bottom of paper stock.
2. A Laser printer needs to receive a setup commands to tell it
the paper size, paper tray, and page margins. Since dot-
matrix machines expect forms to be continuous feed, setup
commands are not needed.
3. On Laser printers, changing a font automatically cancels a
previous font. Dot-matrix printer commands stay on until a
specific command is sent to turn them off.
IMPORTANT: Never put pin feed or photocopier labels in a laser
printer. They can peel off inside the machine and that means a
repair bill. Only use labels that are laser printer safe.
SETUP COMMANDS for LASER PRINTERS
You'll often need to quickly send a series of setup commands to
tell the printer to change the job size, page size, use an
optional paper tray, print in landscape mode on envelopes, etc.
These are one-time commands and should not be part of a Format.
There are 3 ways to send setup commands.
1. From the printer console. On HP printers you can enter some
setup and font commands easily from the console. Some
printers require that the paper size be set at the printer
console.
2. From F1:Printer Command
3. From a Setup file. A setup file saves you the time of always
entering the commands manually. Create a permanent setup
file by entering printer commands within the Editor. To
send the commands you "print" the setup file. Here's how to
create a setup file and send it to the printer.
a.) Type the commands all on one line in the Editor but do
not press <Enter> at the end of the line. The first
command should usually be a Reset. (See the topic in
Section 6: "Escape Sequences in the Editor.)
Page (26)
b.) Save the file <Ctrl-K S>. Exit the editor by pressing
<Ctrl-K X>.
c.) Press <F5:Dos> from the main screen.
d.) Print the setup file: C> copy filename.set prn Nothing
prints but the commands have been sent.
e.) Type <exit> to return to the program.
f.) Use a format, type text etc.
In 'a' above, type all the commands on one line and do not press
<Enter> at the end of the line. Pressing <Enter> puts a line
feed in the setup file and will cause a blank line to print on
your first form. This may cause text to drift lower from page to
page (Page Drift). To make sure there is no line feed in the
setup, read the file into the Editor. Then press <Ctrl-Q C> to
go to the end-of-file. If the cursor rests below your line of
commands, press <Backspace> till the cursor moves up a line.
Then re-save the file.
If you must have multiple lines in a setup file then send a Form
Feed from F1:Printer Command(Alt 12) or from the printer console
after printing the setup file. This should position text at the
top of form.
Do not include font commands in setup files unless the CPI(pitch)
of the font is 10. Do not include the CPI in a setup file.
On your disk there is a setup file called ENVELOPE.SET which you
can use to prepare the printer to print business envelopes. Here
are its commands:
<Esc>E<Esc>&l81A<Esc>&l1O
<Esc>E ;reset the printer
<Esc>&l81A ;set job size to Com 10 (4" x 9.5") envelopes
<Esc>&l10 ;set orientation to Landscape
On the HP-IIP, after sending the commands and trying to print,
the control panel will flash and require you to manually set the
MP tray to Com 10 if you haven't already done so.
PAGE DRIFT
Page drift is when text on each successive page prints lower or
text is lost at the bottom of a page. When this occurs on laser
labels it's usually because the page size or top margin setup is
wrong.
USING AVERY LABELS
We've already created setup files containing the commands
recommended by Avery for use with all their laser labels. For
example, the setup file called AV5262.SET changes the page length
Page (27)
and top margin to the values recommended by Avery for use with
their #5262 two across, 8 line labels. To use these labels:
1. Print the setup file from Dos: <copy AV5262.SET prn>
2. Adjust the Lines, Spaces, and other settings
3. Optional: Retrieve a printing Format; F1:Get Format.
4. Type your labels or print a list.
Setup files for the following Avery labels are included on your
disk: 5160, 5161, 5162, 5163, 5164, 5196, 5197, 5260, 5261, 5262,
5266, 5267,
DOT MATRIX PRINTERS
Dot matrix printers have a variety of fonts and settings. Some
can be accessed by means of control panel switches but most
require that you send the printer Commands(Escape Sequences).
For example: A Line Feed advances the paper 1/6 of an inch. The
line feed can be changed to as little as 1/216th of an inch.
Most printers support underlining, superscripts, elite, pica,
enlarged, condensed, double strike and even foreign language
characters.
Printer font commands or at least the CPI should be sent from
within Mr. Label via <F1:Printer Command>. Setting a switch does
not tell the program the CPI.
Dot matrix commands vary a bit between printers so many programs
avoid their use due to compatibility problems or provide scores
of "drivers" for different equipment. MR. LABEL allows you to
send Commands to access any font offered by your printer. What
does a Command look like? Here's the command sent in BASIC to
cause underlining on an EPSON printer: (Most printers emulate the
Epson).
Print chr$(27);'-';Chr$(1):
MR. LABEL sends the command like this: <Esc>-1
The command will now stay on until turned off by: <Esc>-0
REMEMBER: Most dot-matrix printer commands stay on until turned
off!
PRINTER COMMANDS - The Basics
DEFINITIONS:
Code: A single letter or number sent to the printer.
Command: A series of codes that change the way the printer
prints text. Dot-matrix commands consist of one to
three codes. Laser commands often have over 25 codes.
Page (28)
Format: Printer commands for each line of the label plus the
settings: Lines, Start, Stop, Width, Margin, and
Spaces.
Mr. Label works with all printers. And, with Mr. Label's
formatting commands you can access any of your printer's native
or cartridge fonts and position text anywhere on a label.
Previous versions of Mr. Label sent commands as decimal numbers
and performed error checking on the codes. Commands are now sent
as ASCII characters and without error checking. You can always
tell if you've sent an invalid printer command because part of
your command will print as text. Printer commands should never
print.
This command turns on Roman Courier Bold on the HP LaserJet:
10/<Esc>(8U<Esc>(s0p10.00h12.0v0s3b3T<Esc>&l0O
Here's Sub-script, Double-Strike on the Epson dot-matrix:
10/<Esc>S1<Esc>G ;Turns on sub-script, double-strike
<Esc>T<Esc>H ;this turns both commands off
Printer commands are upper and lower case sensitive. If even one
character is wrong the command will be in error. Also, watch out
for 0, O and 1, l - they look a lot alike.
The 10/ shown in the above commands is the CPI(Characters Per
Inch) or pitch of the font and is required by Mr. Label. It must
precede any font command sent from within Mr. Label. The program
will assume your font is 10 CPI unless told differently. If your
Margins, Centered text, etc are not lined up in the right
columns, it's probably because you didn't include the right CPI.
Selecting a font from the console does not tell the program the
CPI. Mr. Label will assume it is 10 CPI. If you set the font
via the console to a 12 pitch font, simply select <F1:Printer
Command> and enter 12/.
TYPING ESCAPE SEQUENCES/PRINTER COMMANDS
ASCII stands for American Standard Code for Information
Interchange and is the way the information industry assigns
numbers for each character.
Printer commands are a sequence of numbers that tell the printer
to change the way it prints or operates. In printer manuals,
printer commands are expressed as either ASCII decimal numbers or
their keyboard equivalent. Every number and letter on the
keyboard has an ASCII value in the range of 32-126. For example:
A=65 a=97 B=66 <Esc>=27.
Numbers below 31 and over 126 are not represented on the keyboard
and must be entered with the ALT # method. Laser users will have
Page (29)
an easier time with printer commands than dot-matrix users
because laser commands use only keyboard characters and Esc.
In this manual when a printer code is stated as ALT # it means to
hold down the ALT key, type a number on the numeric keypad,
release the ALT key. A character will appear. This is the
character representation of an ASCII value. You must type the
numbers from the keypad, not from the top row of the keyboard.
Since values in the range of 32 to 126 have a character
represented on the keyboard, you may either type the character or
its decimal value with ALT #. All other ASCII values require the
ALT # method. The <Esc> character is a special case.
<ESC>: The number 27 is referred to as ESCAPE or ESC. In the
Hewlett-Packard printer manuals <Esc> is written as Ec.
This has nothing to do with the ESC key on your keyboard.
The ESC or 27 primes the pump. It lets the printer know
that what follows is not to be printed but is a printer
command(an Escape Sequence).
To type the <Esc> code from within <F1:Printer Command> or
<F1:Create Format>, you must press ALT E. The Esc character will
appear as a left arrow.
Here's the commands for an Epson printer to turn on the super-
script font and double-strike:
Decimal Values: 027 083 027 071
Characters: <Esc> S <Esc> G
You type in Mr. Label: <Alt E>S<Alt E>G ;this the easy way
or also: <Alt E><Alt 83><Alt E><Alt 71>
This command sets the HP LaserJet to 'Letter' Job Size:
Decimal Values: 027 038 108 050 065
Characters: <Esc> & l 2 A
You type: <Alt E>&l2A
Several printer commands can go on one line. Do not put spaces
between the codes. Do not enter printer commands at the main
screen of Mr. Label. The main screen is for typing label text.
Printer commands are entered at F1:Printer Command, F1:Create
Format, F1:Modify Format, and in the Editor. In the Editor
printer commands are handled a little bit different. See Section
6:"Escape Sequences in the Editor".
SENDING A PRINTER COMMAND
Printer commands sent from F1:PRINTER COMMAND affect every line
of the label. Commands sent from CREATE FORMAT act upon selective
lines. From the Menu line press <F1>. A menu window will
appear.
Page (30)
We are going to put a dot-matrix printer into enlarged mode and
an HP into a small font. Select <Printer Command>. Type the
following:
Dot Matrix: 5/<Esc>W1
Laser IIP: 17/<Esc>(10U<Esc>(s0p16.67h8.5v0s0b0T<Esc>&l0O
Press <Enter>. The '5/' and '17/' are the CPI for the fonts.
Nothing seemed to happen but your Dot-matrix printer will now
print everything in an enlarged font and your laser in
compressed. Press <Esc> to get back to the main screen. Create
a label and print. Change the Width and Center settings and
print another one. Notice how wide the letters print.
It is extremely important that the CPI(Characters per inch) be
included. MR. LABEL makes spacing adjustments based on the CPI.
The 5 CPI means that the ENLARGED font prints 5 characters per
inch. Fonts print in various sizes and some take more or less
characters per inch to display the same text.
The important point is that when sending a command that changes a
font you must include the CPI to get proper centering, aligned
margins and the proper number of characters on a line.
CPI - CHARACTERS PER INCH
To tell MR. LABEL the correct CPI you precede the command with
the CPI figure followed by a slash. A fractional CPI should be
rounded to the nearest whole number(16.67 = 17CPI). So Enlarged
on a dot-matrix machine would be sent as:
ON 5/<Esc>W1 Turns on Enlarged mode
OFF 10/<Esc>W0 Turns off Enlarged; Changes the
CPI to 10
Courier Bold for an HP Laser:
12/<Esc>(0N<Esc>(s0p12.00h10.0v0s3b3T<Esc>&l0O
Laser fonts stay on until a new font command is sent.
Your printer manual should list the CPI for each font. You can
determine the CPI yourself by measuring the number of characters
per inch with a ruler. If no CPI is sent it is assumed to be 10.
If you don't provide the correct CPI, you may get truncated text
or non-aligned margins.
To avoid problems, do not use proportional fonts with Formats or
with the Margin and Center settings. Mr. Label's Center and
Margin settings and the 'C' and 'R' commands will space properly
only when using the Fixed space fonts of your printer.
EXAMPLES of DOT-MATRIX PRINTER COMMANDS
Page (31)
Below are some commands for EPSON and many other dot-matrix
printers.
ON OFF Fonts, Commands, & CPI
18/<Alt 15> <Alt 18> Condensed(Compressed) 16-18
CPI usually
<Esc>Q<Alt 132> <Esc>Q<Alt 80> Right margin to 132 chars
<Esc>C<Alt 20> <Esc>C<Alt 66> Form Length to 20 lines;
an 11" page = 66 lines
<Esc>9 <Esc>8 Paper-out buzzer
<Esc>G <Esc>H Double Strike
5/<Esc>W1 <Esc>W0 Enlarged(Expanded) - 5 CPI
10/<Esc>S0 <Esc>T Superscript - 10 CPI
12/<Esc>M <Esc>P Elite - 12 CPI
<Esc>E <Esc>F Emphasized(NLQ)
10/<Esc>4 <Esc>3 Italic - 10 CPI
<Esc>-1 <Esc>-0 Underlining
<Esc>@ Printer Reset
<ALT 10> Line feed - printhead down
one line
<ALT 13> Carriage Return; printhead
to column 1
<ALT 12> Form Feed - printhead to top of
next page
Many commands can be combined. For example Double-Strike,
Enlarged creates a large and bold font.
5/<Esc>G<Esc>W1
MR. LABEL works with all printers but you'll have to check your
printer manual to make sure the above commands are correct for
your equipment. Some printers, like the Okidata, are a bit
different. Notice that there are no spaces between the codes.
There is a maximum of 50 code characters per printer command
line.
PRINTER ERRORS
An error is made when you supply a command that the printer does
not understand. When this happens the printer will assume the
command is meant to be text and will print it. It's pretty
obvious when you goof-up. Just modify the command.
CLEAR/RESET
Pressing CLEAR/RESET sends a command to the printer which resets
it to the power-up state. All the settings and the CPI are also
reset. The Format mode is exited. All files are closed.
Turning your printer off and on does not reset the CPI. For dot-
matrix printers that don't respond to a reset(the printhead
Page (32)
should return to the left side of the machine), turn the power
off then on. See Section 1: CONFIGURATION.
Page (33)
SECTION 5: FORMATS
FORMATTING PRINTED TEXT
When you create a printing format you define how you want text to
print on your form. All typed text or lists read from a file
will print according to the active format.
You define:
1. How many Lines of text are on the label
2. The Start and Stop positions for gathering text
3. The Width of the form
4. The Spaces (blank lines) to advance after the text is printed
5. The Margin. The number of spaces from the left edge of your
paper. This is the column to begin printing.
6. Printer commands/fonts to be assigned to each Line of text
Let's say you're in the mail order business and ship packages.
You could create a shipping label that printed your address
centered at the top, moved down 6 lines and printed the
customer's address left justified and with the first line in a
large font.
Formatting assigns printer commands to corresponding lines of
text. These Format commands and the settings can be saved to disk
for future use. Please note, the printer commands(format) for
each line are saved - not any typed text. Label text is saved in
list files and channeled through Formats.
Formatting text lets you completely control the position of the
printhead and the font for each line. Thus every line can be in
a different font and/or position on the page.
This is great for printing on Rolodex cards or designing special
labels like shipping labels or promotional mailings. Formats use
printer commands plus two special software commands, namely, R
and C.
The R (RIGHT) Command
The 'R' always precedes the CPI. Example: 20R5/<Esc>W1 Here R
= 20. The CPI=5. The R means space over some columns to the
right before printing this line. The Margin setting moves
everything over while the R moves lines selectively. The sum of
Margin and R must always be an even number.
The C (CENTER) Command
The letter 'C' placed as the first character of a format line
will cause the text to be centered between the MARGIN and the
Width settings. Example: C5/<Esc>W1 It works the same as the
CENTER setting except it moves individual lines rather than all
of them. Remember, the F2:Center setting has no effect if a
Page (34)
format is active. The 'C' is great for centering a label that
uses different type fonts on each line. See the format,
CENTERED.FMT for a dot-matrix Format with 3 lines, centered and
in 3 fonts.
Here's the priority of text placement. Text is first moved
according to the MARGIN setting, then it is moved Right via the
'R' command and lastly centered with the 'C' command. Don't
forget to include the CPI if it isn't 10.
If you are only sending an R, C or CPI command without anything
else here are some rules. Remember that R, C, and CPI are
software commands not printer commands. MR. LABEL uses these
numbers to make various spacing adjustments. If your command
line has an R, C, or CPI command then they must precede a
slash(/).
RULES FOR THE R AND C COMMANDS
1. 35R/ If only sending an R follow it by a slash. The R is
only good for that line. It reverts to zero after printing.
2. 5/ If only sending a CPI. If no CPI is given for a line it
is assumed to be 10.
3. 35R5/ If sending an R and a CPI.
4. The sum of MARGIN and the R should ALWAYS be an even number.
Otherwise, if you are lining up different type fonts one
above another they may not be perfectly aligned. This is
caused by rounding when MR. LABEL makes his margin
adjustments.
5. C/ Centers the text. A 10 CPI is assumed.
C5/ Centered using 5 CPI as the spacing adjustment.
C35R5/ Centers the text after moving Right 35 spaces. The
CPI here is 5.
NOTE TO LASER USERS
The formatting examples in this section are for a dot-matrix
printer but laser users can modify the format by substituting
their own font commands. (Also see APPENDIX C: LASER ADDENDUM)
In "Section 3:Laser Envelopes - an Example", we had discussed a
similar laser format. Before printing using laser labels, send
the right setup commands to configure your printer to your paper
stock. To use a format that prints on envelopes we would first
use ENVELOPE.SET. This tells the printer to print in landscape
mode on Com 10 envelopes. Some laser printers with inadequate
RAM may have problems rotating more than one font at a time to
Landscape mode.
Page (35)
When printing on envelopes or any "one label to a page" laser
stock, the first command (after the CPI slash) on line 1 of the
format should usually be a form feed<Alt 12>. Spaces should be
zero.
Example: 10/<Alt 12><Esc>(10U...etc.
This ejects the previous form and positions the printer at the
top of a new 'page' before printing. Do not include the reset
command in a format. The Echo command can be used to copy long
printer commands when creating Formats.
RETRIEVING, CREATING AND EDITING A FORMAT
GET DISK FORMAT
Here are the general steps to follow when retrieving a format
file:
1. At the main screen type any Fixed text(or blank lines) on the
lines that will be outside the Start/Stop range of the
Format.
2. Use F1:GET FORMAT to load the disk format file.
3. From F2:Settings change any other Settings as required.
Altering the format settings for LINES, START or STOP is
guaranteed to cause problems because doing so greatly
changes the format.
4. At the main screen begin typing or read a list file into the
format.
On your MR. LABEL disk there is a dot-matrix format file called
LETTER.FMT which prints the return and destination address on
continuous business envelopes in one pass and in different type
styles. This format can be adapted to many uses. We'll use this
complicated labeling format as an example. The format requires
the user to type the return address and message line only once.
(The return address and message line are Fixed for each
envelope.) This sort of application is very effective in getting
the recipient's attention and makes for an attractive and
professional looking mailer. It also saves the sender a lot of
work. Let's enter the fixed lines for the Format.
Step #1:
At F2:Settings change Lines to 11. Press <Esc> to return to the
Menu line.
On lines 1,2 and 3 type your return address. Press <Enter> for
all the lines up through 9. This makes lines 4 to 9 blank.
On Line 10 type: <IMPORTANT>.
Press <Enter> for line 11.
Page (36)
Press <Esc> at ' Is Text Correct? '. It's not necessary to
print the text. We have now finished Step 1, entering fixed
lines.
Step #2:
Select F1:Get Disk Format. Enter the filename <LETTER>. ( MR.
LABEL saves and retrieves all format files automatically with the
.FMT suffix ). Upon loading the file, a description of the
format appears. Notice that Start is 6 and Stop is 9. Lines 6-9
are varying lines - all the rest are fixed. This was Step 2,
loading the format file. (If you wish, select <F1:Modify Format>
to see the printer codes.)
Step #3:
Press <Esc> and go back to the main screen. You will notice a
white 'F' on the screen. This means that a Printing Format is
now active. Also, the settings have changed to reflect the active
format. At this point you could change the Copies if you wanted.
Step #4:
Press <Enter> at the Menu Line, type lines 6 - 9 and then print.
The LETTER Format prints your return address in the upper left
corner, spaces down and prints the destination address, and
finally prints our underlined message.
CREATE PRINTING FORMAT
To create a format, first plan it out on paper. Then follow
these steps to enter it into the computer:
1. Select CREATE FORMAT. Change the Settings lines, spaces,
start, stop, width, and margin to the needed values.
2. You can now enter printer commands for each line. Remember,
you can use the ECHO command to copy similar format lines.
Save the format if you wish.
3. Exit to the Menu Line and type a sample label to test the
format. If needed, select F1:MODIFY FORMAT to make changes
or to save the format.
EXAMPLE: CREATING A FORMAT
Let's recreate the LETTER format to show how it's done. The
first 3 lines hold our return address. Lines 6-9 hold the
addressee information.
Step #1
First Press <F1:CREATE FORMAT>.
Step #2:
Page (37)
Then press 2:Change Settings. Set LINES=11. Set the WIDTH=40
because the longest line of our address won't exceed 40
characters. Set SPACES=4 because we want some line feeds
to push our envelope through the printer after it's done
being addressed. Set START=6 and STOP=9 because the
destination address will go into the varying lines. Set
MARGIN=0. COPIES, PAUSE, and BORDER are never part of a
Format. Press <Esc> to leave the settings window.
Step #3:
Next, we assign printer commands to lines of our label by
pressing a 1 to ENTER CODES. Use the left arrow, right
arrow, and backspace keys to move around on the line. Press
INS on the keypad to switch between overstrike and insert
modes.
Use the Echo command(^E#:) to copy a similar command from
another line. This is especially useful for laser printer
commands since they are long and often very similar.
The commands that go on each line are shown below. When done
typing, correct any commands and save the format.
Keep in mind when creating your dot-matrix formats that text will
be printed according to the printer commands for the current line
and any prior commands that have not been turned off. You may
wish to do a RESET before retrieving a format to clear any
existing printer commands. The printer commands for a line go to
the printer just before the text.
These are the commands that make up the Letter.fmt format.
1. 10/ The 10 is the CPI for the line - normal text. Lines 1-3
contain the return address and will print in normal mode.
2. 10/ The CPI stays at 10 and nothing else changes either.
3. 10/ Same as above.
4. 10/<Alt 10>... Enter <Alt 10> 9 times. Each ALT 10 appears
as an 'L' and is a linefeed character. After the address is
printed in the upper left corner we need to space down (line
feed) in order get the print head on the right line. Lines
4 and 5 are blank on our envelopes but if you wanted a
fourth return address line on line 4 you could have put all
the linefeeds on line 5. In this case we aren't changing a
font but are moving the printhead to a new position in
preparation for lines 6 - 9.
5. 10/ Line 5 has no printer commands and will contain a blank
text line.
Page (38)
6. 42R5/<Esc>W1 The text for this line will print 42 columns
Right from the left Margin position. <Esc>W1 causes the
person's name to print in Enlarged mode. The CPI is 5.
7. 42R10/<Esc>W0 We want lines 7, 8, 9 to print in normal mode
starting in column 42. So, we'll turn off enlarged mode -
<Esc>W0
8. 42R10/ Line 8 prints in column 42 in normal 10 CPI.
9. 42R10/: Line 9 prints in column 42 in normal 10 CPI.
10. 5/<Alt 10><Esc>W1<Esc>-1 The <Alt 10> forces the print head
down one line. These other codes cause text to be printed
in Enlarged=<Esc>W1, Underlined=<Esc>-1 mode starting in
column number 1. The CPI is set to 5. Our message
"IMPORTANT" goes on line 10.
11. <Esc>W0<Esc>-0 <Esc>W0 turns off enlarged. <Esc>-0 turns
off underlining. The enlarged and underline commands have
to be turned off because we want line 1 on the next label to
start printing in normal mode. There is no text for line
11. You may have to include an extra line like this to
reset everything to normal mode. (Or, you could omit line 11
and put the 'off' commands as the first commands on line 1.)
After entering the codes for line 11 you'll be asked if the
codes are correct. Enter <Y> or press <Enter>.
Press <3> for SAVE FORMAT. 'DESCRIBE' will appear on the
top line. Enter information that will explain what goes on each
line or what the format is for. You have 145 characters in which
to fit your explanation.
At the 'FILENAME' prompt, enter <MYLABEL>. The format will be
saved. You may also precede the filename with the drive letter -
example: B:mylabel.
The format is now saved to disk and is active in the computer.
If you don't have your fixed text entered on lines 1-3 you may
wish to do a F1:Clear/Reset, Enter the fixed text, then retrieve
the format <F1:Get Format>. At the main screen, you'll type
text on lines 6 to 9. The complete envelope format will print
including fixed text. You could also read a list into the
varying lines of this format. The Format POSTCARD.FMT on your
disk prints a return and destination address on Avery 3.5" x 6"
continuous postcards (product #4167).
MODIFY FORMAT
If you don't like the looks of your format press MODIFY FORMAT to
make any changes. All the settings and codes for the format will
Page (39)
be displayed. You can retain the previous description by
entering a "=". The format file can be re-saved with the same
or a new name. Modify mode is much like creating the format. A
format must be active(F) to do an edit.
ADDING FIXED TEXT TO A FORMAT
A fixed line of text can be added to any line of a printing
format. Thus you can permanently embed fixed text like a return
address right in the format. There is a catch though. Although
preceeding font commands will act on embedded text, the 'R' and
'C' commands will not. Embedded text will print left justified
and to the left of any typed label text. It may also adversely
affect the placement of label text that goes on the same line.
So, it can be done but it lacks the flexibility of the normal
fixed lines method.
Page (40)
SECTION 6: THE TEXT EDITOR
USING THE TEXT EDITOR
Press <F4> from the status line to enter the editor. MR. LABEL's
editor is a powerful, full-featured editing environment. It does
not word wrap text but extends long rows of text to the right on
the screen. Just move the cursor to the right to view the text.
Upon entering the editor you are placed into a default file
called "NONAME". At this point you can do whatever want. Read
in files(Ctrl-K R) from disk, edit them, combine files, save them
to a new file(Ctrl-K S) etc. You can have several files open in
separate windows(Ctrl-O A) and move text between them. Files can
be as large as your machine's available memory. Press F1 to view
a short help screen. Type (Ctrl-K X) to exit the editor. (Ctrl-
K Q) quits without saving the file.
The top line of any editing window also has a status line. It
shows:
Line: The line number that the cursor is on.
Col: The number of the column containing the cursor.
Byte: The number of bytes the cursor is into the file.
Insert: Indicates if Insert or Over-write mode is in effect.
See the command "Toggle Insert".
Indent: Indicates that auto-indent is on. See the command
"Toggle Autoindent".
Save: Indicates that the file has been modified since it
was last saved.
ESCAPE SEQUENCES IN THE EDITOR
Escape Sequences are typed in the editor to create laser printer
setup files. They are typed a little different than in the main
program. To type non-keyboard characters including Esc:
1. Press <Ctrl P> before typing any character less than 32 or
over 127. The <Ctrl P> tells the Editor that you want to
type a non-keyboard character.
2. With Num-lock on, hold down the ALT key, type the number from
the keypad, release the ALT key.
Thus, <Esc> is entered by first <Ctrl P> and then <ALT 27>. In
the Editor you cannot use ALT E to type Esc. In the Editor some
codes appear differently than in the main program (027=Esc='[',
012=Form Feed='L', 010=Line Feed='J'). In the main program a
Line Feed(ALT 10) appears as a stocky 'L' and a Form Feed(Alt 12)
as a stylized 'F'.
Laser printer commands generally consist of the <Esc> character
and a bunch of keyboard characters. Be sure to read "Section
4:Setup Commands for Laser Printers". Here's how the Landscape
command would be typed in the editor:
Command: <Esc>&l1O
Page (41)
Editor: <Ctrl P><Alt 27>&l1O
Dot matrix commands could also by entered. To type our super-
script, double-strike commands in the Editor:
Decimal Values: 27 83 27 71 ;27=<Esc> 83=S 71=G
In the Editor:
<Ctrl P><Alt 27>S<Ctrl P><Alt 27>G ;this is the easy way
or
<Ctrl P><Alt 27><Ctrl P><Alt 83><Ctrl P><Alt 27><Ctrl P><Alt 71>
Remember: Printer commands are upper/lower case sensitive.
Do not press <Enter> at the end of your line of setup
commands.
COMMAND SUMMARY
MR. LABEL's editing commands are similar to Wordstar and
Sidekick. When the notation Ctrl- precedes another key, it means
that you hold down the Ctrl key and press the second key. In the
case of commands using Ctrl and two keystrokes (like Ctrl-K R),
you hold Ctrl down only while you press the first key, not the
second.
COMMAND KEYSTROKES
Character left arrow or Ctrl-S
Character right arrow or Ctrl-D
Word left Ctrl-left arrow or Ctrl-A
Word right Ctrl-Right arrow or Ctrl-F
Line up Up arrow or Ctrl-E
Line down Down arrow or Ctrl-X
Scroll up Ctrl-W
Scroll down Ctrl-Z
Page up PgUp or Ctrl-R
Page down PgDn or Ctrl-C
Beginning of file Ctrl-PgUp or Ctrl-Q R
End of file Ctrl-PgDn or Ctrl-Q C
Beginning of line Home or Ctrl-Q S
End of line End or Ctrl-Q D
Top of screen Ctrl-Home or Ctrl-Q E
Bottom of screen Ctrl-End or Ctrl-Q X
Go to line Ctrl-J L
Go to column Ctrl-J C
Top of block Ctrl-Q B
Bottom of block Ctrl-Q K
Jump to marker 0..9 Ctrl-Q 0 .. Ctrl-Q 9
Set marker 0..9 Ctrl-K 0 .. Ctrl-K 9
Previous cursor position Ctrl-Q P
New line Enter or Ctrl-M
Insert line Ctrl-N
Insert control character Ctrl-P
Page (42)
Delete current character Del or Ctrl-G
Delete character left Backspace or Ctrl-H
Delete word Ctrl-T
Delete to end of line Ctrl-Q Y
Delete line Ctrl-Y
Find Ctrl-Q F
Find and Replace Ctrl-Q A
Find next Ctrl-L
Abandon File Ctrl-K Q
Save and Edit Ctrl-K S
Save and Exit Ctrl-K X or F2
Save to a file Ctrl-K N
Add Window Ctrl-O A or Shift-F3
Next Window Ctrl-O N or F6
Previous Window Ctrl-O P or Shift-F6
Resize active window Ctrl-O S
Begin Block F7 or Ctrl-K B
End Block F8 or Ctrl-K K
Copy block Ctrl-K C
Move block Ctrl-K V
Delete block Ctrl-K Y
Hide Block Ctrl-K H
Read a file Ctrl-K R
Write block to file Ctrl-K W
Abort Ctrl-U
Restore Line Ctrl-Q L
Undo last deletion Ctrl-Q U
Toggle Insert mode Ins or Ctrl-V
Toggle Autoindent Ctrl-Q I
Toggle marker display Ctrl-K M
Change directory Ctrl-J D
Set default extension Ctrl-J E
Show Available memory Ctrl-J R
BASIC MOVEMENT COMMANDS
These commands move the cursor without altering the text. The
cursor can be moved in one of two ways: with a key on the keypad
or with a "control character". Control characters are activated
by holding down the Ctrl key and pressing a keyboard key.
CHARACTER LEFT LEFT ARROW or CTRL-S
Moves the cursor one character to the left. This command does
not work across line breaks. Cursor stops when it hits column 1.
CHARACTER RIGHT RIGHT ARROW or CTRL-D
Moves the cursor one character to the right. Does not work across
line breaks. When it reaches the right edge of the text window,
the text scrolls horizontally until it reaches the extreme right
edge of the line (column 999).
Page (43)
WORD LEFT CTRL-LEFT ARROW or CTRL-A
Moves the cursor to the beginning of the word to the left. This
command works across line breaks.
WORD RIGHT CTRL-RIGHT ARROW or CTRL-F
Moves the cursor to the beginning of the word to the right.
LINE UP UP ARROW or CTRL-E
Moves the cursor to the line above. If the cursor is on the top
line of the window, the window scrolls down to reveal more text.
LINE DOWN DOWN ARROW or CTRL-X
Moves the cursor to line below. If the cursor is on the last
line of the window, the window scrolls up on line (if there's
more text to scroll).
SCROLL UP CTRL-W
Scrolls up toward the beginning of the file, one line at a time.
The cursor remains on its line until it reaches the bottom of the
window.
SCROLL DOWN CTRL-Z
Scrolls down toward the end of the file, one line at a time. The
cursor remains on its line until it reaches the top of the
window.
PAGE UP PGUP or CTRL-R
Moves the cursor one page up with an overlap of one line.
PAGE DOWN PGDN or CTRL-C
Moves the cursor one page down with an overlap of one line.
BEGINNING OF FILE CTRL-PGUP or CTRL-Q R
Moves the cursor to the first character of the file.
END OF FILE CTRL-PGDN or CTRL-Q C
Moves the cursor just beyond the last character of the file.
BEGINNING OF LINE HOME or CTRL-Q S
Moves the cursor to column 1 of the current line.
END OF LINE END or CTRL-Q D
Moves the cursor to the end of the current line.
TOP OF SCREEN CTRL-HOME or CTRL-Q E
Moves the cursor to the first line displayed in the active
window. The cursor stays in the same column.
BOTTOM OF SCREEN CTRL-END or CTRL-Q X
Moves the cursor to the last line displayed in the active window.
The cursor stays in the same column.
Page (44)
EXTENDED MOVEMENT COMMANDS
These commands are for quick movement.
GO TO LINE CTRL-J L
Prompts for a line number and moves the cursor there.
GO TO COLUMN CTRL-J C
Prompts for a column number and moves the cursor there.
TOP OF BLOCK CTRL-Q B
Moves the cursor to the position of the block-begin marker set
with Ctrl-K B. The command works even if the block is hidden or
the block-end marker is not set.
BOTTOM OF BLOCK CTRL-Q K
Moves the cursor to the position of the block-end marker set with
Ctrl-K K. The command works even if the block is hidden or the
block-begin marker is not set.
JUMP TO MARKER 0..9 CTRL-Q 0 .. CTRL-Q 9
Moves the cursor to one of the ten text markers created with Set
marker command. Ctrl-l-Q 0 jumps to marker 0, Ctrl-Q 1 jumps to
marker 1, and so on. If the specified marker has not been set,
the cursor is not moved.
SET MARKER 0..9 CTRL-K 0 .. CTRL-K 9
Sets one of the ten text markers at the current position of the
cursor. Ctrl-K 0 set marker 0, Ctrl-K 1 sets marker 1, and so
on.
Markers are set to mark or remember a location in your file.
PREVIOUS CURSOR POSITION CTRL-Q P
Moves to the last cursor position. This command is particularly
useful to move back to the previous position after a Find or
Find-and-replace operation.
INSERT and DELETE COMMANDS
These commands let you insert and delete characters, words, and
lines.
NEW LINE ENTER or CTRL-M
In Insert mode, this commands inserts a line break at the
cursor's position. If Autoindent mode is in effect, the cursor
moves to the next line and to the same column as the first non-
blank character in the previous line; otherwise, it moves to
column 1 of the new line.
In Overwrite mode, this command moves the cursor to column 1 of
the next line without inserting a new line, whether Autoindent
Page (45)
mode is in effect or not. A new line will be inserted if you're
in Overwrite mode and the cursor is on the last line of the file.
INSERT LINE CTRL-N
Inserts a line break at the cursor's position. The cursor does
not move.
INSERT CONTROL CHARACTER CTRL-P
Allows control characters to be entered into the text. Control
characters are displayed as highlighted letters. First type
CTRL-P then enter your control code with ALT # method from the
keypad.
DELETE CURRENT CHARACTER DEL or CTRL-G
Deletes the character under the cursor and moves any characters
to right of the cursor one position to the left.
DELETE CHARACTER LEFT BACKSPACE or CTRL-H
Moves the cursor one character to the left and deletes the
character positioned there. Characters to the right of the
cursor are moved one position to the left. If the command begins
when the cursor is in column one, the invisible end-of-line
marker for the previous line is deleted and the two lines are
joined.
DELETE WORD CTRL-T
Deletes the word to the right of the cursor. This command works
across line breaks and thus can remove line breaks.
DELETE TO END OF LINE CTRL-Q Y
Deletes all text from the position of the cursor to the end of
the line.
DELETE LINE CTRL-Y
Deletes the line containing the cursor and moves any lines below
it up one line.
FIND and REPLACE COMMANDS
These commands find patterns of text and optionally replace them
with new patterns.
FIND CTRL-Q F
Lets you search for a string of text up to 67 characters. When
you enter the command, you will be asked for a search string.
The last search string entered ( if any) will be displayed. You
can select it again by pressing <Enter>, edit it, or enter a new
search string. <Esc> or <Ctrl-U> will cancel a search command,
and Ctrl-P can be used to enter control characters. (To find a
period at the end of a line, you would search for <.Ctrl-M>,
Page (46)
where Ctrl-M was entered by pressing <Ctrl-P> and <Ctrl-M>.
Ctrl-M is the Enter key, a carriage return.
After the search string is entered, you must specify your search
options. The options you used last are displayed. You can enter
new options (canceling the old ones), edit the current options,
or select them again by pressing <Enter>. The following options
are available and you may use more than one. Ex: GUW
B Searches backwards from the current cursor position
toward the beginning of the file.
G Searches globally. The entire file is scanned for the
search string.
L Limits the search to the currently marked block.
U Ignores case; treats all alphabetic characters as if
they were uppercase.
W Searches for whole words only; skips matching patterns
embedded in other words.
If the text contains a target matching the search string, the
target is highlighted and the cursor is positioned just beyond
it.
FIND AND REPLACE CTRL-Q A
This operation works the same as the Find command except that you
can replace the found string with another string. After entering
the search string, you are asked to enter the replacement string.
The last replacement string entered, if any, will be displayed;
you may accept it, edit it, or enter a new string.
Finally, you are prompted for options. The options you used last
are displayed at first. You may enter new options (cancelling
the old ones), edit the current options, or select them by
pressing <Enter>. The options available are the same as those
for the Find command with the exception of the following:
N Replaces without asking; does not prompt for
confirmation at each occurrence of the search string.
If the text contains a target matching the search string, the
target is highlighted and the cursor is positioned just beyond
it. You are then asked if you wish to replace it. Press <Y> to
replace it, <N> to ignore it, or <A> to replace it and all
subsequent matches without asking. You can abort the operation
by pressing <Q>.
FIND NEXT CTRL-L
Page (47)
Repeats the last search operation. If the last search command
called for Find operation, the same search string and options
will be repeated; for a Find-and-replace operation, the
replacement string will be reused as well.
FILE COMMANDS
File commands let you save your edits. To read a file into the
editor see the command <Ctrl-K R> and also "Window Commands" if
you want several files open at once. Several general guidelines
apply to most of these commands:
Specify any legal file name, including a drive and/or path.
Don't use file names with the .BAK extension, however, since
that's the extension given to backup files.
When you are prompted for a file name, you will be shown the
last file entered. You can accept it by pressing <Enter>,
edit it, or enter a new file name.
When existing files are edited and saved, the editor
automatically creates a backup copy of the file by renaming
the old file and saving the new one under the old name.
(Backup files are given the .BAK extension.)
ABANDON FILE CTRL-K Q
If the file in the active window has not been modified, this
command closes the window. Otherwise, you are asked to verify
that the file should be abandoned before the window is closed.
If the active window is the only window open, this command can be
used to leave the editor.
SAVE AND EDIT CTRL-K S
Simply saves the file in the active window.
SAVE AND EXIT CTRL-K X or F2
Saves the file in the active window. If the active window is the
only window open, this command will quit the editor; otherwise,
the window is closed and you may continue editing in another
window.
SAVE TO A FILE CTRL-K N
Prompts you for a file name, then saves the file in the current
window in the specified file. This becomes the new name for the
file in the window(and in any other windows that display the same
file). This command is particularly useful for editing NONAME
files.
WINDOW COMMANDS
When using window commands, keep in mind the following:
Page (48)
The editor can manage no more than six open windows at a
time.
Windows occupying fewer than seven screen lines cannot be
divided.
You can see different parts of the same file by using the
Add window command and specifying the name of an existing
window.
ADD WINDOW CTRL-O A or SHIFT-F3
Opens another window. You will be prompted for a pathname/file
to edit; if you don't specify one, a NONAME file is created.
You can later save it as a named file with the Save to file
command. If too many windows are open or if the active window is
too small to be divided in half (to make room for the new
window), you will get an error message.
NEXT WINDOW CTRL-O N or F6
Makes the next window the active window.
PREVIOUS WINDOW CTRL-O P or SHIFT-F6
Makes the previous window the active window.
RESIZE ACTIVE WINDOW CTRL-O S
Changes the size of the active window. You can adjust the size
by pressing the Up and Down arrow keys. When finished, pressing
<Enter> or <Esc> returns you to the editor.
BLOCK COMMANDS
A block is an arbitrarily defined, contiguous unit of text; a
block can be as small as a single character or as large as an
entire file. Mark a block by placing a begin-block marker at the
first character in the desired block, and an end-block marker
just beyond the last character. Once marked, the block can be
copied, moved, deleted, or written to a file.
Although marked blocks are normally highlighted so you can see
what you've marked, the block maybe hidden (or made visible) with
the Hide block command. Many of the block-manipulation commands
described here work only when the block is being displayed. The
block-related cursor movement commands Ctrl-Q B and Ctrl-Q K,
described in the section "Extended Movement Commands", work
whether the block is hidden or displayed.
BEGIN BLOCK F7 or CTRL-K B
Marks the beginning of a block. The marker itself is not visible
on the screen, and the block becomes visible only when the end-
block marker is set.
Page (49)
END BLOCK F8 or CTRL-K K
Marks the end of a block. Like the begin-block marker, the end-
block marker is invisible, and the block itself will not be
displayed unless both markers are set.
COPY BLOCK CTRL-K C
Creates a copy of a marked and displayed block at the current
cursor position. The original block is left unchanged, and the
markers are placed around the new copy of the block.
MOVE BLOCK CTRL-K V
Moves a marked and displayed block from its current position to
the cursor's position. The markers remain around the block at its
new position.
DELETE BLOCK CTRL-K Y
Deletes a marked and displayed block. The Undo last deletion
command (Ctrl-Q U) can restore about 20 lines of text, so use
this command with care.
HIDE BLOCK CTRL-K H
Toggles off and on the visual marking of a block. (Text will
change color.)
READ FILE FROM DISK CTRL-K R
Reads a file into the editor at the cursor's current position
exactly as if it were copied from another part of the text. The
file read in is color marked as a block. See Hide Block. Using
this command, several files can be read into the editor and
apppended.
WRITE BLOCK TO FILE CTRL-K W
Writes the currently marked block to a file. You are first
prompted for a file name. If the file already exists, you are
asked if you want to overwrite it. If the file does not exist, a
new file is created. The block is left unchanged, and the block
markers remain in place. If no block is marked the command is
ignored.
MISCELLANEOUS COMMANDS
ABORT CTRL-U
Halts an operation in progress.
RESTORE LINE CTRL-Q L
Will undo any changes made to a line of text as long as you have
not left the line.
UNDO LAST DELETION CTRL-Q U
Restores lines deleted with the Delete line command (Ctrl-Y) or
the Delete block command (Ctrl-K Y)
Page (50)
TOGGLE INSERT MODE INS or CTRL-V
Selects Insert of Overwrite mode. In Insert mode, text to the
right of the cursor is moved to the right as new text is entered.
In Overwrite mode, any text beneath the cursor is overwritten.
TOGGLE AUTOINDENT CTRL-Q I
When Autoindent mode is in effect, the new line command (<Enter>
or <Ctrl-M>) will move the cursor to the next row and to the same
column as the first non-blank character on the previous line.
TOGGLE MARKER DISPLAY CTRL-K M
Hides or makes all text markers visible. Setting a new text
maker automatically turns on Marker display if it was off.
CHANGE DIRECTORY CTRL-J D
Changes the active drive and directory.
SET DEFAULT EXTENSION CTRL-J E
Set the default extension for file names. The extension is
automatically added to file names lacking extensions. For
example, if you have set the default extension to .DOC and are
about to load SAMPLE.DOC, you can simply enter SAMPLE when
prompted for a file name.
SHOW AVAILABLE MEMORY CTRL-J R
Shows the amount of RAM available for editing.
Page (51)
We're very interested in learning how people use MR. LABEL at
home or work and will be happy to respond to any inquiries or
comments about the program. Suggestions for improving the
program are always very welcome. If you've created Formats that
others may find useful, please send the code and a sample label.
We'll include it in a Format library.
FILES on the PROGRAM DISK
Ml.EXE is the executable code.
ML.SYS holds screen colors.
README.DOC tells how to print the manual.
ML.DOC is the documentation.
DATABASE.DTA is a sample database text file.
REGISTER.PRT is a registration and order form.
NAMES.LST is a sample list file
*.SET These are setup files for various laser label papers
FORMAT FILES
FORMATS1.PRT is a print file that shows some labels created using
the some of the dot-matrix formats(.fmt files) listed below. The
format codes are explained. To print the file type:
<copy formats1.prt prn>
Laser Formats:
HPENVLP1.FMT prints the return and destination addresses on
envelopes for the HP laser printer.
HPENVLP2,3,4.FMT print just the destination address in a variety
of ways.
HPCENTER.FMT prints 4 line labels centered and in two fonts.
Dot-matrix Formats:
LETTER.FMT is a disk format for printing continuous feed
envelopes.
LARGE1.FMT prints the first line of each label in expanded font.
POSTCARD.FMT prints continuous feed postcards. Avery #4167
CENTERED.FMT prints 3 lines, centered and in 3 fonts. Try it!
SLANTED.FMT prints 4 lines slanted to the right.
SHIPPING.FMT prints a fixed and centered 4 line return address
and 4 line destination address on Avery shipping labels.
ROLODEX.FMT prints a card for a Rolodex file - Rediform #06821
Full name on first line.
NAMETAG.FMT prints a nametag - Avery #4160;
First Name on first line; Employer on 2nd line
Page (52)
APPENDIX A: DATABASE TO LIST CONVERSION
CONVERT DATABASE
Let's start by explaining some database terminology.
FILE: A collection of data about many people or things.(Example:
A corporate personnel file)
RECORD: The Data on one person or thing.(James Worth's data).
FIELD: One piece of information.(Jim's Zip code or city).
MR. LABEL can read fixed length database text files (ASCII row
and column files) and extract up to 10 selected fields of data.
Each extracted field is assigned to a line of a label. The
database file to be read must be a fixed length text file with
each record terminated by a carriage return. The fields in the
records must be in the same column positions. Records can be any
size but only the first 254 characters of each line can be
accessed. Below is an example of what such a file would look
like. The numbered grid is not part of the file. MR. LABEL
reads in the first record from the file and uses it as a template
to process the whole file.
....+....1....+....2....+....3....+....4....+....5....+....6....+
Worth James 26 S. Sundown St. Phoenix AZ 85022*
Sanders Mary 616 Sunny Crest Scotts CA 95066*
Sands Joe 12 W. Central New York NY 10024*
Some databases and spreadsheets do not normally store information
in plain text files but all can create them via a command or a
conversion utility (see below for a dBase example). Most program
manuals discuss this topic. Some databases begin each file with
a header record or store data in binary code. On the screen this
will appear as a bunch of strange symbols or unintelligible
information. It will have to be converted to a standard ASCII
text file.
After selecting Convert Database from the F1:Formats menu, enter
the filename containing the database records. You can include
the drive name and path name - ex: <b:\file\filename.dat> The
file will be retrieved and a message will appear if the records
exceed 255 characters or if there was an access problem. The
file can still be processed if its longer than 254 characters but
data beyond that can't be extracted. The first record from the
file will be displayed beneath a numbered grid which denotes the
positions of each character in the record. You'll be asked:
How many fields to extract (1-12):
Page (53)
Enter the total number of fields(pieces of information) you wish
to extract from the record. For example, LastName, FirstName,
and Zip would be 3 fields.
Each field, or item of information in the record, extends from
the first character of a field to one character before the start
of the next field. (Note: If right-justified, numeric fields
may actually start a number of spaces to the left of the first
character shown in the field.)
In the above records, the First Name field extends from columns
12 to 21. The 'Street Address' field is from columns 22 to 42.
The last field ends in column 64 - one space before the
asterisk.
Type the BEGIN and END field positions for each field you'll be
extracting and press <Enter> after each number. If you wanted
the Last Name field on your label then the 'begin' position would
be 1 and the 'end' would be 11. Fields may be extracted in any
order. If you enter a non-numeric position character it will be
rejected. After selecting each line you may either begin the
conversion or JOIN LINES.
JOINING LINES
The JOIN feature is a very important tool. If you work at a
company with a data processing department you may wish to show
this feature to the programming staff. (You can extract
downloaded flat file information without having it preformatted
by a COBOL program.) Combine this feature with MR. LABEL's
formatting capabilities and you've got a powerful combination.
The JOIN feature lets you append lines from your selected list
onto the ends of others. In our above example, say we extracted
the following three fields: Last Name, First Name, Zip Code.
The first record would display like below and you'd be asked to
either convert to this kind of list or join some lines.
1. Worth
2. James ;each label is now 3 lines
3. 85022
We want to print the label as FIRST NAME & LAST NAME. Since the
first and last names have been extracted as two separate fields,
you need to join them in the proper order. So, the line to
APPEND TO would be #2 and APPEND FROM would be #1. The data
would now appear as:
1. ;
2. James Worth ;after the join, each label is 2 lines
3. 85022
Page (54)
Spaces are automatically inserted between joined lines and
trailing spaces are trimmed. Lines made blank appear with a
semicolon and are removed prior to creating the final list.
Lines may be joined more than once. Upon approving the extracted
fields, MR. LABEL will ask you to type a new filename to hold the
label list. Make sure the name is not the same as an existing
file! The list will be created from the database and written to
your new file. You may view the new list file with the editor.
CONVERSION NOTES
Be aware that a field in the very first record of a file could be
blank. To prevent any field location problems, read the file
into the editor and take a look at the data. The column counter
will show the position of each character. Long lines of data
extend off the screen to the right but you can scan the file.
Just move the cursor to the right and the screen will scroll.
All the records may appear to be on one long line or they may
display one above the other. If they're all on one line, the
carriage return character will display as the letter "M" at the
end of each record.
On your disk there is a file called DATABASE.DTA which is the
type of file a Realtor might keep on clients. You can experiment
Converting this file. Take a look at it first with the editor.
Field Positions for Database.dta
Last Name 1-19 Zip 74-78
First Name 20-31 Price 79-85
Address 32-51 Need 86-109
City 52-71 Employer 110-129
State 72-73 Phone 130-142
CONVERTING dBASE FILES TO ASCII
Here's a quick way to convert selected dBase III fields to a flat
Ascii text file. These commands are entered at the dot prompt:
1.) SET ALTERNATE TO LIST.DAT ;name the disk file
2.) SET ALTERNATE ON ;open the file
3.) LIST NAME, ADDRESS1, CITY FOR ZIPCODE = "85274" OFF
(Selects fields based on a logical condition. The 'OFF'
command suppresses printing of record numbers)
4.) SET ALTERNATE OFF ;close disk file
dBase puts your selected fields into a row and column format in a
file called LIST.DAT. All database programs have commands
similar to this. Read LIST.DAT into the editor and delete any
lines at the start of the file if they contain dBase commands.
Page (55)
Save the file. These commands get in there because after you
type SET ALTERNATE ON dBase copies commands, and the result of
commands, to your disk file. This file can now be CONVERTED to a
list and then processed by Mr. Label.
Page (56)
APPENDIX B: ASCII CHART
The chart below shows the keyboard and graphic characters for
ascii values from 1 to 255.
Page (57)
APPENDIX C: LASER PRINTER ADDENDUM
Most labeling tasks do not require a Format. Formats are useful
when you want to print lines of a label in different fonts or
place text at certain places on a page or envelope.
The purpose of this addendum is to show you some formatting
capabilities using your laser printer and Mr. Label. The goal is
to make you feel comfortable creating or modifying formats to fit
your needs.
In the manual we've already discussed Hpenvlp1.fmt which prints
the return and destination address on a business envelope.
Included on your disk are 4 additional formats for use with the
HP II, III, and IIP series printers. The formats listed below
use the native printer fonts of the HP machines.
You may substitute a different font and CPI for any line of the
formats if you wish to use a cartridge or downloaded font. Your
printer may require more than 512K of memory to rotate fonts to
landscape or to print several fonts per label.
The following 3 envelope formats print just the destination
address on a business sized envelope.
HPENVLP2.FMT Prints just the address on an envelope.
HPENVLP3.FMT The address is printed slanted.
HPENVLP4.FMT The address is centered.
To print a copy of the actual format commands, select F1:Modify
Format and do a print screen.
To use any of the envelope formats refer in the manual to the
section "Laser Envelopes - An Example". Substitute one of the
above formats for Hpenvlp1 and eliminate Step #3. There are no
fixed lines for the above formats.
HPCENTER.FMT Prints 4 lines centered and in different fonts.
The paragraph below shows how printer commands are placed on
lines of the format. The above envelope formats can also be
modified to print in different fonts.
Here's the commands in the format Hpcenter.fmt.
1. C10/<Esc>(0N<Esc>(s0p10.00h12.0v0s3b3T<Esc>&l0O
2. C10/<Esc>(8U<Esc>(s0p10.00h12.0v0s0b3T<Esc>&l0O
3. C10/<Esc>(0N<Esc>(s0p10.00h12.0v0s3b3T<Esc>&l0O
4. C10/
Line 1 turns on Courier Bold, 10CPI. Line 2 is Medium Courier.
Page (58)
Lines 3 turns Courier Bold back on again. The 'C' command
centers the text. 10/ is the CPI for the font. The <Esc> and
<ALT #> commands are explained in "Typing Escape Sequences".
You can use any of the above formats by typing text from the
keyboard or by printing a list.
Let's print a list using the HPCENTER format and Avery two across
#5262 labels. You don't need to buy any laser labels to do this,
just use plain paper for now. We'll print 3 copies of every name
in our list. So, at F2:Settings change Copies = 3. The steps
below run a list through the HPCENTER.FMT printing Format.
1. Press F5 to go to DOS and print the setup file. C> Copy
AV5262.SET PRN The setup file tells the printer the size
of the page. Type <EXIT> to return to the program.
2. Select F1:Get Format. Type <hpcenter> to retrieve the
format. Press <Esc> to exit the menus.
3. Select F3:Read List from File and enter the filename
NAMES.LST. Since we are using a Format, we must select 1
across labels at the "Across" menu.
4. Press <Enter> from the main screen and 3 copies of every
label in the list will print. Notice that lines 1, 3, and 4
are in a bolded font.
The major limitation of a Format is that it can only print one
across. To use a format on 2-across label stock, you need to re-
load the label stock back into the printer, change the Margin
setting to about 40, and process the list again.
To print a list without a format, you'd eliminate step 2 above.
Select 1 or more across in step 3. Remember, to print 3-across
you need at least 3 labels in your list. NAMES.LST contains six
labels.
If your labels are not printing correctly due to a label being
split at the bottom of the page, one of two things is wrong.
Either you didn't print the setup file or the Spaces setting is
wrong.
Sometimes, like on cassette labels, you'll want to force one or
more blank lines to print before the text for a line. Place a
Line Feed character <ALT 10> in the format for that line. For
example:
3 . C 1 0 / < A L T 1 0 > < A L T
10><Esc>(8U<Esc>(s0p10.00h12.0v0s0b3T<Esc>&l0O
The two line feeds after the slash will cause line 3 to print
after spacing down 2 lines. Adjust your spaces setting to take
this into account.
Page (59)
APPENDIX D: THE POSTNET BARCODE
The Zip+4 Postnet barcode is often seen printed on the lower
right corner of envelopes you receive in the mail. In 1991 the
Postal Service installed barcode readers nation-wide as part of
its automation efforts. They use an OCR scanner on all mail and
spray on the barcode if it can read the address. This speeds
mail processing. In fact, barcoding saves your mail from several
hours up to 1 day of processing. Pre-printing the 9 digit
barcode on your labels helps you and the Post Office because your
mail bypasses the OCR scanner and any manual sorting. It also
virtually eliminates the possibility of mis-routing due to an
address scanning error. A pre-barcoded 5 digit zip offers no
benefits.
I was given a high-tech tour of the Phoenix operation and it is
impressive. These machines scan a mailer for an address or a
barcode and can read 40,000 mailers per minute. Mr. Label prints
at the placement preferred by the Postal Service which is above
and left justified with the first line of text of the address.
||::|||:|::||:||::||:|
DataWave Software
P.O. Box 42213
Mesa AZ 85274-2213
DataWave Software submitted pre-barcoded sample mailers to the
Postal Service created on 9 Pin and 24 Pin dot-matrix printers
and Hewlett Packard Laser Jets. Our barcode algorithm created
machine readable barcodes within the required tolerances. If you
own an Epson/IBM/HP compatible printer it will probably print an
excellent barcode using Mr. Label. But, it is critical that
you've selected the correct printer type. See Section
1:Configuration. A 9 pin printer must make two print passes to
get the tall bars high enough. And using a 24 pin printer with
the program set to 9 pin will also fail the Postal tolerances.
We can not guarantee the quality of barcodes created on your
printer. The brand of printer, printhead condition, the ribbon,
or toner can all affect barcode quality.
Mr. Label prints the barcode on 1 across labels at the column
designated by the MARGIN setting and just before the first
varying line of your address. Thus fixed lines can be used.
Formats can also be used if you're not using the 'R' command to
position the destination address to the right of the left margin.
If you have need of 2+ across or additional Postnet support let
us know. The most current registered program version may include
those features.
Contact your Main Post Office's Marketing department for
information on barcoded Zip+4 bulk mailing discounts. The
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Automation department will gladly test your barcode quality and
review its placement on the mailer.
Page (61)
INDEX
.FMT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9, 10, 37, 52
.LBL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
.lst . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
.prt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
.SET . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9, 52
'C' . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9, 12, 31, 34, 35, 40, 59
'R' . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9, 17, 31, 34, 35, 40, 60
<Esc>: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
# across . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24, 25
addendum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35, 58
ALT # method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7, 29, 30, 46
ALT E . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7, 30, 41
append . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8, 15, 54
ASCII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7, 29, 30, 53, 55, 57
Avery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4, 17, 27, 28, 39, 52, 59
barcode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4, 6, 13, 16, 18, 60
blank lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11, 13, 15, 23, 34, 36, 59
Border setting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12, 13
buffer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14, 16
cartridge fonts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Center setting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12, 34
Code: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
color . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6, 50
Com 10 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27, 35
Command: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7, 9, 28, 41
comment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
condensed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11, 28, 32
continuous feed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4, 21, 26, 52
control codes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15, 16
converting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23, 55
CPI . . . . . . 12, 17, 24, 27-29, 31, 32, 34-36, 38, 39, 58, 59
Ctrl P . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41, 42
dBase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14, 53, 55, 56
Dos Shell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
double-strike . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29, 30, 32, 42
Ec . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Echo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18, 36-38
elite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28, 32
enlarged . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28, 31, 32, 39
ESCAPE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7, 26, 28-30, 41, 59
Files Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
FIXED LINES . . . . . . . . . 11, 17, 19, 20, 36, 37, 40, 58, 60
Form Feed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26, 27, 32, 36, 41
Format: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9, 10, 21, 28
Formatting . . . . . . . . . . . . 5, 9, 10, 29, 34, 35, 54, 58
HP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14, 18
increment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4, 18-20
Insert . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17, 19, 38, 41-43, 45, 46, 51
job size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21, 26, 27, 30
Page (62)
JOIN feature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
landscape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21, 24, 26, 27, 35, 41, 58
laser envelopes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21, 35, 58
laser labels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4, 27, 35, 59
Line Feed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11, 27, 28, 32, 38, 41, 59
line printers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5, 19, 41, 43, 51, 58
Microsoft Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Monochrome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
NONAME . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41, 48, 49
OCR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5, 18
Okidata . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
orientation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21, 27
Overwrite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15, 17, 45, 46, 50, 51
Page Drift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
page printers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
page size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21, 26, 27
paper out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
paper tray . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21, 26
path . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15, 48, 53
Pause feature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
pica . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Postnet . . . . . . . 4, 6, 10, 13, 14, 16, 60, 6, 13, 14, 16, 60
Process Individually . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15, 22, 24, 25
RAM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35, 51
RANGE ERROR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Rediform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4, 52
registered . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
repeating text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
reset command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8, 10, 16, 36
rotating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
screen colors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6, 8, 52
semicolon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15, 19, 22, 55
sequentially . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18, 19
setup commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21, 26, 35, 41
slash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31, 35, 36, 59
Status Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8, 10, 13
superscripts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Text Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4, 5, 8, 41
text file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14, 52, 53, 55
truncate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
underlining . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28, 32, 39
width of label columns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Width setting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12, 17, 23, 24
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25, 41, 48, 49, 25
word processor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5, 9, 23
WordPerfect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
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