Old Matrix printer problem

[Rob Hofkens]

Hello !

We have an old Brother matrix printer shared in our network via a printer
server.
We use it for printing labels via an old DOS program
This works still like a charm lol even on WinXP clients and a Win2003
server.

Now I am building an Access application and want to continue use it as a
label printer.
The problem is that the current Windows printer driver works for paper
formats A4, Letter.
There is no option to define user defined paper sizes.
This means that the printer is unable to stop transporting the labels till
next label and continues transporting till an A4 or so is transported.

My question:
Is there anyway I can continue to use this printer by some special VBcode
for instance ?
Or is there a way to tell a report to end after so many lines of printing ?

Thanx in advance !

Rob.

 

[Larry Linson]

Do you _have_ a printer-specific driver for current Windows? Unless that
same model dot-matrix printer is still sold, that would be unusual.

I notice that a lot of Windows printer drivers don't allow "custom paper
size". Googling at http://groups.google.com on the archives of this and of
comp.databases.ms-access may lead you to some solutions for starting on a
particular label that might work with the Windows driver.

Larry Linson
Microsoft Access MVP

 

[Rob Hofkens]

I suppose the printer was popular at his time and Win2003 Server and WinXP
clients all recognise it without a problem.
So the driver should be ok if it wasn't for the missing custom paper size.

I am going to google a bit

Thanx Larry!

 

[Rob Hofkens]

Oh I may found a solution from Tony Toews from 2001 which I already tried on
the server.
The driver now contains the custom made form I created.
Hopefully it works

Quote Tony Toews, Microsoft Access MVP :

You will likely need to create a custom paper size as that printer driver
likely
doesn't support changing just the paper length and width.

This is an OS dependent function. If Win2K (likely Win XP as well) go to
Settings >>
Printers from your Start menu on the print server. (This might work, or
might not,
on your own system as well.) Then click on File >> Server Properties. You
will
then see a screen showing Forms. Create a new Form here with your own name
and your
form sizes.


Then go into the report design view in Access. In A97 click on File >> Page
Setup >>
Page tab and change the Paper Size to the above created form name as well as
the
destination pritner.


Note that if you change the the printer name in the future you will also
lose this
Custom Paper Size.


Also if you want to print this report to multiple dot matrix printers you
will need
to do extensive mucking about with PrtDevMode but I'll leave that discussion
for
later if you require it. There is an undocumented feature you need to know
about
which isn't in any KB article or any of the Developers Handbooks.


Tony