Report process architecture

[Guest]

We're a large company with an access project that generates hundreds of
reports that are sent as faxes everyday. In the current process a macro runs
the report which is set up to use the fax as its printer. Our IT director
wants me to investigate the API toolkit provided by our fax software company
and figure out a way around using the fax as the printer. In a sense, they
want to send the report's output directly to the faxing software, without it
thinking of it as a printer. Is this even possible in Access? I guess I
need clarification as to what can be done with what in the actual process.
For example would the results of the report have to be sent to an .rtf file
to keep the formatting and then pass that off to my faxing software's API,
etc.

 

[Larry Linson]

. . . Our IT director wants me to inves-
tigate the API toolkit provided by our fax
software company and figure out a way
around using the fax as the printer. In a
sense, they want to send the report's
output directly to the faxing software, with-
out it thinking of it as a printer.

Is this even possible in Access? I guess I
need clarification as to what can be done
with what in the actual process.

For example would the results of the report
have to be sent to an .rtf file to keep the
formatting and then pass that off to my
faxing software's API, etc.

The probability is high that your management will not be pleased with the
accuracy that your report is rendered if you output to .RTF -- that is not
one of Access' strong points.

As we don't know what functionality of your faxing software's API provides,
I don't think anyone could advise you on that, except in general.

You don't have access to the actual code that generates the Report output --
that is internal to Access. It has two forms of output: the Report Preview
and printed Reports. It is possible that the API functions would need to be
called from or interface to that code, which you cannot do; but it is also
possible that they might be used to send a file from disk -- in that case,
you'd still have to use _something_ as a printer to "print to file".

If you could explain the _goal_, what your IT director hopes to accomplish
by not running the fax software as a printer (a very common approach) and
instead using the API, perhaps someone could offer useful suggestions.

Larry Linson
Microsoft Access MVP

 

[Mark Andrews]

I know a long time ago I implemented a solution which batch creates PDF
files
for use in a Fax on demand system. You can buy our code to help with the
creation of
PDF files if needed.

Not sure exactly what you are doing,
Mark
RPT Software
http://www.rptsoftware.com