Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!abvax!iccgcc!browns
From: browns@iccgcc.decnet.ab.com (Stan Brown, Oak Road Systems)
Newsgroups: comp.os.msdos.apps
Subject: Re: Looking for help with dBASE overflowing the print buffer
Message-ID: <1485.271c8817@iccgcc.decnet.ab.com>
Date: 17 Oct 90 21:34:31 GMT
References: <4d6f1a08.20b6d@apollo.HP.COM>
Lines: 34

In article <4d6f1a08.20b6d@apollo.HP.COM>, miller_h@apollo.HP.COM (Herbert Miller) writes:
> I use dBASE IV with a Laserjet IIP w/2Meg.  When I print large reports,
> dBASE gets way ahead 
> of the printer and tries to tell me that the I have a printer error. 
> The real problem is just that the print buffer
> is full.  I'm getting really sick of waiting for a few pages to print,
> telling dBASE to retry, having it timeout, wait some more, etc.  Anybody
> know of a way to make dBASE do real spooling?  It seems to me that if
> WordPerfect can tell the difference between a full print buffer and a
> real printer error there's no excuse for dBASE not too.

I have this problem too, and it _is_ annoying.  My solution was to use
"PRN2FILE" from PC Magazine.  It capture anything sent to PRN.  Then I
copy the file to PRN while I go for my coffee break.

PC Magazine utilities are available on Compuserve: type "GO PCMAGNET".
They are free but not public domain: i.e., you can legally give copies
away but not sell them.

As long as we're talking about dBASE IV,what a disappointment!  It's
significantly slower than III--even dBASE IV 1.1 which is advertised as
being fast.  Navigating through all of dBASE's menus is a pain, and so
is programming my own menus.  (In dBASE's own menus, Alt-keys access the
main choices along the top of the screen.  But the only way in a usser
menu is to hit the arrow keys until you come to the one you want, or use
lots of ON statements to capture the Alt keys.  What a pain.)  The ads
say that they include Structured Query Language, which is true; but they
don't tell you thaat you don't get the reference manual.

If I had it to do over again, I'd get Foxbase.

The above opinions are not attributable to any other person or company.
                                     email: browns@iccgcc.decnet.ab.com
Stan Brown, Oak Road Systems, Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.A.   +1 216 371 0043