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From: kaz@cadovax.UUCP
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: Moronic printer drivers
Message-ID: <1387@cadovax.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 9-Feb-87 13:56:39 EST
Article-I.D.: cadovax.1387
Posted: Mon Feb  9 13:56:39 1987
Date-Received: Wed, 11-Feb-87 04:43:16 EST
References: <4175@videovax.Tek.COM> <1366@cadovax.UUCP> <3326@cbosgd.ATT.COM> <1987Feb4.154157.11126@utcs.uucp>
Reply-To: kaz@cadovax.UUCP (Kerry Zimmerman)
Organization: Contel Business Systems, Torrance, CA
Lines: 42
Keywords: slow, slower, slowest
Summary: multiple cancels reqd + notepad funnies

In article <1987Feb4.154157.11126@utcs.uucp> wagner@utcs.UUCP (Michael Wagner) writes:
>Keith was looking for a way of cancelling a print that's part way done.
>I also feel the need.  A quick (but not very satisfying) fix is to make
>the printer not ready.  A minute later, a requester comes up saying that
>your printer is broken.  You then select cancel.  Works every time.
>
>Michael


Unfortunately, the requester can and does come up again and again.
This occurs whenever the printing program calls DumpRPort for only a
portion of the entire printout, and does not check for errors between
each call.  For example, DeluxePrint prints a greeting card in three
parts;  The backside of the card, the middle of the card and the 
frontside of the card.  This means three cancels are required, and at 
least 30 seconds go by between each printer-problem requester.

NotePad is an interesting example.  A small note may only require 1
cancel, but a full screen note requires several cancels.  I hope a new
version of notepad is released that handles cancel print in a clean 
manner -- like deluxe paint II.

Its all very well for Commodore to say it's the application writer's
responsibility to make use of the printer.device features, but it is
obvious their own applications don't set very good examples in these
areas.  Of course they only had the RKM manual example to work from,
like us :-)

I noticed an interesting "feature" with notepad recently.  Print a note
using "small" which is the size of the original note window.  Next print
it again but first enlarge or shrink the window.  You will see the size
of the text get very small or super large as the auto-scaling of the
dump rast port takes effect.  I was suprised by this because I thought
changing the window size would only adjust how much text I could enter,
not change the size of the text itself.  Personally, I don't like having
the text size change, and is another reason I would like the 
printer.device to be less "flexible".


Kerry Zimmerman
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