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From: IanHendry@apple.com (Ian Hendry)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.programmer
Subject: Re: Need for PrGeneral in printer drivers.
Message-ID: <873@internal.Apple.COM>
Date: 7 Mar 89 23:13:59 GMT
References: <12534@dartvax.Dartmouth.EDU>
Sender: usenet@Apple.COM
Organization: Apple Computer, Inc.
Lines: 53


<<>>   Yeah, a working printer driver does not need PrGeneral
<<>implemented.  But maybe it couldn't hurt to have one...
<<
<<Some apps  complain if they cannot get a PrGeneral.  Canvas 2.0 for 
<<example warns you each time you try to print and then does it anyway.  
<<HyperCard is not so forgiving (not surprising to me...) and will refuse 
to 
<<use a driver that does not have PrGeneral (PDEF 7).
<<

<     I don't have Canvas 2.0, but HyperCard 1.2.1 works fine with my
<DMP-110 printer driver, and this driver has no PrGeneral.  In fact, it
<has only PDEF 4 and PDEF 0.  It may be that the printer driver Ian
<tried with HyperCard needs something else, or that HyperCard wants a
<PrGeneral under some combination of circumstances unknown to me.

You are correct, I should have said, it "sometimes will refuse."  I don't 
know exactly what the circumstances are myself.  Just for fun, take the 
imagewriter driver and remover PDEF 7 (PrGeneral) with ResEdit.  Now try 
to print in HyperCard.  It will give you an error message about "version 
2.5 or later."  This printer driver is otherwise totally functional (try 
printing from the finder for example).  Now for fun try "ImageSaver" which 
is part of SuperGlue.  You get a different error, same problem.  Now put 
the PDEF 7 from the ImageWriter into the ImageSaver which does not have a 
PDEF 7 (this is not for use, just to see what HyperCard will do) and 
HyperCard no longer objects.

My recollections agree that, as you point out, there are some drivers that 
do not require a PDEF 7.  The above games do not really show what is going 
on and I sure don't know.  If you figure it out please let me know.  By 
the way I am using 1.2.2, but I don't think it makes any difference.

<     From looking at the TechNote in question (128), I don't think it
<would be too difficult to write one, if it became obvious that

Very easy to write.

<PrGeneral were a necessary part of the printer resource file.  Since
<there has been no official word on this as yet, I assume for now that
<it is not necessary, however.

I don't know one way or the other... but Tech notes and HyperCard are 
official.  At any rate, let the rest of us know what you find out!




Ian Hendry
No E-mail, post replies to network.
TE: 408-974-4737

Disclaimer:  It was all HIS idea anyway!