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How to get Printer support under Windows?

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TxGator

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Jul 8, 2001
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I have an old MS-BASIC program which will not print under Windows 98, NT, etc.

Is there a library that can provide LPRINT support for the modern operating systems?

I would appriciate you help.
Thanks,
 
Unfortunately, the answer is no. Basic was written in a time when programs required direct access to ports (non-networked PCs) such as communications and printing.

These "newer" computer systems (with the advent of networking) require the OS to process the data and send it to the appropriate locations instead of the CPU's bus routers.

The only recommendation I can make is to rewrite the code to print the data to a text file then use notepad to print it out using a shell statement

EX: Shell "Notepad /p c:\mydoc.txt"

I, myself, would welcome anyone else's suggestions on this too. Otherwise, good luck and I hope that I have clarified the problem to you.

--MiggyD "The world shrinks more and more with every new user online."
 
Sorry, I just thought of another recommendation:

Find an old computer (running in DOS only) and transfer the program and all data to it. Then, run it from there.

--MiggyD "The world shrinks more and more with every new user online."
 
Or network it across with a capture lpt port. Ed Fair
efair@atlnet.com

Any advice I give is my best judgement based on my interpretation of the facts you supply.

Help increase my knowledge by providing some feedback, good or bad, on any advice I have given.

 
edfair, have you actually done it? and what type of network was it? NT, Novell, what?? It's better to have two heads to solve a problem from different angles than to have tunnel vision to a dead end.
 
MSDOS window under w95a running gwbasic with lantastic8 networking, printing to shared HPIIP on a dual boot DOS&W31/W95a system.
I suspect that this would run under windows networking. But since I have DOS needs on both ends I've never left MS file & print sharing on the server with the printer.
I haven't done the same from 98, but think I did a word perfect document several months ago. It would have been to the port. Ed Fair
efair@atlnet.com

Any advice I give is my best judgement based on my interpretation of the facts you supply.

Help increase my knowledge by providing some feedback, good or bad, on any advice I have given.

 
When my office received a new computer it was preinstalled with 98. I had to have a printer directly attached to the parl. port in order to print in this fashion (using the QB progs I had written long ago using both Win 3x and 95b systems luckily my department was not Novell-ized at that time...now I have to use VB because of other circumstances--can you say USB Printer?).

I've spoke to several other people and one responded that Win 3.x to 95b were DOS based environments; that starting with Win 98+ were GUI environments (DOS became an app just like a word processor). Thanks to Mr. Gates.

Well, thanks EdFair, I was just curious.
--MiggyD It's better to have two heads to solve a problem from different angles than to have tunnel vision to a dead end.
 
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