Using win32 api to determine a printer type... 4

[XPPROGRAMMER]

Hello,

is there a win32 api that will determine the type of
the default printer (example: Laser or Dot-Matrix)?

thanks for the kind help.

 

[fredericofonseca]

Yes there is (EnumPrinters and EnumPrintersEx, if I am not wrong), but if you don't tell us what you need to do, and with which COBOL vendor/version and OS version it is hard to help you.


Regards

Frederico Fonseca
SysSoft Integrated Ltd

http://www.syssoft-int.com

 

[XPPROGRAMMER]

Hello Frederico,

I am using windows xp pro with micro focus netexpress 3.1
cobol compiler. I need to print a contract form that has
five carbon copies if the default printer is a dot-matrix,
otherwise just print a summary report when it is a laser
printer. The end-user will switch between two printers
with a manual switch based on his printing needs. So, I
need to test the default printer and print accordingly.

thanks for the kind help.

 

[3gm]

This one is tough. Windows is designed to obscure specifics about printers in favor of a common printing model. Windows expects the user to select the type of the printer manually, not via some automatic interaction. Differences in printers are then accounted for in the printer driver thus selected.

You can enumerate the printers installed on the machine and can get information about the currently selected printer. However, I believe that much of the returned information is driver-specific. Also, you should note that simply throwing a manual switch will normally not be enough; you'll have to switch printer selections (e.g. through a Print Setup dialog).

That said, I think you can interact some with the parallel port and PERHAPS manage to do this.

Personally, I'd re-think the design and approach it differently.

Regards.

Glenn

 

[theotyflos]

XPPROGRAMER, I'm not absolutely sure that it works, but, if you can "GetDeviceCaps" for the printer you are interested in, then look at the field "Technology". For a Dot Matrix printer it is DT_CHARSTREAM, for a Laser or Inkjet it is DT_RASPRINTER. I hope it helps.



Theophilos.

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