topic Re: Printing / compress in Operating System - Linux

Printing / compress

Nobody's Hero — Mon, 27 Jun 2005 13:38:52 GMT

Hello all,
can someone test this for me to see if you get the same output as I do.

I want to print a file. the flags should tell it to print landscape and it should be compressed. That is, the output should be small and in the upper left hand corner of the page. Here is the command:

lp -o fp20 -o landscape -o vsi4 -o tl66 'filename'

Can someone tell me how I can get my printer to print compressed?

Re: Printing / compress

Rick Garland — Mon, 27 Jun 2005 14:28:32 GMT

I am getting the landscape option but nothing else.

Check the print driver you are using. These options may not be available. From the www.cups.org site you can get the Driver Development Kit and roll your own.

Other option, use enscript. Has many options available with the print drivers it loads.

Other option is mpage. Will print multiple pages on a single sheet.

Re: Printing / compress

Rick Garland — Mon, 27 Jun 2005 14:47:29 GMT

Haven't had to print using these options before on a Linux system so I am interested...

I did the following command and got a landscape, compressed output.
enscript -PIS3 -G -L60 -r -h /etc/group

The -r is to rotate to landscape
The -h compresses

Re: Printing / compress

Nobody's Hero — Mon, 27 Jun 2005 15:00:48 GMT

Thanks Rick,

The -h wont compress my output. Any idea why? It takes the command but it does not print super compressed.

Re: Printing / compress

Rick Garland — Mon, 27 Jun 2005 15:11:58 GMT

My 1st guess would be driver/printer.
What are the capabilities of the driver?

Re: Printing / compress

Tibor Bajnok — Tue, 28 Jun 2005 09:13:41 GMT

I work with this escape sequence solution:

This C code send the escape character:

#include
main()
{
printf("\033");
}

You have to comppile it (named for example: lo) and then:

(./lo ; echo '&l1S' )

This sequence instruct our HP printer to print double sided.
See your printer documentation, you will find the appropriate sequence for compressed mode and the code for switch it back to normal.

Re: Printing / compress

Stuart Browne — Tue, 28 Jun 2005 09:18:36 GMT

Umm, tibor, you do know that 'echo -e "\033&l1S"' will do exactally the same thing, don't you?

You can easily echo octal codes.