howto print PS graphic form, HOLD in printer, print text, send both out.

[Steve Post]

I have HP9000 servers with hpux10.20 and hpux11.0. I have a hp LaserJet 4101mfp printer. I don't have a manual for it. But I found a lot of the commands for it on-line.

I am looking to place a postscript image in the printer. Somehow store it there. Then when I have an invoice, I would magically activate a macro to print and hold the graphic, print the invoice text on top of it, then print out the combined graphic-form with text.

Sounds crazy? It's not. It's been working fine on kyocera printers for over a year now. The 3 images (for 3 forms), are stored as special macro on the kyoceria printers.

Now I would like to try this with a hp LaserJet 4101mfp printer. But I have no documentation for figure it out.

Has anyone else done this?

And NO. I do not want to load any fancy, smancy software on the servers. One of them is very old. I can't load anything on it. Needless to say, it is a legacy system.

thanks.
steve

[Mark Greene_1]

HP used to offer a service where they'd load graphics (usually a logo or watermark) on a font cartridge that you'd add to the printer. When you wanted the graphic on the document, you'd specifiy it with the particular font code. I don't know if they still offer this or if your printer accepts font cartidges, but it's worth a look into.

mark

[Steve Post]

I figure I would have a job that does this:

user sends job to fancyformprinter
In that printer queue program would be:
output commands to go to post script >>file
output postscript file >> file
output command to HOLD printjob >> file
output command to go to PCL >> file
output user's text >> file
output command to formfeed >> file
send file to raw printer hplj4101mfp.


But those "commands" are unknown.

Oh the formfeed command would be escE aka ^[E.
That would also reset the printer back to normal.
The real formfeed would be control-L (^L).

I have a lot of unknowns in my plan here. I expect most of the commands would be some PJL commands?

Outputing a special font might work. But the size of the character is 11 inches tall and 8.5 inches wide. The image I am looking to print would be a form.

[Mark Greene_1]

I don't know if that order of events is supported by the printer. You may need to build the postscript files on the server side, particularly if you are printing a form at the same time as the data for the form.

Here's a link to HP's printer manuals, including the PJL manual:

http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bizsupport/TechSupport/Document.jsp?objectID=bpl03756

if you don't already have one and want it, the PostScript "red book" can occasionally be found on ebay (that's where I got mine).

mark

[Steve Post]

Mark,
I have already been looking at those books. I don't know if I would even use postscript.
I EXPECT the form image to be a postscript file sitting on the hp server. But I'm not sure.
Having it on the server would let me print to multiple hp laserjet4101's without loading images on each and every one of the printers.

I did this in 1993 with laserjet 4 printers and the HPGL language. I don't remember what I did. But if I could do this over 10 years ago, I bet someone on this planet has also already done this for a postscript version of a graphic. As such, they should have the answer without me spending days experimenting on the printer. Granted it would be fun. But I'd rather just work it out.

.....hmmm. I looked via for "pcl macros" and "form overlay" in google. It seems that there are tons of companies that provide special software to do this. But I really don't want to spend tons of installation time and money for 4 freakin commands.