Print to Xerox C8135 from VAX VMS print queue

[Dinosaur]

I'm trying to print from my dinosaur VAX system to a Xerox multifunction on a VAX print queue created wilth Multinet using the IP.  Normal printing is no problem, but I need to print in landscape from tray 3 (legal) with a cpi between 16.6 and 18.  Embedded PCL codes in the output print file don't seem to make any difference.

Any ideas would be appreciated.

[Steven Schweda]

> [...] my dinosaur VAX system [...]

      write sys$output f$getsyi( "version")

> [...] a VAX print queue created wilth Multinet using the IP. [...]

      show queue /full <queue_name>

   Are you using DCPS?

      help PRINT
      help PRINT_Parameter

      https://docs.vmssoftware.com/docs/VSI_DCPS_SPD.pdf

> [...] Normal printing is no problem, [...]

   Define "Normal printing".  Describe _that_ queue.

   What, exactly, are you sending to the print queue?  Plain text?
PostScript?  Other?

> [...] Embedded PCL codes in the output print file don't seem to make
> any difference.

   I would not expect (unspecified) PCL codes embedded in PostScript to
have any desired/desirable effect.

   I do very little printing from VMS systems, so I know nothing, but
given some basic information, it may be possible to puzzle out a few
things.  A bigger/better audience might be found elsewhere:

      https://forum.vmssoftware.com

[Dinosaur]

OpenVMS V6.2  on node BEANIE  30-AUG-2024 10:39:36.32  Uptime  171 19:23:07

Printer queue EPAPRT9103, idle, on BEANIE::NLP92:, mounted form HPLAND (stock=DEFAULT)

  <LPD queue on 10.85.244.102 LP>

  /BASE_PRIORITY=4 /DEFAULT=(FEED,FORM=HPLAND (stock=DEFAULT)) /LIBRARY=HPLJ4 Lowercase /OWNER=[SYSUSER,SYSTEM]

  /PROCESSOR=MULTINET_LPD_SYMBIONT /PROTECTION=(S:M,O:D,G:R,W:S)

Plain ASCII text file to a general purpose print queue;  no problem with portrait print, but output files can have up to 220 char line length so I need landscape with 16 to 18 cpi and preferably on legal size paper.

Previously I’ve modified the software programs to insert control codes at the beginning of the file which has been no problem in the past for the dot matrix Genicom and OKIdata printers which were exclusive for VAX printing, but only partially successful with the new EPSON LQ-2090IIN due to ROM logic that I cannot by-pass per OEM tech support…so I wanted to try one of the many Xerox VersaLink printers at this location.

No DCPS license

Sample control codes for older printers

<ESC>[0m<ESC>[s<ESC>[11m<ESC>[;72 G control codes for Genicom printer

^X<ESC>g<ESC>6<FF> control codes for an OKI ML621 printer

I’ve run tests using some of the old HP form files (some going back to 1993, with application program software written in-house during the mid 1980’s), but have not had much success with them either, and trying to locate PCL codes to change pitch and paper tray has not been successful either.

Examples

hplj_land2.txt

     <ESC>E<ESC>&k3G<ESC>(0N<ESC>(s0p16.67h0s0b0T<ESC>&l1o5.37C<ESC>&a8L

hp_wirelist.txt

     <ESC>(0N<ESC>(s0p16.67h8.9v0s0b0T<ESC>&l1o0s51p2e48F<ESC>&a8L

I can get it to print landscape, but unable to change pitch or paper source tray.

[Steven Schweda]

> Plain ASCII text file to a general purpose print queue; [...]

   Ok.

> Previously I've modified the software programs to insert control codes
> at the beginning of the file [...]

   I'd've expected qualifiers like /FORM and /LIBRARY to be better ways
to deal with that sort of thing than fiddling with the document
generator, but what do I know?

   Of course, I also know nothing about what FORM=HPLAND and
/LIBRARY=HPLJ4 are doing for you now.

> Sample control codes for older printers

   My quick Web search for terms like:
      PCL landscape
seemed to find "<Esc>&l1O" for that, which I don't see in your samples.
For example:

      https://www.devenezia.com/docs/HP/index.html?1600

   A potentially helpful-looking (old) "Ask the Wizard" topic also
mentioned that string:

      https://forum.vmssoftware.com/viewtopic.php?t=4549

   If I were already embedding/sending PCL codes, then I'd probably look
harder to puzzle out the right ones to use.  (Which might (but ought not
to) be printer-dependent.)

   Another possibility might be a text-to-PostScript (or -to-PDF, or
-to-whatever) converter program, and send the result from that to the
printer.  Finding such a program which is available for (or portable to)
VMS (and V6.2, at that) might be a challenge.  "enscript" seems to exist
for GNU/Linux, but I haven't looked at it beyond a "man" page:

      https://manpages.ubuntu.com/manpages/trusty/man1/enscript.1.html

[Dinosaur]

These are the codes that I’ve been testing:

<ESC>%-12345X

<ESC>E

<ESC>&l3A

<ESC>&l1O

<ESC>(s16.66H

<ESC>&k6.76H

<ESC>&l6C

<ESC>&l8D

<ESC>&l0E

<ESC>&l12C

[Steven Schweda]

> These are the codes that I've been testing:
> [...]

   Ok.  And with what result?

   Those commands are all very nice, but I don't know enough about
PCL/PJL/<whatever> to analyze any of that faster than you could.
However, ...

   According to:
      https://www.devenezia.com/docs/HP/index.html?1686

      *    All PJL jobs must begin and end with a Universal
           Exit Language (UEL) command "Ec%-12345X".  This
           command exits the current printer language and
           returns control to PJL.

and it's not obvious (to me) that your job includes the terminal UEL
command.  That might explain no output, but, with my weak psychic
powers, I don't know what output you get from whatever, exactly, you're
sending.

   If I could get a job printed as desired from some other system
(Windows, for example?), then I might consider sniffing the network
traffic when that's done to see exactly what's being sent to the printer
in that case.  On a non-VMS system, that might be a program like
Wireshark.  Nowadays, TCPIP includes a TCPtrace command, which might
have some value, but I've not used it, and it might need to be run on a
participant in the conversation.  (And VMS V6.2 is far from "nowadays".)

[Dinosaur]

The only result has been to change to landscape...no ptich changes and all lines truncated.

[Dinosaur]

@Steven Schweda On 8 1/2 x 11 in landscape with default pitch and zero margins prints 106 char per line

[Steven Schweda]

> [...] last edited yesterday by @Sunitha_Mod

   Thanks for arranging the redundant notification.  But I've mostly
lost interest in this discussion because it's wasting too much of my
time with little hope of any progress.  For example:

> On 8 1/2 x 11 in landscape with default pitch and zero margins prints
> 106 char per line

   I should care about this why, exactly?  Do you _want_ "zero margins"?
Should I know what the "default pitch" might be?  How many characters
per line did you get in portrait orientation?  (Was it about
106*8.5/11?)

> These are the codes that I've been testing:
> [...]

   Did you expect me to get a PCL reference to decode those, or did you
believe that I had all the PCL codes memorized, or what?  Sorry to
disappoint.

> Of course, I also know nothing about what FORM=HPLAND and
> /LIBRARY=HPLJ4 are doing for you now.

   Still a mystery.

   Without being told exactly what's being sent to the printer, there's
little chance of a non-psychic like me ever guessing why any particular
output might appear.  Even less likely, given no useful description of
that output.

> [...] given some basic information, it may be possible to puzzle out a
> few things.

   Still true, but basic information is still lacking.

> [...] A bigger/better audience might be found elsewhere:
>
>       https://forum.vmssoftware.com

   Still true.  The fellow who develops DCPS might be among them, and
he or others might have some (more, better) suggestions, but their
psychic powers might be little better than mine, so unless someone
reveals what's going into the printer, and what's coming out of it, I
wouldn't expect much there, either.

   Composing a useful problem description might demand more time and
effort than what is available here, but no amount of _my_ time and
effort will make up for it.

[Dinosaur]

You asked what the result was of my testing various codes, which is why I posted the 106 char line outp;ut info.

Thanks for all the good ideas on trying to solve this.  Years ago we used to have a DECscope that we could put on serial lines to see what actual data traffic is, but that's not usable for theTCP/IP environment.

I've been able to change the font and pitch in the Xerox setup config, so that may be the solution if I can change that at the beginning of a print job and remember to send a printer reset at the end of my print jobs.  

FYI: The HPLAND form file is nothing but a ASCII text file that contains a series of printer escape codes, and these text files are consolidated into a library file (HPLJ4) so any print queue can reference them.  Theoretically, the form file is supposed to be sent to the printer at the beginning of the print job, but it's not not being processed by the Xerox printer and doing anything in this case other than changing to landscape. 

Thanks again for the help.

[Steven Schweda]

> You asked what the result was [...]

   But with no context, it's not much help.

> [...] Years ago we used to have a DECscope that we could put on serial
> lines to see what actual data traffic is, but that's not usable for
> theTCP/IP environment.

   Yes, but there are network sniffing tools, too.  I already suggested
two.  Nowadays, with clever network switches, you might need to fiddle
with the network topology, to ensure that the traffic of interest can be
seen by the sniffing system.

> FYI: The HPLAND form file is nothing but a ASCII text file that
> contains a series of printer escape codes, [...]

   Well, duh.  I (generally) understand the whole DEFINE /FORM /SETUP
mechanism, but even a perfect understaning of the scheme tells me what,
exactly, about _your_ file and the particular "a series of printer
escape codes" therein?

> [...] Theoretically, the form file is supposed to be sent to the
> printer at the beginning of the print job, but it's not not being
> processed by the Xerox printer and doing anything in this case other
> than changing to landscape.

   If it's doing anything at all, then I'd guess that it's being sent.
But, again, it's all invisible to me.

   If you don't know any more about what's in your HPLAND module than I
do (which is nothing), then the Librarian utility (LIBRARY) should be
able to extract the module (/EXTRACT), and the DUMP utility can help to
display the data (if your usual editor has trouble with the ESC
characters).

      help library
      help dump

[Dinosaur]

FYI:

Sorry if I didn't clarify this, but I know what control codes are contained in the HPLAND form file, along with other form files in the library.  The various form file codes are all in the list that I posted earlier and that I have tested, but without any success other than getting it to print in landscape. 

Getting a smaller font size for 18 cpi has been achieved by changes within the printer setup itself, so I know it can be done.  I just need to find a way to do it dynamically as needed so I'm going thru the Xerox documentation now. 

No response is necessary as I'm hoping to find a fix from Xerox tech support.