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How can i develop a custom Printer driver in LabVIEW

I have one application in which when ever user prints a document (He will print only certain type of documents)
it should get printed using some standard printer but at the same time the data should get communicated to our own custom device which is connected to the PC using serial port.
how can i do this.
 
I think if we can develop a our own driver which will first send data to serial device and then just call the standard printers driver then whole problem can be resolved
 
The application will run on windows platform and the data i am expecting is purely a text data.

Tushar Jambhekar
tushar@jambhekar.com

Jambhekar Automation Solutions
LabVIEW Consultancy, LabVIEW Training
Rent a LabVIEW Developer, My Blog

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Message 1 of 7
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You can use the Easy Text Report function for text. It will use the pc's default printer or you can specify a printer name. For writing information over the serial port, I suggest you look at the shipping examples for serial communication. There's one called Basic Serial Write and Read. Depending on how much information you need and how the custom device works, you might only need a single VISA Write.
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I think i have not explained my problem properly. i am sorry for that.

 

the problem is something like this.

my end user is already having one program which is generating the data (Unfortunately that program do not save data to any file and our requirement is online updatation of data) which i want to give to my serial device. he dont have the source code hence we can not alter that perticular code. the data might be available to us only when he prints the data, where we can select any one of installled printers.

hence we want to develop an application which will appear as printer driver to windows and when user prints we can capture printed data

i think problem will be clear now.

Tushar Jambhekar
tushar@jambhekar.com

Jambhekar Automation Solutions
LabVIEW Consultancy, LabVIEW Training
Rent a LabVIEW Developer, My Blog

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Another option would be to install a PostScript printer.  Theoretically, the electronic report could be then disassembled if you want the data rather than just an electronic copy of the report.  I do not know offhand of any LabView based PostScript interpreters, but it seems like that would be a usefull thing to have.  (Potentially a much more flexible report generation tool than those currently included in the LV8.)

[edit for spelling.  too much blood in my coffeestream]

Message Edited by jasonhill on 06-02-2006 08:46 AM

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Or simply have the user choose to print to file if the windows print dialog is displayed.
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Thanks bussy for sharing this topic and problem because i am also kind of same problem for my custom printing software, But thanks for your post, I got my solution.. Thanks 

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