Category : Files from Magazines
Archive   : BYTE0791.ZIP
Filename : README.DOC

 
Output of file : README.DOC contained in archive : BYTE0791.ZIP


README.DOC The Disk-Based Spooler


"Spooler" is a disk-based print spooler. Its print buffer is a disk
file on your hard drive; you specify the size of the buffer when you
start Spooler. It can even print to a disk file--useful for those
times when you need to see the output but don't want to waste printer
paper. Spooler is a small TSR that takes up about 6K of RAM. It comes
with a separate SpoolCtl utility for changing parameters on-the-fly.
Hardware requirements are simple; you need DOS version 2.0 or later
and a hard drive.

To install Spooler, copy all the files except for the source code
into a directory named in your DOS PATH statement. Copy the source
code files to a separate directory so you can look at it and perhaps
add some features at a later time.


Using Spooler

When you run it, Spooler creates a file SPOOL.FIL in the current
directory. If you indicate that output should go to a file rather
than to the printer, the output file is also written in the current
directory. When you tell Spooler to remove itself from memory, it
automatically deletes SPOOL.FIL.

Spooler's options are specified on the command line. The parameters
are:

(1) the buffer size (in kilobytes),

(2) a print priority (a number from 1 to 10, with
1 giving the most attention to the foreground
application and 10 the most to the printer),

(3) a "Y" or "N" to indicate whether Spooler should
insert formfeeds between printouts, and, optionally,

(4) the name of an output file if you want to "print to a
disk file".

For example, you might invoke 'Spooler' with:

spooler 500 2 n

to create a 500K buffer/spool file, set a background priority
of 2 (out of a range of 1-10), and say "don't insert formfeeds
between printouts". Another example:

spooler 50 5 y printer.fil

says create a 50K disk-buffer, use a priority of 5, insert
formfeeds between printouts (if the last char of a printout isn't
already a formfeed), and write all the material out to
PRINTER.FIL instead of to the printer.

Run the SpoolCtl.EXE utility to change the print priority or the
formfeed switch, or to cancel the printout. You also use SpoolCtl
to remove Spooler from memory. SpoolCtl is menu-driven.





  3 Responses to “Category : Files from Magazines
Archive   : BYTE0791.ZIP
Filename : README.DOC

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