Host File Printing

Enable Printer Session:

• To enable or deactivate host file printing, you must check or uncheck this option.
• For 3270 host, LU Name should not be null, and TN3270E should be selected to enable host file printing.

Separate Files:

• If the print destination is a file, you may decide whether each print job should be saved as a unique file or should be appended to each other in one file.
• When the File extension is .pdf, each print job is saved to a separate file.

File Extension:

• The file extension must be given without a dot. If the file extension is left blank (null), the file will be saved as .pdf for 3270 host files and as .txt for 5250 host files.
• The file name is numerically incremented for each print job. For example, if you name a file as prt*.file with a non-pdf file extension, the first file will be named prt000.file, the next will be named prt001.file, and so on.
• If the file extension is pdf, the first file will be named pdf, the second will be named prt001.pdf, and so on.

Inactivity Time (secs):

• Indicates how long to wait for printing to begin. The valid values are between 10 and 255 seconds. The default value is 10.

Printer Session:

Print to File:

A new feature for Printing to Files has been introduced in ZIEWeb-Client 2.0.1. The default file format in 3270 in earlier versions was PDF, but the PDF option may now be enabled or disabled.

PDT Support:

PDT support for formats print data sent by the host application has been enabled. Users may enable or disable the PDT support and select the available PDT files from a dropdown menu.

Reading Session Parameter from Server:

PDT support for formats print data sent by the host application has been enabled. Users may enable or disable the PDT support and select the available PDT files from a dropdown menu.

If the display session is linked with any printer session, ZIEWeb-Client will read the printer session's information from the server, which will be helpful to set the parameter values and to modify the Lock/Unlock from the server.

Note: In ZIEWeb-Client, the PDT file values get updated based on the printer session’s Code Page. In ZIEWeb-Client, the PDT list will be updated based on the display session’s Code Page.

Directory Name Parameter:

A property labelled Directory Name is introduced to define the name of the folder where all printed files would be stored.

If the directory name is left empty, the folder will be named after the printer session's LUName/WorkstationID or the display session's LUName/WorkstationID or the display session name.

If both the directory name and session’s LUName/ WorkstationID are null, the files will be saved based on the display session name.

HTML Parameter Override:

This feature allows overriding the Printer session’s parameters like ‘LUName’, ‘Workstation ID’ and ‘Directory Name.’

In a 3270 session, if the printer LUName is overridden or if the LUName(printer) field is not null, the PDT file will be selected depending on the LUName.

Customized Path for Viewing Printed Files:

Unlike the previous version of ZIEWeb-Client, which immediately removed printed files in the default path when a session ended, the printed files in ZIEWeb-Client 2.0.1 can be saved to a custom path, from which they are not lost even after a session is terminated.

Workstation ID (Printer):

• Must be defined same as the Workstation ID (5250 display session). This parameter represents the printer session here.

ASCII Code-Page 899:

• Click Yes if your printer supports ASCII code page 899. This is not resident on most printers.

LU Name (Printer):

• Must be defined same as the LU Name (3270 display session). This parameter represents the printer session here.

Print-Buffer Size:

• The size of the memory block is reserved for print data that is being sent to the printer. The valid values are in the drop-down list. This applies only to LU3 sessions.
• The default size for Print-Buffer is 1920.

Maximum Lines per Page:

• Specifies the maximum number of lines per page, including the top and bottom margins. This value is also called Maximum Page Length (MPL). Enter a value from 1 to 255.
• If the file extension is not pdf, the default value is taken from the MAXIMUM_PAGE_LENGTH entry in the PDT. If the entry is not found or when no PDT is being used on a Windows platform, the default value, 66, is used.

Maximum Characters per Line:

• Specifies the maximum number of characters per line and is also called the Maximum Print Position or the Maximum Presentation Position (MPP). Enter a value from 1 to 255.
• If the file extension is not pdf, the default value is taken from the MAXIMUM_PRINT_POSITION entry in the PDT. If the entry is not found or when no PDT is being used on a Windows platform, the default value, 80, is used.

Ignore FF when at First Position:

• If the session is LU Type 3 and you choose Yes, a form feed (FF) at the first position on the first line is ignored.
• If the session is LU Type 1 and you choose Yes, an FF or a CR+FF combination at the beginning of a print job is ignored.
• If the file extension is not pdf, the default value is taken from the IGNORE_FORM_FEED_AT_FIRST_POS? entry in the PDT. If the entry is not found, or when a PDT is not being used on a Windows platform, the value is set to No.

FF Takes Space if Before Data:

• This option applies only to LU Type 3 sessions.
• If you choose Yes, FF is executed, takes a print position, and is printed as a blank in the first position on the first line of the next page. Therefore, the next print-position will be the second position of that line.
• If you choose No, FF is executed, and the next print-position is the first position on the first line of the next page. That is, FF does not take a print position.
• If the file extension is not pdf, the default value is taken from the FORM_FEED_TAKES_POSITION? entry in the PDT. If the entry is not found, or when a PDT is not being used on a Windows platform, the value is set to Yes.

Form-feed Position:

• This option applies only to LU Type 3 sessions.
• If you choose the Any position option, FF is performed wherever it appears.
• If you choose Column 1 only, FF is performed only if it appears at column 1. When FF is not at column 1, it is printed as a space character.
• If the file extension is not pdf, the default value is taken from the FORM_FEED_ANY_POSITION? entry in the PDT. If this is defined as Any, any position is used. If the entry is not found, or when a PDT is not being used on a Windows platform, the value Column 1 only is used.

PDF-only options:

The below options are applicable only if the file extension is pdf.

Paper Size:

• Select the paper size to be used in the generated PDF files. The default value with US English locale is "Letter”.

Paper Orientation:

• Select either Portrait or Landscape paper orientation. The default value is Portrait.

Font Name:

• Select a font from the drop-down list of predefined fonts to use in the generated PDF file. The default font with US English locale is Courier.
• The list of fonts is also different depending on the host code page that is currently selected.

Note: PDF files generated with LucidaConsole font or CourierNewPSMT font may not be displayed correctly on non-Windows or older Windows platforms. This display problem does not occur on newer Windows platforms that support OpenType fonts by default (Windows 98 Second Edition, Windows ME, Windows 2000, and Windows XP).

Enhancements

Printer Session RFEs

In ZIE for Web 2.2, a particular session's printed files list gets displayed under the Print View Jobs window. Additionally, provide the option for selecting multiple or all files in the list and downloading them as a .zip file. We provide enhancement for downloading multiple files (non-zip), color code changes for downloaded files, auto refresh print view job page without clicking refresh link and fix for large file printing.

Selecting Files:

• Use the checkbox in the table header to select/clear all files.
• Select the checkbox in each line to select the necessary files.

Download Button:

The Download Jobs option allows users to download the selected files in the list into a single 'PrintJobs.zip' file to a default browser location.

Clicking Download without selecting files displays the error message 'Select files to download' in the footer.

Downloading multiple files without zipping it:

We do have option for downloading multiple files by selecting through check box and when click on Download All Jobs, selected files will be zipped and downloaded. Here, additionally providing option for download multiple files as zip or individual files will be downloaded one by one without zipping it.

If Zip check box is checked, selected files will be zipped and download. If Zip check box unchecked. Selected files will be download one by one.

Color code change:

Downloaded file’s Download link color will be changed to different color as well as the row right and left border highlighted. This is to differentiate the files which is already downloaded from the list.

Auto refresh – Print View Jobs window:

In Print Job Window, if it is already open, while printing files that will not be listed without click Refresh list link. Also, when rename/delete/add files manually in the print file location.

So, timer sets 10 seconds to check whether files newly added in the location or not. If files added/renamed/deleted, page will be refreshed automatically.

Large file printing:

When printing large files, sometime the files get corrupted or lose data while printing. So, providing a solution to this issue, we have changed the extension of the file while printing to .TMP file. Once file printing is completed, the file extension gets changed to appropriate file extension.

Limitations:

Printer session:

Instead of that, it will be saved in the Application Server location.