Conference vaxaxp::vmsnotes

152.0. "Printing and lines per page" by CHOWDA::GLICKMAN (writing from Newport,RI) Thu Feb 06 1997 11:17

Help!

	I might not be in the right notes conference, so point me else where
if not.  This is not anything new but is yet problematic to my customers.

	They are using an LP27 and currently the header page looks something
like this:

        blank line
	blank line
	blank line
        blank line
	EEEEEEEEEE  888888888888888888888888888888
        EEEEEEEEEE  8888888   Customer Name
        EEEEEEEEEE  888888888888888888888888888888
        blank line
        blank line
                      UUU  SSS  EEE  RRR  NNN AAA MMM EEE
                      .
                      .
                      .
                      .
                      .
             
	             FFF III  LLL  EEE NNN  AAA  MMM  EEE
                     .
                     .
                     .
                     for total of 30 lines
         blank line
         blank line
         blank line
         blank line
         blank line
         File _Device:[Directory]Filename.Ext
          .
	 blank line
	 Job Filename (NNNN)
	 started on printer
	 blank line
	 EEEEEEEEEE  888888888888888888888888888888
         EEEEEEEEEE  8888888   Digital Equipment
         EEEEEEEEEE  888888888888888888888888888888
         blank line
         blank line
         blank line
         blank line
         blank line
         blank line
         blank line
     

	A programmer complained of not being able to use the full 66 lines
per page.   Lo and behold I found that they operators are setting the top
of form at 4 not 0.  Once I set it to 0 his report printed out fine.
	
	The customer IS manager has several concerns.  (1) All other 
users who haven't complained.  If we change top of form to 0 for all
will others you have been working with it at 4 for eons have problems we
will need to deal with.  (2) If we make top of form 0, is there anyway to
still have the header page be evenly formatted on the page or will the
first line of print be at line 1?  
		
	Where do other sites have their top of form on such a printer and
what does their header page look like?

	Appreciating any answers.

   This looks to be a discussion best kept between the programmer and
   the IS manager, and like something that can best be answered with
   some basic testing with the local application printouts.

   Top-of-form settings vary, in my experience.  The "correct" value
   is up to the site.

    re .0
    
    I assume that you are talking about the physical positioning of the top of
    form on a line printer (does anyone still have these? (-:)...
    
    My recollection is that we used to set top of form below the physical top of
    form to allow a margin for error in positioning. There's nothing worse than
    a sequence of pages where the first few lines or so of each page are on or
    above the perforation.

Consider changing the current pratice for adjusting printer
"top of form"... Use line 1 as the "physical" top of form. Then
use queue manager/print symbiont forms specifying a top
margin to get the "old" programs/lists to still have their
first line (of every page) end up on line 4.

Perhaps you can use a default form having a 4 line margin, and
have another form that allows use if all 66 lines.

	Olof