PRINTER = printername; export PRINTER for
Bourne & korn shells
setenv PRINTER printername for csh
Should you wish to change the printer momentarily simply use a command like the following to print your file:
lpr -P printername filename
Text files printed through the 'springer' central print server must be converted to PostScript for printing on a PostScript printer such as an Apple LaserWriter. For printers connected to the AppleTalk (the vast majority of printers at CERN), this formatting is normally done automatically on 'springer'.
What follows currently applies ONLY to AppleTalk-connected PostScript printers!
For the formatting process, some decisions have been taken as to how the text should appear on the page. These decisions concern the text-formatting program, the text's layout on the physical page and the size of characters used. In the absence of any formatting specification by the user or in the printer description entry on the print server, a paper-saving default has been chosen as described below.
Formats can be controlled --
Throughout the following 'w' means the argument to the '-w' option on the 'lpr' command, to the '-oBSDw' option on the 'lp' (SysV) command or the 'pw#.." value assigned in your local /etc/printcap file if you are printing from a DEC or Sun Unix workstation.
Standard default (plus all '-w' not falling into the ranges below plus the special value 'w=2': text formatter 'a2ps', two logical 'portrait' pages printed on a physical 'landscape' oriented page including a frame, header and line numbers, font size 6.8 pt (rather small, paper saving mode).
39 < w <= 85: formatter a2ps, portrait orientation, font size chosen
so that either w or
w+1 columns fit on a line. Lines longer than w (or w+1)
are folded.
85 < w <= 200: formatter a2ps, landscape orientation, font size chosen
so that either w or
w+1 columns fit on a line. Lines longer than w (or w+1)
are folded.
Some values of 'w' less than 40 are used for special purposes:
w=2: default, see above
w=4: formatter ascii2ps, a4 portrait orientation, 11 pt. font with long
lines
folded, no frames, headers, or page numbers, just plain text.
w=5: formatter a2ps, a4 portrait orientation, 6.8 pt. font, supporting
lines
up to 122 characters.
Some options that are available using lpr are listed below but remember that most of these are not available when listing postscript files, see the later section on LATEX for more information about this.
-l for control characters and suppressing page breaks.-f this option interprets the first character of a line as a standard Fortran
control character.
-s for printing large files, (these files are softlinked to the spool and not
written there. Do not modify files sent via this method until printing
is complete).
-x No filtering, file printed verbatim.
-#num Number of copies required.
-wnum Maximum page width
-znum Maximum page length