Detailed printing control via parameters.

A printing parameter line example:

 orientation-requested=3 copies=2 ColorModel=Mono Duplex=DuplexNoTumble

orientation-requested=3 and copies=2 are well known IPP parameters
ColorModel and Duplex are non-default choices from the PPD

You will find here a list of supported printing parameters and how libcapsraster deals with it. Listed are the well known IPP printing parameters. Additional parameters are based on the content of your PPD and will also be processed.

If a keyword isn't found in the IPP keyword list, nor in the PPD keword list, it will be ignored (with a warning in the log).

Note: If you need access to the printing parameters (to add support for your own parameters for example), you need to process the keyword/value string by your own.

Related to Document Content Adaptions to the Available Medium
Related to Scaling a page's content to fit print medium
Related to Crop a document to print on a smaller medium to keep the size accuracy

When a print starts the following defaults are valid:

auto rotation, to get the largest possible imageable area on the print medium for the document
- related parameter: orientation-requested
scaling is disabled to keep the size accuracy and the aspect ratio of the document
- related parameters: fit-to-page, fitplot, nofitplot, nofit-to-page, auto-fit, crop-to-fit, scale-to-fit and rotate-to-fit
one copy of the document will be printed
- related parameter: copies
all pages of the document will be printed
- related parameters: page-ranges
centered alignment
- related parameters: align-left, align-right, align-top and align-bottom

Note: Some parameters interfere in their function. For example auto-fit sets up some behaviour, a crop-to-fit may (partially) re-defines. Thus, the order of these parameters is important.

Fidelity

Note: This parameter is of type boolean. It doesn't require a value and is always treated as true if present. But: a ipp-attribute-fidelity=false gets skipped!

Page Range to print

By default the whole document will be printed. In order to limit the print to a set of pages, the parameter page-ranges=<list> can be used.

<list> can be:

String	Range
`number`	prints a single page
`number-`	print begins with page `number` up to the last page
`-number`	prints from the first page up to page `number`
`number1-number2`	print begins with page `number1` up to page `number2`

And all combinations of the above, separated by a comma. Example: 1-4,7,9-12.

Note: If no page range is defined, all pages from the document are printed.; If all selected page-ranges are outside the amount of available pages in the document, the whole print job will be skipped.; If one of the selected page-ranges is outside the amount of available pages in the document, it will be skipped with a warning.

Media Selection

The parameter media is ignored, yet. Used are the settings from the PPD.

Print Orientation

The parameter orientation-requested=<value> defines the print orientation of the document.
<value> can be:

'3' - 'portrait'
'4' - 'landscape'
'5' - 'seascape'
'6' - 'headfirst'

The results are:

'3' and '4': straight print, if the page and the medium share the same orientation
'5' and '6': tip over print, if the page and the medium share the same orientation
'3' and '4': rotated in direction 1 print, if the page and the medium differ in their orientation
'5' and '6': rotated in direction 2 print, if the page and the medium differ in their orientation

The rotation directions depend on printer settings on demand. The defaults are:

'3' and '4': counter-clockwise rotation
'5' and '6': clockwise rotation

This parameter disables the default automatic rotation and the rotate-to-fit parameter and interferes with all parameters with the word fit in their names, like scale-to-fit for example.

Copies

The parameter copies=<value> defines the copies to be printed of each medium. It interferes with the collate parameter how the document pages get printed (regarding their order).

Note: If this parameter isn't given, it defaults to '1' copy.

multiple-document-handling

Collate

The parameter collate enables collating.

Note: This parameter is of type boolean. It doesn't require a value and is always treated as true if present. But: a collate=false gets skipped!; This parameter has precedence over "multiple-document-handling" and overwrites its setting, refer ipp_get_document_value() for details

Print Quality

The parameter print-quality is ignored yet.

Print Resolution

The given option is of the form printer-resolution=<resolution>. (or resolution=<resolution>)

Value for <resolution> is of up to three values:

<integer>x<integer><keyword>
cross feed unit DPI (dots per inch) DPM (dots per centimeter)

Example:

to print at 2400 DPI by 600 DPI: printer-resolution=2400x600DPI
to print at 600 DPI: printer-resolution=600DPI
to print at 600 DPI: printer-resolution=600 (unit 'dots per inch' is the default)
to print at 118 DPM: printer-resolution=118DPM (e.g. 300 DPI)

Note: Do not insert spaces between the three components of the resolution entry.

Print Sides

The given option is of the form sides=<setting> and only used by printers which support duplex print.

Values for <setting> are

'one-sided' - Print on one side only (aka 'simplex')
'two-sided-long-edge' - Print on both sides of the medium, duplex at long edge
'two-sided-short-edge' - Print on both sides of the medium, duplex at short edge

Scale the page to the imageable area

fitplot and fit-to-page

PDFtoPDF: "Scale to fit printable area"

Note: fitplot is a depricated keyword

Do not scale the page to the imageable area

nofitplot and nofit-to-page

Automatic Fit

Use the full imageable area of the medium, by scaling the page or by cropping it.

auto-fit

If the ipp-attribute-fidelity parameter is given or the document's page is larger than the printing paper it acts like a fitplot or fit-to-page parameter ("Scale to fit printable area").

If not, it runs like a crop-to-fit parameter ("Do not scale, center, crop if needed").

Note: auto-fit=false negates the effect

Crop Content to fit

Use the full imageable area of the medium, by cropping the page.

crop-to-fit

PDFtoPDF "Do not scale, center, crop if needed"

scale-to-fit

rotate-to-fit

Same as auto-fit?

Alignment

This printing parameter makes sense only, if the document's size is smaller than the print medium is. If you don't want to scale-up the document to fit into the medium, you can align it to an edge you want.

Todo:: It makes sense as well if the document is larger and should be printed differently than centered!

The default alignment for a smaller document on a larger medium is to be centered.

align-left will left align the smaller document on the larger print medium.
align-right will right align the smaller document on the larger print medium.
align-top will top align the smaller document on the larger print medium.
align-bottom will bottom align the smaller document on the larger print medium.

From left to right: align-left, align-right, align-top, align-bottom

Note: These parameters are of type boolean. They don't require a value and always treated as true if present. But: a align-left=false gets skipped!; If more than one of these parameters at the same axis are given, the last one will define the final alignment.; Alignment happens relative to medium's corresponding imageable edges, e.g. its margins (not to medium's edges)

Define the leading edge of an inserted medium

The parameter LeadingEdge=<value> defines the medium orientation the printer will print to.

Print medium leading edges: short (left) and long (right)

Most of the time this orientation is fixed due to the printer's mechanical restrictions when using the largest supported medium format. But for the case a smaller medium should be printed (like an envelope for example) and a manual paper feed is used it might be possible to insert the medium with its short or long edge first.

<value> can be:

'Short' - The leading medium edge is its short edge
'Long' - The leading medium edge is its long edge

This parameter is used in conjunction with the PageSize printing parameter which defines the medium's format/size but not its orientation.

For example:

You printer supports DIN A4 or Letter and if you use one of these formats due to mechanical restriction, you always need to print to these formats whith their short edge first. Thus, it defaults to:

PageSize=A4 LeadingEdge=Short

But your printer has a manual paper feed as well and you want to print to an envelope. In this case you need to tell your printer how you want to insert the envelop medium. Two ways are possible:

PageSize=DL LeadingEdge=Short

One way to insert an envelope into the manual feed

PageSize=DL LeadingEdge=Long

Another way to insert an envelope into the manual feed

Note: This parameter is independent from the orientation-requested parameter. LeadingEdge is regarding the real physical medium, while orientation-requested is regarding the document's content and how to print it to the physical medium.