User Tips
FormSprint Quick Start takes you step-by-step through setting up FormSprint through creating a form and processing it. Quick Start is designed for someone new (or needing a refresher) to FormSprint wanting to learn how FormSprint works and how to design forms.
We want to email invoices to some of our customers but our invoice spool files contain multiple customers and some customers have multiple invoices. Our email software requires a separate spool file for each email. How can I sort invoices for each customer into a single spool file with only that customer's invoices?
Normally &&NEW would be coded in Buffer 1 (see page 4-40 of the instruction book) to break the output after multiple pages. However, the &&NEW coding would prevent FormSprint from sorting. By loading the path without the "/" in front of it in the Dynamic Distributed Print function (pg 6-13), FormSprint will both sort by customer and break on multiple pages.
How much printer memory is needed for best performance with FormSprint?
In this case, less is more. Although it is possible to create a form definition that requires a lot of memory, most FormSprint form files are small, less than 100K. Even the small personal lasers come with one megabyte of memory, more than enough in almost all cases.
We've gotten behind loading new releases of FormSprint. Can we just load the latest release?
FormSprint is backward compatible through V3R2. Provided you are at least at V3R2, you can simply load the latest release.
How can I print blank forms?
If you need to routinely print blank forms or form sets, you may want to set the form up for Data Mapper input. The form can be set up this way originally or, if the form is already set up as a Spool Mapper form, create a new form using the Data Mapper format. Then copy the form flash pages (and macros, if any) from the Spool Mapper form to the new form. You need not set up any data entry fields in the Data Mapper.
Once the form is set up, select F2 Data Entry into New Form Data File from the FormSprint editor screen. You will be prompted to give the data set a name (you might call it Print Some Copies). FormSprint will put up a data entry screen. From there F15 will allow you to print the complete form in any quantity you want. The next time you want to print the form, select F1 Data Entry into Existing Form Data File, select your form, then select your data set (Print Some Copies) and print from there using F15.
Our payroll checks are in check number order. It would be better if they were in department order and there is a department number in the spool file. Can FormSprint sort the checks in department order?
Sorting is included in the variable distributed printing and dynamic distributed printing functions. Sorting can be for a complete form set or for specific form pages only.
My printer is an HP8100 with a 2000-sheet feeder in addition to the two standard 500-sheet feeders and I need to pull a form page from each tray to print out a color-coded, collated set.
Use FromSprint’s function: FN(TR,n) where TR selects the input tray function and n represents the number of the input tray. Make an entry in the Spool Mapper screen for each page. The output parameters must include the correct output page but the other positioning parameters are ignored. Use 1 for tray 2, 4 for tray three and 20 for tray 4. If this is confusing, it’s because the internal selection convention followed by HP doesn’t match the external labeling of the printer trays.
How can I control formatting and output printer based on user?
Use the Spool File Extract Function to load the user profile for a spool file to a buffer. Then test the data in the buffer using Variable Spool File Distributing and Sorting and route the FormSprint output to the appropriate printer queue using the form page format required.
How can I eliminate pages in a spool file I don’t want to print?
FormSprint can be used to eliminate pages of a spool file you do not want to print. These may be cover pages, printer alignment pages or other pages you don’t need or don’t want to print. See Using Distribution to Eliminate Pages in the instruction book.
How can I position a total in the total box on my form when it moves up and down the page depending on the number of detail lines?
By using the VRM function to load just the total to a buffer and the Print Not function to print the detail without printing the total line, you can capture the total and position it where needed on the page. See VR-Relative Vertical Positioning and Buffering in the instruction book.
Can void checks be printed on plain paper and use a different form than the check?
There are several ways FormSprint could print void checks on plain paper and use a different form. The simplest solution would be to use FormSprint’s dynamic form page and input tray selection to call the appropriate form page depending on the presence of the word VOID and pull the paper stock from the appropriate tray in a multiple tray printer.
I need to format data within a spool file differently depending on the variable data, even mixing landscape and portrait form page definitions.
FormSprint allows one form to call another, either by coding &&F:formname in the first line of the spool file or by keying on variable data to load &&F:formname in Buffer 1. The Print If function could be used to search for specific text and load &&F:formname to Buffer 1 if found.
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