Re: Help! Oracle Reportwriter problem...

In article <802099207.847snx_at_aleytys.pc.my> philip_at_aleytys.pc.my writes:
>In article <3qk51h$ljq_at_nuscc.nus.sg> chantz_at_iscs.nus.sg writes:
>
>>I'm programming using C on Unix and calling Oracle Reportwriter to print
>>some reports. The Oracle Reportwriter version is 2.0, running on HP 9000
>>server. If I'm printing a 1000 page report and the printer jams at page 900,
>>is it possible for me to restart printing from page 901 onwards or do I
>>have to start from page one ?
 

>>The Oracle Reportwriter does not seem to provide a way to pass page numbers
>>or to instruct reportwriter to print specific pages. Is there some
>>workaround or can I control this from the Unix OS spooler ?
>
>We are users of Oracle Financials 9 which is built on Oracle Tools and are
>facing a similar problem when our 500 page reports jam on page 490. The
>solution I am looking at, at the moment, is a third party print spooler
>which replaces the native unix lp system.
>
>Currently I am evaluating a demo of EzSpooler which seem to have the
>features we want. I am also waiting for a demo of LP Plus (another unix
>print spooler) to arrive. Incidentally the distributor for both is CCNS
>in Singapore so they are just a local phone call away.
>
>Tell Eddy I sent you. Cheers!
>
>Philip
>+---------------------------------+-------------------------------------------+
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>+-------------------Eigi-Eru-Enn-Allir-Jomsvikingar-Daudir!-------------------+
>... I don't have a solution but I admire the problem.
>---
> * TLX v4.00 *

It seems to me there ought to be a temporary file somewhere with at least part of the filename made up of the job number. If the printer is jammed, you ought to be able to find the file, copy it, edit the copy to remove the stuff already printed, and queue that up, and kill the original job. Try looking in /tmp or /usr/spool/*yourprinter*, you will probably see some complicated filenames, probably 2 of them with your job number somewhere in the name, one of which is the file being printed.

Once you figure that out, it should be simple to write a script that users can deal with, say, lists the job numbers available and the current job, asks the user which one, which page to start printing from, then does the editing and queueing described above. If you can do that, then you can probably parse out a report title in the files, and wind up with a custom package better than what you can buy, although not as bulletproof.

FWIW
jg

-- 
Joel Garry           joelga_at_amber.rossinc.com            Compuserve 70661,1534
These are my opinions, not necessarily those of Ross Systems, Inc.
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