Editing Format Actions (SAP Library - BC

Editing Format Actions

For device types that use one of the drivers HPL2, POST, PRES, or SWIN for formatting lists, formatting does not take place in the actions but is executed by the drivers. You can edit the attributes of the formats so that you no longer have to enter control sequences in the individual actions. For more information, see Editing Device Type Formats .

The following is a description of how you edit the actions of formats that do not use any of the list printer drivers:

Sample device type formats: You can use the X_65_80 (list output) and DINA4 (SAPscript) device type formats as templates for your own device type formats. If you are adding a new format to an existing device type, then these device type formats can help you to identify the actions and commands that the new device type format should contain.

Which actions are required? Only the actions listed below are used by the R/3 System. You can leave all other actions empty. They are reserved for future use.

Device Type Format Actions Used by R/3

Action	Usage and Notes
Cover page	Inserted as the first element in the output data stream, before the printer initialization action. Use: Prints an identification sheet at the start of an output request. The Cover page action is sent only if activated (per printer in the Output device definition) or by the user in the print selection screen. By default, the Cover page action of the X_PAPER format is used. Standard R/3 device types define only the X_PAPER cover page. You can override the default for particular formats by defining a Cover page action for the format. For more information, see Maintaining Cover Pages for Output Requests .
Printer initialization	Sent at the start of an output request after the cover page action (if any) has been sent to the printer. Use: Configures the printer as required by the format of an output request. For List Formats, see the X_65_80 device format of a similar device type for the printer commands that you should issue. Printer initializations often specify the character set, page length, line feed, character spacing, and font. Printer initializations vary greatly, however, depending on device type. For SAPscript Formats, see the DINA4 device format of a similar device type for the printer commands that you should issue. Printer initializations often specify the printer emulation and character set. You do not need to specify the font, character pitch, line feed, or paper type. The SAPscript printer drivers set these through print controls. Printer initializations vary greatly, however, depending on device type and OTF driver. Add a # (no operation) for SWIN and related device types.
Reset at end	Sent at the end of a print request. Use: Reset a printer to a particular state, such as a particular emulation. If you do not want to reset the printer, leave the action undefined or enter a comment character. Ensure that the escape sequences you enter do not cause a line feed or otherwise change the print position as the print request may then not print correctly. Add # (no operation) for SWIN and related device types.
End of page	Sent at the end of every page of an output request. Use: Used in printing lists to generate a form feed (new page). See the table below for a summary of the requirements for the end-of-page and end-of-line actions.
End of line	Sent at the end of each line in an output request. Use: Used for list output and for most SAPscript output to generate a new line (carriage return and line feed). See the table below for a summary of the requirements for the end-of-page and end-of-line actions.
Start a new page	Sent at the start of every page of an output request. Only defined in POSTSCPT list formats. Not defined in standard R/3 device formats; has therefore no effect on output. Inserted in the output stream by default so that you can use it if needed.
Start of line	Sent at the start of every text line of an output request. Only defined in POSTSCPT list formats. Not defined in standard R/3 device formats; has therefore no effect on output. Inserted in the output stream by default so that you can use it if needed.

End of Page, End of Line Actions: Required Definitions

Format Type	End-of-line definition	End-of-page definition
X_* formats for list output	\r\n	\r\f
SAPscript STN2 driver	# (comment, null operation)	# (comment, null operation)
SAPscript HPL2 driver	\r\n	# (comment, null operation)
SAPscript PRES driver	\r\n	# (comment, null operation)
SAPscript POST driver	\n	# (comment, null operation)
SWIN driver for Windows printing	\n	\f

Line spacing and page length specifications for line printers: R/3 standard Printer initialization actions for line printers (printers that use the SAPscript driver STN2) specify line spacing (lines per inch) and page length (lines per page).

These specifications do not select a particular paper size at the printer. Rather, they tell the printer where to insert a page break in the output.

The following table shows the line spacing and page lengths for the standard R/3 formats.

Line Printer Specifications

Format

Use these values in the Printer initialization action

DINA3

Line spacing: 6 lines per inch (LPI)
Page length: 140 lines
Note: Not pre-defined for most device types.

DINA4

Line spacing: 6 LPI
Page length: 70 lines

DINA5

Line spacing: 6 LPI
Page length: 50 lines

EXECUTIVE

Line spacing: 6 LPI
Page length: 72 lines

LETTER

Line spacing: 6 LPI
Page length: 66 lines

LEGAL

Line spacing: 6 LPI
Page length: 72 lines

INCH4

Line spacing: 6 LPI
Page length: 25 lines

INCH4C

Line spacing: 6 LPI
Page length: 24 lines

INCH6

Line spacing: 6 LPI
Page length: 36 lines

INCH7

Line spacing: 6 LPI
Page length: 42 lines

INCH8

Line spacing: 6 LPI
Page length: 48 lines

INCH11

Line spacing: 6 LPI
Page length: 66 lines

INCH12

Line spacing: 6 LPI
Page length: 72 lines

LINE_21

Line spacing: 6 LPI
Page length: 21 lines

LINE_22

Line spacing: 6 LPI
Page length: 22 lines

If you are defining device type formats for a page printer (SAPscript drivers POST, PRES, HPL2), then refer to the corresponding device type format in a similar device type for the line spacing and page length specifications required.

Printer initialization action: Ensure that the escape sequences that you define match the page dimensions and orientation specified in the format and page format associated with a device type format.

Also, ensure that any character set specified in escape sequences matches the character set specified in the device-type definition. The character set must also be compatible with any implicit character set changes made at the printer by SAPscript font changes. The spool system cannot test to ensure that these specifications match. To test printing, see Testing Output Devices.

The actions editor and special characters in printer initializations and print controls: The system uses the R/3 programming editor for editing device escape sequences. In the editor, you can use the special characters shown in the table below to simplify entering escape sequences. You can also use a set of variables for defining cover pages, such as $(BENUTZER) (user) and $(SPOOLID) (spool number). See Maintaining Cover Pages for Output Requests.

Character	Meaning
\e	ESC (escape) symbol used by many printer manufacturers. It has the hexadecimal value 1B and the decimal value 27.
\0x	Marks the following two characters as a hexadecimal number (one byte). Example: 0xF0
#	Marks an entire line as a comment at the beginning of the line The line is not sent to the output device.
\n	Line feed (hexadecimal 0A)
\r	Carriage return (hexadecimal 0D)
\f	Form feed (hexadecimal 0C)
\s	Space character (when required at the end of a line) (Hexadecimal 20)

Line breaks: Note that the line ends on the printer escape screen are not sent to the printer. To start a new line in the printer output stream, you must enter \n or \r\n in the device escape sequence.

Default Actions: If a format does not contain a definition for the cover page (in the device type format), then the X_PAPER cover page is printed as a default.

The spool system uses default actions if two other actions – end of page or end of line – are undefined. The default actions may result in printing of empty lines or pages in SAPscript print requests that use the STND or STN2 drivers.

To prevent the spool system from using defaults for undefined actions, define each of these actions with at least one comment line in each device type format that you define. SAP has defined these actions in all standard SAPscript formats.

First Page of SAP Printing Guide

Format	*Use these values in the Printer initialization* action**
DINA3	Line spacing: 6 lines per inch (LPI) Page length: 140 lines Note: Not pre-defined for most device types.
DINA4	Line spacing: 6 LPI Page length: 70 lines
DINA5	Line spacing: 6 LPI Page length: 50 lines
EXECUTIVE	Line spacing: 6 LPI Page length: 72 lines
LETTER	Line spacing: 6 LPI Page length: 66 lines
LEGAL	Line spacing: 6 LPI Page length: 72 lines
INCH4	Line spacing: 6 LPI Page length: 25 lines
INCH4C	Line spacing: 6 LPI Page length: 24 lines
INCH6	Line spacing: 6 LPI Page length: 36 lines
INCH7	Line spacing: 6 LPI Page length: 42 lines
INCH8	Line spacing: 6 LPI Page length: 48 lines
INCH11	Line spacing: 6 LPI Page length: 66 lines
INCH12	Line spacing: 6 LPI Page length: 72 lines
LINE_21	Line spacing: 6 LPI Page length: 21 lines
LINE_22	Line spacing: 6 LPI Page length: 22 lines