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1.1 root 1: .TH POSTIO 8
2: .CT 1 sa_auto
3: .SH NAME
4: postio \- serial interface for postscript printers
5: .SH SYNOPSIS
6: .B /usr/bin/postscript/postio
7: [
8: .I option ...
9: ] [
10: .I file ...
11: ]
12: .SH DESCRIPTION
13: .I Postio
14: sends
15: .I files
16: to a PostScript printer.
17: It is usually called by the innards of
18: .IR lp (1).
19: If no files are named,
20: the standard input is sent.
21: .PP
22: Mandatory argument
23: .B -l
24: names the printer.
25: If
26: the first character of
27: .I line
28: is
29: .LR / ,
30: it is assumed to be a local filename like
31: .LR /dev/tty37 .
32: Otherwise it is taken to be a network address,
33: with default network
34: .LR dk ,
35: to which the printer is connected.
36: .PP
37: These options are probably the most useful:
38: .nr xx \w'\fL-b\ \fIspeed\ 'u
39: .TP \n(xxu
40: .BI \-b speed
41: Transmit data
42: at baud rate
43: .I speed,
44: one of 1200, 2400, 4800, 9600 (default), and 19200.
45: .TP
46: .B \-q
47: Disable status queries while
48: .I files
49: are being sent to the printer.
50: When status queries are disabled a dummy message is appended
51: to the log file before each block is transmitted.
52: .TP
53: .BI \-B num
54: Set the internal buffer size for reading and writing
55: .I files
56: to
57: .I num
58: bytes, 2048 by default.
59: .TP
60: .B \-D
61: Debug mode:
62: copy everything read from the printer
63: to the log file
64: or standard error.
65: .TP
66: .BI \-L file
67: Log data read from the printer in
68: .IR file .
69: Standard error is the default.
70: Normally only messages indicating a change in the printer's state are logged.
71: .TP
72: .BI \-P string
73: Send
74: .I string
75: to the printer before any input
76: .IR files .
77: The default
78: is PostScript code that disables timeouts.
79: .TP
80: .BI \-R num
81: If
82: .I num
83: is
84: .LR 1 ,
85: run as a single process;
86: if
87: .LR 2 ,
88: use separate processes for reading and writing.
89: .PP
90: These options are not useful to spoolers like
91: .IR lp .
92: .TP \n(xxu
93: .B \-i
94: Interactive mode:
95: send the
96: .I files
97: to the printer,
98: then copy standard input to the printer
99: and printer output to standard error.
100: Overrides many other options.
101: To have a friendly chat with the printer,
102: begin by typing
103: .L executive
104: on a line by itself.
105: .TP
106: .B \-t
107: Copy printer output that doesn't look like
108: status information to the standard output;
109: intended for use with PostScript programs that write results.
110: .PP
111: This option should be used only as a last resort:
112: .TP \n(xxu
113: .B \-S
114: Take special measures to send data slowly.
115: Limits the internal buffer to 1024 bytes,
116: implies
117: .B -R1
118: and disables
119: .BR -q
120: and
121: .BR -i .
122: Expensive in CPU time.
123: .PP
124: When
125: .I postio
126: starts,
127: it attempts to force the printer into IDLE state
128: by sending a sequence of
129: .RB control- t
130: (status query),
131: .RB control- c
132: (interrupt),
133: and
134: .RB control- d
135: (end of job)
136: characters.
137: When the printer is idle,
138: the files are transmitted
139: with an occasional
140: .RB control- t
141: interspersed
142: (except under
143: .BR -q ).
144: After all data have been sent,
145: .I postio
146: waits until the printer appears to have finished
147: before exiting.
148: Fatal error messages from the printer
149: cause
150: .I postio
151: to exit prematurely.
152: .SH EXAMPLES
153: .TP
154: .L
155: postio -l/dev/tty01 file1 file2
156: Runing as a single process at 9600 baud, send file1 and file2
157: to printer
158: .LR /dev/tty01 .
159: .TP
160: .L
161: postio -R2 -B4096 -l/dev/tty01 -Llog file1 file2
162: Similarly,
163: but use two processes
164: and a 4096-byte buffer,
165: and copy printer messages to file
166: .BR log .
167: .TP
168: .L
169: postio -t -l/dev/tty22 -Llog program >results
170: Send the PostScript
171: .L program
172: to printer
173: .BR /dev/tty22 ,
174: place any data in
175: .BR results ,
176: put error messages in
177: .BR log .
178: .TP
179: .L
180: postio -i -l/cs/dk!my/printer
181: Connect interactively to the printer at network address
182: .BR /cs/dk!my/printer .
183: .SH SEE ALSO
184: .IR lp (1),
185: .IR postscript (8)
186: .SH DIAGNOSTICS
187: Exit status 1 means a system error
188: (e.g. can't open the printer),
189: 2 means a PostScript error,
190: 3 means both.
191: Status 2 is usually caused by a syntax error in an input file.
192: .SH BUGS
193: Multiple
194: files
195: with PostScript end-of-job marks
196: are not guaranteed to work.
197: .PP
198: If a network is involved,
199: .B \-b
200: may be ineffective and attempts by
201: .I postio
202: to flow-control data in both directions may not work.
203: Option
204: .B \-q
205: can help if the printer is connected to Radian Datakit.
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