Generating Print output

In PlanetPress Connect, Print output can be generated directly from the Designer, or via an automated process in Workflow.

Connect supports a number of different types of print outputs. These include:

PCL
PDF
PostScript (including the PPML, VIPP and VPS variants)

Generating Print output from the Designer

Print output can only be generated from the Designer when a data set is available (see Loading data). The Designer merges all sections in the Print context (see Print context) with the data set, and generates the output using those data values.

To generate Print output, select File from the menu and choose Print or Proof Print.

Proof Print generates output directly from the Designer, without using the Print Service. A Proof Print run won't impact upon production printing

File > Print... allows the following printing options:
- Using the Default output settings.
  For more details, see Print using standard print output settings
- Using the same settings that were last used to produce printed output.
  For more details, see Print using standard print output settings
- Using entirely new output settings set via the Advanced option, which allows selection from a myriad of print output options.
  These settings cannot be saved for later re-use. To do that, one should instead create printing Presets, which are designed to allow just this behaviour.
  
  For a detailed description see Print using Advanced Printer Wizard .
- Using previously saved Printing Preset options.

File > Proof Print... allows either the default output settings; the last used output settings or previously saved output Presets.
For more detailed information on this option see Print using standard print output settings.

Saving Printing options in Print Presets

Selecting File > Print Presets allows you to create or modify printing Presets (which contain all the printing options), which can be saved for re-use in later print runs. This can be particularly handy when creating special print runs, that need to be run periodically.

These presets make it possible to do such things as filtering and sorting records, grouping documents and splitting the print jobs into smaller print jobs, as well as the more standard selection of printing options, such as binding, OMR markings and the like.

See Print Presets for more details.

Generating Print output from Workflow

If you want to generate Print output via an automated process, this means that you have to design a Print process in the Workflow configuration tool.
For information about Connect Print processes in Workflow, see Print processes with OL Connect tasks.

However, creating a Print process starts with creating the files that the Workflow process will need (see Files used in a print process). These files are all made with the Designer.
They have to be sent to PlanetPress Workflow before they can be used in the Workflow process; see Sending files to Workflow.

An easy way to setup a print project in OL Connect, including the print process and the files that it needs, is to use a Project Wizard. There are two Project Wizards that create a sample print project. See Project Wizards.

There is also a Walkthrough sample that helps you build a Print process for Connect documents in the Workflow Configuration tool by yourself, step-by-step: Creating a Print process in Workflow.

Print settings in a template

There are a number of settings for the Print context and Print sections that have an impact on how Print sections are printed, which cannot be made in the Print Wizard or influenced through either a Job Creation Preset or an Output Creation Preset. They are made in and saved with the template.

These settings are:

Duplex printing. Duplex printing has to be enabled for a Print section, in order to print that section on both sides of the paper. The same applies to Mixplex printing.
See Enabling double-sided printing (Duplex, Mixplex).
Finishing. The Print context , as well as each of the Print sections, can have its own Finishing settings. In printing, Finishing is the way pages are bound together after they are printed.
See Setting the binding style for the Print context and Setting the binding style for a Print section.
Also see Finishing options for an explanation of the Finishing options.
Bleed. The margins around a page are called the Bleed. It can be used on some printers to ensure that no unprinted edges occur in the final trimmed document.
See Page settings: size, margins and bleed.
Black overprint. The option to print small black text over other colors is referred to as black overprint. See Overprint and black overprint.

Aborting content creation

You may want the content creation process to be aborted in certain situations; for example, when a template script fails to load remote content. To abort the content creation process, you may raise a fatal error from within a script in the template; see fatalError(message).

When a script calls this function in Preview mode, the script that triggers it is marked with an error icon in the Scripts pane, and the given message is displayed in a hint.

When generating output from the Designer, the Designer will log the error and display an error dialog with the given message. Content creation is aborted.

When generating output from Workflow, the entire job fails. Workflow will log the error and execute any follow-up actions that are defined in the On Error tab of the respective OL Connect Content Creation task (All in One, Create Email Content, Create Print Content, Create Preview PDF, Create Web Content and Render Email Content). For more information about how to set up follow-up actions, see Using the On Error tab in the Workflow Help.