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FAQ: Frequently asked
questions: Plotting to the port
Installing the Dahedisign printer driver,
needed when you want to plot with DahediSign.
Explanation of how driving the plotter works:
DahediSign generates lines for the plotter to cut.
Those lines must be send to a port, the parallel (LPT) port, or a serial (COM) port.
DahediSign can plot directly to the port, which keeps the program busy until the plot is
finished, or to the spooler which is much faster.
For controlling the spooler, a Windows printer driver is used.
This printerdriver controls the communication between the plotter and the port, and also
uses a buffer for spooling the plotterdata, so that the program (DahediSign) is free after
the driver has all its information.
Therefor, when you plot from Dahedisign to the spooler, all plotterdata is send into the
driver very fast, and the driver sends it to the plotter at a speed the plotter can
handle, on the background.
Plotterlanguage
A plotter needs a certain language which it understands. Most plotters use HPGL commands,
but some plotters needs commands in an other language.
In DahediSign, all the specific plottercommands are generated, exactly in the way the
plotter
needs them. Therefor you must select your plotter in DahediSign, in the
Setup (in the starting screen from DahediSign).
After you selected your plotter, DahediSign knows exactly what commands to generate.
Printerdriver (to plot)
The plottercommands are send to the port directly, or to the printerdriver (spooler).
If you want to use the spooler, you need to install in Windows a printerdriver, which can
be used by DahediSign to send the plottercommands to. This printerdriver should send the
commands to the plotter on the moment that the plotter can handle it, using the port which
is selected in this printerdriver.
Therefor the name of this printerdriver should be 'dahedisign' (so that DahediSign knows
which driver to use), and the port in this driver should be the port on which the plotter
is. Very important is, that the driverfile for this driver is the 'generic/text
only' driverfile.
This driverfile sends exactly the data from DahediSign to the port, NOT changing the data.
Therefor also in the waiting row settings, the rowmode should be on RAW (not EMF).
Therefor also in PAPER the paper type selected should be ' continuous, NO page end'
Do NOT select a driverfile other than this 'generic, text only'. If you select a
windows driver
file fe. which is specially for your plotter, this will definitely NOT work, because this
is a driver
file which translates certain standard Windows commands into your plotter's language.
Remember that DahediSign did this translation already, and the driver just needs to send
this
commands unmodified to the port.
The driverfile name is TTY.drv for Win95 to ME or SPOOLER.drv for XP. This can be checked
in the details of the printerdriver.
USB port
If your plotter has only an USB connection, you should use the spooler (see above) to
drive the plotter. In this "dahedisign" printerdriver, as port, the USB
connection to the plotter should be choosen. If Windows recognises the plotter, this
should be in the list. If it is not in the list, first install the software that comes
with the plotter. After that, the USB connection should be in this list. |
Installing the dahedisign printerdriver:
go to START
click SETTINGS
click PRINTERS
click ADD new printer
click local printer
click COMMON or GENERIC printer, general only text
(general, generic,
algemeen, Algemein, general only text)
select LPT1 or COM1: or COM2 (the port your plotter is on)
type a new name, name it 'DahediSign' (or 'dahedisign')
do NOT print the testpage
click ACCEPT
if now the system asks for the Windows CDrom, select BROWSE
place your WINDOWS CDrom
select D (or other drive for CDrom)
select D:\WINxx (95 or 98 or ??)
click OK
after the driver is loaded, click FINISH
Now mostly the driver works, but sometimes you need to check some properties. |
Check the properties of the driver.
go to START
click SETTINGS
click PRINTERS
click one time on the 'dahedisign' printer (to make it blue)
click the RIGHT mousebutton and select properties (eigenschappen, Eigenschaft, details)
select DETAILS
select USE DRIVER
select GENERIC/ONLY TEXT
if this is NOT in the list, click NEW
select GENERIC/ONLY TEXT
if this is NOT in the list, click DISKETTE
place your WINDOWS CDrom
select D (or other drive for CDrom)
select D:\WINxx (95 or 98)
click OK
select GENERIC/ONLY TEXT
click OK
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select port LPT1, or COM1 or COM2 (where your plotter is on)
change PORT SETTINGS if needed
click OK
select WAITING ROW SETTINGS
set 'place in waiting row'
set 'start after FIRST page'
set rowmode to 'RAW'
click OK
select PAPER
select A4
set paper feed at : 'continues, NO page end'
click OK
click FINISH |
| IMPORTANT: It is very essential that the computer and the
plotter are connected on the same mains power. If they are connected on different
(grounded) mains power, it is possible that ground loops can damage the plotter or
computer, or that this causes failures during communication. So make sure that the
computer and plotter is on the same mains group, and better, on the same mains plug. (this
is for all grounded hardware, connected to a computer, so also printers and scanners) |
| COM port problems If you plotter is on a COM port, you may have
some problems.
At first, there exists more type of cables, and not all plotters work with all cables.
Most plotters can work with a NULLmodem cable with full handshake. This is an example
of the connections:
TXD
2-----3
RXD
3-----2
RTS
4-----6
DSR
6-----4
CTS
5----20
GRD
7-----7
DTR
20----5
Make sure that you have the right cable for your plotter in combination with the port
on your computer.
Second, on most plotters you can select the baudrate, databits, parity and handshake.
On the computer, the portparameters must be exactly equal.
In case you try to drive your plotter, and the parameters are not equal, you may drive
your plotter into an error, and often you need to fully restart the computer after this
before it is possible to drive your plotter, also when the parameters are correct now. (in
that case shut the computer completely down, so the hardware of the COMport is resetted)
Also the plotter should be resetted then.
When you run into problems like this, it may be very difficult to find out what the
right parameters are.
Most plotters can work on 9600 baud(or 19200), NO parity, 8 databits, 1 stopbit,
Hardware handshake. Some older plotters work on 2400 baud (fe. CSR)
With parallel driving mostly there is no problem. |
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| LPT port problems When you have a plotter which works parallel, and
you use your LPT port, mostly there is no problem.
Only, it can happen, when you have a very old plotter, that this plotter can not handle
the ECP ports from the modern computers.
If the plotter does not work, or does not work correct, and you feel that this may be a
port problem, you may try to set your LPT port to 'NORMAL' mode in stead of ECP.
First you can check IF your port is in ECP mode. If you click on 'this computer' with
the RIGHT mouse button, then properties, then PORTS, you see there 'ECP- printerport
LPT1" or 'Printerport LPT1". If there is NOT ECP mode, then your port is
already in NORMAL mode.
This should be done in the BIOS in SETUP, when starting the computer (mostly keep the
DEL key during booting). Then in the BIOS search for parameters for the ports. For the LPT
port try to find NORMAL in stead of ECP/EPP.
!!!! If you do not understand what is a SETUP and what is a BIOS, please do NOT go into
the setup. NEVER change something which you do not fully understand. !!!!!
For some modern computers it is not possible to set the port to NORMAL mode.
You could buy a simple LPT card and plug it in, having an extra LPT port.
Those cards mostly have a NORMAL mode LPT port. |
| If you have a plotter which is not in the list, please first try the generic HPGL
drivers. Most plotters use HPGL as commands.
If your plotter does not work on HPGL, please let us know what plotter you have.
If you have other software to drive your plotter, we could make a driver for your
plotter.
Therefore we need to have a small diskfile from the software which does work.
Please then create a diskfile from a simple drawing of two squares and one circle.
Please give us the exact size of the square, preferable 100 x 100 mm.
We could analyze your diskfile and let you know what commands there are in and what
plotter you could select to use DahediSign to drive this plotter. In worst case, we could
prepare a driver file for you which supports your plotter. Please email us about this on eb@dahedisign.com
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