This blog post gives a general overview and setup steps of Postscript printing for Oracle Applications. I will distribute this topic in multiple posts as the length of the topic is large.
It is intended for an Oracle Applications Administrator tasked with setting up
Postscript printing in a Unix or Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 environment.
Although this blog post was written for Oracle Applications Release 11.0.3, the concepts and setup methods still applies to 11.5.x with the following exceptions:
1. If your character set is UTF8, you CANNOT use this Postscript setup.
Pasta / IX Library setup is REQUIRED for Postscript generation and printing.
2. In 11.5.x, do not use the executable option VERSION=2.0b.
The dropdown output format Postscript selection will do.
3. The Apps 11.5.x Oracle Reports executable is now ar60runb.
(Built on rwrun60)
ORACLE APPLICATIONS POSTSCRIPT PRINTING
I. POSTSCRIPT PRINTING AND ORACLE APPLICATIONS
PostScript is the name of a page description language developed by Adobe Systems
Ltd. The postscript format is used when extensive graphics and high character
resolution is desired within a displayed or printed document. It allows the
placement of graphical objects and images such as pictures within a report.
Postscript also allows the use of multiple fonts and character type settings
within a document.
Postscript printing requires a special printer that understands the postscript
language. Since printers vary from one manufacturer to another, certain
configurations and setups need to be performed before postscript printing can
be accomplished within Oracle Applications. Setting up for postscript printing
may also vary slightly by host platform and by released version of Oracle
Applications. Therefore, any setup variance due to platform or Applications
architecture will be pointed out.
The instructions provided here, are intended for Oracle Applications' principal
program for producing report output files - Oracle Reports. Other report
producing programs or utilities may require additional customized steps. On
some platforms, text-converting programs like Enscript may be necessary.
Nonetheless, other methods of producing postscript reports are beyond the scope
of this paper.
