PLTCFG not changing the total area when changing the paper for the plotter

RE: PLTCFG not changing the total area when changing the paper for the plotter

Barry Lothian — Tue, 12 Jul 2022 09:12:18 GMT

[quote userid="2348" url="~/products/microstation/microstation_printing/f/printing-and-plotting-forum/223626/pltcfg-not-changing-the-total-area-when-changing-the-paper-for-the-plotter/720382"]The key bit here is the "Windows form name" property for each paper size, which is only relevant when creating a custom printer.pltcfg. For each custom paper size you create, you need to assign the name of the equivalent form published by the Windows printer driver.[/quote]

I've done that for this pltcfg but mapping the actual Windows Form Names doesn't make a difference (for me at least)

To give an example of what should happen:

In a design model, I press a custom button which brings up the print dialog with my customised PDF pltcfg automatically loaded. I have no fence defined so my Area is set to View and I can see the current view window content displayed in the preview, the paper size on the drop-down and its correct usable area listed below. If I change the paper size, the usable area changes and the print preview updates, increasing or decreasing depending on the paper size before and after. Likewise I can press Maximise Print Size and Preview and Scale update accordingly.

With the customised plotter pltcfg, if I do the same, for example changing from A1 to A2, the drop-down shows ISO A2 (as per customised paper size in the pltcfg) but the Total Area remains at 841 x 594mm. Likewise the preview updates but doesn't actually change, and after pressing Maximise Print Size, the scale remains the same as before.

If I untick Define Paper sizes, I can access all paper sizes from the drop down, but the list is an unorganised mess. I also notice that changing the paper size to any choice (including US sizes) has no effect on Total Area whatsoever and it remains stuck on 841 x 594mm.

RE: PLTCFG not changing the total area when changing the paper for the plotter

Andrew Edge — Thu, 07 Jul 2022 12:50:51 GMT

This post is old but I believe still accurate:

https://communities.bentley.com/other/old_site_member_blogs/bentley_employees/b/andrew_edges_blog/posts/paper-sizes-in-a-windows-printer-driver-configuration-file

The upshot is that when using the Windows printing system, the Microsoft or vendor-provided printer driver has control over the paper sizes, not MicroStation. The printer driver configuration (.pltcfg) paper size list really doesn't apply for Windows printing, at least not in the same way as when using Bentley printer drivers such as pdf.pltcfg.

As always, it's a little more complicated than that. Different Windows printer drivers behave differently.

(1) Most delegate paper sizes completely to Windows, in which case you are presented with every form in the Windows database as long as its size doesn't exceed the driver's device limits. Every paper size from "Japanese Postcard" to "Note" to "A0" plus every weird envelope size in between. The "Microsoft XPS Document Writer" printer is a good example of this.

(2) The more advanced, usually vendor-provided, printer drivers override the Windows form database and use their own smaller list of custom paper sizes, always with different spellings and punctuation between vendors. The HP-authored "HP DesignJet T120" printer driver is of the latter variety with a set of paper sizes designed for engineering workflows:

When sending data to a Windows printer driver, usually only one of the paper sizes explicitly supported by the driver may be specified. Some drivers do support arbitrary, application-defined form limits, but my experience was that support was always iffy at best. Sometimes it worked perfectly, most times it did not. Best results were always achieved by specifying the form by index into the driver's list of published sizes.

Thus, if you rule out user-defined paper sizes when using a Windows printer, the "Paper Sizes" tab in the MicroStation printer driver configuration editor for printer.pltcfg serves no purpose. Especially fields where you specify your own size.

So why is the "Paper Size" tab even displayed in the editor for printer.pltcfg? Because it does have a use for filtering the list of the forms published by the printer drivers. Helpful for drivers like the T120 if for example you only use ISO sizes and don't want even want to see Letter, Arch A, etc. Even more helpful for less sophisticated drivers like the XPS Document Writer if you only want to see, for example, Letter and Tabloid and perhaps display them as "ANSI A" and "ANSI B" in MicroStation instead of the Windows names.

The key bit here is the "Windows form name" property for each paper size, which is only relevant when creating a custom printer.pltcfg. For each custom paper size you create, you need to assign the name of the equivalent form published by the Windows printer driver.

When this .pltcfg is selected, MicroStation displays only the paper sizes listed in the 'Paper Sizes' tab. When printing to the driver, the "Windows form name" is looked up and specified via index. If the "Windows form name" you entered cannot be found, then MicroStation attempts to set application-defined form limits using your dimensions but this rarely works.

For the final question, why does MicroStation's printer driver configuration editor even allow me to specify paper sizes without Windows form names, or enter dimensions at all?, the answer is that in a vanishingly small number of cases using particular printer drivers, it actually works. It's not easy to eliminate a feature that some users depend on even if when it causes confusion and frustration for others.

Plus it's not necessary to define a list of paper sizes for printer.pltcfg. The settings available in the MicroStation Print dialog can used used the same as in any other Windows application. It's only when you try to leave those boundaries that problems develop.

RE: PLTCFG not changing the total area when changing the paper for the plotter

Barry Lothian — Wed, 06 Jul 2022 12:11:48 GMT

Andrew Edge Can you shed any light on this issue, I'm experiencing the same thing with an HP Designjet T120?

My Pltcfg is a modified version of the delivered printer.pltcfg and the printer name is added to the Default Windows Printer Name.

I have 4 paper sizes stored in the pltcfg A1 to A4 and changing them has no effect on the Total Area value.

Should a different pltcfg file be used?

RE: PLTCFG not changing the total area when changing the paper for the plotter

Lorys — Sun, 19 Dec 2021 04:38:06 GMT

I agree your not using the bently version modified or not

ButI also I think you may have copied and renamed the printer.plt ( windows system printer it was called system.pltcfg) .. I would personally just use a modified copy of pdf.pltcfg to print to pdf first.

When I print I modified the pdf printer to accomodate all sizes I need

So for me I print to pdf and then use the pdf reader to send the pdf to the plotter via the window printer settup .. But we have a hp print app at my work that helps print pdfs to the the plotter in windows thro the app so plottert doesnt run out of ram especially with air photo backgrounds ...

Contacted hp ( go to hp website) about this free utility to better print/ manage plots from windows ... I never print direct to any printers thru windows from microstation only from pdfs saves a lot of wasted paper, ink and time as viewing the pdf you pick up mistakes before you print them... well thats IMHO

RE: PLTCFG not changing the total area when changing the paper for the plotter

mwlong — Fri, 17 Dec 2021 17:30:03 GMT

In your screenshot of the plot dialog the driver is set to Windows Driver. Change that to Bentley Driver. Does that change anything? I believe having Windows Driver selected it will not honor paper sizes defined in the .pltcfg as it would be using the driver installed with Windows.