05 - User Commands: Printing as an Everyday User¶

These are the commands a normal (public) timesharing user uses to get something printed and to manage their own queue entries. Operator/SYSTEM commands for running the spooler are in 04-OPERATOR-COMMANDS.md.

Sources: ../../Reference-Manuals/ND-60.050.06 SINTRAN III Users Guide.md section 3.8.2; ../../Reference-Manuals/ND-60.128.5 EN SINTRAN III Reference Manual.md; ../../Reference-Manuals/SINTRAN-COMMANDS-REFERENCE.md.

1. The simplest way: copy a file to the printer¶

If spooling is running for the printer, you just copy your file onto the peripheral file. SINTRAN transparently gives you a spooling file (not the hardware), and queues it when you close it.

@COPY-FILE LINE-PRINTER,USER-FILE-ONE

From the Users Guide 3.8: "The file USER-FILE-ONE is copied onto a spooling file version of the file LINE-PRINTER. The spooling file is linked to the spooling queue when the COPY-FILE command is finished. The file is emptied while the user continues with other commands."

You do not wait for the printer - the copy is to disk, and the background spooler prints it later. Because there are several spooling-file versions, several users (or you, several times) can do this at once.

2. Queue any file, with copies: `@APPEND-SPOOLING-FILE`¶

COPY-FILE copies your data into a fresh spooling file. If instead you want to queue an existing file directly and choose how many copies, use:

@APPEND-SPOOLING-FILE <peripheral file name>,<file name>,<no. of copies>,<text>[,<printing message?>]

<peripheral file name> - the printer's peripheral file (e.g. LINE-PRINTER).
<file name> - the file to print.
<no. of copies> - how many copies (blank = 1).
<text> - a message associated with the entry.
<printing message?> - YES = the spooler waits for a @START-PRINT after printing <text> (e.g. so an operator can mount special paper); this overrides @DEFINE-SPOOLING-CONDITIONS. NO (default) = the text is only printed on the error device if the spooling conditions request it.

Examples (Reference Manual / Users Guide):

@APPEND-SPOOLING-FILE LINE-PRINTER,FILE-ONE,2
@APPEND-SPOOLING-FILE LINE-PRINTER,FILE-TWO,1
@APPEND-SPOOLING-FILE LINE-PRINTER,F-1,,'MOUNT FORM-1',YES

The last one queues one copy of F-1, writes "MOUNT FORM-1" on the error device before printing, and then waits for the operator's @START-PRINT.

The monitor calls behind this are APSPF (MON 240 octal, append file to spooling queue) and SPCLO (MON 40 octal, close spooling file) - see 07-INTERNALS-AND-MON-CALLS.md.

3. Looking at the queue: `@LIST-SPOOLING-QUEUE`¶

@LIST-SPOOLING-QUEUE <peripheral file name>[,<output file>]

Lists the entries waiting on the printer's queue (optionally to a file rather than the terminal). Note: the file currently being printed is not listed, because its printing has already started (Users Guide 3.8 example).

4. Editing your queue¶

`@MOVE-SPOOLING-QUEUE-ENTRY`¶

@MOVE-SPOOLING-QUEUE-ENTRY <peripheral file>,<file name>,<insert or append>,<before/after file name>

Reorders the queue - move an entry to before/after another entry (e.g. to push a short job ahead).

`@REMOVE-FROM-SPOOLING-QUEUE`¶

@REMOVE-FROM-SPOOLING-QUEUE <peripheral file>,<file name>

Removes a specific entry from the queue without deleting the underlying file.

`@DELETE-SPOOLING-FILE`¶

@DELETE-SPOOLING-FILE <peripheral file name>,<file name>

Removes a file from the queue and empties it. If it is a spooling file, its pages are released back to the free spooling-page pool and the file is marked unused. If it is not a spooling file, this behaves like @REMOVE-FROM-SPOOLING-QUEUE (Reference Manual).

Example:

@DELETE-SPOOLING-FILE LINE-PRINTER,LINE-PRINTER::10

5. The spooling page pool (user view)¶

Users share the spooling page pool described in 01-OVERVIEW-AND-CONCEPTS.md section 5. As a user you can check @SPOOLING-PAGES-LEFT. Raising/lowering the limit (@GIVE-SPOOLING-PAGES / @TAKE-SPOOLING-PAGES) is an operator/SYSTEM concern (see doc 04). If the pool is exhausted, your program simply waits until the spooler frees pages - it will not fail.

6. Quick user reference¶

Command	Purpose
`@COPY-FILE <printer>,<file>`	Simplest print: copy into a spooling file, auto-queued on close.
`@APPEND-SPOOLING-FILE`	Queue an existing file; choose copies; optional operator message/wait.
`@LIST-SPOOLING-QUEUE`	See what is waiting (not the file already printing).
`@MOVE-SPOOLING-QUEUE-ENTRY`	Reorder the queue.
`@REMOVE-FROM-SPOOLING-QUEUE`	Drop an entry, keep the file.
`@DELETE-SPOOLING-FILE`	Drop an entry and empty/free the file.
`@SPOOLING-PAGES-LEFT`	Check free spooling pages.

To print to a printer on another machine, see 06-REMOTE-AND-NETWORK-PRINTING.md.

05 - User Commands: Printing as an Everyday User¶

1. The simplest way: copy a file to the printer¶

2. Queue any file, with copies: @APPEND-SPOOLING-FILE¶

3. Looking at the queue: @LIST-SPOOLING-QUEUE¶