Datamax-O'Neil DPL Programmer’s Manual User Manual
Page 144
Generating Label Formats
136
The first line in the sample format is the System-Level Command directing the printer to
begin label formatting. (Other System-Level Commands may precede the
printer setup.) Lines 2, 14, and 15 are Label Formatting Commands. Line 15 is the exit
and print command. The remaining lines (3-13) are print format records, explained in
this section.
A record is a data string that contains the information to be printed on the label(s).
Records are the building blocks of label formats. Every record must end with a
termination character (usually a carriage return,
characters will result in the concatenation of records. Omitting the carriage return that
precedes the termination character E, which is necessary to complete the label
formatting and begin printing, will cause the printer to continue interpreting all
subsequent data as label print format records.
Generating Records
Every record is made of three parts: (1) a header that is *15 bytes in length, (2) the
data to be printed, and (3) a termination character (e.g.,
field. The header is used to select the appearance of the data when printed by choosing
rotation, font type, size, and position options. Every header contains similar information,
but different types of records may use this information in different ways. The six record
types are:
1. Internal Bitmapped Font
2. Smooth Font (Simulated)
3. Scalable Font
4. Bar code
5. Images
6. Graphics
* As requirements grow some fields record headers will exceed 15 characters.
The Structure of a Record
The basic structure of the record is described below. For details regarding the various
interpretations of the six types see Record Structure Types.
The third line of the label format example consists of the following:
121100000050005HOME POSITION
This string comprises a complete record, shown below, divided into its three basic
component parts.
Header
Data String
Termination Character
121100000050005 HOME
POSITION