Easier, automated way to change specific printers on a group of reports

[bcarter17]

Hello,
I have an application that creates load tickets for loads of rock. The data entry form has 4 tabs to have 4 loads in queue. Based on the business, we either print inside the office on ticket paper (printer 1), inside the office on plain paper (printer 2), or in an outdoor printer inside a box on the scales (printer 3). I created a report for the outside version, with an assigned printer, and a report for each of the 2 inside versions with an assigned printer. This works great.....until.....we have issues with the outside printer due to being out in the weather. This forces us to rotate one of the inside printers outside. Then, to make everything work, I have to go into each report and update the specific printer each needs to go to (12 in total).

Is there a way instead of assigning a printer in the report, that I could use VB code to find the correct printer from a field on a hidden form? The form has 3 fields (Outside Printer, Inside Printer 1, Inside Printer 2). I could make changes to those 3 fields when we change equipment and quickly update where the reports need to be printed to.

Any thoughts from the group on using something like this? Would the printer info need to be stored as the assigned network name (example - NPI441173 (HP LaserJet M209dw), or the printer IP address)?

[June7]

Quick answer to "can I do this" is Yes. I have used VBA to direct output to specific printer. It involves setting a variable to the user's current default printer, changing the default printer, sending job to print, resetting user default printer. Here is simple example

Private Sub btnPrint_Click()
'print to the color printer

Dim strDefaultPrinter As String

'load the current default printer into the variable strDefaultPrinter
strDefaultPrinter = Application.Printer.DeviceName

'switch to Konica printer for color printout
Set Application.Printer = Application.Printers("\\printer server\printer name")
'try to set printer for color - doesn't work, also tried API coding and that didn't work either
''Application.Printer.ColorMode = acPRCMColor
''Forms("ConcreteMixTools").Printer.ColorMode = acPRCMColor

Me.Detail.BackColor = vbWhite
DoCmd.PrintOut

'change back to default printer
Set Application.Printer = Application.Printers(strDefaultPrinter)

End Sub

[alborg]

If you are in a situation where you need to reset the current printer for all your reports, s.a. when you are out of the office (as you stated), then this code takes June7's answer a bit further:

1) place a frame object on a pop up form listing all your possible printer choices
2) In the form that I use at the office, the end user has to simply click on a radiobutton to get one of these choices-

On Error GoTo err2
Select Case Forms![printersel]![Frame7].value
Case 1
Xx = "HP LaserJet Pro M12w"
Case 2
Xx = "HP LaserJet 1020"
Case 3
Xx = "HP LaserJet Pro M12w via LogMeIn"
Case 4
Xx = "Microsoft Print to PDF"
Case 5
Xx = "NPIA4455E (HP LaserJet M15w) via LogMeIn"
Case 6
Xx = "HP LaserJet M14-M17 PCLmS"
End Select
Set Application.Printer = Application.Printers(Xx)
DoCmd.Close acForm, "PrinterSel"
Exit Sub
err2:
MsgBox "This printer object does not exist!", vbExclamation
Exit Sub


This will now activate a new printer object which will continue to be active throughout the day, with all of your reports going to that new preferred printer. You can set a "default" printer again in the next time that you open your Access application or pop up the change printer form again to go back to the default printer.

[Micron]

Really? You'd use an option group with 6 printer options instead of a combo box? When a new option arises, or one is removed, you have to redesign your form instead of simply adding/deleting a record in the table of printer options that could feed a combo box list.

[alborg]

Yeah, in most situations an updatable combo group would be better, but I had a small office with printers that haven't changed in 20 years, so this pop up form just worked nicely.