Currently, we use UPS Worldship and a middlewear piece called Shipgear
to tie into our ERP system and print our shipping labels.

Recently, one of our customers started requiring our shipping labels to
be printed in a specific format that is significantly different from
the UPS canned standard. Basically this is a 4 by 6 label with nine
mandatory sections laid out in a specific format with four barcodes
included. We are using a Zebra barcode printer for labels.

I've approached UPS and VTechnologies (they own Shipgear) about the
problem and basically got "Sorry, we can't help you".

My next approach is to code something in VB that can pull the
information from our ERP system, generate the barcodes, and print them
(possibly using a Crystal Report) to the Zebra printer.

I had an application that I thought would do the job by displaying the
information in a VB form and then printing it using the Printform
method, but there is an issue in VB6 that won't let you print the
contents of Pictureboxes using the Printform method.

I'd appreciate any input I can get.

We print labels directly to the Zebra printers from D3 using ZPL. We
print about 30 different formats meeting different customers
requirements.

I've manually designed the labels in ZPL - not that difficult. I've
also designed the labels using the BAR-ONE software, printing to a file
instead of the printer (change the printer port to File: in Windows). I
then imported the text file into D3 and replace the data fields with
real data.

We print thousands of labels a day.. We have 12 Zebra's in use.

DaveG wrote:
the labels from basic is quite easy but if you need to print a
graphic image thing get in a wad. I have yet to get it to work
properly. Any pointers to the path of graphic bliss? :-)

Ron White


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You can use the UPS printer for your labels as well. The Eltron
Create-A-Label software is free. If comes with the Eltron printers and can
be downloaded off their web site.

1) Set the UPS printer up as a network printer.
2) create the label format in the Eltron software using hard coded data.
3) run the create EPL code program.
4) open the text file it created and cut and paste the EPL code into your
basic program.
5) change the hard coded data into variables.
6) sp-assign to the printer and run your program.

Very simple.

The Eltron TLP2844 printer is about $400 if you need to buy another one.

Jeff


"Wenthe" <wenthe (AT) aol (DOT) com> wrote

Hi Ron,
<SNIP>
Are you using the (depenging upon host OS) '-o raw' or '-og'
arguments to lpr so that the system knows to pass binary data?

HTH,
-Tom

Tom deL wrote:
set to raw mode.

Ron White


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Ron,

I loaded the images in the printer memory and then call them from
basic.
Only limitation is the mem. in the printer. I had to load them from
DOS and it works just fine. Let me know if you need more info!
I can then dig up the scripts I;m using to upload the images.

Frans

On Tue, 16 Aug 2005 13:38:42 -0500, Ron <ron (AT) eckel (DOT) com> wrote:

Frans wrote:
get some time I will try that.

Ron


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Hi Ron,

<SNIP>

Oops I missed that, sorry. There _is_ a cure then:
http://www.noworms.com/treatment.cfm <G>

-Tom