Print .prn file

[jonRV]

My Samsung ML-1610 mono laser printer has the facility for saving to a .prn file but I am unable to print out such a file.  The only suggestions that I can find involve convoluted comand prompt methods that I am unable to understand.  Please let me know if you can help.

[Dragon-Fur]

@jonRV

As you have likely found (by looking this up on the 'net), the .prn file is a printer file and is not normally usable by mere humans.

A bit of information...

Explanation and cmd prompt print method:

Frogmore - What is a PRN file?

The shortest explanation method I have found involves finding the .prn file in the folder in which you saved the file > Single click and drag the file over to the printer shortcut and drop it.  If the printer can translate what is in the file, it will print out the contents.

How do I print a .prn file?

Most articles suggest that you don't "print" to .prn -- instead, open the browser, document reader, viewer of the content you want to save > save that content into a .PDF file > open the PDF file in your favorite PDF reader > print the PDF file to the printer ( not print to file)

If you have Adobe Acrobat, the suggestion in this article might work:

How to Convert PRN Files to PDF

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[dansdaduk]

The Samsung ML-1610 printer appears to be a host-based device; the only 'language'' which it understands is the (proprietary) Samsung Printer Language (SPL).

When you 'save to a .prn file' (alternatively known as 'print to file'), you are in effect saving the set of 'instructions' which the printer driver (on the workstation) has generated (by converting all of the objects (e.g. text, images, etc.) in the source document (e.g. Word) into the equivalent objects in the SPL language).

That set of 'instructions' will (I think) consist of a series of encapsulated, compressed, raster images - the (relatively simple) interpreter in the printer's firmware just unencapsulates and uncompresses these raster images, and prints the resultant dots.

I'm not aware of any tools which can interpret SPL (although Samsung probably has some internally), so the only thing which you can usefully do with a saved .prn file containing SPL is to 'send' the content of it to a suitable SPL-supporting printer (which is presumably what the "... convoluted comand prompt methods ..." are referring to).

[Dragon-Fur]

@dansdaduk

Thanks for the clarification regarding this printer.  Once again, I bow to your expertise on the subject.  Smiling.

SPLViewer

This works on at least two consumer grade printers from HP, there is an SPL viewer.  The program does allow you to open print data files (.spl). 

In the event there is "No PCL and Postscript file?  Load anyway?" message when you attempt to open a file from within the program, you can still open it in RAW -- useful in context?  

Partial Example in Dragon File:

Reprint a print job – save a job for reprinting later

Section: Method 2 - Print from the shadow file

Reprint job later - standard reprint method is described in Section: Save Print Jobs in Queue 

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[dansdaduk]

@Dragon-Fur

Some useful information in the various attachments to your posts.

I'm not sure whether or not this would help the question author (and he/she is the only one who can confirm, since you and I don't have access to the Samsung printer model in question).

The reason I'm not sure is because we've both used acronymns, but with a different meaning for the same one.

The printer in question appears to use a (proprietary) printer language known as Samsung Printer Language, which is referred to as SPL.

The SPLViewer application which you refer to (attempts to) intepret the content of Windows spool files (which have a .spl file extension name).

Windows (and other operating systems) use spooling (where data is written first to intermediate files, rather than directly to the target printer), so that control can be handed back more quickly to the source application (e.g. Word) which initiated the Print command.

The system then (in the background) takes the information in  the .spl spool file (and the companion .shd shadow file) and (sometimes with some more interaction with a printer driver) generates the required printer-ready data and sends this to the target device.

The spool file may contain data in various formats, depending on the printer model and driver in use (although I'm beginning to get a bit out of my depth in discussing this).

The data may be in a (Windows-defined) printer-independent (?) format known as Enhanced MetaFile (EMF) format, or it may already be in a  printer-ready (and hence model-dependent) format, such as:

• PCL5 or  PCL XL or PostScript (as used by most business-class printers).
• PCL3 GUI or PCL3 Enhanced (variants of which are used by many consumer inkjet devices).
• Other printer-dependent formats (perhaps including Samsung Printer Language?).

I've no idea which formats the SPLViewer which you referred to will be able to interpret; the available documentation doesn't appear to go into this level of detail.

[Dragon-Fur]

@dansdaduk

Well, now I understand that I don't understand.  Smiling.

It has been literal decades since I worked with laser printers and the language(s) they use(d).  Anything I knew about the subject is long gone.  Meh.

Thanks for the explanation -- I shall add this to the small horde of information I have gathered on the subject.

I do now graciously take my leave.

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