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Creating a New Job

Videojet PrintMail WideArray provides two ways to create a new job. Before you create a new print job, you need to determine the
paper size, printing orientation, and resolution. Then you should check the ink levels and the ink usage.
These print job parameters affect every aspect of the job's appearance and help to keep that appearance consistent from one mailing
to another and from one print job to another.

To create a New Job

1. Set up the printing system - power up the printer

2. Create a new job file
3. Attach a template or create a new template
4. Attach a data file
5. Set up the print job
6. View the ink levels
7. View the ink usage

You must create a new print job file before you can design its printing parameters. You can create a new print job in two ways:

You can create a new print job from scratch where you create a new template and assign printing parameters.

You can open an existing print job, and save it as your new job, so the printing parameters are in your new job file.

Both methods are available in Videojet PrintMail WideArray. If you already have a similar print job, it is easier to open the existing
print job and save it as your new job file. Follow these steps to create a new print job.

Method 1: Using an existing Job

1. Click the Job tab at the bottom of the Main window.

2. Click File to open its menu of commands.

3. On the File menu, click Open Job. The Open Job dialog box appears.

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Note: Job file names and template file names appear in red if either has changes that are not saved. An asterisk (*) also appears in the title
bar if you have unsaved changes.

4. Click the job name and then click Open, or you can double-click the job name. The Main window appears with the job details
automatically filled in.

5. On the File menu, click Save Job As. The Save Job As dialog box appears.

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6. Type a unique job name in the File name box and click OK. You return to the Main window which shows the job name in the
title bar and in the Job File box.

After you copied all of the printing parameters from an existing print job to your new job, you are ready to set up the system and the
print job.

Method 2: Creating a new Job

1. Click the Job tab at the bottom of the Main window.

2. On the File menu, click New Job. An untitled job window appears.

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Note: The window does not display any information. However, as you follow these steps, the information begins to fill in on this
window.

3. On the File menu, click Save Job As. The Save Job As dialog box appears.

4. Type a unique job name in the File name box and click OK. You return to the Main window which shows the job name in the
title bar and in the Job File text box.

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Attaching Templates
Templates are important to the print job files in Videojet PrintMail WideArray. Templates determine what information will be printed on
a mailing, what graphics are to be included, and where barcodes are to be placed. It is the template that makes one job differ from
another. You can change a job simply by attaching a different template.

To attach a Template

1. On the File menu, click Open Template. The Open Template dialog box appears.

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2. Click the template name and click Open. You return to the Main window.
2. Choose the Job tab in the Main window. The template you selected in the Template File field appears.

3. On the File menu, click Save Job. This step saves the features you attached to your new job file.

You are ready to print the job.

Using an Existing Template

An easy method of duplicating a template and using it with another job is to open and attach the existing template to a new job.

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To open a Template

1. On the File menu, click Open Template. The Open Template dialog box opens.

2. Click the template name and click Open. You return to the Main window which shows the template in the Template File box.

3. On the File menu, click Save Template As. The Save Template As dialog box appears.
4. Type a name in the File name text box and click OK. You return to the Main window which shows the template in the Template
File box.

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Creating New Templates

You design a template by creating these elements.

Record blocks Message lines

Indicia Bitmaps

Postal barcodes Conditional Bitmaps

Barcodes

On the Template tab of the Main window, you use the New menu of commands to add elements to the template. Every element you
create and place in a template must be defined through its parameters. You can define the following parameters:

Object specific parameters

Use these parameters to change object specific attributes, such as text and font.
General parameters
Use general parameters to change the position (horizontal, vertical, and rotation), the size (height
and width), and the resizing method.
Advanced parameters
Use advanced parameters to make the background opaque/transparent, change the borders and
weight, change the margins, alignment, and the anchor position.

These parameters are handled much the same from element to element. Most options are available, but some options are not. That
depends on the element that you are defining.

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Serial Interface
The PrintMail WideArray is equipped with a serial communications port on the printer PC that can receive variable print data for
printing template record blocks.
The application’s functionality is identical whether in 'Serial' or 'File' mode. Fixed text messages, variable bitmaps, barcodes, etc., can
be used and intermixed with variable text objects.
The differences are:

When the serial port is chosen as the data source, the standard 'File' data source is unavailable.

When in 'Serial Mode' the 'Data File:' field on the Job screen will change to 'Serial:' and the data file’s path will be replaced with the
serial port parameters from setup.cfg.

Format Requirements

The format of the serial data stream (with respect to field and record delimiters) is identical to the format requirements for files.
The selections for 'Data File Options' dictate the expected format of data received via the serial port. For example, if the
selected File Format is 'CSV', the serial data should be formatted as comma-separated-value, so that fields are comma-delimited
with one record per line as the Comma-separated-value file specification indicates. All file formats are supported in 'Serial
Mode' (Custom, CSV, 1 Up, Text I, etc.) except the 'Database' and 'Variable' Data Source methods. Serial stream formats are also
somewhat more restrictive with regard to end-of-line markers. Line-feeds (10 decimal) are always required to terminate a line,
while the Carriage-Return (13 decimal) is optional.

As in 'File Mode', Unicode and Code Pages are supported. The current 'Code Page' selection in the 'File Format Detail' dialog box
determines how the incoming serial data will be interpreted. You need to ensure multi-byte Unicode characters are sent with a
byte-order that matches the selected endian setting. If 'Big Endian' is selected, the most-significant byte of each character is sent
first, etc. Note also that extended and Unicode characters dictate 8 serial data bits per character.

The serial interface is strictly a 'Data' interface. There are no control codes or headers; every received character is treated as print
data. This means you cannot send commands such as 'Delete Record', 'Purge Receive Buffer', etc. Initiating 'Print' clears the
receive buffer and from then on every received byte will be buffered and eventually printed.

There is no hard limit on the size of the input buffer (virtual memory limited). Incoming data is continuously buffered and records
are removed from the buffer as pieces are printed. You need to decide how many records are buffered and when they are
transmitted to the PC. If underflow occurs (serial buffer is empty when data is required to print a piece) an error will be reported in
the application log and printing will abort. There is no hard pre-buffer time requirement other than ensuring there is enough time
for the data to be rasterized and transmitted to the controller before the first pixel needs to be printed on the piece. Rasterizing
time depends on the amount of data, chosen fonts, font size, rotation, etc. Typically 100 milliseconds should suffice.

Note:

Rasterizing time does NOT include time required to receive the entire record on the serial port (which depends on baud rate and record
size).

It is irrelevant when the piece crosses the sensor.

Operating the Serial Interface

The setup.cfg file (found in the application’s installation folder) is where you select and configure the serial port mode. Changes to
setup.cfg are not realized until the next time the application is run. The setup.cfg is a text-only file and you can edit it using plain text
editors (such as NOTEPAD.EXE). Entries in the file are not case sensitive, however space characters should not be used (after the
equal sign and around commas, etc).
Valid entries:
DataSource=Serial (File, Serial)
Serial.Port=COM4
Serial.Config=115200,8,N,1,H
DataSource: Selects the source of the data.
Valid entries: 'Serial' or 'File' (without quotes).
Serial.Port: Selects the communications port the printer application will use to receive data on the PC. Ensure this is a valid port and
that data is sent to the correct port.
Examples:
Serial.Port=COM1
Serial.Port=COM2
Note: There is no colon at the end of the line.
Serial.Config: This entry is a comma-separated list with the following sections:
BAUD,Bits-per-character,Parity,Stop-bits,Flow-control
Note: No space characters should be present in the line of text.

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BAUD = An integer value specifying the serial baud rate at which data will be transmitted to the PC. Supported entries are:
110, 300, 600, 1200, 2400, 4800, 9600, 14400, 19200, 38400, 56000, 57600, 115200, 128000, 256000
Note: Bauds of 115200 and higher may cause problems for PCs with older UART chip-sets (16450).
Bits-per-character: Number of serial bits per character.
Valid entries: 5, 6, 7, or 8
The PC converts all characters to 8-bits upon receipt.
Parity: specifies whether parity is used and if so, how.
Valid entries:
N – No parity
O – Odd parity
E – Even parity
M – Mark
S – Space
Stop-bits: Number of stop-bits per serial character.
Valid entries:
1, 1.5, 2
Flow Control: Specifies whether flow control is used and if so, how.
Valid entries:
X – Xon/Xoff (software flow control)
H – Hardware flow control (CTS, etc.)
N – No flow control

Viewing Ink Levels

You need to check the ink levels of your printer. These parameters are preset and you should not need to change any of them.
However, if you need to, use the Ink Levels command on the View menu.
Before starting a job, always check the ink levels. Do not start a print job if any of the ink levels is low. If the ink level is low, install a
new ink cartridge or change the ink bladder. If you change cartridges or bladder, you must specify how full of ink it is.

To view Ink Levels

1. On the View menu, click Ink Levels. The Ink Levels dialog box appears.

2. Click Pen to change the order of the pens-from lowest pen number to highest pen number.
3. Click Available Ink to change the order of the ink levels-from lowest ink level to highest ink level.

In the above example, the pens are ordered from lowest pen number to highest pen number. The ink levels are ordered from lowest ink level to
highest ink level. Red indicates that the available ink for a pen is low and that the ink cartridge or bladder needs to be changed.

Note: Ensure that the settings represent Bladder or Cartridge. Ink Level monitoring is not 100% accurate when a pen is removed from the
Head. Whenever you move the pen, note the % amount so that the same amount can be fed again when the pen is used next.

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Viewing Ink Usage

Using this feature, you can check the ink usage of your printer.

To view Ink Usage

1. On the View menu, click Ink Usage. The Ink Usage dialog box appears.

2. Click the current system settings box to see the ink usage for current settings.
3. Choose to view the Supply cost in cartridges or bladders. The cost per 1000 pieces is shown.

Note:

The '# of pieces' is no longer displayed for 'All', when 'Use current system settings' is enabled.

You can now calculate ink usage for the record currently displayed in the template window using the selected print resolution.

Setting the Ink Parameters

The Ink System lists all the available ink levels of your printer. These parameters are preset and ideally you should not change any of
them.

To view Ink Parameters

1. On the View menu, click Ink Levels. The Ink Levels dialog box appears.

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2. Click Edit and the Ink Systems dialog box appears.

3. Look at the assigned ink system for each pen and the current ink level. You can change the ink system from cartridge to
bladder, and change the current, available ink level.

In this example, Pen 1 uses the cartridge ink system.

4. If required, change the warning level for low ink, and increase or decrease the percentage in the level boxes. Make your
changes in the Warning Levels for Low Ink area. You can increase or decrease the warning level percentage by selecting a
percentage in the percentage box, or by using the spin buttons.

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