If this is and externally-described printer file, how about printing the
headings at 12 or 15 cpi?
-----Original Message-----
From: RPG400-L On Behalf Of John Yeung
Sent: Thursday, June 17, 2021 5:11 PM
To: RPG programming on IBM i <rpg400-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: Re: Is there a keyword to get a word to print at a 45 degree angle
?
On Thu, Jun 17, 2021 at 4:17 PM Patrik Schindler <poc@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Am 17.06.2021 um 21:36 schrieb John Yeung <gallium.arsenide@xxxxxxxxx>:
I think if you are talking about that level of hassle, you might as
well just generate the report as an Excel file already.
Allow me to repeat my answer from Jun. 12 to Don:
I think it's a bad idea to replace a centralized and proven solution with
some end user shadow-it'ish, wobbly Excel bolt-on. It adds more steps to a
given task. We all know what happens if we add complexity: The chance of
failure is higher.
It's still centralized. It happens 100% on the i. And how is it wobbly?
There are proven libraries for this stuff. It is just as easy to make
mistakes and have failures working with PRTFs as it is with Excel files. And
in most cases, the end user is much better served by Excel files. At our
shop, we haven't created any new programs that generate spooled output in
years.
Not only are our users much happier with Excel files, so are we in IT.
It is arguably easier to maintain the Excel-generating code than it is to
maintain printer DDS, and nobody at our shop enjoys O-specs.
(Actually, my colleagues use a tool I wrote many years ago, so their entire
"Excel-generating code" is always one line per Excel file being created. I'm
the only one who writes custom Excel-writing code, which is necessary for
features that my tool can't handle; and for me, those custom programs are
always vastly easier to write and maintain than PRTFs. There are other tools
out there with similar functionality, some free, some commercial.)
Complexity *can* increase the chance of failure, but it doesn't always.
Sometimes, it actually reduces it. And often, complexity buys you greater
capabilities and greater user satisfaction.
John Y.
--
This is the RPG programming on IBM i (RPG400-L) mailing list To post a
message email: RPG400-L@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx To subscribe, unsubscribe, or
change list options,
visit:
https://lists.midrange.com/mailman/listinfo/rpg400-l
or email: RPG400-L-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Before posting, please take a moment to review the archives at
https://archive.midrange.com/rpg400-l.
Please contact support@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx for any subscription related
questions.
Help support midrange.com by shopping at amazon.com with our affiliate link:
https://amazon.midrange.com
midrange.com
