diff options
author | Timothy Pearson <kb9vqf@pearsoncomputing.net> | 2011-11-06 15:56:34 -0600 |
---|---|---|
committer | Timothy Pearson <kb9vqf@pearsoncomputing.net> | 2011-11-06 15:56:34 -0600 |
commit | b529f046c9a64ac5fcfa60747af940cf972b3ebc (patch) | |
tree | 83c28cf7fa8fed1960ebd3924b579e7ed8c95cc6 /doc/tdeprint/tech-overview.docbook | |
parent | 6508fe4c40c60fd7a43bd3d9e19b762e10ea3f53 (diff) | |
download | tdebase-b529f046c9a64ac5fcfa60747af940cf972b3ebc.tar.gz tdebase-b529f046c9a64ac5fcfa60747af940cf972b3ebc.zip |
Actually move the kde files that were renamed in the last commit
Diffstat (limited to 'doc/tdeprint/tech-overview.docbook')
-rw-r--r-- | doc/tdeprint/tech-overview.docbook | 280 |
1 files changed, 280 insertions, 0 deletions
diff --git a/doc/tdeprint/tech-overview.docbook b/doc/tdeprint/tech-overview.docbook new file mode 100644 index 000000000..7a81a48a2 --- /dev/null +++ b/doc/tdeprint/tech-overview.docbook @@ -0,0 +1,280 @@ +<chapter id="technical-overview"> +<title>Technical Overview</title> + +<para>This chapter aims to give a technical overview of &tdeprint; which +non-programmers can comprehend.</para> + +<para>&tdeprint; is a new and revolutionary tool to give easy access to +printing services for both &kde; users and &kde; developers.</para> + +<sect1 id="brief-description"> +<title>A Brief Description of &tdeprint;</title> + +<para>You can access the functions of &tdeprint; in different ways: +through the Printing Manger in the &kcontrol;, through the +<command>kprinter</command> command or through the dialog that pops up +if you want to print.</para> + +<sect2 id="what-tdeprint-is-not"> +<title>What it is <emphasis>not</emphasis></title> + +<para>&tdeprint; is <emphasis>not</emphasis> a replacement for the +printing subsystem itself. &tdeprint; does <emphasis>not</emphasis> +therefore give provision for spooling, and it does +<emphasis>not</emphasis> do the basic processing of &PostScript; or +other print data.</para> + +</sect2> + +<sect2 id="what-kde-print-is"> +<title>What it <emphasis>is</emphasis></title> +<para>&tdeprint; is an intermediate layer between the spooling and the +data processing print subsystem (as installed), and the application that +seeks to print. &tdeprint; provides a common interface for &kde; +developers and &kde; users, to various supported print subsystems. At +the same time, it is customizable, and highly configurable.</para> + +<para>&tdeprint; is easy to use for both &kde; developers and end-users. +Developers can port their applications, with minimal changes, to use +&tdeprint; instead of the old &Qt; print <quote>system</quote>. Users +can easily choose and configure their print subsystem.</para> + +<para>For a reference to new &kde; users: &Qt; is the basic library and +graphical toolkit, which is used by all &kde; applications; &Qt; is +developed by TrollTech, a Norwegian software company.</para> + +</sect2> + +</sect1> + +<sect1 id="different-users"> +<title>&tdeprint; -- Different Usage for Different People</title> + +<para>&tdeprint; has different faces for different people.</para> + +<sect2 id="what-users-can-do"> +<title>What users and administrators can do with &tdeprint;</title> + +<para>&tdeprint; allows users and/or administrators, depending on their +rights, access to printing subsystems (&CUPS;, <acronym>LPD</acronym>, +<acronym>RLPR</acronym>, <application>LPRng</application>, +<application>PDQ</application> &etc;) through a &kde; graphical user +interface (&GUI;). Using &tdeprint;, they can print, administer jobs, +printers and the printing daemon, all in a comfortable manner.</para> + +<para>Experienced users will like the capability to plug any working +filter for the print data between the output of their application and +the input, into the chosen print subsystem. Some examples for this +already ship with <quote>plain vanilla</quote> &tdeprint;. Read +on.</para> + +</sect2> + + +<sect2 id="what-developers-can-do"> +<title>What &kde; developers can do with it...</title> + +<para>If a &kde; developer needs printing access for his application, he +does not code the printing functions from scratch. Before &kde; 2.2 this +service was provided by the <classname>QPrinter</classname> class, a +library function of the &Qt; Toolkit. The +<classname>QPrinter</classname> class relied on the out-moded +<quote>Line Printer Daemon</quote> (<acronym>LPD</acronym>). The +&tdeprint; library bases itself firmly on the more modern Common &UNIX; +Printing System (&CUPS;), while at the same time keeping backward +compatibility with <acronym>LPD</acronym> and other legacy, or less +elaborate, print systems. It also <quote>leaves the door open</quote> +for any new development that might occur.</para> + +<para>For &kde; developers to use the new &tdeprint; class in their +applications, they require only minimal changes to their code: for every +call of <classname>QPrinter</classname>, they just need to change this to +<classname>KPrinter</classname>. Replacing one (!) letter in a few +spots, and automatically they are done; their application can then use +all of the features of the new &tdeprint; library.</para> + +<para>More ambitious developers, or ones with special requirements, can +do more: despite &tdeprint;'s feature-rich framework, they are still able +to customize the print dialog of their application +by creating an additional <quote>Tab</quote>, where their +extensions to the standard &tdeprint; will feel right at home.</para> + + +<para>This last mentioned feature has not been used widely inside +&kde; so far, as developers are not yet fully aware of &tdeprint;'s +power. Expect more of this in the near future. One example I +discovered is the &kcron; application. It lets you edit the crontab +through a &GUI;. The developers have implemented a printing feature +that lets you (or <systemitem class="username">root</systemitem>) +choose if you want to print the whole of crontab (for all users) or +just the part that is marked. You can see the effects on &tdeprint; +in the following screenshots.</para> + +<para>This shot shows a sample from the &kcron; utility. +<screenshot> +<screeninfo>&kcron; utility: a small sample of a system's cronjobs as +shown through the &kde; <acronym>GUI</acronym>&GUI;.</screeninfo> +<mediaobject> +<imageobject> +<imagedata fileref="kcron_to_be_printed.png" +format="PNG"/></imageobject> +<textobject> +<phrase>The &kcron; developers let you choose to print the whole of the +cron table or just the marked part of it.</phrase></textobject> +</mediaobject> +</screenshot> +</para> + +<para>The dialog to configure &kcron;'s printing options: the +additional tab titled <guilabel>Cron Options</guilabel> is from inside +&kcron;, not &tdeprint;; it is a special extension added by the +&kcron; developers for printing purposes, not originating from, but +executed by &tdeprint;. Developers of other applications are free +to implement their own goodies, if they feel need for it.</para> + + +<screenshot> +<screeninfo>&kcron;'s addition to the &tdeprint; dialog.</screeninfo> +<mediaobject> +<imageobject> +<imagedata fileref="kprinter_with_kcron_developer_special.png" +format="PNG"/></imageobject> +<textobject> +<phrase>&kcron;'s addition to the &tdeprint; dialog.</phrase></textobject> +<caption> +<para>&kcron;'s addition to the &tdeprint; dialog.</para> +</caption> +</mediaobject> +</screenshot> + +</sect2> + +<sect2> +<title>What &tdeprint; offers to everybody...</title> + +<para>&tdeprint;'s easy-to-use interface for all supported print subsystems +of course does not eliminate basic traditional weaknesses of some of +those systems. But it smooths some rough edges. Different users may use +different printing systems on the same box. A user is free to even +switch <quote>on the fly</quote>, from the print dialog, the print +subsystem to be used for the next job. (This is possible if different +systems are installed in a way that they don't <quote>get in each +other's way</quote>.)</para> + +<para>Most &UNIX; users are used to +<acronym>LPD</acronym> printing. <acronym>LPD</acronym> provides only +basic printing functions, is very inflexible and does not utilize the +many options of more modern print systems like &CUPS;. While also +working remotely over any distance (like every TCP/IP based protocol), +<acronym>LPD</acronym> lacks bi-directional communication, +authentication, access control and encryption support.</para> + +<para>&tdeprint; can use &CUPS; to support:</para> + +<itemizedlist> +<listitem> +<para>Querying the <acronym>LAN</acronym> for available printers,</para> +</listitem> +<listitem> +<para>Basic, Digest, and Certificate Authentication,</para> +</listitem> +<listitem> +<para>Access Control based on <acronym>IP</acronym> addresses, net +addresses, netmasks, host- and domain names,</para> +</listitem> +<listitem> +<para>and 128-Bit TLS or SSL3 encryption of print data, to prevent +eavesdropping, or at least make it much more difficult.</para> +</listitem> +</itemizedlist> + +<para>This makes &tdeprint; a much more robust and reliable solution +than using the venerable <acronym>LPD</acronym>.</para> + +</sect2> +<sect2> +<title>How to access &tdeprint; </title> + +<para>You get access to &tdeprint;, or parts of it, in four different +ways:</para> + +<itemizedlist> +<listitem><para>through your applications: if you call the printing +dialog (either <menuchoice><guilabel>File</guilabel> +<guilabel>Print...</guilabel></menuchoice>) or the button with the +little printer icon on it; this opens the printing +dialog.</para></listitem> + +<listitem><para>through the typed command <command>kprinter</command> +in a <application>terminal</application> or a &konsole; window or from +the <guilabel>Run Command...</guilabel> mini-<acronym>CLI</acronym> +window: this also opens the printing dialog.</para></listitem> + +<listitem><para>from the <inlinemediaobject><imageobject> <imagedata +fileref="kcontrol-icon.png" format="PNG"/></imageobject> +</inlinemediaobject> button, starting &kcontrol;, and then go to +<menuchoice><guilabel>System</guilabel><guilabel>Printing +Manager</guilabel></menuchoice>. This opens the &tdeprint; +administration which is part of the &kcontrolcenter; and also lets +you switch to other parts of the &kcontrol;</para></listitem> + +<listitem><para>from a command line (&konsole; or +mini-<acronym>CLI</acronym>) type <userinput> +<command>kcmshell</command> <option>printers</option></userinput>. +This opens just the &tdeprint; part of &kcontrol; to change your settings +</para></listitem> +</itemizedlist> +<screenshot> +<screeninfo>&kprinter; dialog to be started from <guilabel>Run Command...</guilabel> window</screeninfo> +<mediaobject> +<imageobject> +<imagedata fileref="kprinter_called_from_run_command.png" +format="PNG"/></imageobject> +<textobject> +<phrase>Starting the &kprinter; dialog from +a <guilabel>Run Command...</guilabel> window.</phrase></textobject> +<caption><para>Starting the &kprinter; dialog from a <guilabel>Run +Command...</guilabel> window.</para></caption> +</mediaobject> +</screenshot> + +<!-- TODO: This one ought to be a screenshot LW. --> <para>Here is a +&kivio; drawing of the &kprinter; dialog as it pops up after being +started... You can always add a new printer by clicking on the small +<guiicon>Wizard</guiicon> button (marked red/yellow in this +drawing).</para> + +<screenshot> +<screeninfo>&kprinter; dialog started (&kivio; draft drawing) +</screeninfo> +<mediaobject> +<imageobject> +<imagedata fileref="kprinter-kivio.png" +format="PNG"/></imageobject> +<textobject> +<phrase>&kprinter; dialog started (&kivio; draft drawing)</phrase></textobject> +<caption><para>&kprinter; dialog started (&kivio; draft +drawing)</para></caption> +</mediaobject> +</screenshot> + +</sect2> + +</sect1> + +</chapter> + +<!-- Keep this comment at the end of the file +Local variables: +mode: sgml +sgml-omittag:t +sgml-shorttag:t +sgml-namecase-general:t +sgml-general-insert-case:lower +sgml-minimize-attributes:nil +sgml-always-quote-attributes:t +sgml-indent-step:0 +sgml-indent-data:true +sgml-parent-document:"index.docbook" "book" +End: +--> |