printing with lp, what package to install?
 

Specifically, I need the functionality provided by lpforms to handle various types of paper like letterhead, etc. I have been able to find tons of information on using lp as a print service, but I cannot find what package I need to install to use it.

Can anyone tell me what package this stuff is in and where I can find it? This would be for Redhat.

Alternatively, can anyone tell me if CUP has an lpforms equivalent?

Redhat EL 5 ?

The which command : 'which lp' : The reply is /usr/bin/lp

'rpm -qf /usr/bin/lp' : cups-1.3.7......

I don't know why you are focussing on lpforms. My distro (ubuntu 10.04.LTS) does not even list it as available.

Perhaps the Redhat you are using is out of date. You do not state the version number.

Most linux printers are handled with the GUI to the CUPS interface at http://localhost:631 but YMMV.

Maybe if you told us your linux version number and what you are trying to accomplish, we'd be able to help you better.

Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server release 5.6 (Tikanga)

We are transitioning our Oracle server from VMS to Linux. On VMS we used 'forms' to manage printing on... well, forms. It sets certain margins and vertical spacing for printing on letterheads or bills, that sort of thing. Basically sets unprintable areas so the text goes where you want it to.

From my research, the Linux equivalent is lpforms, which according to the man pages is pretty much the same thing. Trouble is, lpforms does not exist on our server.

I get the same output, but cups does not seem to contain lpforms specifically.

In short, when I type 'man lpforms' I should be getting this http://www.unix.com/man-page/OpenSolaris/1m/lpforms/

Instead I get this:


$ man lpforms
No manual entry for lpforms


Any attempt to use the lpforms command gets me this.


$ lpforms -all
-ksh: lpforms: not found [No such file or directory]

I do have just lp, as well as lpmove, lpoptions and lpstat. Just no forms functionality. I'm certainly open to alternative solutions.

have you contacted your paid for red hat support
a license is required for 5.6
http://www.redhat.com/support/

This thread peaked my curiosity. A quick qoogle did not find an equivalent linux utility nor anything similar.

I'll have to get the admins on that. I really expected this to be a simple resolution :-/

Our linux support contract is with Dell so... you know.

It's looking like what I want just doesn't exist any more. cups replaced lp with a superset of lp commands that does not include lpforms. The closest thing I can find is partial functionality provided by lpoptions.

So now the only remaining problem is that lpoptions does not allow for font selection, which I need. Every thing else we need it can handle.

I know nothing about VMS, but I suspect that it is very different from linux. Your previous tools with VMS may not apply.

Linux generally has all the tools to do whatever you'd like to do, but you need to discover them and then learn about how to use them.

When I last used Oracle (20+y ago), Oracle could/would format the reports as I wished (that was with SCO unix) and I suspect that things will have improved a lot since then. I suggest that you read the more recent Oracle documentation, because there'll probably be an answer to your problems.

Best wishes.

Unfortunately, the print jobs are coming out of SCT Banner, not Oracle.

I am sorry that I cannot help you further.

Best wishes, and hope you get your problem solved.

In the end, the answer to all of my problems is enscript. It's even already installed. "man enscript" for details.