ID Number: Q35303
5.00 5.10 6.00 6.00a 6.00ax 7.00
MS-DOS
Summary:
In Microsoft C versions 5.0, 5.1, 6.0, 6.0a, 6.0ax, and C/C++ version
7.0, to print graphics generated by a C program using the PRINT SCREEN
key, you must first install GRAPHICS.COM (supplied by MS-DOS). In
older versions of GRAPHICS.COM, this will work only with the CGA
modes. Hercules, EGA, and VGA modes do not print with this method; you
must obtain a third party, public domain, or shareware program to
print graphics from these modes. However, the GRAPHICS.COM that ships
with MS-DOS version 5.0 supports CGA, EGA, and VGA.
More Information:
In the MS-DOS environment, PRINT SCREEN prints any text screen to an
attached printer hooked to PRN. This function can't interpret a
graphic screen to the printer because a graphic screen is defined and
produced differently than a text screen.
A unit of area is defined by a pixel rather than a character. (This
can be noticed by the way a text screen is described "80 columns by 25
rows" as opposed to a graphic screen "640 pixels by 200 pixels.")
MS-DOS supplies a TSR (terminate-and-stay-resident) program,
GRAPHICS.COM, that allows the PRINT SCREEN to interpret a graphic
screen. When the GRAPHICS.COM is installed, it will interpret a CGA
graphic screen to a printer attached to PRN. This utility must be
installed before running a C program that draws a graphic screen in
the CGA modes; that is, the program must have specified a
_setvideomode to _MRES4COLOR, _MRESNOCOLOR, or _HRESBW. Any of the
other video modes will require some other utility to interpret the
screen for the printer.
It also should be noted that GRAPHICS.COM was intended to write to an
IBM Personal Graphics or IBM Personal Color Printer. It may be
necessary on some other printers to set some switch settings, if
available, to emulate either of these printers. The printer manual for
the specific printer should be consulted in these cases.
Additional reference words: prntscrn printscrn print scrn 5.00 5.10
6.00 6.00a 6.00ax 7.00