Good day to everyone,

I am using Batik to dynamically generate ID cards = (XML + XSL =3D SVG -> Batik/Printer). The whole thing works great. = The only problem I am running into is that I need to transmit a string of text to = the printer to be encoded on the mag stripe.

I am using Fargo’s DTC 550 LC printer. When it encounters a string of text like = ~1%123? It will, instead of printing that string, encode 123 on track 1 of the mag = stripe. I can open up Word, for example, and print this string, along with any = other text and graphics, and the printer will detect it and forward it to the = mag stripe.

However, when I include this string in my SVG, the = printer just prints it to the card. I am pretty confident that the text on = the card is being sent to the printer as text (not as glyphs or raster) = since the printer will print black TrueType data in pure black (allowing for = things like barcodes). And, it appears that this is working just = fine.

My suspicion is that the text string ~1%123? Which I = embed in a <text …></text> tag is being broken up with = formatting/layout information, but this is just a guess.

First, here is how I am printing the SVG = documents:

PrintTranscoder transcoder =3D new = PrintTranscoder();

transcoder.transcode(new TranscoderInput(svg.front), = null);

transcoder.transcode(new TranscoderInput(svg.back), = null);

String title =3D = ((SVGOMDocument)svg.front).getTitle();

= &= nbsp;

HashPrintRequestAttributeSet settings =3D new HashPrintRequestAttributeSet();

settings.add(OrientationRequested.PORTRAIT);

settings.add(new JobName(title, = null));

settings.add(new MediaPrintableArea(0f, 0f, 2.125f, = 3.375f, MediaSize.INCH));

DocPrintJob printJob =3D Configuration.printer.createPrintJob();

SimpleDoc doc =3D new SimpleDoc(transcoder, DocFlavor.SERVICE_FORMATTED.PRINTABLE, = null);

printJob.print(doc, = settings);

Thanks for your patience. Here is where it gets = a little more interesting. I decided to verify that it isn’t something with the Java print service or the driver, so I = tried:

Printable p =3D new Printable() = {

= public int print(Graphics graphics, PageFormat pageFormat, int pageIndex) = throws PrinterException {

= &= nbsp; if (pageIndex =3D=3D 0) {

= &= nbsp; &n= bsp; graphics.drawString("~1%123?", 10, 10);

= &= nbsp; &n= bsp; return Printable.PAGE_EXISTS;

= &= nbsp; } else {

= &= nbsp; &n= bsp; Return Printable.NO_SUCH_PAGE;

= &= nbsp; }

= }

};

This works! The data is sent to the mag = encoder. So, I went one step further:

Printable p =3D new Printable() = {

= public int print(Graphics graphics, PageFormat pageFormat, int pageIndex) = throws PrinterException {

= &= nbsp; if (pageIndex =3D=3D 0) {

= &= nbsp; &n= bsp; graphics.drawString("~1%123?", 10, 10);

= &= nbsp; return transcoder.print(graphics, pageFormat, = pageIndex);

= }

};

Now we are back to the same problem. The text = appears on the card.

Would anyone know why this happens, and/or how to = work around it.

Thank you,

Ted Young