Can fmp print only from the server hosting the web page?

[dstoddart]

Is it possible to have my web hosted database print only at the server?

I am interested in doing this to retain the aesthic (and mechanical) properties of a report; rather than having it print as a web page.

Any help would be appreciated.

[Vaughan]

That's an interesting question.

When people view your db through the web, they are seeing normal html pages in their web browser. There is no persistent connection between the browsed pages and the database -- that's the nature of the web. So the easy answer is "no" there is no way to do this.

However, it might be possible to create scripts on the db that do the printing, then "run" these scripts through a web page (note that from other posts above, this cannot be done with FMP5 instant web publishing, you'll have to create custom format files). So people will browse a web page with a "print report" buttton on it: clicking the button will bet Web Companion to run the script on the server that will print the report to the default printer at the server end.

Hope this helps.

[Hans Erik]

If you a report on the user's local printer, that's not possible directly. However, you could print it to a PDF, then send the PDF as an email attachment to the user (or have him/her view it directly in the browser if you can move/rename the PDF to a webserver directory).

If the user has a fax machine, you could also use a fax plugin to FMP.

Hans Erik Hazelhorst

Database and Internet Consultant

email [email protected]