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I'm creating a c++ project using Embarcadero RAD Studio (10.2 Tokyo starter) and the Windows GDI to draw text, via the DrawText() function.
I recently saw that Windows 10 provides a new "Segoe UI Emoji" font, that potentially allows text functions to draw colored emojis. I found several examples using Direct2D, but none with pure GDI functions.
I also tried a simple code, like this:
HDC hDC = ::GetDC(Handle);
std::auto_ptr<TCanvas> pCanvas(new TCanvas());
pCanvas->Handle = hDC;
pCanvas->Brush->Color = clWhite;
pCanvas->Brush->Style = bsSolid;
pCanvas->FillRect(TRect(0, 0, ClientWidth, ClientHeight));
const std::wstring text = L"Test 😀 😬 😁 😂 😃 😄 😅 😆";
TRect textRect(10, 10, ClientWidth - 10, ClientHeight - 10);
hFont = ::CreateFont(-40,
0,
0,
0,
FW_DONTCARE,
FALSE,
FALSE,
FALSE,
DEFAULT_CHARSET,
OUT_OUTLINE_PRECIS,
CLIP_DEFAULT_PRECIS,
CLEARTYPE_QUALITY,
VARIABLE_PITCH,
L"Segoe UI Emoji");
::SelectObject(hDC, hFont);
::DrawTextW(hDC,
text.c_str(),
text.length(),
&textRect,
DT_LEFT | DT_TOP | DT_SINGLELINE);
::DeleteObject(hFont);
The output result sounds good in terms of symbols, but they are drawn in black&white, without colors, as you can see on the screenshot below:
I could not find any additional options that may allow the text to be drawn using colored symbols instead of black&white. Is there a way to activate the support of the color in GDI DrawText() function, and if yes, how to do that? Or only Direct2D may draw colored emojis?
EDITED on 30.10.2017
As the GDI cannot do the job (unfortunately, and as I thought) I publish here the Direct2D version of the above code, that worked for me.
const std::wstring text = L"Test 😀 😬 😁 😂 😃 😄 😅 😆";
HDC hDC = ::GetDC(Handle);
std::auto_ptr<TCanvas> pGDICanvas(new TCanvas());
pGDICanvas->Handle = hDC;
pGDICanvas->Brush->Color = clWhite;
pGDICanvas->Brush->Style = bsSolid;
pGDICanvas->FillRect(TRect(0, 0, ClientWidth, ClientHeight));
::D2D1_RECT_F textRect;
textRect.left = 10;
textRect.top = 10;
textRect.right = ClientWidth - 10;
textRect.bottom = ClientHeight - 10;
std::auto_ptr<TDirect2DCanvas> pCanvas(new TDirect2DCanvas(hDC, TRect(0, 0, ClientWidth, ClientHeight)));
// configure Direct2D font
pCanvas->Font->Size = 40;
pCanvas->Font->Name = L"Segoe UI Emoji";
pCanvas->Font->Orientation = 0;
pCanvas->Font->Pitch = System::Uitypes::TFontPitch::fpVariable;
pCanvas->Font->Style = TFontStyles();
// get DirectWrite text format object
_di_IDWriteTextFormat pFormat = pCanvas->Font->Handle;
if (!pFormat)
return;
pCanvas->RenderTarget->SetTextAntialiasMode(D2D1_TEXT_ANTIALIAS_MODE_CLEARTYPE);
::D2D1_COLOR_F color;
color.r = 0.0f;
color.g = 0.0f;
color.b = 0.0f;
color.a = 1.0f;
::ID2D1SolidColorBrush* pBrush = NULL;
// create solid color brush, use pen color if rect is completely filled with outline
pCanvas->RenderTarget->CreateSolidColorBrush(color, &pBrush);
if (!pBrush)
return;
// set horiz alignment
pFormat->SetTextAlignment(DWRITE_TEXT_ALIGNMENT_LEADING);
// set vert alignment
pFormat->SetParagraphAlignment(DWRITE_PARAGRAPH_ALIGNMENT_NEAR);
// set reading direction
pFormat->SetReadingDirection(DWRITE_READING_DIRECTION_LEFT_TO_RIGHT);
// set word wrapping mode
pFormat->SetWordWrapping(DWRITE_WORD_WRAPPING_NO_WRAP);
IDWriteInlineObject* pInlineObject = NULL;
::DWRITE_TRIMMING trimming;
trimming.delimiter = 0;
trimming.delimiterCount = 0;
trimming.granularity = DWRITE_TRIMMING_GRANULARITY_NONE;
// set text trimming
pFormat->SetTrimming(&trimming, pInlineObject);
pCanvas->BeginDraw();
pCanvas->RenderTarget->DrawText(text.c_str(), text.length(), pFormat, textRect, pBrush,
D2D1_DRAW_TEXT_OPTIONS_ENABLE_COLOR_FONT);
pCanvas->EndDraw();
Of course this code will draw colored emojis only on the currently most recent versions of Windows 10, and above. On previous versions the text will be drawn as above (and the code may not compile).
Bonus Reading
MSDN: Color Fonts with DirectWrite, Direct2D, and Win2D
GDI does not support color fonts (even if you go the full Uniscribe route), you have to use Direct2D if you want color font support. It makes sense that the simpler GDI APIs don't support color fonts as color fonts require using OpenType tags and none of DrawText/TextOut provide that level of control, Uniscribe allows for such tags but has simply not been extended to support color fonts.
You can use DirectWrite to draw colored emojis onto a bitmap in memory DC, then BitBlt() to your destination DC.
Basically, you need to implement a custom IDWriteTextRenderer class and call IDWriteTextLayout::Draw() with your renderer, then copy the result.
In your class, you retrieve IDWriteGdiInterop from IDWriteFactory and call IDWriteGdiInterop::CreateBitmapRenderTarget() to get the bitmap render target; call IDWriteFactory::CreateMonitorRenderingParams() to get the rendering parameters, and call IDWriteFactory::CreateTextFormat() to set up your text format.
The only significant method is DrawGlyphRun(), where you get IDWriteColorGlyphRunEnumerator with IDWriteFactory2::TranslateColorGlyphRun() and with each color run, call IDWriteBitmapRenderTarget::DrawGlyphRun() to do the work for you.
Just remember to update the render target/parameters when the window size/position changes.
You may reference this MSDN documentation:
Render to a GDI Surface
https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/ff485856(v=vs.85).aspx
As mentioned by #SoronelHaetir's answer above, the win32 graphics device interface (GDI) that is used when working with static window components (via WC_STATIC) doesn't support colorized fonts. In order to display colored emojis and/or "fancier" text (i.e. colored text, etc.), you'll need to use the Direct2D API.
The example above provided by original poster (OP) #Jean-Milost Reymond isn't something that is immediately able to be compiled and tried out by the reader. Also, it uses the TCanvas class, which isn't strictly needed when working directly with the Win32 API.
For people looking for a complete example that works on the bare-metal Win32 API and can be immediately copied and pasted and compiled, then here is the code that will compile in Visual Studio:
#define WIN32_LEAN_AND_MEAN // Exclude rarely-used stuff from Windows headers
// Windows Header Files
#include <windows.h>
// C RunTime Header Files
#include <stdlib.h>
#include <malloc.h>
#include <memory.h>
#include <tchar.h>
#include <wchar.h>
#include <math.h>
#include <d2d1.h>
#include <d2d1helper.h>
#include <dwrite.h>
#include <wincodec.h>
#include <string>
#include <cassert>
#pragma comment(lib, "d2d1.lib")
#pragma comment(lib, "Dwrite.lib")
HWND WindowHandle = nullptr;
IDWriteFactory * DWriteFactory = nullptr;
ID2D1Factory * Direct2dFactory = nullptr;
ID2D1HwndRenderTarget * RenderTarget = nullptr;
ID2D1SolidColorBrush * TextBlackBrush = nullptr;
const std::wstring DISPLAY_TEXT = L"Test 😀 😬 😁 😂 😃 😄 😅 😆";
template<class Interface>
inline void SafeRelease (Interface ** ppInterfaceToRelease);
LRESULT CALLBACK WndProc (HWND hwnd,
UINT message,
WPARAM wParam,
LPARAM lParam);
HRESULT CreateDeviceIndependentResources ();
HRESULT InitInstance (HINSTANCE hInstance, int nCmdShow);
void DiscardDeviceResources ();
HRESULT OnRender ();
HRESULT CreateDeviceResources ();
template<class Interface>
inline void SafeRelease (Interface ** ppInterfaceToRelease)
{
if (*ppInterfaceToRelease != NULL)
{
(*ppInterfaceToRelease)->Release ();
(*ppInterfaceToRelease) = NULL;
}
}
HRESULT OnRender ()
{
HRESULT Result = S_OK;
D2D1_SIZE_F RenderCanvasArea = { 0 };
IDWriteTextFormat * TextFormat = nullptr;
D2D1_RECT_F TextCanvasArea = { 0 };
Result = CreateDeviceResources ();
if (SUCCEEDED (Result))
{
RenderTarget->BeginDraw ();
RenderCanvasArea = RenderTarget->GetSize ();
RenderTarget->Clear (D2D1::ColorF (D2D1::ColorF::White));
if (SUCCEEDED (Result))
{
Result = DWriteFactory->CreateTextFormat (L"Segoe UI",
nullptr,
DWRITE_FONT_WEIGHT_REGULAR,
DWRITE_FONT_STYLE_NORMAL,
DWRITE_FONT_STRETCH_NORMAL,
25.0f,
L"en-us",
&TextFormat);
TextFormat->SetTextAlignment (DWRITE_TEXT_ALIGNMENT_LEADING);
TextFormat->SetParagraphAlignment (DWRITE_PARAGRAPH_ALIGNMENT_NEAR);
TextFormat->SetReadingDirection (DWRITE_READING_DIRECTION_LEFT_TO_RIGHT);
TextFormat->SetWordWrapping (DWRITE_WORD_WRAPPING_WRAP);
if (SUCCEEDED (Result) &&
TextFormat != nullptr)
{
TextCanvasArea = D2D1::RectF (0,
0,
RenderCanvasArea.width,
RenderCanvasArea.height);
RenderTarget->DrawTextW (DISPLAY_TEXT.c_str (),
static_cast <UINT32> (DISPLAY_TEXT.size ()),
TextFormat,
TextCanvasArea,
TextBlackBrush,
D2D1_DRAW_TEXT_OPTIONS_ENABLE_COLOR_FONT);
}
}
Result = RenderTarget->EndDraw ();
}
if (Result == D2DERR_RECREATE_TARGET)
{
DiscardDeviceResources ();
Result = S_OK;
}
return Result;
}
HRESULT CreateDeviceResources ()
{
HRESULT Result = S_OK;
RECT rc = { 0 };
if (!RenderTarget)
{
GetClientRect (WindowHandle,
&rc);
D2D1_SIZE_U size = D2D1::SizeU (rc.right - rc.left,
rc.bottom - rc.top);
// Create a Direct2D render target.
Result = Direct2dFactory->CreateHwndRenderTarget (D2D1::RenderTargetProperties (),
D2D1::HwndRenderTargetProperties (WindowHandle, size),
&RenderTarget);
if (SUCCEEDED (Result))
{
// Create a blue brush.
Result = RenderTarget->CreateSolidColorBrush (D2D1::ColorF (D2D1::ColorF::Black),
&TextBlackBrush);
}
}
return Result;
}
void DiscardDeviceResources ()
{
SafeRelease (&RenderTarget);
SafeRelease (&TextBlackBrush);
}
HRESULT InitInstance (HINSTANCE hInstance,
int nCmdShow)
{
HRESULT Result = S_OK;
// Create the window.
WindowHandle = CreateWindow (L"D2DTextDemo",
L"Direct2D Text Demo Application",
WS_OVERLAPPEDWINDOW,
CW_USEDEFAULT,
CW_USEDEFAULT,
600,
200,
nullptr,
nullptr,
hInstance,
nullptr);
if (WindowHandle == nullptr)
{
Result = E_POINTER;
}
else
{
ShowWindow (WindowHandle,
nCmdShow);
UpdateWindow (WindowHandle);
}
return Result;
}
HRESULT CreateDeviceIndependentResources ()
{
HRESULT Result = S_OK;
Result = D2D1CreateFactory (D2D1_FACTORY_TYPE_SINGLE_THREADED,
&Direct2dFactory);
if (SUCCEEDED (Result))
{
Result = DWriteCreateFactory (DWRITE_FACTORY_TYPE_SHARED,
__uuidof (IDWriteFactory),
reinterpret_cast <IUnknown **> (&DWriteFactory));
}
return Result;
}
LRESULT CALLBACK WndProc (HWND hwnd,
UINT message,
WPARAM wParam,
LPARAM lParam)
{
LRESULT Result = 0;
switch (message)
{
case WM_SIZE:
{
UINT width = LOWORD (lParam);
UINT height = HIWORD (lParam);
if (RenderTarget != nullptr)
{
// Note: This method can fail, but it's okay to ignore the
// error here, because the error will be returned again
// the next time EndDraw is called.
RenderTarget->Resize (D2D1::SizeU (width,
height));
}
}
break;
case WM_DISPLAYCHANGE:
{
InvalidateRect (hwnd, nullptr, FALSE);
}
break;
case WM_PAINT:
{
OnRender ();
ValidateRect (hwnd,
nullptr);
}
break;
case WM_DESTROY:
{
PostQuitMessage (0);
Result = 1;
}
break;
default:
{
Result = DefWindowProc (hwnd,
message,
wParam,
lParam);
}
break;
}
return Result;
}
int APIENTRY wWinMain (_In_ HINSTANCE hInstance,
_In_opt_ HINSTANCE hPrevInstance,
_In_ LPWSTR lpCmdLine,
_In_ int nCmdShow)
{
UNREFERENCED_PARAMETER (hInstance);
UNREFERENCED_PARAMETER (hPrevInstance);
UNREFERENCED_PARAMETER (lpCmdLine);
UNREFERENCED_PARAMETER (nCmdShow);
HRESULT ExitCode = S_OK;
MSG NextMessage = { 0 };
WNDCLASSEX wcex = { 0 };
ATOM WindowClassId = 0;
wcex.cbSize = sizeof (WNDCLASSEX);
wcex.style = CS_HREDRAW | CS_VREDRAW;
wcex.lpfnWndProc = WndProc;
wcex.cbClsExtra = 0;
wcex.cbWndExtra = sizeof (LONG_PTR);
wcex.hInstance = hInstance;
wcex.hbrBackground = nullptr;
wcex.lpszMenuName = nullptr;
wcex.hCursor = LoadCursor (nullptr, IDI_APPLICATION);
wcex.lpszClassName = L"D2DTextDemo";
if (SUCCEEDED (CoInitialize (nullptr)))
{
WindowClassId = RegisterClassEx (&wcex);
if (WindowClassId == 0)
{
ExitCode = HRESULT_FROM_WIN32 (GetLastError ());
}
if (SUCCEEDED (ExitCode))
{
ExitCode = CreateDeviceIndependentResources ();
}
if (SUCCEEDED (ExitCode))
{
ExitCode = InitInstance (hInstance,
nCmdShow);
}
if (SUCCEEDED (ExitCode))
{
while (GetMessage (&NextMessage,
nullptr,
0,
0))
{
TranslateMessage (&NextMessage);
DispatchMessage (&NextMessage);
}
}
CoUninitialize ();
SafeRelease (&Direct2dFactory);
SafeRelease (&DWriteFactory);
SafeRelease (&RenderTarget);
}
return ExitCode;
}
(The above example doesn't have perfect error handling, so it's important to audit this example code if the following is used in any project the reader is working on.)
Before attempting to compile this in Visual Studio, make sure your project has the "SubSystem" linker option set to Windows /SUBSYSTEM:WINDOWS.
Once compiled successfully, the following application window will appear:
I tested this coded example in Visual Studio 2022 Community Edition on Windows 11 with success.
Reference(s):
Creating a Simple Direct2D Application
Tutorial: Getting Started with DirectWrite
I am working on a simple application that will be reading a text file that will overwritten every 5 minutes with some telemetry data.
I was trying to use microsoft PrintDocument but it wont work for this case because i need to have control of the printer spooler to print a new line every five but in the same page than the previous (continously). This is not possible with PrintDocument class at least for my understanding, because you cannot have control of the spooler with this class and each print command its a job and when it finishes the job then the printer scrolls the page to taken by the user. If someone knows if there is a way to continue printing in the same page every 5 minutes please share the information or example.
I am using an Okidata Microline 186 USB dot matrix printer and after a few tries with other third parties libraries with out any luck i found RawPrintHelper.cs class and i am trying it and i were able to send RAW data to the printer with this class but i have some issues. The class is here:
This is the original class code:
public class RawPrinterHelper
{
// Struct
ure and API declarions:
[StructLayout(LayoutKind.Sequential, CharSet=CharSet.Ansi)]
public class DOCINFOA
{
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPStr)] public string pDocName;
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPStr)] public string pOutputFile;
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPStr)] public string pDataType;
}
[DllImport("winspool.Drv", EntryPoint="OpenPrinterA", SetLastError=true, CharSet=CharSet.Ansi, ExactSpelling=true, CallingConvention=CallingConvention.StdCall)]
public static extern bool OpenPrinter([MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPStr)] string szPrinter, out IntPtr hPrinter, IntPtr pd);
[DllImport("winspool.Drv", EntryPoint="ClosePrinter", SetLastError=true, ExactSpelling=true, CallingConvention=CallingConvention.StdCall)]
public static extern bool ClosePrinter(IntPtr hPrinter);
[DllImport("winspool.Drv", EntryPoint="StartDocPrinterA", SetLastError=true, CharSet=CharSet.Ansi, ExactSpelling=true, CallingConvention=CallingConvention.StdCall)]
public static extern bool StartDocPrinter( IntPtr hPrinter, Int32 level, [In, MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPStruct)] DOCINFOA di);
[DllImport("winspool.Drv", EntryPoint="EndDocPrinter", SetLastError=true, ExactSpelling=true, CallingConvention=CallingConvention.StdCall)]
public static extern bool EndDocPrinter(IntPtr hPrinter);
[DllImport("winspool.Drv", EntryPoint="StartPagePrinter", SetLastError=true, ExactSpelling=true, CallingConvention=CallingConvention.StdCall)]
public static extern bool StartPagePrinter(IntPtr hPrinter);
[DllImport("winspool.Drv", EntryPoint="EndPagePrinter", SetLastError=true, ExactSpelling=true, CallingConvention=CallingConvention.StdCall)]
public static extern bool EndPagePrinter(IntPtr hPrinter);
[DllImport("winspool.Drv", EntryPoint="WritePrinter", SetLastError=true, ExactSpelling=true, CallingConvention=CallingConvention.StdCall)]
public static extern bool WritePrinter(IntPtr hPrinter, IntPtr pBytes, Int32 dwCount, out Int32 dwWritten );
// SendBytesToPrinter()
// When the function is given a printer name and an unmanaged array
// of bytes, the function sends those bytes to the print queue.
// Returns true on success, false on failure.
public static bool SendBytesToPrinter( string szPrinterName, IntPtr pBytes, Int32 dwCount)
{
Int32 dwError = 0, dwWritten = 0;
IntPtr hPrinter = new IntPtr(0);
DOCINFOA di = new DOCINFOA();
bool bSuccess = false; // Assume failure unless you specifically succeed.
di.pDocName = "My C#.NET RAW Document";
di.pDataType = "RAW";
// Open the printer.
if( OpenPrinter( szPrinterName.Normalize(), out hPrinter, IntPtr.Zero ) )
{
// Start a document.
if( StartDocPrinter(hPrinter, 1, di) )
{
// Start a page.
if( StartPagePrinter(hPrinter) )
{
// Write your bytes.
bSuccess = WritePrinter(hPrinter, pBytes, dwCount, out dwWritten);
EndPagePrinter(hPrinter);
}
EndDocPrinter(hPrinter);
}
ClosePrinter(hPrinter);
}
// If you did not succeed, GetLastError may give more information
// about why not.
if( bSuccess == false )
{
dwError = Marshal.GetLastWin32Error();
}
return bSuccess;
}
public static bool SendFileToPrinter( string szPrinterName, string szFileName )
{
// Open the file.
FileStream fs = new FileStream(szFileName, FileMode.Open);
// Create a BinaryReader on the file.
BinaryReader br = new BinaryReader(fs);
// Dim an array of bytes big enough to hold the file's contents.
Byte []bytes = new Byte[fs.Length];
bool bSuccess = false;
// Your unmanaged pointer.
IntPtr pUnmanagedBytes = new IntPtr(0);
int nLength;
nLength = Convert.ToInt32(fs.Length);
// Read the contents of the file into the array.
bytes = br.ReadBytes( nLength );
// Allocate some unmanaged memory for those bytes.
pUnmanagedBytes = Marshal.AllocCoTaskMem(nLength);
// Copy the managed byte array into the unmanaged array.
Marshal.Copy(bytes, 0, pUnmanagedBytes, nLength);
// Send the unmanaged bytes to the printer.
bSuccess = SendBytesToPrinter(szPrinterName, pUnmanagedBytes, nLength);
// Free the unmanaged memory that you allocated earlier.
Marshal.FreeCoTaskMem(pUnmanagedBytes);
return bSuccess;
}
public static bool SendStringToPrinter( string szPrinterName, string szString )
{
IntPtr pBytes;
Int32 dwCount;
// How many characters are in the string?
// Fix from Nicholas Piasecki:
// dwCount = szString.Length;
dwCount = (szString.Length + 1) * Marshal.SystemMaxDBCSCharSize;
// Assume that the printer is expecting ANSI text, and then convert
// the string to ANSI text.
pBytes = Marshal.StringToCoTaskMemAnsi(szString);
// Send the converted ANSI string to the printer.
SendBytesToPrinter(szPrinterName, pBytes, dwCount);
Marshal.FreeCoTaskMem(pBytes);
return true;
}
}
public partial class USB : Form
{
public USB()
{
InitializeComponent();
}
// Structure and API declarions:
[StructLayout(LayoutKind.Sequential, CharSet = CharSet.Ansi)]
public class DOCINFOA
{
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPStr)]
public string pDocName;
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPStr)]
public string pOutputFile;
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPStr)]
public string pDataType;
}
[DllImport("winspool.Drv", EntryPoint = "OpenPrinterA", SetLastError = true, CharSet = CharSet.Ansi, ExactSpelling = true, CallingConvention = CallingConvention.StdCall)]
public static extern bool OpenPrinter([MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPStr)] string szPrinter, out IntPtr hPrinter, IntPtr pd);
[DllImport("winspool.Drv", EntryPoint = "ClosePrinter", SetLastError = true, ExactSpelling = true, CallingConvention = CallingConvention.StdCall)]
public static extern bool ClosePrinter(IntPtr hPrinter);
[DllImport("winspool.Drv", EntryPoint = "StartDocPrinterA", SetLastError = true, CharSet = CharSet.Ansi, ExactSpelling = true, CallingConvention = CallingConvention.StdCall)]
public static extern bool StartDocPrinter(IntPtr hPrinter, Int32 level, [In, MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPStruct)] DOCINFOA di);
[DllImport("winspool.Drv", EntryPoint = "EndDocPrinter", SetLastError = true, ExactSpelling = true, CallingConvention = CallingConvention.StdCall)]
public static extern bool EndDocPrinter(IntPtr hPrinter);
[DllImport("winspool.Drv", EntryPoint = "StartPagePrinter", SetLastError = true, ExactSpelling = true, CallingConvention = CallingConvention.StdCall)]
public static extern bool StartPagePrinter(IntPtr hPrinter);
[DllImport("winspool.Drv", EntryPoint = "EndPagePrinter", SetLastError = true, ExactSpelling = true, CallingConvention = CallingConvention.StdCall)]
public static extern bool EndPagePrinter(IntPtr hPrinter);
[DllImport("winspool.Drv", EntryPoint = "WritePrinter", SetLastError = true, ExactSpelling = true, CallingConvention = CallingConvention.StdCall)]
public static extern bool WritePrinter(IntPtr hPrinter, IntPtr pBytes, Int32 dwCount, out Int32 dwWritten);
// SendBytesToPrinter()
// When the function is given a printer name and an unmanaged array
// of bytes, the function sends those bytes to the print queue.
// Returns true on success, false on failure.
public static bool SendBytesToPrinter(string szPrinterName, IntPtr pBytes, Int32 dwCount)
{
Int32 dwError = 0, dwWritten = 0;
IntPtr hPrinter = new IntPtr(0);
DOCINFOA di = new DOCINFOA();
bool bSuccess = false; // Assume failure unless you specifically succeed.
di.pDocName = "My C#.NET RAW Document";
di.pDataType = "RAW";
// Open the printer.
if (OpenPrinter(szPrinterName.Normalize(), out hPrinter, IntPtr.Zero))
{
// Start a document.
if (StartDocPrinter(hPrinter, 1, di))
{
// Start a page.
if (StartPagePrinter(hPrinter))
{
// Write your bytes.
bSuccess = WritePrinter(hPrinter, pBytes, dwCount, out dwWritten);
EndPagePrinter(hPrinter);
}
EndDocPrinter(hPrinter);
}
ClosePrinter(hPrinter);
}
// If you did not succeed, GetLastError may give more information
// about why not.
if (bSuccess == false)
{
dwError = Marshal.GetLastWin32Error();
}
return bSuccess;
}
public static bool SendFileToPrinter(string szPrinterName, string szFileName)
{
// Open the file.
FileStream fs = new FileStream(szFileName, FileMode.Open);
// Create a BinaryReader on the file.
BinaryReader br = new BinaryReader(fs);
// Dim an array of bytes big enough to hold the file's contents.
Byte[] bytes = new Byte[fs.Length];
bool bSuccess = false;
// Your unmanaged pointer.
IntPtr pUnmanagedBytes = new IntPtr(0);
int nLength;
nLength = Convert.ToInt32(fs.Length);
// Read the contents of the file into the array.
bytes = br.ReadBytes(nLength);
// Allocate some unmanaged memory for those bytes.
pUnmanagedBytes = Marshal.AllocCoTaskMem(nLength);
// Copy the managed byte array into the unmanaged array.
Marshal.Copy(bytes, 0, pUnmanagedBytes, nLength);
// Send the unmanaged bytes to the printer.
bSuccess = SendBytesToPrinter(szPrinterName, pUnmanagedBytes, nLength);
// Free the unmanaged memory that you allocated earlier.
Marshal.FreeCoTaskMem(pUnmanagedBytes);
return bSuccess;
}
public static bool SendStringToPrinter(string szPrinterName, string szString)
{
IntPtr pBytes;
Int32 dwCount;
// How many characters are in the string?
// Fix from Nicholas Piasecki:
// dwCount = szString.Length;
dwCount = (szString.Length + 1) * Marshal.SystemMaxDBCSCharSize;
// Assume that the printer is expecting ANSI text, and then convert
// the string to ANSI text.
pBytes = Marshal.StringToCoTaskMemAnsi(szString);
// Send the converted ANSI string to the printer.
SendBytesToPrinter(szPrinterName, pBytes, dwCount);
Marshal.FreeCoTaskMem(pBytes);
return true;
}
private void buttonSEND_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
System.Windows.Forms.OpenFileDialog open = new System.Windows.Forms.OpenFileDialog();
string dados = "";
if (open.ShowDialog().Equals(DialogResult.OK))
{
StreamReader sr = new StreamReader(open.FileName);
dados = sr.ReadToEnd();
sr.Close();
}
string printer = "PRINTER NAME";
for (int i = 0; i < 30; i++)
{
SendStringToPrinter(printer, dados);
}
}
}
Issues:
First problem was that it prints only using a file with this method "SendFileToPrinter":
public static bool SendFileToPrinter(string szPrinterName, string szFileName)
{
// Open the file.
FileStream fs = new FileStream(szFileName, FileMode.Open);
// Create a BinaryReader on the file.
BinaryReader br = new BinaryReader(fs);
// Dim an array of bytes big enough to hold the file's contents.
Byte[] bytes = new Byte[fs.Length];
bool bSuccess = false;
// Your unmanaged pointer.
IntPtr pUnmanagedBytes = new IntPtr(0);
int nLength;
nLength = Convert.ToInt32(fs.Length);
// Read the contents of the file into the array.
bytes = br.ReadBytes(nLength);
// Allocate some unmanaged memory for those bytes.
pUnmanagedBytes = Marshal.AllocCoTaskMem(nLength);
// Copy the managed byte array into the unmanaged array.
Marshal.Copy(bytes, 0, pUnmanagedBytes, nLength);
// Send the unmanaged bytes to the printer.
bSuccess = SendBytesToPrinter(szPrinterName, pUnmanagedBytes, nLength);
// Free the unmanaged memory that you allocated earlier.
Marshal.FreeCoTaskMem(pUnmanagedBytes);
return bSuccess;
}
However it dont work perfectly, the printer head stay to the right side of the page and when it try to print again then it writes the beginning of the text at the right of the page and then continue with the rest of the text. The second option that is using this method which receives an string to print:
public static bool SendStringToPrinter(string szPrinterName, string szString)
{
IntPtr pBytes;
Int32 dwCount;
// How many characters are in the string?
// Fix from Nicholas Piasecki:
// dwCount = szString.Length;
dwCount = (szString.Length + 1) * Marshal.SystemMaxDBCSCharSize;
// Assume that the printer is expecting ANSI text, and then convert
// the string to ANSI text.
pBytes = Marshal.StringToCoTaskMemAnsi(szString);
// Send the converted ANSI string to the printer.
SendBytesToPrinter(szPrinterName, pBytes, dwCount);
Marshal.FreeCoTaskMem(pBytes);
return true;
}
But this method is no sending anything to the printer, The printer dont begin print. I made a hybrid from both functions by taking a look at both methods and i finally able to print with this code but with same alignment issues as with the SendFileToPrinter, no mater if i send the text always in the same format delimited by tabs each line that i send to the printer is not well aligned.
This is my piece of code:
public static bool SendStringToPrinter(string szPrinterName, string szString)
{
IntPtr pBytes;
Int32 dwCount;
bool bSuccess = false;
IntPtr pUnmanagedBytes = new IntPtr(0);
int nLength = Encoding.ASCII.GetBytes(szString).Length;
// Dim an array of bytes big enough to hold the file's contents.
Byte[] bytes = new Byte[nLength];
bytes = Encoding.ASCII.GetBytes(szString);
// Allocate some unmanaged memory for those bytes.
pUnmanagedBytes = Marshal.AllocCoTaskMem(nLength);
// Copy the managed byte array into the unmanaged array.
Marshal.Copy(bytes, 0, pUnmanagedBytes, nLength);
// Send the unmanaged bytes to the printer.
bSuccess = SendBytesToPrinter(szPrinterName, pUnmanagedBytes, nLength);
// Free the unmanaged memory that you allocated earlier.
Marshal.FreeCoTaskMem(pUnmanagedBytes);
return bSuccess;
}
This is an example of what i need to print:
Expected Format
The first tree lines are for the header of the table. and the next lines will be printed one of them each 5 minutes with readings of values.
How ever its not consistent even after formatted the string and delimited by tabs.
This is what i am getting when print with my Frankenstein method.
PAGE TITLE ........ LINE 1
VAL3 VAL4 VAL1 VAL2
Time / Date DESC DESC DESC DESC ........ LINE 3
3/4/2019 11:30 AM 100 300 500 434 ........ LINE 4
3/4/2019 11:35 AM 99 290 340 452 ........ LINE 5
3/4/2019 11:40 AM 120 310 100 532 ........ LINE 6
Its not consistent and only the first line prints ok and aligned. I am newbie in this of sending raw data to the printer and i dont whats going on that is causing this when i call the method SendStringToPrinter(myString) every five minutes. I dont know if i need to specify the coordinates or where to start printing neither how to do it.
I will appreciate any help in order to fix this problem.
For the first part of the question, yes WritePrinter is the way to go because that allows you to send raw bytes. I'm not reading into the details of all your code because that is way too much code for this question.
For the layout part of this question, that printer looks like it is expecting ESC/POS. Here is the command sheet. Update your text file to conform to those commands, namely the page format section. e.g.
ESC HT 12 Hello 08 World
would align "World" to the 8th character position. You'll need to experiment with the commands to find what works. If you're new to ESC/POS I would recommend using notepad++ to create your test files. If you enable the character panel (Edit->Character Panel) you can inject arbitrary ASCII codes into the file. An ESC/POS string of the above would be:
1b090cHello09World
My client has bought a new Cash Drawer for his POS system.
Features fo the cash drawer as follows:
Model: D41SRB
SKU: D41SRB
Electronic Cash Drawer Black 16",
Roller, 24V Epson STD RJ11, Stainless front
5 Bill/5 Coin
1mm steel case
Two extra brackets inside top of case for added durability`
Its connected to the reciept printer EPSON TM-T88V Receipt.
I need to open this drawer from a click of button in my C# application, however when I set the drawer to open after print from Printer Preference it works. So , I am sure its connected fine. I need something similar to this ARTICLE but in C#.
So please help
To open the drawer on the TM-T88 series, you have to have it connected via a serial or network port.
The following command sequence is what I used. This is really old code, but it should do the job. You have to open the port and initialize the printer before doing anything else, so that's in there too.
private SerialPort serialPort1 = new SerialPort();
public void OpenPort()
{
serialPort1.PortName = "COM1";
serialPort1.Encoding = Encoding.ASCII;
serialPort1.BaudRate = 38400;
serialPort1.Parity = System.IO.Ports.Parity.None;
serialPort1.DataBits = 8;
serialPort1.StopBits = System.IO.Ports.StopBits.One;
serialPort1.DtrEnable = true;
serialPort1.Open();
}
public void InitializePrinter()
{
serialPort1.Write(Char.ConvertFromUtf32(27) + char.ConvertFromUtf32(64));
}
public void OpenDrawer()
{
serialPort1.Write(char.ConvertFromUtf32(27) +
char.ConvertFromUtf32(112) +
char.ConvertFromUtf32(0) +
char.ConvertFromUtf32(5) +
char.ConvertFromUtf32(5));
}
I am able to solve my issue I used
RawPrinterHelper.SendStringToPrinter("EPSON TM-T88V Receipt", System.Text.ASCIIEncoding.ASCII.GetString(new byte[] { 27, 112, 48, 55, 121 }));
got this drawer code from http://keyhut.com/popopen.htm
Heres My whole code:
public class RawPrinterHelper
{
// Structure and API declarions:
[StructLayout(LayoutKind.Sequential, CharSet = CharSet.Unicode)]
public class DOCINFOA
{
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPStr)]
public string pDocName;
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPStr)]
public string pOutputFile;
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPStr)]
public string pDataType;
}
[DllImport("winspool.Drv", EntryPoint = "OpenPrinterA", SetLastError = true, CharSet = CharSet.Unicode, ExactSpelling = true, CallingConvention = CallingConvention.StdCall)]
public static extern bool OpenPrinter([MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPStr)] string szPrinter, out IntPtr hPrinter, IntPtr pd);
[DllImport("winspool.Drv", EntryPoint = "ClosePrinter", SetLastError = true, ExactSpelling = true, CallingConvention = CallingConvention.StdCall)]
public static extern bool ClosePrinter(IntPtr hPrinter);
[DllImport("winspool.Drv", EntryPoint = "StartDocPrinterA", SetLastError = true, CharSet = CharSet.Unicode, ExactSpelling = true, CallingConvention = CallingConvention.StdCall)]
public static extern bool StartDocPrinter(IntPtr hPrinter, Int32 level, [In, MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPStruct)] DOCINFOA di);
[DllImport("winspool.Drv", EntryPoint = "EndDocPrinter", SetLastError = true, ExactSpelling = true, CallingConvention = CallingConvention.StdCall)]
public static extern bool EndDocPrinter(IntPtr hPrinter);
[DllImport("winspool.Drv", EntryPoint = "StartPagePrinter", SetLastError = true, ExactSpelling = true, CallingConvention = CallingConvention.StdCall)]
public static extern bool StartPagePrinter(IntPtr hPrinter);
[DllImport("winspool.Drv", EntryPoint = "EndPagePrinter", SetLastError = true, ExactSpelling = true, CallingConvention = CallingConvention.StdCall)]
public static extern bool EndPagePrinter(IntPtr hPrinter);
[DllImport("winspool.Drv", EntryPoint = "WritePrinter", SetLastError = true, ExactSpelling = true, CallingConvention = CallingConvention.StdCall)]
public static extern bool WritePrinter(IntPtr hPrinter, IntPtr pBytes, Int32 dwCount, out Int32 dwWritten);
// SendBytesToPrinter()
// When the function is given a printer name and an unmanaged array
// of bytes, the function sends those bytes to the print queue.
// Returns true on success, false on failure.
public static bool SendBytesToPrinter(string szPrinterName, IntPtr pBytes, Int32 dwCount)
{
Int32 dwError = 0, dwWritten = 0;
IntPtr hPrinter = new IntPtr(0);
DOCINFOA di = new DOCINFOA();
bool bSuccess = false; // Assume failure unless you specifically succeed.
di.pDocName = "RAW Document";
// Win7
di.pDataType = "RAW";
// Win8+
// di.pDataType = "XPS_PASS";
// Open the printer.
if (OpenPrinter(szPrinterName.Normalize(), out hPrinter, IntPtr.Zero))
{
// Start a document.
if (StartDocPrinter(hPrinter, 1, di))
{
// Start a page.
if (StartPagePrinter(hPrinter))
{
// Write your bytes.
bSuccess = WritePrinter(hPrinter, pBytes, dwCount, out dwWritten);
EndPagePrinter(hPrinter);
}
EndDocPrinter(hPrinter);
}
ClosePrinter(hPrinter);
}
// If you did not succeed, GetLastError may give more information
// about why not.
if (bSuccess == false)
{
dwError = Marshal.GetLastWin32Error();
}
return bSuccess;
}
public static bool SendFileToPrinter(string szPrinterName, string szFileName)
{
// Open the file.
FileStream fs = new FileStream(szFileName, FileMode.Open);
// Create a BinaryReader on the file.
BinaryReader br = new BinaryReader(fs);
// Dim an array of bytes big enough to hold the file's contents.
Byte[] bytes = new Byte[fs.Length];
bool bSuccess = false;
// Your unmanaged pointer.
IntPtr pUnmanagedBytes = new IntPtr(0);
int nLength;
nLength = Convert.ToInt32(fs.Length);
// Read the contents of the file into the array.
bytes = br.ReadBytes(nLength);
// Allocate some unmanaged memory for those bytes.
pUnmanagedBytes = Marshal.AllocCoTaskMem(nLength);
// Copy the managed byte array into the unmanaged array.
Marshal.Copy(bytes, 0, pUnmanagedBytes, nLength);
// Send the unmanaged bytes to the printer.
bSuccess = SendBytesToPrinter(szPrinterName, pUnmanagedBytes, nLength);
// Free the unmanaged memory that you allocated earlier.
Marshal.FreeCoTaskMem(pUnmanagedBytes);
fs.Close();
fs.Dispose();
fs = null;
return bSuccess;
}
public static bool SendStringToPrinter(string szPrinterName, string szString)
{
IntPtr pBytes;
Int32 dwCount;
// How many characters are in the string?
dwCount = szString.Length;
// Assume that the printer is expecting ANSI text, and then convert
// the string to ANSI text.
pBytes = Marshal.StringToCoTaskMemAnsi(szString);
// Send the converted ANSI string to the printer.
SendBytesToPrinter(szPrinterName, pBytes, dwCount);
Marshal.FreeCoTaskMem(pBytes);
return true;
}
}
private void button1_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
RawPrinterHelper.SendStringToPrinter("EPSON TM-T88V Receipt", System.Text.ASCIIEncoding.ASCII.GetString(new byte[] { 27, 112, 48, 55, 121 }));
}
After this by clicking on button1 it kicks the drawer.
assume your serial port is called "port".
Just use: port.writeLine("\x10\x14\x01\x00\x08"); // For Cash Drawer 0
Just use: port.writeLine("\x10\x14\x01\x01\x08"); // For Cash Drawer 1
as the printer can talk to 2 cash drawers.
Commands:
ASCII DCE DC4 n m t
Hex 10 14 n m t
Decimal 16 20 n m t
Where n = 1, m = 0 or 1 (cash drawer #), t <= 1, t <=8
I will try to explain clearly the context of my problem.
I have a server grabbing frames from an IP camera videostreaming. I'm able to process and edit these images but now I have to deliver these images again as a videostream(mjpeg). It is not mandatory that I need to deliver it as streaming to everyone, it would be enought by now if I can send the streaming through TCP to another client.
I don't have any idea what the best way to go about it would be, as I don't think sending the images one by one is a good practice...
Can anyone help me somehow? I've never dealt with this situation and I'm not able to find any solution on Google (probably I'm not doing the right query...)
How would you handle it?
I have found a simple CodeProject which performs a very similar task, streaming your desktop.
I hope it can help you as well!
Here is the simplest way to send Image as video stream over IP using Tcp
This method send and receive video stream.
This is based on Windows form.
Send Stream(Server):
private void Start_Sending_Video_Conference(string remote_IP, int port_number)
{
try
{
ms = new MemoryStream();// Store it in Binary Array as Stream
IDataObject data;
Image bmap;
// Copy image to clipboard
SendMessage(hHwnd, WM_CAP_EDIT_COPY, 0, 0);
// Get image from clipboard and convert it to a bitmap
data = Clipboard.GetDataObject();
if (data.GetDataPresent(typeof(System.Drawing.Bitmap)))
{
bmap = ((Image)(data.GetData(typeof(System.Drawing.Bitmap))));
bmap.Save(ms, ImageFormat.Bmp);
}
picCapture.Image.Save(ms, System.Drawing.Imaging.ImageFormat.Jpeg);
byte[] arrImage = ms.GetBuffer();
myclient = new TcpClient(remote_IP, 5000);//Connecting with server
myns = myclient.GetStream();
mysw = new BinaryWriter(myns);
mysw.Write(arrImage);//send the stream to above address
ms.Flush();
mysw.Flush();
myns.Flush();
ms.Close();
mysw.Close();
myns.Close();
myclient.Close();
}
catch (Exception ex)
{
MessageBox.Show(ex.Message, "Video Conference Error Message", MessageBoxButtons.OK, MessageBoxIcon.Error);
}
}
Receive Stream(Client):
private void Start_Receiving_Video_Conference()
{
try
{
// Open The Port
mytcpl = new TcpListener(5000);
mytcpl.Start(); // Start Listening on That Port
mysocket = mytcpl.AcceptSocket(); // Accept Any Request From Client and Start a Session
ns = new NetworkStream(mysocket); // Receives The Binary Data From Port
picture_comming.Image = Image.FromStream(ns);
mytcpl.Stop(); // Close TCP Session
if (mysocket.Connected == true) // Looping While Connected to Receive Another Message
{
while (true)
{
Start_Receiving_Video_Conference(); // Back to First Method
}
}
myns.Flush();
}
catch (Exception) { button1.Enabled = true; myth.Abort(); }
}
Unmanaged Imports:
[System.Runtime.InteropServices.DllImport("user32", EntryPoint="SendMessageA")]
static extern int SendMessage(int hwnd, int wMsg, int wParam, [MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.AsAny)]
object lParam);
[System.Runtime.InteropServices.DllImport("user32", EntryPoint="SetWindowPos")]
static extern int SetWindowPos(int hwnd, int hWndInsertAfter, int x, int y, int cx, int cy, int wFlags);
[System.Runtime.InteropServices.DllImport("user32")]
static extern bool DestroyWindow(int hndw);
[System.Runtime.InteropServices.DllImport("avicap32.dll")]
static extern int capCreateCaptureWindowA(string lpszWindowName, int dwStyle, int x, int y, int nWidth, short nHeight, int hWndParent, int nID);
[System.Runtime.InteropServices.DllImport("avicap32.dll")]
static extern bool capGetDriverDescriptionA(short wDriver, string lpszName, int cbName, string lpszVer, int cbVer);
Method To Preview Webcam Image on Server
This method should start first to initialize preview of webcam (On server side)
private void OpenPreviewWindow()
{
int iHeight = 259;
int iWidth = 369;
//
// Open Preview window in picturebox
//
hHwnd = capCreateCaptureWindowA(iDevice.ToString (), (WS_VISIBLE | WS_CHILD), 0, 0, 640, 480, picCapture.Handle.ToInt32(), 0);
//
// Connect to device
//
if (SendMessage(hHwnd, WM_CAP_DRIVER_CONNECT, iDevice, 0) == 1)
{
//
// Set the preview scale
//
SendMessage(hHwnd, WM_CAP_SET_SCALE, 1, 0);
//
// Set the preview rate in milliseconds
//
SendMessage(hHwnd, WM_CAP_SET_PREVIEWRATE, 66, 0);
//
// Start previewing the image from the camera
//
SendMessage(hHwnd, WM_CAP_SET_PREVIEW, 1, 0);
//
// Resize window to fit in picturebox
//
SetWindowPos(hHwnd, HWND_BOTTOM, 0, 0, iWidth,iHeight, (SWP_NOMOVE | SWP_NOZORDER));
}
else
{
//
// Error connecting to device close window
//
DestroyWindow(hHwnd);
}
}
To Close Preview:
private void ClosePreviewWindow()
{
//
// Disconnect from device
//
SendMessage(hHwnd, WM_CAP_DRIVER_DISCONNECT, iDevice, 0);
//
// close window
//
DestroyWindow(hHwnd);
}
WebCam Api
const short WM_CAP = 1024;
const int WM_CAP_DRIVER_CONNECT = WM_CAP + 10;
const int WM_CAP_DRIVER_DISCONNECT = WM_CAP + 11;
const int WM_CAP_EDIT_COPY = WM_CAP + 30;
const int WM_CAP_SET_PREVIEW = WM_CAP + 50;
const int WM_CAP_SET_PREVIEWRATE = WM_CAP + 52;
const int WM_CAP_SET_SCALE = WM_CAP + 53;
const int WS_CHILD = 1073741824;
const int WS_VISIBLE = 268435456;
const short SWP_NOMOVE = 2;
const short SWP_NOSIZE = 1;
const short SWP_NOZORDER = 4;
const short HWND_BOTTOM = 1;
Please ask if any query.
I've tried to print content of RichTextBox and there are too many bugs if I print to printer.
But when I'm printing to XPS-file (through XPS-printer in windows) and then printing this file to printer all is ok.
So can I do all these things programmatically?
Here is my printing method:
public int PrintRotate(bool rotate, PrintPageEventArgs e, int charFrom, int charTo)
{
//Calculate the area to render and print
RECT rectToPrint;
rectToPrint.Top = (int)(e.MarginBounds.Top * anInch);
rectToPrint.Bottom = (int)(e.MarginBounds.Bottom * anInch);
rectToPrint.Left = (int)(e.MarginBounds.Left * anInch);
rectToPrint.Right = (int)(e.MarginBounds.Right * anInch);
//Calculate the size of the page
RECT rectPage;
rectPage.Top = (int)(e.PageBounds.Top * anInch);
rectPage.Bottom = (int)(e.PageBounds.Bottom * anInch);
rectPage.Left = (int)(e.PageBounds.Left * anInch);
rectPage.Right = (int)(e.PageBounds.Right * anInch);
IntPtr hdc = e.Graphics.GetHdc();
FORMATRANGE fmtRange;
fmtRange.chrg.cpMax = charTo; //Indicate character from to character to
fmtRange.chrg.cpMin = charFrom;
fmtRange.hdc = hdc; //Use the same DC for measuring and rendering
fmtRange.hdcTarget = hdc; //Point at printer hDC
fmtRange.rc = rectToPrint; //Indicate the area on page to print
fmtRange.rcPage = rectPage; //Indicate size of page
SetGraphicsMode(fmtRange.hdc, GM_ADVANCED);
XFORM par = new XFORM();
par = new XFORM();
par.eM11 = 1;
par.eM12 = 0;
par.eM21 = 0;
par.eM22 = 1;
par.eDx = -e.PageSettings.Margins.Left / 100 * e.PageSettings.PrinterResolution.X;
par.eDy = -e.PageSettings.Margins.Top / 100 * e.PageSettings.PrinterResolution.Y;
ModifyWorldTransform(fmtRange.hdc, ref par, MWT_LEFTMULTIPLY);
IntPtr res = IntPtr.Zero;
IntPtr wparam = IntPtr.Zero;
wparam = new IntPtr(1);
//Get the pointer to the FORMATRANGE structure in memory
IntPtr lparam = IntPtr.Zero;
lparam = Marshal.AllocCoTaskMem(Marshal.SizeOf(fmtRange));
Marshal.StructureToPtr(fmtRange, lparam, false);
//Send the rendered data for printing
res = SendMessage(Handle, EM_FORMATRANGE, wparam, lparam);
//Free the block of memory allocated
Marshal.FreeCoTaskMem(lparam);
//Release the device context handle obtained by a previous call
e.Graphics.ReleaseHdc(hdc);
//Return last + 1 character printer
return res.ToInt32();
}
I've had a problem like this, and ended up making an .XPS file and then sending that to the printer.
From your question, it sounds like you already have the process of "printing" to the xps file down, which is good since I don't know anything about the process of printing the rich text box to the xps file. In my scenaria I needed to print a dokument without using ms office, so I ended up making a XPS file, edit it in code, and then send it to the printer.
This is the code I use to send the xps-file directly to the printer:
LocalPrintServer localPrintServer = new LocalPrintServer();
var queue = localPrintServer.GetPrintQueue("NameOfPrinter");
PrintSystemJobInfo xpsPrintJob = queue.AddJob("name of print job", "my/xps/path.xps",false);
Also remember that for this code to work you need to add references to System.Printing AND "ReachFramework". Took me longer than I care to remember to find out why I couldn't access the printjob.
Most printers should support this in my experience. The common ones and it even works on the odd "barcode-printer" at our storage-department.