Hi guys,

We were running into printing issues to our HP printers with previous versions of True Basic. We actually found version 5.41a to work best for our situation on Windows XP and Windows 7, though there were still issues.

We are testing out version 6.005Demo from your website and noticed a similar printer issues with this version.

i.e. printing out the lines of code results in:

Trouble with Printer, Printing Cancelled.


printing source code

I have BRONZE 5.5 running on a DELL with WINDOWS 7 driving a Cannon MX850 printer. When I print the source code it truncates each line at 44 characters. Does anyone know how to print the source code shown in the source window? I asked before but received no answer. Sincerely, JAY REED



This is really an issue for the Version 5 discussion group.
The basic problem here is that when you want to print a program listing with version 5, the default MARGIN has been set at 44 characters for some obscure reason.

This has been overcome in the version 6 editor by inserting a line of code that resets MARGIN to suit the printed page width. Also the listing routine prints characters beyond the MARGIN as line continuations.

Big John

Fix in 6.006

Yes, we have been going around with HP for some time on this issue. Luckily this has been fixed in 6.006; that update will be released shortly. Stay tuned.

any word on when 6.006 will be released?

we are hoping to test these printing issues further when 6.006 is released.

Update is out

H!i Steve,

The 6.006 update is now available on the Downloads page. Let us know how you make out!

6.006 Release

It didn't fix the HP printing issue for me.

re: HP printers

Let's get real here. This is a TrueBasic problem, not an HP problem. HP printers work with every other program in the world. They hold a huge market percentage edge over any other brand--both in the U.S. and Europe, which would not be the case if software didn't work with these printers. Whatever the root problem is, it is in the TB code. I know that Big John is currently trying to find a 'work-around' for the problem and if it tests out, we _might_ see a resolution with the next update. The main problem here is that there is no one working with (if it is even available) the primary language software. That is a reasonably complex and expensive proposition--even to find someone capable of such work.



Clearly there is some conflict between TB and HP printers, but given the popularity of HP printers and TB's extensive user base compared to the relatively few reports of this issue, the incidence of the conflict is not 100%.

Therefore it's logical to conclude that the conflict is not 100% rooted in TB code but rather occurs with some combination of factors: the user's code, TB version, printer setup, deployment, network issues... etc. An issue like this is very difficult to troubleshoot but fortunately it seems we have a solution which works in our testing. We can't possibly test every computer with every printer on every network in every deployment, so we rely on feedback to help us identify and resolve the issues and look forward to hearing how the 6.006 fix works in the field.


If you look in 6.x Bug Reports under the heading PRINTING FROM THE EDITOR, you'll see that this has been discussed just about to death and there is no fix. It seems like it only happens with HP printers and HP isn't inclined to issue a patch for it since, as much as we love TrueBASIC, it simply doesn't have the market clout necessary to make HP do anything.

HP Printers

I've had HP printers that worked with TB 5.41a and others that didn't. They were all the less expensive models. Never had a problem with an Epson. I'm too ignorant of Computer Science to understand why and am delighted with Big John's tenacity and abilities to tackle this, and so many other problems as "improved technology" in more modern operating systems. TB is an absolute jewel for this old retired engineer.

Bob B.