Product Info

2 Setting up for your card design
SP Series Info Central
What do I use to set up the printer?
• Properties dialog box:
On Windows 98 and Me, the Properties dialog box includes typical printer settings, such as
landscape or portrait orientation, and settings for card printers, such magnetic stripe settings. It
also includes port and communication settings.
On Window 2000 and XP, the Properties dialog box includes port and communication settings
and permissions.
• Printing Preferences:
The Printing Preferences dialog box is displayed on Windows 2000 and XP to provide typical
printer settings, such as landscape or portrait orientation.
• Printer Toolbox:
The Printer Toolbox provides information about printer-driver communication, buttons for
performing tasks such as running a cleaning card, and access to color settings and advanced
setup.
• Advanced Setup:
Advanced Setup is a special mode that allows you to view or change some settings in the
printer. For SP Series printers, you can change where printing occurs on a card and the
intensity for topcoat or monochrome (single-color) printing.
• Printer Diagnostics:
Printer Diagnostics is a separate application that you can install to perform tests on the printer
with the guidance of your service provider. It also includes settings that might need to be
changed for special-purpose cards.
Why are there several interfaces to set up the printer?
• Microsoft Windows provides a set of tools that other products (such as SP Series printers) can
use for viewing and changing device settings (Properties or Printing Preferences dialog box).
The functions available meet some but not all needs for setting up card printers. In addition the
organization and functions available are different for Windows 98/ME and Windows 2000/XP.
Because the printers can be used on several operating systems and include functions that
cannot be managed through standard Windows tools, more than one interface is needed.
• As Datacard’s printers have changed over time, the features needed in the driver have
changed. In addition, some tasks are mutually exclusive. For example, you cannot change
printhead settings at the same time as you are printing cards. The current interfaces are the
result of Datacard’s efforts to meet the needs of customers and dealers who use the printer.
(The driver for SP Series printers can be used with other Datacard printers.)
• Some tasks are advanced, requiring a higher level of knowledge about the printer. These tasks
are usually performed infrequently, and only by service providers or with the guidance of
service providers, and so should not be easily available.