7.3

You print a document installed on a printer by sending a trigger to the printer, followed by the input data. If you run your doc-
ument into your PlanetPress Suite Workflow Tool, it takes care of inserting the trigger. If you run your document directly on a
printer, you must manually insert the trigger at the head of the data stream.
How a Variable Content Document Runs on a Printer
How does a variable content document runs on a printer?
If you run a document installed on a printer directly, you send a trigger, followed by the input data, to the printer. If you run a
document into your PlanetPress Suite Workflow Tool, the document may or may not be installed in the printer, depending on
the PlanetPress Suite process you created for the document. If it is not installed in the printer, the PlanetPress Suite Workflow
Tool sends the document, followed by the trigger, followed by the input data, to the printer. If it is already installed in the
printer, the PlanetPress Suite Workflow Tool sends the trigger, followed by the input data, to the printer.
When the trigger arrives at the printer, it puts the printer in PostScript mode, gives it the name and location of the document in
the printer, and tells it to launch the document. The document launches, takes control of the printer, initializes all its global var-
iables and starts processing its data stream. The document then cycles through three distinct processing phases for each data
page in the data stream until it reaches the end of the data stream, at which point it relinquishes control of the printer.
The three phases are:
l "Phase 1: Data Reading" (page 677)
l "Phase 2: Global Condition Resolution" (page 677)
l "Phase 3: Document Page Printing" (page 677)
Phase 1: Data Reading
In phase 1, the document reads a complete data page and loads it in the data page buffer.
Phase 2: Global Condition Resolution
In phase 2, the document runs any attachments you selected to run before the document prints, and then resolves all global
conditions for the current data page.
Phase 3: Document Page Printing
In phase 3, the document processes each page of the document. It uses the conditions it resolved in phase 2 to determine
whether to run and print the page and, if it prints the page, which objects to include in the output. In this phase it also evaluates
all local conditions as it encounters them. Thus the document evaluates conditions at two distinct points in time. It evaluates all
global conditions immediately after it fills the data page buffer, and maintains the results in memory for reference as it merges
the data page. It evaluates all other conditions as it prints each page of the document.
When it finishes processing all pages of the document, it re-initializes, empties the buffer and reads the next data page.
Techniques for Inserting Triggers
What are the common techniques for inserting a trigger?
Document Output and Preview
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