2021.1

Debugging and Emulation changes
One of the cases where debugging is most useful is whenever the job file is converted to
another type of emulation, or if a new data file of a different emulation is used somewhere in the
process. For example, if a process starts with a Line Printer data file and then converts it into a
PDF, it is not possible to select anything from the PDF to be used as (variable) task property,
because the Line Printer emulation is active by default. The debugging features can easily
resolve this limitation.
The first method is used if your process has all the required tasks, but data selections after an
emulation change are necessary.
l Step through the process until you have reached the point after the emulation or data
change.
l Make the necessary data selections (see "Data selections" on page54). Any data
selection used in task properties after this point will use the new emulation.
l Continue stepping through each task until the end of the process to debug it.
This method does not allow you to add, remove or move tasks, however.
The second method can be used when that is required.
l Step through the process in Debug mode until you reach the emulation or data change.
l
Click on View as Text (or View as PDF if your data is PDF at this point) in the Data group
of the Debug tab.
l In the viewer that appears, save the file to a location on your hard drive.
l Stop the process, and select the file you saved as your process's sample data file (see
"Choosing a sample data file" on page72).
l If you need to continue debugging your process after the emulation change, you can still
do it by using Skip on all the tasks until the emulation change, inclusively. Then use Step
or Run to continue debugging.
Lastly, PlanetPress Workflow has an option that can be used in conjunction with the previous to
avoid skipping through large processes:
l
Step through the process until the emulation or data change, as in the first method.
l
Save the data file locally and then select it as your sample data file, as with the second
method.
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