Automating Print Station

Many of the Print Station settings that you specify in the Administrative Setup dialog can also be specified by using command-line parameters. Command-line parameters are most commonly used to run Print Station from within other programs or to change the Print Station startup behavior so that it automatically loads to a specified configuration, such as a specific root folder or language setting.

All configuration settings that are specified by using command-line parameters are specific to the instance of Print Station that was opened with those parameters. They are undone as soon as the Administrative Setup dialog is opened or the instance of Print Station is closed.

The syntax of a command line for Print Station is as follows:

PrintStation.exe [parameters]

There is a space between "PrintStation.exe" and the first parameter. All parameters begin with a forward slash. Many of the commands that are available for Print Station are Boolean flags. If the option is not set by using command-line parameters, it takes the value that is defined in the Print Station configuration file.

If your text includes spaces or non-alphanumeric characters, you must enclose it with double quotation marks (" "). Otherwise, the command stops at the first space or special character.

ClosedAvailable Command-Line Parameters

/Folder=<path>

Specifies the path to the directory that contains BarTender documents.

/RootFolderName=<folder name>

Opens Print Station and displays the specified root folder.

/Title=<instructional text>

Overrides the default "Select item to print" text with the specified custom instructional text.

/InstructionalText=<instructional text>

Overrides the default "Select item to print" text with the specified custom instructional text.

/DefaultPrinter=<printer>

Specifies the printer that, by default, runs all print jobs from Print Station.

/ShowPrintDialog

Displays the Print Document dialog when an item is selected for printing.

/-ShowPrintDialog

Immediately runs a print job when an item is selected for printing. The Print Document dialog is not displayed.

/AllowPrinterSelection

Provides the user with the option to select a printer when a print job is run from Print Station.

/-AllowPrinterSelection

Prevents the user from selecting a printer when a print job is run. Print Station prints to the default printer, which is configured in the operating system or specified by using the /DefaultPrinter parameter.

/FullScreen

Starts Print Station in full-screen mode.

/-FullScreen

Starts Print Station in normal mode rather than in full-screen mode.

/NoSplash

Hides the display of the startup screen when Print Station is started.

ClosedAdding Command-Line Parameters to the Print Station Shortcut

You can create a Windows desktop shortcut to open Print Station and then configure the shortcut to use command-line parameters to control the startup behavior of the application.

ClosedTo create a shortcut to Print Station

  1. In Windows, click Start, and then click All Apps.

  2. Click the BarTender directory to display the contents.

  3. Drag the Print Station icon to the desktop.

ClosedTo configure the Print Station shortcut to use command-line parameters

  1. Right-click the Print Station shortcut.

  2. Click Properties to display the Print Station Properties dialog.

  3. Optionally, click the General tab to modify the default name of the shortcut to something more descriptive, such as "Print Production Labels".

  4. Click the Shortcut tab, and then add or modify command-line parameters and/or add a comment to the shortcut. The following options are available:

    • Target: Specifies the file location of the application executable (*.exe) file. You can add command-line parameters to the end of this text box to customize the Print Station startup behavior. For example, the following Target value opens Print Station in full-screen mode and displays all BarTender documents that are saved on the desktop:

      "C:\Program Files\Seagull\BarTender Suite\PrintStation.exe"

      /FullScreen /Folder="C:\Users\MyUser\Desktop"

    • Comment: Specifies the text that appears in the tooltip when you point to the shortcut icon. You can replace the default text by deleting it and then entering a customized comment.

    The updates are applied after you restart your computer.

For more information about the other options that are available in the Properties dialog, refer to the Windows documentation.