IBM S544-5351-03 manual Introducing Advanced Print Utility, What is APU?, What You Can Do with APU

Chapter 1. Introducing Advanced Print Utility

Use this chapter to gain an understanding of what the IBM PrintSuite for iSeries Advanced Print Utility (APU) can do for you, including:

vªWhat is APU?º

vªWhat You Can Do with APUº

vªWhy Use APU?º on page 4

vªPrinting with and without APUº on page 4

vªAPU formatting instructionsº on page 6

vªSteps in Creating an APU Documentº on page 7

What is APU?

Advanced Print Utility (APU) is part of the Advanced Function Presentation (AFP) PrintSuite family of document-creation systems that enables you to use SCS files as input to APU and then to transform that input to ªfull-pageº electronic output, with pages that include electronic forms, image, bar codes, lines, boxes, and text in a variety of fonts.

APU provides an interactive design approach that is independent of the application program.

vThe input to APU is the line-mode (SCS) output file that the line-of-business application creates.

vThe output of APU is an AFP spooled file.

What You Can Do with APU

Output specifications for iSeries application programs generate either SNA Character Stream (SCS) or AFP spooled files. APU works on SCS spooled files. SCS is a line-oriented datastream that for the most part uses preprinted forms to create the final document. With APU, you can eliminate the need for preprinted forms. Instead, you create a completely electronic document. With APU, you can:

vCreate multi-copy documents, with each page customized

vUse data that is contained within a page to determine which of multiple output formats to use

vRemap any field that the input SCS pages contain (change position, font, orientation, color, and so on)

vPrint application data in any of the standard bar code symbologies

vAdd document elements such as electronic forms (overlays), images, lines, boxes, and constant text

vPlace a new application into production for automatic processing

vManage the production of input and output files, including the routing of different output files to different queues, printers, and output bins

vImplement user-defined programs that can address unique document or document distribution requirements

APU provides an interactive interface for defining new output applications. For simpler applications, APU provides a ªfast pathº. You use the current spooled file (SCS) interactively to redefine the formatting of application data.

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