universal-printer 0.1.0

Cross-platform document printing with PDF fallback using only standard library

Universal Printer

A dependency-free Python library for cross-platform document printing with PDF fallback. Works on Windows, macOS, and Linux using only the Python standard library.

Features

• Cross-platform: Works on Windows, macOS, and Linux
• Dependency-free: Uses only Python standard library
• PDF fallback: Generates minimal PDFs when printing fails
• Simple API: Easy to use with just a few lines of code
• Flexible input: Print strings, file paths, or any text content

Installation

pip install universal-printer

Quick Start

from universal_printer import DocumentPrinter

# Create a printer instance
printer = DocumentPrinter()

# Print a simple string
success, message, pdf_path = printer.print_document("Hello, World!")

if success:
    print("Document printed successfully!")
else:
    print(f"Printing failed: {message}")
    if pdf_path:
        print(f"PDF fallback saved to: {pdf_path}")

Usage Examples

Print text content

from universal_printer import DocumentPrinter

printer = DocumentPrinter()

# Print simple text
text = """
This is a sample document.
It contains multiple lines.
Perfect for testing the printer!
"""

success, message, pdf_path = printer.print_document(text)

Print an existing file

# Print an existing text file
success, message, pdf_path = printer.print_document("/path/to/your/file.txt")

Specify a printer

# Print to a specific printer
success, message, pdf_path = printer.print_document(
    "Hello, World!", 
    printer_name="Your Printer Name"
)

Print to PDF directly

# Print to PDF (useful for "Microsoft Print to PDF" on Windows)
success, message, pdf_path = printer.print_document(
    "Hello, World!", 
    printer_name="Microsoft Print to PDF",
    pdf_filename="my_document.pdf"
)

Disable PDF fallback

# Disable PDF fallback if printing fails
success, message, pdf_path = printer.print_document(
    "Hello, World!", 
    fallback_to_pdf=False
)

API Reference

DocumentPrinter

The main class for printing documents.

Methods

print_document(content, printer_name=None, fallback_to_pdf=True, pdf_filename=None)

Print the given content.

Parameters:

• content (str): Text content to print, or path to an existing file
• printer_name (str, optional): Name of the printer to use
• fallback_to_pdf (bool): Whether to create a PDF if printing fails (default: True)
• pdf_filename (str, optional): Custom filename for PDF fallback

Returns:

• tuple: (success: bool, message: str, pdf_path: str or None)

Platform-Specific Behavior

Windows

• Uses rundll32.exe with shell32.dll for printing
• Supports "Microsoft Print to PDF" printer
• Falls back to Notepad for .txt files if needed

macOS/Linux

• Uses the lp command (CUPS)
• Supports print-to-file for PDF generation
• Requires CUPS to be installed and configured

PDF Fallback

• Generates minimal but valid PDF files
• Uses Helvetica font at 12pt
• Places text starting at coordinates (50, 750)
• Handles basic text escaping for PDF format

Requirements

• Python 3.7 or higher
• No external dependencies (uses only standard library)

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

Changelog

0.1.0

• Initial release
• Cross-platform printing support
• PDF fallback functionality
• Standard library only implementation