Frequently Asked Question #4

Yes. Here are several approaches that are in common use:

1. Glass Eye 2000 can print to any device that has a Windows printer driver and will adapt to whatever paper size is available. If your printer has such a driver, the easiest solution is to install Glass Eye 2000 on a computer connected to that printer -- then simply open and print your design from within Glass Eye 2000. You are not required to have Glass Eye 2000 licensed on a computer used only for printing, and you can print from a trial (downloaded) copy even if the trial period has expired. Note that a commercial printer might not allow Glass Eye 2000 to be installed on any of their computers.
    
2. Another good solution is to generate a PDF file which virtually all printing services can read and print. Glass Eye 2000 doesn't have a native ability to create PDF files, so you'll need some add-on software for this. The software is free and enables you to create PDF documents from any Windows application. We recommend PrimoPDF but there are several others, such as CutePDF. After installing PrimoPDF on your computer, your design can be saved as a PDF file by printing it from Glass Eye 2000 with PrimoPDF selected as the printer. If you have already purchased Adobe Acrobat (which is different from the free Adobe Reader) you can create a PDF version of your design by selecting Acrobat PDFWriter as the printer.
    
3. You can use the "Print to file" option in Glass Eye 2000 to create a file on your computer that contains the information that would normally be sent to the selected printer. This option requires that you install on your computer the printer driver for the desired printer or plotter. To create the file, select "Print" from the Glass Eye 2000 File menu, check the "Print to file" box, select the target printer and click OK. This will create a .prn file containing the print information. (You can also use the Print Preview feature in Glass Eye 2000 to see how your output will appear on the target printer.)
   
   Now place your file on a USB flash drive or other removable storage medium and take it to the location with the printer. (You might also use a network or the Internet; for example, you could email your file there.) Once there, send your file to the printer. The means of doing this can vary from one computer installation to another but here is one general method:
    

   Bring up an MS-DOS prompt by clicking the Windows Start button, then choosing "Programs", then "MS-DOS Prompt". Alternatively, after clicking the Start button you might choose "Run" and then type "cmd" and click OK. At the "C:\WINDOWS>" or other prompt in the MS-DOS window, you type: copy path\filename.prn lpt1 /b where "path" is the name of the folder where you placed your file and "filename" is whatever you named your .prn file. Visit Microsoft support for more information.

    
4. You can export your design as a JPEG or other raster format supported by Glass Eye 2000, though the image quality using this option may suffer. With the Professional and higher editions, you can increase the resolution by putting a larger number in the DPI field in the Export Design dialog box. Your exported file can then be printed to the desired printer using many common image manipulation programs such as Photoshop. The Professional and higher editions also have the ability to export a Glass Eye 2000 design in AutoCAD DXF format for use with vector image applications that drive large format printers or plotters.
    
5. There are companies that will accept an .eye file as an email attachment, print it to your specifications, and overnight the design back to you. You pay printing and shipping fees. Contact Dragonfly Software customer support for more information.
    

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