Receipt Printer issues, Portable Fiirefox, Tips

1. koha & you
Receipt Printers
Tips/Tricks

2. Silent Print
• When printing goes to receipt printer without first asking for users preference
• Allows us to “lock” in your printer choice
• Saves margins – Set to 0 or you get the long tail on your slips
• Saves correct paper size
• To make any printer setting changes have to go into Firefox console, will likely
need to do this after a “reinstall” of Portable Firefox

3. Portable Firefox
• A version of the browser that can sit by itself , got it’s name because it was
meant to carry on a flash drive (no install needed)
• Might have heard it called koha Firefox
• Allows a second version of Firefox with different settings
• Solves a problem of “Silent Print” – Sometimes you want to print things from the
internet that would be best on normal paper
• Holds list, Pick list, Reports these are actually meant to be downloaded and
opened with a spreadsheet

4. Updates to Portable Firefox
• Sometimes break things we do
• Version 20 changed private browsing so that it could not use custom “Personas”
or skins (we implanted “Personas” to help people realize they were in a separate
browser
• Version 23 made Receipt Slips print some fonts smaller
• So far if it updated and font size is broken only fix is to go to a version Portable
Firefox before 23
• Old version available at nexpresslibrary.org under the Go Live! tab

5. Updates to Portable Firefox (cont.)
• After reinstall: either need to not click on update Firefox or better yet changes
settings in Firefox Tools | Options | Advanced Tab| Updates Choose Never
Update
• Security Risk? Sure to a degree, so use normal Firefox (or browser of choice for
everything except koha. Not uncommon for Business users to not adopt new
releases until they are vetted.
• Still unclear direction we will take for the font size, ditch using Portable Firefox
for Silent Print? We will see

6. Other Receipt Print/Firefox issues
• Run off text vs. wrap around
• Paper Size?
• Settings Saving/Print Silent on?
• Print Driver issue

7. koha User Tips
• After Querying, Right Click a Hyper link and choose “Open in New Tab”, for
when you find you can’t use the back button
• Use Control + T keys to open a new tab if you don’t want to close what are
doing
• Use Control + F keys open a find box to help you quickly find a word or phrase
on a web page (or document)
• If you will be needing to print from koha to both receipt printer and full size
printer, try staying logged into koha in both versions of Firefox, if you find you
are on a webpage(koha) that doesn’t need Silent Print, then copy the URL you
are on in Portable Firefox and paste it into a new tab in Firefox or other Browser
• Remember Control +C, Control + V, & Control + X (Copy, Paste, Cut)

8. koha User Tips (cont.)
• If koha goes offline Open Notepad (Windows Key + R, opens runbox, type
notepad, hit enter). Your Barcode Scanner will save the barcode to the notepad
which you can copy and paste later. Make sure you get the rest of the data too,
patron number (scan their card?). Save the txt document to desktop and re-save
often.
• Alternate to staff.nexpresslibrary.org i.e. koha, is hosted by Bywater
staff.nekls.bywatersolutions.com can be used if we are having issues with our
DNS servers (The servers that help you get to your browsing destination.
• If you run into issues document as much as possible: Screenshots (hit Print
Screen key, open Paint or Word (Run Box: MSPAINT) then hit CNTRL + V you
can now save the image for attaching or even add symbols (Arrows!), Use
network tools like PING or TRACERT (another day), check other websites,
check other computers