JP2015045900A - Program and information processor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a technique which allows a user to confirm correction in the image data of a print object after printing thereof is cancelled.SOLUTION: A printer driver 40 generates print data based on image data whose printing is instructed, and further generates preview data for the preview corresponding to the print data. When printing of the print data is cancelled, the printer driver 40 stores the preview data corresponding to the print data in an HDD14. Then, in the case of generating preview data, when previous preview data thereof is stored in the HDD14, the printer driver 40 compares the present preview data generated with the previous preview data stored, and notifies a user of the comparison result.

Description

  The present invention relates to a program and an information processing apparatus. More specifically, the present invention relates to a program and an information processing apparatus having a preview function for displaying preview data that is image data of an image printed on a sheet.

  Conventionally, a preview function for displaying preview data that is image data of an image to be printed on a sheet before printing is known. For example, Patent Literature 1 discloses a technique for acquiring preview data provided by an application program and preview data provided by a printer driver, comparing both preview data, and displaying a comparison result.

JP 2011-221610 A

  However, the conventional technique described above has the following problems. For example, if the user determines that editing of the image is necessary as a result of checking the preview data, printing is canceled and the image is corrected. When checking the correction contents, the corrected image is displayed again in the previewer. In such a case, means for confirming the correction before and after the correction is not considered.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems of the prior art. That is, the problem is to provide a technique for confirming the correction after canceling printing for image data to be printed.

  A program for solving this problem includes: a print data generation process for generating print data; a preview data generation process for generating preview data that is image data for preview corresponding to the print data; When printing of the print data generated by the print data generation process is canceled, the preview data corresponding to the print data is stored in the storage device, and the preview data is generated by the preview data generation process. In such a case, the current preview data that is the generated preview data and the previous preview data that is the preview data stored in the storage device are provided on the condition that the preview data is stored in the storage device. And a comparison process that compares It is characterized in that to execute the notification process of notifying a comparison result.

  A program disclosed in the present specification causes an information processing apparatus to generate print data and further generate preview data corresponding to the print data. Further, when printing of the print data is canceled, the preview data is stored in the storage device. If preview data is stored when preview data is generated, the generated preview data is compared with the stored preview data, and the comparison result is notified. Note that the notification content corresponds to, for example, whether or not there is a difference between both preview data. The notification method includes, for example, display in a previewer, display in a message box, and voice guidance. The preview data may be stored in document units or page units, for example. The storage device for storing the preview data may be a device built in the information processing device, a device external to the information processing device, or an information processing device via a network or the like. It may be an external device connected to.

  According to the program disclosed in this specification, preview data when printing is canceled is stored, and compared with the stored preview data when preview data is newly generated. Thus, it is possible to notify whether there is a difference in image data between the previous preview data before cancellation and the current preview data after cancellation, that is, whether correction has been made. Therefore, it can be expected that the user will confirm the correction.

  In the notification process, when the current preview data and the previous preview data match, it is preferable to notify that they match. If the images before and after the cancellation match, there is a possibility of forgetting to correct. Therefore, the user can expect confirmation of forgetting correction by notifying them when they match.

  In the comparison process, the current preview data and the previous preview data may be compared on a page basis, and the comparison result may be notified on a page basis. By comparing the images before and after cancellation in units of pages and notifying the results in units of pages, it is easy to check the correction. The comparison result to be notified may be a notification of matching pages or a notification of different pages.

  Further, the program disclosed in the present specification causes the information processing apparatus to execute a designation process for accepting designation of a correction target page among the print data generated by the print data generation process. The preview data of the page specified by the specifying process may be stored. By storing the preview data of the specified page, it is possible to save memory compared to storing all pages. In addition, since the number of pages to be compared is small, the comparison process can be completed quickly.

  In the comparison process, the image content of the current preview data is compared with the image content of the previous preview data on the condition that the document name of the current preview data matches the document name of the previous preview data. Good. If the document names match, there is a high possibility that the preview data of the image corrected after cancellation corresponds to the preview data of the image before cancellation. Therefore, by comparing under such conditions, the user can expect to confirm that he / she has forgotten to correct it.

  In the comparison process, when there are a plurality of the previous preview data whose document names match the current preview data, the selection of the previous preview data to be compared is accepted, and the selected previous preview data and the current preview data are Should be compared. When a plurality of previous preview data is stored for the same document, the user can be notified of the desired comparison result by allowing the user to select which preview data is to be compared.

  Further, the program disclosed in the present specification causes the information processing apparatus to execute a deletion process for deleting the previous preview data when printing of the print data generated in the print data generation process is completed. Good. After the printing is completed, there is a high possibility that it will not be necessary to confirm the correction. Therefore, it is preferable to secure the memory space by deleting the preview data stored in the storage unit. The preview data to be deleted may be only those with the same document name, or may be all stored preview data. In the case of all, it is easier to secure the memory space.

  In the deletion process, it is preferable to delete pre-preview data in which the print data that has been printed matches the document name. By limiting the deletion target to preview data having the same document name as the print data that has been printed, the previous preview data relating to the print data other than the print data that has been printed is not deleted. Therefore, correction can be confirmed afterwards for print data other than print data for which printing has been completed.

  Further, in the storage process, information on the object is stored for each object included in the preview data, and in the comparison process, the object information included in the current preview data and the object information included in the previous preview data are stored. Compare with information. By comparing the object information, the correction location can be confirmed in more detail. Examples of the object include text, images, and figures.

  The present specification further includes a storage unit and a control unit, and the control unit generates print data generation processing for generating print data and preview data that is image data for preview corresponding to the print data. A preview data generation process, a storage process for storing the preview data corresponding to the print data in the storage unit when printing of the print data generated in the print data generation process is canceled, and the preview data generation When preview data is generated by processing, the preview data is stored in the storage unit and the current preview data as the generated preview data on the condition that the preview data is stored in the storage unit. The comparison process for comparing the preview data with the previous preview data and the ratio in the comparison process The information processing apparatus is disclosed that performs a notification process of notifying the result.

  According to the present invention, a technique for confirming correction after print cancellation is realized for image data to be printed.

1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a print system according to an embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of a program. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of a preview screen. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of preview data. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of notification. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of preview data. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of an inquiry screen. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of an inquiry screen. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of printing processing according to a first embodiment. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of printing processing according to a second embodiment. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of notification.

  DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments embodying a program and an information processing apparatus according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In this embodiment, the present invention is applied to a personal computer (hereinafter simply referred to as “PC”) in which a printer driver for generating print data is installed.

[Print system configuration]
As shown in FIG. 1, the printing system 100 according to this embodiment includes a printer 2 and a PC 1 that controls the printer 2. In the print system 100, the PC 1 and the printer 2 are connected via a USB cable. The PC 1 is an example of an information processing apparatus.

  The PC 1 is used as a temporary storage area when the CPU 11 that executes various processes, a ROM 12 that stores a program (BIOS) of a startup process performed by the CPU 11 when the PC 1 is started, and the CPU 11 performs various processes. A controller 30 including a RAM 13 and a hard disk drive (HDD) 14 storing various programs and data is provided. Further, the PC 1 includes an operation unit 15 including a keyboard and a mouse, a display unit 16 including a liquid crystal display, a USB interface 17, and a network interface 18, and these are connected to the controller 30.

  The USB interface 17 and the network interface 18 are hardware for communicating with an external device. The CPU 11 is an example of a control unit. The controller 30 may be a control unit. Note that the controller 30 in FIG. 1 is a general term that summarizes hardware used for controlling the PC 1 such as the CPU 11 and does not necessarily represent a single piece of hardware that actually exists in the PC 1. The HDD 14 is an example of a storage unit.

  The printer 2 only needs to have a function of forming an image on a sheet, and the image forming method may be an electrophotographic method, an ink jet method, or another general image forming method. Further, even if a color image and a monochrome image can be formed, only a monochrome image may be formed.

  Note that the number of printers and PCs constituting the printing system 100 is not limited to one, and a plurality of printers and PCs may be provided. Further, the connection between the PC 1 and the printer 2 is not limited to the USB cable, but may be another serial communication cable, a parallel communication cable, a wired LAN cable, or a wireless communication path such as a wireless LAN.

[Program structure]
As shown in FIG. 2, the HDD 14 of the PC 1 stores an operating system (OS) 50, an application program (APP) 61, and a printer driver 40 that controls the printer 2. The PC 1 is assumed to incorporate Microsoft Windows (registered trademark) as the operating system (OS) 50. Various programs stored in a storage medium such as a CD-ROM may be installed, or programs stored in a server on the network may be downloaded and installed.

  The APP 61 incorporated in the PC 1 is, for example, document creation software, drawing software, spreadsheet software, or photo data editing software. The APP 61 has a function of outputting a print command to the printer driver 40, and the image data of the original image is passed to the printer driver 40 by this function.

  The printer driver 40 generates print data in PDL format necessary for printing by the printer 2 based on the image data passed from the APP 61. The print data generated by the printer driver 40 is transmitted to the printer 2 via the USB interface 17. The printer 2 receives the print data and forms an image on the paper based on the print data.

  The printer driver 40 according to the present embodiment has a preview function for generating preview data that is image data to be printed on paper and displaying the preview data before transmitting the print data. The printer driver 40 of this embodiment has a function for setting whether to enable the preview function. If the preview function is set to be valid, the print data is transmitted after the preview is displayed. If the preview function is disabled, the print data is sent directly without displaying the preview. Hereinafter, only the case where the preview function is set to be effective will be described. The printer driver 40 is an example of a program.

  Note that the preview function in this specification is not a function included in the APP 61 but a function included in the printer driver 40 as described above. Processing such as 2-in-1 integrated printing and watermarking may be performed when the printer driver 40 generates print data, and the processing performed by the printer driver 40 is not reflected in the preview by the APP 61. On the other hand, the preview by the printer driver 40 can display preview data reflecting processing performed by the printer driver 40. For this reason, the preview by the printer driver 40 has an advantage that the image image printed on the paper can be displayed more accurately than the preview by the APP 61.

[Configuration of printer driver]
As shown in FIG. 2, the printer driver 40 includes a user interface driver 41 that enables user input regarding various settings of a print job, a previewer 42 that displays preview data on the display unit 16, and printing data. A printer graphics driver 43 that generates print data and preview data that is preview data.

  When using the preview function, the printer driver 40 according to this embodiment activates the previewer 42 before transmitting print data to the printer 2. Then, preview data is displayed on the preview screen of the previewer 42. Then, an instruction as to whether or not to execute printing is received on the preview screen of the previewer 42. When a print instruction that is an instruction to execute printing is input, print data is transmitted from the previewer 42 to the printer 2.

  The user interface driver 41 provides a print setting screen that allows the user to set various attributes for printing. In the print setting screen, in addition to general print settings such as paper size, paper type, print quality, and print orientation, it is possible to set whether to display a print preview. Further, the user interface driver 41 activates the previewer 42 when the setting for displaying the print preview is selected. Further, the printer graphics driver 43 performs processing of image data to be printed, generation of preview data for each page, and generation of print data.

  The previewer 42 displays a preview screen 420 as shown in FIG. The preview screen 420 displays an image area 421 for displaying preview data for one page, a page selection check box group 422 for setting whether or not each page is to be printed, and a print instruction for a page to be printed. A print execution button 423 to accept, a cancel button 424 for canceling the print job, an all page check button 425 for setting all pages displayed in the page selection check box group 422 as print targets, and preview data for the next page are displayed. There is a next page button 426 that receives an instruction to display in the image area 421, a previous page button 427 that receives an instruction to display preview data of the previous page in the image area 421, and a notification screen 429 that displays information about the preview. ing.

  In the page selection check box group 422, an underline is displayed for the page number being displayed in the image area 421. Thereby, the user can grasp the page number being displayed in the image area 421. The page selection check box group 422 displays as many check boxes as the number of preview data generated, and the user can grasp the total number of pages constituting the print job. Further, when the all page check button 425 is pressed, all the check boxes of each page displayed in the page selection check box group 422 are checked.

  When the print execution button 423 or the cancel button 424 is pressed, the printer driver 40 ends the previewer 42. When the input of the print execution button 423 is received, the print data is transmitted to the printer 2. On the other hand, when the input of the cancel button 424 is accepted, the print data is not transmitted. When the printer driver 40 of this embodiment receives an input of the cancel button 424, the printer driver 40 stores the generated preview data in the HDD 14.

  The file format of the preview data may be any file format that can be displayed by the previewer 42. In this embodiment, the preview data is a compressed file (for example, a JPEG file) obtained by compressing a bitmap file. The file format of the preview data stored in the HDD 14 may be the same format as the generated preview data, and is a JPEG file in this embodiment. The file format of the print data may be any file format that can be printed by the printer 2, and is a PDL file in this embodiment.

[Print preview method]
Next, a printing procedure using a print preview method for printing after preview display will be described. In printing by the print preview method, first, the APP 61 receives a print instruction from the user and outputs a print start notification. Then, the OS 50 receives a print start notification from the APP 61. After receiving the print start notification, the OS 50 acquires image data from the APP 61. To the image data acquired from the APP 61, a name for distinguishing the image data from others, for example, a document name is added.

  The OS 50 converts the acquired image data into a bitmap data format, and further outputs a drawing command to the printer graphics driver 43. When the printer graphics driver 43 receives the drawing command, the printer graphics driver 43 acquires the image data converted by the OS 50, processes the image data as necessary, such as image rotation, and further uses the image data for the previewer 42. Preview data and print data for the printer 2 are generated.

  Further, when the generation of the preview data and the print data is completed, the printer graphics driver 43 responds to the OS 50 with the end. The printer driver 40 generates preview data and print data in units of pages each time image data is received, and repeats until the processing of the image data of the last page is completed. When the APP 61 completes the transfer of the image data of the last page, it outputs a print end notification. When the OS 50 receives a print end notification from the APP 61, it issues a print end event to the user interface driver 41.

  The user interface driver 41 activates the previewer 42 when receiving a print end event. Further, the user interface driver 41 causes the preview area 42 to display preview data of one page of all preview data generated by the printer graphics driver 43 in the image area 421 after activation or simultaneously with activation.

  Thereafter, the previewer 42 receives a print execution instruction or a cancel instruction by pressing a button from the user. When the previewer 42 receives a print execution instruction from the user, the previewer 42 transmits, to the printer 2, print data corresponding to the page selected as a print target in the page selection check box group 422 from the print data. That is, print data is transmitted to the printer 2 in accordance with an instruction from the previewer 42.

  On the other hand, when receiving a cancel instruction from the user, the previewer 42 stores the generated preview data in the HDD 14. In the HDD 14, preview data of each page of the image data whose printing has been canceled is stored in association with the document name which is the name of the image data and each page number.

  For example, when a print instruction is received for a document named “AAA”, the printer driver 40 generates preview data for all pages. Thereafter, when the print instruction is canceled from the previewer 42, the generated preview data is stored in the HDD 14 in association with the document name “AAA” as shown in FIG. For example, a folder “AAA (1)” is created in a predetermined storage area of the HDD 14, and “page 1.jpg”, “page 2....” Are preview data for each page in the folder “AAA (1)”. Save a file such as “jpg”.

  After that, when the print instruction is received again for the document “AAA” that has been canceled by the user, for example, the previewer 42 newly receives preview data for all pages based on the corrected document “AAA”. To generate. Furthermore, the previewer 42 determines whether preview data associated with the same document name as the newly generated preview data is stored in the HDD 14. Specifically, it is determined whether or not there is a folder associated with “AAA” in a predetermined storage area of the HDD 14. If there is, the preview data stored in the folder is read and compared with the preview data generated this time.

  That is, when the preview data is stored in the HDD 14, the printer driver 40 according to the present embodiment generates the current preview data (current preview data) generated based on the print instruction and the preview data stored in the HDD 14 (current preview data). Compare the previous preview data). At this time, as described above, since it is compared with the preview data associated with the same document name, irrelevant preview data is not compared.

  Further, the printer driver 40 notifies the notification screen 429 of the comparison result. As a result of the comparison, for example, when it is determined that the second page and the third page of the current preview data and the previous preview data match, as shown in FIG. 5, the matching page is notified to the notification screen 429. To do. As a result, the user can check the page that matches the previous time on the notification screen 429. Therefore, it can be expected that the user notices that he / she has forgotten to correct it.

  Further, the user can confirm the image of the printed image by the current preview data displayed in the image area 421. When the user decides to print this image, the user presses the print execution button 423. When the print execution button 423 is pressed, the previewer 42 transmits print data corresponding to the current preview data to the printer 2. The printer 2 executes printing based on the received print data.

  When the transmission of the print data is completed, the previewer 42 deletes the folder associated with the document name “AAA” and all the files in the folder from the preview data stored in the HDD 14. Since there is a high possibility that the document that has been printed does not need to be corrected, it is preferable to release the memory by deleting the preview data.

  On the other hand, when the user who sees the notification of the comparison result notices that he / she has forgotten to modify, the user presses the cancel button 424 again. When the previewer 42 accepts pressing of the cancel button 424, the previewer 42 associates the preview data generated this time with the document name “AAA” and distinguishes it from the folder already associated with the document name “AAA”. Save to. For example, as shown in FIG. 6, the folder “AAA (2)” is created. In other words, every time it is canceled, a new folder is created and this preview data is stored separately from other preview data. In this embodiment, the folder name is “document name + (serial number)”, but may be “document name + cancel date”, for example.

  When a plurality of previous preview data is stored when a print instruction is received, the user is caused to select previous preview data to be compared with the current preview data. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, the fact that a plurality of preview data is stored is displayed on the notification screen 429 with the date and time when the preview data was stored. Further, a display for inquiring the user as to which of the stored previous preview data is to be compared is displayed on the notification screen 429. The user can select preview data to be compared with a button by looking at the notification screen 429. The previewer 42 compares the previous preview data selected by the user with the current preview data created this time, and notifies the notification screen 429 of the comparison result. By causing the user to select a comparison target, a user's desired comparison result can be notified.

  When printing is canceled, instead of saving preview data for all pages as described above, only some pages may be saved. For example, as shown in FIG. 8, each page number of this document and a selection check column are displayed to allow the user to specify a page to be corrected. The previewer 42 may store only the preview data of the designated page, and may not save the preview data of the non-designated page. By saving only the preview data of the specified page, memory usage can be saved.

  In this embodiment, for the document “AAA”, preview data is saved every time it is canceled until the print execution button 423 is pressed. Instead of adding and saving new preview data each time it is canceled, the preview data to be saved may be only the latest data or may be from the latest data to a predetermined number. If the number to be saved is limited, it is possible to avoid using excessive memory for preview data.

[Print processing]
[First embodiment]
Next, a first form of print processing in the print preview method will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. This process is executed by the CPU 11 of the PC 1 when the printer driver 40 starts accepting a drawing command.

  In the printing process, first, print data and preview data are generated based on image data for which a drawing command has been received (S101). Further, the previewer 42 is activated and the preview data generated in S101 is displayed in the image area 421 of the preview screen 420 (S102).

  Next, it is determined whether or not the previous preview data associated with the same document name as the image data for which the drawing command has been received is stored in the HDD 14 (S103). If it is determined that there is previous preview data (S103: YES), it is determined whether there are a plurality of previous preview data (S104). Further, if it is determined that there are a plurality (S104: YES), the previous preview data to be compared is selected (S105). For example, as described above, the user is allowed to select on the screen shown in FIG.

  Then, the current preview data and the previous preview data determined as the comparison target are compared in binary (S106). If it is determined in S104 that a plurality of preview data does not exist (S104: NO), the only existing preview data is determined as a comparison target, and the process proceeds to S106.

  As a result of the comparison in S106, it is determined whether there is a matching page (S108). If it is determined that there is a matching page (S108: YES), the matching page is notified to the notification screen 429 as shown in FIG. 5 (S109). On the other hand, if it is determined that there is no matching page (S108: NO), the process proceeds to S111. At this time, the notification screen 429 is left blank. Alternatively, the notification screen 429 may be notified that there is no matching page.

  If it is determined in S103 that the previous preview data is not saved (S103: NO), the comparison process in S106 is not executed because there is no comparison target. Further, since there is no content to be notified, the notification screen 429 is blank and the process proceeds to S111.

  Next, the printer driver 40 determines whether or not the input of the print execution button 423 has been received (S111). If it is determined that the input of the print execution button 423 has been received (S111: YES), the print data generated in S101 is transmitted to the printer 2 (S112). Further, all the previous preview data stored in the HDD 14 is deleted (S113), and the printing process is terminated.

  On the other hand, if it is determined that the input of the print execution button 423 has not been received (S111: NO), it is determined whether the input of the cancel button 424 has been received (S115). If it is determined that the input of the cancel button 424 has been accepted (S115: YES), the current preview data is saved in the HDD 14 (S116), and the printing process is terminated.

  If it is determined that neither the print execution button 423 nor the cancel button 424 is input (S115: NO), it is determined whether selection of a correction page has been received (S118). For example, as shown in FIG. 8, when it is determined that selection of a correction page has been accepted (S118: YES), preview data of the selected correction page is stored in the HDD 14 (S119), and the printing process is terminated. . In this case, even if the cancel button 424 is not pressed, it is treated as cancelled.

  On the other hand, if it is determined that selection of the correction page has not been received (S118: NO), whether input of the print execution button 423, input of the cancel button 424, or selection of the correction page is accepted. The determinations of S111, S115, and S118 are repeated until either one is reached.

  As described above in detail, according to the printer driver 40 that executes the printing process of the first embodiment, the preview data corresponding to the print data is generated before the print data is transmitted to the printer 2. Then, preview data is displayed, and whether to execute printing or cancel is accepted. When printing is canceled, the generated preview data is stored in the HDD 14. When the preview data is generated and the previous preview data is stored, the generated current preview data is compared with the stored previous preview data, and the comparison result is notified. As a result, it is possible to confirm whether or not the image data to be printed has been corrected after canceling printing.

[Second form]
Next, a second form of print processing by the print preview method will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. This embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that the comparison between the current preview data and the previous preview data is performed in units of objects. The same processes as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted.

  The printing process of this embodiment is applied when preview data is generated based on object information. That is, the preview data of this embodiment has information on the position and contents of objects such as text, graphics, and drawings included in each page. Since the printer driver 40 receives an object drawing command from the OS 50, the printer driver 40 can acquire object information. In this embodiment, the object information is also saved when the preview data is saved in the HDD 14.

  In the printing process of the present embodiment, when previous preview data exists, the current preview data and the previous preview data to be compared are compared in object units (S201). Then, as a result of the comparison in S201, it is determined whether there is an object that has been modified (S202).

  When it is determined that there is a corrected object (S202: YES), information on the corrected object is notified as a notification in S109. For example, as shown in FIG. 11, among the objects on each page, the position of the corrected object and the correction contents are notified. Processing other than this point is the same as in the first embodiment.

  Also in the printing process of the second mode, as in the first mode, it is possible to confirm whether or not the image data to be printed has been corrected after canceling printing. Furthermore, in the present embodiment, since the comparison is made on an object basis, the correction location can be confirmed in more detail. In addition, compared with binary comparison, the correction location can be notified to the user in an easy-to-understand manner.

  Note that this embodiment is merely an example, and does not limit the present invention. Therefore, the present invention can naturally be improved and modified in various ways without departing from the gist thereof. For example, the information processing apparatus is not limited to a PC, and can be applied to any apparatus including a printer driver such as a portable information terminal or a large computer.

  Further, for example, in the first embodiment, a matching page is notified, but a different page may be notified. This also has the effect of allowing the user to confirm the correction. In addition, although the notification screen 429 is in the preview screen 420, it may be displayed by a message box or the like separately from the preview screen 420. Or it is good also as notification by voice guidance.

  Further, for example, in each of the above embodiments, the comparison is performed in units of pages and the comparison result is notified in units of pages. However, the entire preview data may be compared to notify only whether or not they are completely the same. . If even one place is different, it can be assumed that some corrections have been made by the user. Even if notification is made only when all pages match, the user can confirm the correction.

  For example, in each of the above embodiments, the previous preview data to be compared is determined based on the document name, but the document name need not be referred to. That is, regardless of the document name, if there is preview data stored in the HDD 14, it may be compared with that. However, it is preferable to compare the document names because appropriate previous preview data can be selected as a comparison target.

  Further, for example, when printing of image data associated with the same document name is canceled a plurality of times, it is stored as new preview data for each cancellation, but the existing preview data may be overwritten. In other words, only the latest cancellation data with the same document name may be saved. In addition, only the latest preview data may be always overwritten and stored regardless of whether or not they are the same document. That is, only the latest preview data may be stored.

  Further, for example, when there are a plurality of previous preview data, it may be compared with the latest previous preview data instead of allowing the user to select a comparison target. Alternatively, the current preview data may be compared with all previous preview data, and differences or matching points may be displayed.

  Further, for example, the previous preview data stored when printing is executed may not be deleted. However, it is preferable to delete a document that has been printed to free up memory. Further, not only the document names that match, but all stored previous preview data may be deleted. If you delete everything, you can free up more memory.

  Further, for example, the storage location of the previous preview data is not limited to the HDD 14 but may be a flash memory externally attached to the PC 1 or an external device such as a server. The file format of the preview data is not limited to a JPEG file, and may be an uncompressed bitmap file. Further, instead of using a file for each page, preview data for all pages may be stored in one file with page information added. An example of such a file format is a PDF file.

  The processing disclosed in the embodiments may be executed by a single CPU, a plurality of CPUs, hardware such as an ASIC, or a combination thereof. Further, the processing disclosed in the embodiment can be realized in various modes such as a recording medium or a method recording a program for executing the processing.

1 PC
11 CPU
14 HDD
40 Printer driver

Claims (10)

In the information processing device,
Print data generation processing for generating print data;
Preview data generation processing for generating preview data that is image data for preview corresponding to print data;
A storage process for storing preview data corresponding to the print data in a storage device when printing of the print data generated in the print data generation process is canceled;
When preview data is generated in the preview data generation process, the preview data is stored in the storage device, and at least one condition is that the preview data is stored in the storage device. A comparison process for comparing the previous preview data as the stored preview data;
A notification process for notifying a comparison result in the comparison process;
A program characterized by having executed. In the program according to claim 1,
In the notification process, if the current preview data and the previous preview data are a comparison result that matches, the program notifies that they match. In the program according to claim 1 or claim 2,
In the comparison process, the current preview data and the previous preview data are compared in page units,
In the notification process, the comparison result is notified in units of pages. In the program according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
Causing the information processing apparatus to execute a designation process for accepting designation of a correction target page among the print data generated by the print data generation process;
In the storage process, a preview data of a page designated by the designation process is stored. In the program according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
In the comparison process, the image content of the current preview data is compared with the image content of the previous preview data on the condition that the document name of the current preview data matches the document name of the previous preview data. A program characterized by In the program according to claim 5,
In the comparison process, when there are a plurality of the previous preview data whose document names match the current preview data, the selection of the previous preview data to be compared is accepted, and the selected previous preview data and the current preview data are compared. The program characterized by doing. In the program according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
A program for causing the information processing apparatus to execute a deletion process for deleting the previous preview data when printing of the print data generated in the print data generation process is completed. In the program according to claim 7,
In the deletion process, the previous preview data whose document name matches the print data that has been printed is deleted. In the program according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
In the storage process, for each object included in the preview data, information on the object is stored,
In the comparison process, the information of the object included in the current preview data is compared with the information of the object included in the previous preview data. A storage unit;
A control unit;
With
The controller is
Print data generation processing for generating print data;
Preview data generation processing for generating preview data that is image data for preview corresponding to print data;
A storage process for storing preview data corresponding to the print data in the storage unit when printing of the print data generated in the print data generation process is canceled;
When preview data is generated in the preview data generation process, the preview data is stored in the storage unit, and at least one condition is that the preview data is stored in the storage unit. A comparison process for comparing the previous preview data as the stored preview data;
A notification process for notifying a comparison result in the comparison process;
An information processing apparatus characterized by executing

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