Printserver / User-Customizable Template-System / OpenOffice

Hi everybody,

I'm writing mostly company internal software and I am happily using rails for this. This time I need a system that enables the users to modify printable Documents themselves. The old system (over 10 years now, written with Access 97 :wink: ) used Word for this and Access to call Word and then print documents. They have something like '#firstname' tags in their documents that are replaced with the dynamic values.

So here the question: 1. Is there already some system I could use/modify for this?

if not:

I'll write one!

1. Where should/could I post this project, as I'd like to see this as free software (already asked, company is fine with this!) 2. Has anyone else interest in using this (i'm not yet asking for developers :wink: 3. Any suggestions? My plans are: - writing a Java Applikation, that runs on the clients computer, and will connect to the rails-app, OpenOffice and the printers (configs for individual printers go here) (lets call it document generator and printserver .. dgp?) - I'll config templates with available models-fields in the rails app - I'll trigger Document-generation via the rails-app to the document generator - i'll allow upload of oo-documents in the rails-app, allow config which paper-type / preprint should be used - the rails app creates on print-request some kind of print-job- configuration (like customer-id, template-id and stuff, actually all the data that might be used in the template) and sends it to the dgp - the dgp gets the config and data, downloads the template, replaces the variables and then prints to the printer according to the requested paper-type (specific printer and/or tray)

.. yeah, that's some kind of plan :slight_smile:

I anyway need to program this withing the next 2 month, but i'll gladly hear some suggestions, ideas, improvements or alternatives!

cu,

Jan Kechel

Rather use C# and save yourself a lot of headaches… not that Ruby cant do it… just think about the best tool for the job.

So no one would have interest in this?

About the right tool for the right job. C# instead of Java? Or did you mean C# instead of the whole RoR app?

cu,

jan