--- title: "Accessing PRINTER_DAT" type: "article" slug: "accessing-printer_dat" url: "http://localhost/article/accessing-printer_dat/" markdown_url: "http://localhost/article/accessing-printer_dat.md" published_at: "2026-02-08T15:25:49+00:00" modified_at: "2026-02-08T15:25:49+00:00" featured_image: url: "http://localhost/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/20230809-041332.jpg" excerpt: "This article sets out to explain the file structure of the PRINTER_DAT printer driver used by Quill, Archive and Abacus. A program is presented which prints to the screen all of the codes used in the driver and in so doing, shows how you can access the driver for use in your own programs, for…" category: - name: "International QL Report" slug: "international-ql-report" taxonomy: "category" url: "http://localhost/category/periodicals/international-ql-report/" post_tag: - name: "QL" slug: "ql" taxonomy: "post_tag" url: "http://localhost/tag/ql/" - name: "Superbasic (programming language)" slug: "superbasic-programming-language" taxonomy: "post_tag" url: "http://localhost/tag/superbasic-programming-language/" - name: "Type-in program" slug: "type-in-program" taxonomy: "post_tag" url: "http://localhost/tag/type-in-program/" model: - name: "Sinclair QL" slug: "sinclair-ql" taxonomy: "model" url: "http://localhost/model/sinclair-ql/" indiv: - name: "Dilwyn Jones" slug: "dilwyn-jones" taxonomy: "indiv" url: "http://localhost/indiv/dilwyn-jones/" publication_r: id: 33740 title: "International QL Report" type: "periodical" url: "http://localhost/periodical/international-ql-report/" authors_r: - name: "Dilwyn Jones" slug: "dilwyn-jones" taxonomy: "indiv" url: "http://localhost/indiv/dilwyn-jones/" volume: "3" issue: "6" issues_articles: - id: 37206 title: "International QL Report V3 I6" type: "issue" url: "http://localhost/issue/international-ql-report-v3-i6/" pages: "30-33" pubdate: "March/April 1994" archive_link: false --- # Accessing PRINTER_DAT This article sets out to explain the file structure of the PRINTER_DAT printer driver used by Quill, Archive and Abacus. A program is presented which prints to the screen all of the codes used in the driver and in so doing, shows how you can access the driver for use in your own programs, for example, or to write an alternative printer driver editor. The program listed works with the Xchange versions of these printer drivers too, since the file format appears to be the same.