Imagine: I have a voip phone sitting in my real estate listings next to a ‘portable printer’.
I want to have 2 speed dials on the phone that will trigger print jobs. One to print a full color advertising spread of the property, and another to print a blank real estate contract.
Is there a way to get this done? Coding is acceptable. I can code like a first-rate amateur.
Build a custom extension that calls asterisk TryExec(/usr/bin/lpr -P portable_printer source_file)
To see the syntax from bash:-
rasterisk -x 'core show application TryExec
the asterisk user will need access to the linux lp® command and the location of your source file, also lpr will need to be setup to access your “portable printer” and you probably need ‘cups’ configured to print pdf files to your hardware
man lpr
man lp
man lpotions
man sudo
. . .
This assumes your portable_printer is a network accessible device, probably not Windoze without some hoop jumping. If so
The only thing I’d add is that the printer must be accessible from the phone server (the PBX). If the printer is actually “portable”, as in you carry it with you as you travel from location to location, this solution will still work, but will require a lot of understanding how networks work.
If, for example, you are sitting a client’s office using a laptop and a VOIP phone program (Zoiper or similar) to access the server back in your office, the printer attached to your “remote” laptop will be “tricky” to get back to.
If, on the other hand, the printer is in the same network as your phone server, the above will work brilliantly.
Sounds like it should be doable, then. Remember, the printer has to be accessible from the Asterisk SERVER, since that’s where the print job is going to originate.
From a marketing standpoint this may be a terrible idea… people can sit and use up your paper without you getting anything in return. Honestly this would be better suited for a QR code that they scan on their mobile device so you can collect a name or email.
You could still use Asterisk, same concept. Scan QR code that has them call a number where they get an IVR and press 1,2, or enter a property id. You capture the caller id details to give you something to market to. Maybe a little small print that says they are opting in for SMS messages (whatever is legally required).