# Datamax Dpl Labels > Print labels on a Datamax printer via DPL. - Skill: `kimasplund/datamax-dpl-labels` (Agent Skill) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add kimasplund/datamax-dpl-labels` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/kimasplund/datamax-dpl-labels/raw - Safety review: pending - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: Coding & Dev Tools - License: MIT - Author: kimasplund (https://skillmd.com/u/kimasplund) - Updated: 2026-09-17 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/kimasplund/datamax-dpl-labels --- # Datamax DPL labels (Nokka) ## When to Use Use whenever the user wants something printed on a **Datamax label printer** — shipping labels, asset tags, barcode labels, product labels. Triggers: "print a shipping label", "make barcode labels", "label these boxes", or handing over a CSV of items. Also use it to diagnose a Datamax: nothing printing, garbled output, scrambled fields, or status queries that hang. **Not** for Brother QL, Zebra ZPL, or Dymo printers — different languages. ## Setup ```bash pip install git+https://github.com/kimasplund/nokka export NOKKA_DEVICE=/dev/usb/lp0 # or NOKKA_HOST for a networked unit ``` On Linux, join the `lp` group once so no sudo is needed: ```bash sudo usermod -aG lp $USER # then log out and back in # or, without re-login: sg lp -c "nokka ..." ``` ## Quick reference ```bash nokka status # printer state nokka config-label # print its settings ON A LABEL (always works) nokka test # self-test: fonts, box, 2 barcodes nokka fonts # 9 internal fonts nokka barcodes # 23 symbologies nokka models # resolutions and print widths # quick one-off nokka text "BOX 1" "Warehouse A" --barcode ASSET-0042 # batch from CSV nokka template-init --out label.json nokka print --template label.json --data rows.csv \ --preview preview.png --dry-run # ALWAYS preview first nokka print --template label.json --data rows.csv --yes ``` `--dry-run` builds the job without sending. `--dump` shows the raw DPL bytes. Running from a clone instead of an install: `python3 -m nokka.cli ...`. ## Coordinates (the thing people get wrong) DPL's origin is the **LOWER-LEFT** corner and row counts **UPWARD**, in hundredths of an inch. On 4x6" media: - row 0 = bottom edge, row ~584 = top edge - column 0 = left edge, column ~400 = right edge - a sensible left margin is column 50-60 So a title near the top is `row=520`; a barcode lower down is `row=200`. ## Templates ```json { "label": { "width_in": 4.0, "height_in": 6.0, "heat": 15, "speed": "G" }, "fields": [ { "type": "text", "data": "{name}", "row": 520, "column": 60, "font": "4" }, { "type": "barcode", "data": "{sku}", "row": 200, "column": 60, "symbology": "E", "height": 50 } ] } ``` Field types: `text`, `smooth` (scalable, in points), `barcode`, `line`, `box`, `image`. `{column}` placeholders pull from the data; matching is case- and underscore-insensitive. Data may be CSV, TSV, JSON or JSONL. ## Fonts and barcodes | Font | Height | Use | |------|--------|-----| | 0-2 | 7-18 dots | small print, addresses | | 3-4 | 27-36 dots | headings | | 5-6 | 52-64 dots | large titles | | 7-8 | OCR-A / OCR-B | machine reading | | 9 | scalable | any point size via `smooth` | Common symbologies: `E` Code 128, `A` Code 39, `F` EAN-13, `B` UPC-A, `D` Interleaved 2 of 5, `I` Codabar, `O` Code 93, `z` PDF-417. **Uppercase id prints human-readable text below the bars; lowercase prints bars only.** ## Hardware facts (verified on an M-4208) Each of these costs an afternoon if met cold. 1. **The `eee` height field is THREE characters, not four.** `040` = 0.40 in. A fourth digit silently shifts every following field and the label comes out scrambled. This is the single most likely cause of garbled output. 2. **The model number is not the resolution.** The "08" in M-4208 is print speed (8 ips). Every 4-inch M-Class model is **203 DPI**. Confirm with `KC`, which reports the printer key (e.g. `4208-MD10`). 3. **Never print through CUPS.** A queue bound to a Gutenprint driver rasterises the job and mangles raw DPL — and the driver is often for a different model entirely. Write to the device node directly. 4. **USB status reads work on a DIRECT cable, not over USB/IP.** Forwarded over USB/IP (`vhci_hcd`) the printer answers one `KC` and then stays silent forever, surviving USB resets and rebinds. Plugged straight in, `A` and `KC` work every time. USB/IP passes bulk-OUT writes but mangles bulk-IN replies. **Keep the printer on a direct cable.** 5. **`D` disables immediate commands.** Do not send it as a "reset". Recovery is three valid `` commands one second apart (`Printer.restore_immediate_commands()`). ## Firmware updates need a REAL parallel port On these older boards the boot loader accepts firmware only through a real IEEE-1284 parallel interface. Every other path fails **silently** — all bytes accepted, no error, old firmware keeps running: - **Normal READY mode over USB**: the file lands in the print buffer, fails to parse as DPL, and is discarded. Indistinguishable from success. - **Download mode** (power off, hold PAUSE + CANCEL, power on; display reads `SEND SOFTWARE`): the boot loader does not implement USB — the kernel logs `device not accepting address, error -71` and nothing enumerates. - **USB-to-parallel bridges (e.g. CH340S) do NOT work.** They enumerate as a USB printer class device (`usblp`), not a `parport`, so data still arrives through the USB print pipeline the boot loader ignores. Verified on hardware in both READY and download mode. What works: an on-board LPT or a PCI/PCIe parallel card (`parport_pc`, giving `/dev/lp0`), then in READY mode `cat firmware.zg > /dev/lp0` — the equivalent of Honeywell's `copy firmware.zg lpt1`. Serial is untested. A failed download is harmless: the original firmware stays operational. `tools/flash_firmware.py` refuses USB/IP and requires `--download-mode`. Full write-up in `docs/firmware-update.md`. ## Preview before printing ```bash nokka print --template label.json --data rows.csv --preview out.png --dry-run ``` Renders the same records at the same coordinates with real barcode patterns. An approximation, not an emulation — but it catches overlaps, clipping and bad coordinates for free. **Look at the PNG** before sending to the printer. ## Troubleshooting | Symptom | Cause | |---------|-------| | Garbled / shifted fields | a 4-digit value in the 3-char `eee` field | | Nothing prints | printing through CUPS instead of the device node | | Permission denied | not in `lp` group; wrap with `sg lp -c "..."` | | `status` returns nothing | printer is on USB/IP; use a direct cable, or `config-label` | | Printer ignores `` | `D` was sent; send `A` 3x, 1s apart | | Content off the label | remember row 0 is the BOTTOM edge | | No device node at all | printer may be in download mode (`SEND SOFTWARE`) — power cycle it normally | ## Tests ```bash python3 -m pytest tests/ -q ``` 54 tests, green on Python 3.11-3.14. Four compare output byte-for-byte with worked examples printed in Datamax's own manual.