PCL Tools software - Batch PCL to PDF Conversion Program included with example source code in the PCLTool SDK

A professional PDF Converter, PDF Writer, PDF Creator, PDF Editor, HTML Converter, Postscript Converter, AutoCAD DWG Converter, as well as PCL Converter, etc.

Knowledge Base

PCL Tools

What is PCL?
PCL stands for "Printer Control Language." PCL was invented by Hewlett-Packard Corporation, and it is a language that is used for describing the text and graphics in documents. Technically, PCL is known as a "page-description language."
Because PCL was invented by Hewlett-Packard Corporation, it is also known as "HP-PCL."
Files that contain documents described in the PCL language are normally called "PCL files"; hence, PCL is known as a file format as well as a language.

What's difference between PCL5e and PCL 6 Drivers?

* PCL(1) through PCL4 (OLDER PCL), Will not be listed as it was for HP Laser printer seriesII and older. When a new version of PCL was developed it included commands not found in the previous versions, as well as the previous PCL commands. BUT with PCL 6 it has new architecture that is designed to be able to be modified for future HP printers. A major compatibility issues have caused a lot of users to choose PCL 5 drivers instead of the PCL6.

* PCL 5 was introduced for the HP Laser III family of printers, PCL 5 had/has the best publishing functionality for the office environment. It development was to enable a larger compatibility for font scaling. It is mainly used for desktop publishing, and presentation applications. Today it is still the most widely used version of PCL.

* PCL 5E & PCL5C was released for the HP series5 lasers and colour printers respectively. A major change was bidirectional communication between the printer and the computer. The font selection was also greater, as programs were developed for MS Windows. The C Enhancement added colour support for HP printers.

* PCL 6 Has major changes, there are backward compatibility problems, as PCL6 is extremely different from previous PCL versions. A major difference is the way it sends commands to the printer. It was developed by HP to increase performance and reliability.

The following link provides a brief description of the reasons for, and differences between, PCL5e, PCL6 and PostScript drivers:
http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bizsupport/TechSupport/Document.jsp?objectID=bpl06947

PCL Conversion Tools from VeryDOC

PCL Converter

VeryPDF PCL Converter quickly converts PCL and PXL print files to Adobe Acrobat PDF files as well as PS, Postscript, TIF, TIFF, JPG, JPEG, BMP, PCX, PXL files. This is not a raster based conversion.

PCL Toolkit

PCL Toolkit has a graphical user interface that can view and print PCL documents. In order to view and print the PCL, PCL Toolkit converts PCL file into an in-memory DIB-Raster or GDI-vector/text page image and then renders it to the screen or printer device context.