What are the best practices for automating printing tasks using PHP scripts?

Automating printing tasks using PHP scripts involves utilizing libraries like TCPDF or FPDF to generate PDF files, which can then be sent to a printer for physical printing. To achieve this, you need to install the necessary libraries, generate the PDF document with the desired content, and then use PHP to send the PDF file to the printer for printing.

// Include the TCPDF library
require_once('tcpdf/tcpdf.php');

// Create new PDF document
$pdf = new TCPDF();

// Set document information
$pdf->SetCreator('Your Name');
$pdf->SetAuthor('Your Name');
$pdf->SetTitle('Document Title');
$pdf->SetSubject('Document Subject');

// Add a page
$pdf->AddPage();

// Set content
$pdf->SetFont('Arial', 'B', 16);
$pdf->Cell(0, 10, 'Hello, World!', 0, 1, 'C');

// Output the PDF to a file
$pdf->Output('document.pdf', 'F');

// Send the PDF file to the printer for printing
exec('lp -d printer_name document.pdf');