Re: hp printer woes

[Dorothy Day day@xxxxxxxx]

On Sat, 29 Apr 2000, Norman Bauman wrote:

> As I understand it, DOS programs *can't* print to Windows printers.
>
> The old DOS printers, up to the hplj4, had fonts in ROM. All they
> needed was the ASCII characters which they combined with the printer's
> ROM fonts. But the windows printers require a bit map or something,
> which DOS programs can't provide. Or maybe they have a default font.
>
> I'm using my old dot matrix printer, and I haven't upgraded to a laser
> printer because I'm worried that I'll have this problem. I assume that
> I'll have to transfer files to a Windows program to print them. Of
> course I could move to Xywin, but I have macros that I spent hundreds
> of hours writing that I could never rewrite in a new program.
>
> Is my understanding correct? Do modern printers accept ASCII input any
> more?

You have a problem only if you have a "crippled" Windows-only printer.
Just as with "win modems," some manufacturers place part of the
operating burden on the Windows OS and the computere's memory, cutting
corners on the design of the printer.

Just make sure the specs say that it works with both DOS and Windows
(and, if you should be so lucky, Macs and/or Linux). Then you just have
to learn exactly how to download bitmapped fonts, if that's what you
need to do, or how to address built-in fonts for that printer. Several
people on the Notabene list have discussed the HP1100 as a good
inexpensive deskjet that accepts all the Lingua (DOS) downloaded
characters, but had varying degrees of difficulty with the vertical
paperfeed.

	Dorothy

*****
Dorothy Day
School of Library & Information Science
Indiana University
day@xxxxxxxx
*****

	"He also surfs who only sits and waits."