Re: HP Printer files

["Robert Holmgren" holmgren@xxxxxxxx]

** Reply to message from michael.norman@xxxxxxxx on Fri, 03 Jan 2003 17:29:45
-0500

Michael:

> the latest HPLJ-4.prn (I have REV XY4.10C, 05/21/93)

Rev XY4.10C *is* the latest (aka last).

> I had occasion to try to print from another old app
> to a more recent HP (the 5000N at the office) and tech
> support at the application recommended using the 3SI driver.
> That was the Windows one, of course, but it might be a clue
> to a good backward-compatibility match.

Hmmm. "Tech support at the application"? Maybe he's talking about M$ Windows
printer drivers, but unless he knows something specific about XyWrite PRN files
that is entirely invisible in the PRN itself, I'd ignore that. HPLJ-4.PRN and
HP4-PLUS.PRN are unique, in that they tell the printer to print at 600dpi
instead of 300dpi. Michael's new printer is 1200 dpi in a special new HP
printing mode (probably requiring a special HP driver), otherwise it defaults
to 600dpi "true" resolution. You're going to get better print quality at
600dpi (duh).

> I have the LJ4.bin dated 1993. Does anyone have the HP4+(p).bin, or synonym
> for same, mentioned [in a XyQuest msg], dated 1994?

Just use standard LJ4.BIN. I don't have a date on mine, but file size is
635,775 bytes.

The "HP4+ (p)" PRN file was easy to overlook because they used a different
filenaming nomenclature: HP4-PLUS.PRN (every other LJ file was named
"HPLJ-{number|model}.PRN". It was the last of the HP LJ PRNs (11/1994), and it
purported to work with XyWin as well as Xy4DOS (unlike HPLJ-4). It needs
LJ4.BIN (don't forget to set the d:\path\ to the BIN inside PRN). Frankly, the
only significant difference vs HPLJ-4 (if you were using Speedos instead of
internal fonts) was in the Font Association tables (FA and FP), and in a PC
Code setting that turned Draft and Letter Quality modes on and off. I copied
what I liked out of it, and continue today to use HPLJ-4.

I would also *replace* the FB< code in the PRN with the following (DECODE it
--very delicate code, just copy entire into PRN):

XPLeNCODE v2.0
b-gin [UNTITLED]
FB<{027}%-12345X@PJL ENTER LANGUAGE=PCL{027}%-12345X@PJL SET{032}
RESOLUTION=600[255+048+068][255+048+065]{027}&u300D[255+048+0
68][255+048+065]{027}&l8C[cr|lf]
-nd
XPLeNCODE

-----------------------------
Robert Holmgren
holmgren@xxxxxxxx
-----------------------------