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From: eps@toaster.SFSU.EDU (Eric P. Scott)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.next
Subject: Re: Dot matrix printers on the cube?
Summary: How hard can it be?
Message-ID: <116@toaster.SFSU.EDU>
Date: 14 Nov 89 06:13:08 GMT
References: <9282@batcomputer.tn.cornell.edu>
Reply-To: eps@cs.SFSU.EDU (Eric P. Scott)
Organization: San Francisco State University
Lines: 36

In article <9282@batcomputer.tn.cornell.edu>
	rogerj@tcgould.tn.cornell.edu (Roger Jagoda) writes:
>    I wonder, has anyone tried, or does anyone know, of
>connecting ordinary dot matrix printers to the cube and
>what cables would be necessary? PS emulation would be nice
>but not essential.

It's pretty easy to connect a serial printer to the cube; all you
need is a serial cable with the right plugs on each end, and
a null modem if it doesn't work without one.

This is the setup I'm trying now for printing text:

DS180: \
	:rs:sh:lp=/dev/ttya:ty=Datasouth DS-180:sd=/usr/spool/lpd: \
	:lo=/usr/spool/lpd/local:tr=\f:br=9600:rw:fc#0177754:fs#0000023: \
	:xc#0004040:xs#0040000:mx#0:px=990:py=892:if=/usr/lib/lpf:

Since I'm doing NL->CRLF translation here, I suspect I'll have to
fiddle with it a bit (e.g. moving the 040 bit from xc to xs) if I
need to send certain kinds of binary data.

I don't see why it wouldn't be possible to create an "ImageWriter
II-quality" PostScript printer by creating a lpr filter that uses
the window server to produce appropriate resolution off-screen
bitmaps, and sends the generated raster to the matrix printer.

[ Roger: read /NextLibrary/Documentation/NeXT/SysAdmin/ApB_Lpd.wn;
  I hope you're wrong about being in the majority ... in any case,
  we don't bother accounting for printer usage because we are not
  even PERMITTED to charge for it.  Besides, the cost for impact
  printers is insignificant compared to the cost of trying to
  account for the cost, and that cost would have to be passed on.
  We have enough bureaucratic nonsense around here already. ]

					-=EPS=-