Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!cs.utexas.edu!uwm.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!usc!apple!coherent!dplatt From: dplatt@coherent.com (Dave Platt) Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac Subject: Re: HP DeskWriter/Deskjet+ Keywords: Adobe Type Manager/Equivalence Message-ID: <45044@improper.coherent.com> Date: 22 Jan 90 20:00:42 GMT References: <8451@portia.Stanford.EDU> Reply-To: dplatt@coherent.com (Dave Platt) Distribution: usa Organization: Coherent Thought Inc., Palo Alto CA Lines: 68 In article <8451@portia.Stanford.EDU> schou@portia.Stanford.EDU (Scott Chou) writes: > I've heard in the past that the only real difference between the Deskwriter > and Deskjet is the software driver and outline fonts made especially for the > Mac. This is not really an accurate comparison. The DeskWriter and DeskJet Plus use the same printer mechanism. I believe that they use the same CPU chip. They have _very_ different firmware, though, and their software (bits-over-the-serial-line) protocols are not compatible. The DeskJet Plus (and the DeskJet) support a version of HP's Printer Control Language (PCL), have both a parallel and a serial interface, and are really optimized for using fonts which are either built in, installed via a ROM cartridge, or downloaded into a RAM cartridge. The DeskWriter is designed to gobble high-resolution, highly-compressed rasterized bitmaps, and dump them out to the print-head _quickly_. It does not support PCL. It does support (and use) a 2-dimensional raster-graphic compression algorithm which is not supported by the DeskJet family. It accepts serial-port input at 56 kbits/second, three times faster than the top serial-port speed of the DeskJet Plus. > On the other hand, I understand that many people are choosing to use > Adobe Type Manager and its nice/growing collection of well maintained outline > fonts instead of those provided by HP. Achieving greater consistency between > screen display to printer as well as across different printer makes. You can use ATM with either a DeskWriter or with a DeskJet-plus-third- party-driver. > If this is the case, then wouldn't it be financially advantageous to just get > a Deskjet and ATM? Plus whatever choose document (MacPrint, Grappler, PD, ?). It depends what you want. The least-cost approach is a DeskJet (original model), plus ATM, plus a third-party driver. This approach works quite nicely... its biggest disadvantage is that the original DeskJet is CPU-limited. Printing a full page of high-resolution text will take between 5 and 6 minutes, in typical cases. The same setup with a DeskJet Plus is substantially faster... single-page print time will go down to between 2 and 3 minutes, I believe. However, you still won't get the same speed as a DeskWriter, because the DeskJet Plus has only a 1-dimensional raster compression algorithm, and doesn't support serial-port speeds of > 19200 bits/second. You won't save much money, though... the cost of ATM plus a good third-party driver is roughly equal to the price difference between the DeskJet Plus and the DeskWriter. The DeskWriter will give you a print-speed of roughly one minute per page... significantly faster than the DeskJet Plus. You can, if you wish, use ATM fonts in place of, or in addition to the HP-supplied outline fonts. > If anyone has such a set up, I'd like to hear from you. If someone knows > why the above won't work perfectly, I'd also like to hear from you. It will certainly work. I'm running a DeskJet (original) with a driver from DataPak, using oversized bitmap fonts; I might buy ATM one of these days. It's slow, in 300 dpi mode, but is entirely workable. My current prescription is: if you need a printer which is compatible with both the PC and the Mac, go with the DeskJet Plus. If you need only a Mac printer, and want the best possible speed, buy a DeskWriter. -- Dave Platt VOICE: (415) 493-8805 UUCP: ...!{ames,apple,uunet}!coherent!dplatt DOMAIN: dplatt@coherent.com INTERNET: coherent!dplatt@ames.arpa, ...@uunet.uu.net USNAIL: Coherent Thought Inc. 3350 West Bayshore #205 Palo Alto CA 94303