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From: dattier@vpnet.chi.il.us (David W. Tamkin)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.cbm
Subject: Re: printing in direct mode?
Keywords: help
Message-ID: <1991Mar14.204201.4743@vpnet.chi.il.us>
Date: 14 Mar 91 20:42:01 GMT
References: <1991Mar13.161420.28673@cbnews.att.com> <1991Mar13.201004.3965@nntp-server.caltech.edu> <45557@ut-emx.uucp>
Distribution: na
Organization: VPnet Public Access Unix, Villa Park, Illinois  60181-2206
Lines: 43

rknop@nntp-server.caltech.edu (Robert Andrew Knop) wrote in
<1991Mar13.201004.3965@nntp-server.caltech.edu>:

| ewm@cbnews.att.com (edward.w.mcfarland) writes:
| >     For printing I am using the method that is mentioned in the C64
| >owners manual, ie.  OPEN4,4,4 <return>
| >                    CMD4:<command>  <return>
| >                    CLOSE4,4,4  <return>

| You can actually slightly improve on this.  First of all, you don't need
| to have the full "4,4,4" in the close statement; just CLOSE4 is fine.

True so far.

| Also, I believe you can avoid the problem with one more return being
| printed by using this construction:

Not quite.  It's not one more blank line that is necessary; it is a switch
back from PRINT (or LIST) to PRINT# so that BASIC will send an unlisten
signal down the serial bus to the output device (in this case, to the
printer).  Andrew Hackard's response made one of the same errors (knowing
that the PRINT# was needed but thinking a blank line was required also).

| OPEN4,4,4 <return>
| CMD4:<command> <return>
| PRINT#4:CLOSE4 <return>
| 
| Actually, since you've given the CMD4, you could probably get away with
| "PRINT:CLOSE4".

No, you couldn't.  BASIC won't send an unlisten signal after PRINT.  If the
device is still listening, the file cannot be closed properly.

PRINT#4:CLOSE4 will work.  If you don't want the extra blank line, you can
use PRINT#4,"";:CLOSE4 (or just PRINT#4;:CLOSE4) instead.  You don't need a
blank line (it doesn't hurt if you want it); you do need to use PRINT# at
least once between CMD and CLOSE.

There's nothing magical about the blank line.  What Edward McFarland needs is
an unlisten signal for the printer (or the printer interface).

David Tamkin  PO Box 7002  Des Plaines IL  60018-7002  dattier@vpnet.chi.il.us
GEnie:D.W.TAMKIN  CIS:73720,1570  MCIMail:426-1818  708 518 6769  312 693 0591