Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!pcrat!rick
From: rick@pcrat.UUCP (Rick Richardson)
Newsgroups: comp.text
Subject: Re: PostScript Conspiracy
Message-ID: <568@pcrat.UUCP>
Date: 3 Sep 88 12:47:35 GMT
References: <565@pcrat.UUCP> <47700023@uxe.cso.uiuc.edu>
Reply-To: rick@pcrat.UUCP (Rick Richardson)
Organization: PC Research, Inc., Tinton Falls, NJ
Lines: 35

In article <47700023@uxe.cso.uiuc.edu> mcdonald@uxe.cso.uiuc.edu writes:
>
>Odd. I have in my hand a page from my LaserJet II with 36 lines
>of text, each in a different font.
>
>My LaserJet has printed properly every page I have sent it.

It doesn't happen often, but you can get the HP to choke on a page.
It isn't a memory thing, its a CPU performance problem. The HP
rasterizes strips.  Once the drum starts rolling it only has so
much time to get the next strip ready.  If it misses, you get
the error 21.  If the entire page is rasterized, you cannot get
this error.  But if you drop lots of bits of PCL around the page,
you'll only get part of your printout.  I don't get this problem
with JetRoff anymore because I put in "Automatic Adaptive
Rasterization", but other products I tried suffered from
this problem.  Typically, the "pic" (diagrams) and "grap" (graphs)
would be the culprits.  No problem with just text.

As far as more than 16 fonts on a page, I can only surmise two things:
	1) HP has fixed this limitation in later serial numbered II's
	2) Some of those fonts have been combined into one font
	   descriptor.
The memory limits the number of fonts which can be stored, but:
	"The HP LaserJet series II Printer can print 16 distinct
	 fonts per page." (Page 8-3, Tech Ref)
This is borne out in practice for me, where I've had as many as 32
fonts downloaded, but as soon as I hit 16 on any page the printer
gives up and just uses the last font.  The fonts are there, but the
printer refuses to select more than 16 different ones on a page.
-- 
		Rick Richardson, PC Research, Inc.
		rick%pcrat.uucp@uunet.uu.net (INTERNET)
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