Xref: utzoo comp.sys.amiga:27073 alt.flame:3569 Path: utzoo!utgpu!watmath!clyde!att!ucbvax!hplabs!hp-sdd!tony From: tony@hp-sdd.hp.com (Tony Parkhurst_TEMP) Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga,alt.flame Subject: Re: Paint Jet Printers Message-ID: <1787@hp-sdd.HP.COM> Date: 27 Dec 88 17:02:27 GMT References: <1614@fbog.UUCP> <5660024@hpcvca.HP.COM> <9958@gryphon.COM> Sender: netnews@hp-sdd.HP.COM Reply-To: tony@hp-sdd.HP.COM (Tony Parkhurst) Organization: Hewlett Packard, San Diego Lines: 117 In article <9958@gryphon.COM> richard@gryphon.COM (Richard Sexton) writes: >In article <5660024@hpcvca.HP.COM> another paranoid HP pinhead wrote: ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ >>> I asked Nick Flor in San Diego HP, who wrote the firmware for the >>> printer what was in the inks and the pinhead babbled on about >>> ``proprietry formulas''. Yeah right. >>> richard@gryphon.COM Boy, either you have a lot of pent up anger, or you just have a low opinion of human nature. >>He could loose his job if he told you anything else. This is a very >>competitive industry. A great deal of effort goes into developing ink >>formulas. >1) The question I originally asked of Nick was ``are the inks water > based, like the xerox inks, or alcohol based like the Canon > inks''. I can understand Nicks reluctence to disseminate the > complete formula (even if he knew it), but nit saying what > the base was is ludicrous. Opening a cartdridge and smelling the > stuff will let you know in a second. Considering that Nick is not a chemist, and did not work on any aspect of PaintJet in its development, it is not likely that Nick would know what is in the ink. If he happened to come across the formulae, then it is also unlikely that he would know what is secret and what is not. (not a chemist, remember). If all you wanted was some basic info about its base, and you claim the info is easy to come by (as you have), either by toxicity notices or just sniffing one, they why the hell didn't you just find out for yourself! Instead you have decided that someone else has to do it for you, and if they don't, then they are just a "pinhead". Richard, you are very opinionated (as I), and I have agreed with many of your postings, but I just don't see eye-to-eye with your hostility and name calling. Now, I am going to do you a small service, since you are too lazy to do it for yourself.... ok... I now have a PaintJet print cartridge package in front of me... In five languages, it says that it is a PaintJet print cartridge, and use HP PaintJet supplies for best results, (does this mean HP expects someone else to start manufacturing PaintJet print heads?), Made in USA... Black (the color head has about the same package.)... use before 04/90. Nothing about ingredients or warnings. So, I open the box. Inside the box are directions, in six languages, and a foil can (to seal the freshness?). On the can for the color print head, there is no warning, but on the one for the black print head, it says: "Caution -- Keep out of reach of children. If swallowed, call a physician." Then it says "1.4% Tetramethylammonium". In the foil can, it does smell of chemicals (which I cannot identify). The Black print head also has a "harmful if swallowed" label, the color one does not. Well. Does this answer your questions Richard? As an additional note, there was a warning in the internal newsletter about using the foil cans for food storage or cooking because of a toxic heat seal. (This will probably get a warning on future cans.) >2) There are lots of reasons to document whats in the ink. Xerox, with > it's 4020 color ink jet printer supplied a manual with the title: > ``product safty report'' that has as much data as you'd want on > the inks - LD50, radiation harardm flammability, and, what the ^^^^ Geesh, I wonder just how many animals died to determine this info. >3) If you really want to know whats in something, you call up and > and imply you are a doctor, and that you have a kid here who > just swallowed a bunch of the stuff and you need to know > whats in it, and you need to know NOW. Before the word > ``lawsuit'' forms in their heads, they've told you whats > in the stuff and in what concentrations. Handy sometimes. Are you saying that you commonly practice lying to and misleading people (or even causing severe emotional trama) for the sake of stealing company secrets? :-) >The HP ink is chemically nothing very special. Neither is plastic. :-) Actually, water, although it may not seem special, has one of the most special chemistries on this planet :-) It is probably true that the ink is nothing special, it still required much time and money to develop them. >And if it's ``such a competative industry'' how come HP Paintjets >red ink is kinda orange? Tektronix, for their 4692 ink jet printer This seems like a subjective statement. Someone ought to measure this :-) >has outstanding, pure, saturated colours. Their reds are red. >Period. One problem I have noticed with good saturated colors, is that is starts to become limiting in your graphic printouts when you lighten or brighten some of the shades. These inks are subtractive, remember. Another thing to consider is that different papers seem to saturate differently. This was just another difficulty in ink development. I use my PaintJet with an Amiga, and I always end up altering the colors a bit when I print them out. Usually, I decrease the saturation of the darker colors. -- Tony -- Tony Parkhurst ( tony@hp-sdd.HP.COM )