EPSON® LX-80™ PRINTER User’s Manual
FCC COMPLIANCE STATEMENT FOR AMERICAN USERS This equipment generates and uses radio frequency energy and if not installed and used properly, that is, in strict accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions, may cause interference to radio and television reception. It has been type tested and found to comply with the limits for a of Part 15 of FCC rules, which are designed to provide reasonable protection against such interference in a residential installation. However, installation.
Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii List of Tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Vlll List of Figures Introduction . . . . . . LX-80 Features . . . . About This Manual . . . 1 2 3 4 . 1 1 2 . Setting Up Your LX-80 Printer . . . . . . . . . Printer Parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Printer Location . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Paper Feed Knob Installation . . . . . . . . . . . Ribbon Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
5 LX-80 Features . . . . . . . . Demonstration Programs Pica Printing . . . . . . . . . . Changing Pitches . . . . . . Cancelling Codes . . . . . . Resetting the Printer . . . . Pitch Comparison . . . . . . Near Letter Quality Mode 6 Print Enhancements and Special Characters . . Bold Modes.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Emphasized mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Master program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Double-strike . . . . . .
9 Introduction to Dot Graphics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dot Patterns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Print Head . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Graphics Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pin Labels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . First Graphics Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Multiple-Line Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Density Varieties . . . .
:: ::: : : :: :: : :: :::: :: :: F-1 F-1 F-1 F-1 F-1 F-3 F-3 F-3 F-3 F-4 F-4 F-4 F-6 F-6 F-6 F-8 F-9 F-10 F-10 F-11 F-11 F-12 F-13 F-13 F-14 G Printer Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ........ Always NowandThen..:::::::::::::::::::: . . . . . . . . Rarely . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . G-1 G-1 G-1 G-1 H Technical Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Printing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
List of Figures . . . . . . .... . . . . . . .... ..... 3 5 5 6 7 8 9 10 12 14 . . . . . . . . 17 1-1 1-2 1-3 1-4 1-5 1-6 1-7 1-8 1-9 1-10 Printer parts . . . . . . . . . . Paper feed knob installation . . Ribbon cassette . . . . . . . . . . Print head assembly . . . . . . Ribbon cassette installation . Ribbon placement . . . . . . . . LX-80 ready for paper loading Control panel . . . . . . . . . . Test patterns . . . . . . . . . . Cable connection . . . . . . .
E-1 E-2 E-3 E-4 E-5 E-6 E-7 E-8 Continuous paper with printer stand . . . Continuous paper without stand . . . . . . . Tractor placement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Paper separator and paper guide . . . . . . . Tractor release levers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pin feed holder adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . Open in feed cover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Top of page position . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... . . . .... .... .... ....
Introduction The Epson LX-80 printer combines low price with the high quality and advanced features formerly available only on more expensive printers.
About This Manual We’re not going to waste your time with unnecessary information, but we won’t neglect anything you need to know about the LX-80 and its many features. You can read as much or as little of this manual as you wish. If you have used printers before and have a specific program that you want to use with the LX-80, a quick reading of the first chapter may be all you need.
Chapter 1 Setting Up Your LX-80 Printer Setting up your LX-80 printer is a simple matter of attaching two parts, putting in the ribbon and paper, and connecting the printer to your computer. This chapter will have you printing a test pattern within fifteen to twenty minutes and doing more complicated work not long after. Printer Parts First, see that you have all the parts you need. In addition to this manual, the printer box should contain the items shown in Figure l-1.
In addition to the items in the box, you need a cable and possibly an interface board. The cable connects the printer to your computer, and the interface board is necessary only for those computers that can’t use the LX-80’s Centronics® parallel interface. Your computer manual or your dealer will tell you which cable you need and whether or not you need a special interface. Printer Location Now that you have unpacked your printer, you should choose a suitable location for it.
Figure 1-2. Paper feed knob installation Ribbon Installation The LX-80 printer uses a continuous-loop, inked fabric ribbon, which is enclosed in a cassette that makes ribbon installation and replacement a clean and easy job. The parts of this cassette are labelled in Figure 1-3. Figure 1-3.
To install the ribbon, first open the lid at the front of the LX-80 so that you can see the print head assembly shown in Figure 1-4. Move the assembly by hand to the center of the printer so that the other parts of the printer will not get in your way. Also be sure that the paper bail is against the black roller so it too will not be in your way. Note: Moving the print head by hand when the printer is turned on can harm the printer.
Then hold the ribbon cassette so that the small knob is on top and the exposed section of ribbon is away from you. Insert the cassette in its holder by first sliding the pins at the back of the ribbon cassette under the small hooks on the holder. (See Figure l-5.) Then lower the front of the cassette so that the exposed section of ribbon can fit between the print head nose and the silver ribbon guide. Push down until the cassette fits firmly in place. Figure 1-5.
Now turn the knob on the cassette in the direction of the arrow to tighten the ribbon. As you turn the knob, see that the ribbon slips down into its proper place between the print head nose and the silver ribbon guide (Figure l-6). If it doesn’t, guide it with a pen or a pencil. Figure l-6. Ribbon placement Ribbon Replacement When your printing begins to become light and you need to replace the ribbon, lift the front of the cassette to remove it and then follow the above instructions with a new cassette.
Paper Loading Now put a sheet of paper in your LX-80 so you can test it. Figure 1-7 shows the names of the parts that you need to know. Friction lever Figure 1-7.
See that the printer is turned off, open the front lid, and push the friction lever back and the paper bail forward. Then move the print head by hand to the center of the printer and feed the paper into the paper slot in the top of the printer, When the paper will not go any farther, turn the paper feed knob to advance it as you would with a typewriter. Turn the knob until the top of the paper is at least 3/+inch above the ribbon guide. Then push the paper bail against the paper.
There are several buttons and indicator lights on the control panel. Their primary functions are described below: l The POWER light glows green when the power is on. l The READY light glows green when the printer is ready to accept data. This light flickers somewhat during printing. l The PAPER OUT light glows red to indicate that the printer is out of paper or the paper is loaded incorrectly. l The ON LINE light glows green when the printer can receive data.
Test Pattern Now you’ll see your LX-80 print something even though it’s not connected to a computer yet. Make sure that your printer has paper in it and that the power switch is off. Now, hold down the LF button on the control panel while you turn the printer on with the power switch. The LX-80 will begin printing all the letters, numbers, and other characters that are stored in its ROM (Read Only Memory) for the draft mode.
Connecting the LX-80 to Your Computer Now that the test pattern has shown that your printer is working well, it’s time to hook it up to your computer. It is best to have both the printer and the computer turned off when you do this. Remember that each computer system has its own way of communicating with a printer. If your computer expects to communicate through a Centronics parallel interface, all you need is a cable.
Groundin{ screw Wire clip Figure 1-10. Cable connection Next connect the other end of the printer cable to your computer. On most computers you can easily find the correct connector for the printer cable, but if you are not sure, consult your computer manual or your dealer. First Printing Exercise Now it is time to see something more interesting than the test pattern from your LX-80 printer. Your next step depends upon what kind of printing you plan to do.
Chapter 2 SelecType At the end of the introduction you saw samples of the typestyles available on your LX-80. In this chapter you’ll learn how Epson’s SelecType feature puts the most-used print modes at your fingertips. With a few taps on the panel buttons of the LX-80, you can change your printing from $:ll~~, i!+, 1”) (I:/ cl r’ (: I j, r) (::I. . . 1 , Et! . . ’ !:I;. ‘t;, r j, 1.: (<;$ 1::) j, <:I fi to the more detailed Near Letter Quality (NLQ) mode or any of several other possibilities.
Table 2-1 shows the typestyles you can print with SelecType, and-as you will learn later in this chapter-you can combine some of them. Table 2-1. SelecType modes 1 NLQ 2 Emphasized 3 Double-strike 4 Compressed 5 Elite ABCDEFGHIJKL,MNopqrst,uvwxyz ABCDEFGH I JKL.MNop qrstUswx yz 0 Ix:: 1:) 1.: F” G I.-I :I ;I K l... PI Iv (::I /z:, Cl I’” !iii t, L.1 v w 2: y z kECDEFSHIJKLnN@pqrstuvwxyz ABC~EFGHIJKt.
mode, all the panel buttons have new functions (also shown in Figure 2-1). Exit Figure 2-1. SelecType setting and functions In SelecType mode, the ON LINE button selects printing functions, the FF button sets the functions, and the LF button turns SelecType off, returning the panel buttons to their former operation. Using SelecType Once you have turned on SelecType, you select the print functions you want according to Table 2-1.
First SelecType Exercises For practice in using SelecType, try setting emphasized mode. First turn the printer off and back on with the switch on the right side of the printer. Then press the ON LINE and FF buttons at the same time. The LX-80 beeps to tell you that it is in SelecType mode, the READY light turns off, and the ON LINE light begins blinking. Then press the ON LINE button two times to select emphasized. (The printer beeps each time you press the ON LINE button in SelecType mode.
3) As you can see in Table 2-1, the code for compressed is four. Therefore, press the ON LINE button four times. (Remember that you hear a beep each time you press the ON LINE button when you are in SelecType mode). 4) Now that you have selected compressed, push the FF button once to set that mode. 5) Push the LF button once to return the panel buttons to their standard functions. Now you have set the LX-80 to print in compressed mode.
1) See that both the ON LINE and READY lights are on. 2) Press the ON LINE and FF buttons at the same time. 3) Press the ON LINE button five times (the code for elite). You should hear a beep each time you press the button. 4) Press the FF button to set elite. 5) Press the LF button to leave SelecType and return the panel buttons to their standard functions. Now press the ON LINE button and print your file again, using exactly the same command that you used before.
Table 2-2. Mode combinations I I / I I I J To combine modes you simply select and set more than one mode before you press the LF button to leave SelecType. After beginning the procedure in the normal way and pressing the ON LINE button to select a function and the FF button to set it, you do not press the LF button. Instead, you press the ON LINE button the required number of times to select another mode and set that mode with the FF button.
2) Press the ON LINE button once and then the FF button once. Since one is the code for NLQ, you have now set the LX-80 for that mode. 3) Press the ON LINE button one more time and then the FF button once. This makes a total of two times, and thus sets the LX-80 for emphasized also. 4) Press the LF button to return the panel buttons to their standard functions. Now press the ON LINE button and print your document.
Chapter 3 Elements of Dot Matrix Printing This chapter is for those of you who want to know something about how your printer works. It’s a simple, non-technical explanation of the basics of dot matrix printing that will help you understand some of the later chapters. The Print Head The LX-80 uses a print head with nine pins or wires mounted vertically. Each time a pin is fired, it strikes the inked ribbon and presses it against the paper to produce a dot. This dot is about 1/72nd of an inch in diameter.
Bidirectional Printing In nearly all of our discussions in this manual, we describe the action of the LX-80 print head as moving from left to right, as a typewriter does. During its normal operation while printing in the draft mode, however, the LX-80 prints bidirectionally. That is, the print head goes from left to right only on every other line. On the other lines it reverses everything and prints right to left.
I----I I Pica a. 00 f 0 l a 0 0 0 0 a 0 f ..a Elite T l 0 0 f 8 v 0 0 Compressed I 1 Figure 3-2. The three pitches of the LX-80 The dot pattern of each character is carefully designed so that in pica mode no dot overlaps another. The reason is that in normal high-speed printing of pica the pins cannot fire and retract and fire again quickly enough to print one dot overlapping another.
In Figure 3-3 there is a grid of lines behind the pica characters so that you can more easily see how they are designed. As you look at these characters you can see three rules that govern their design: the column on the right side is always left blank so that there will be spaces between the characters on a line; no character uses both the top and the bottom row; and a dot can be placed on a vertical line only when the columns next to that line are not used. Figure 3-3.
SelecType makes it especially easy to change from draft to NLQ, but you can also select and cancel the NLQ mode with a software command or with a special switch in the back of your printer. You can find the software command in Chapter 5 and the operation of the switch (called a DIP switch) in Appendix D.
Chapter 4 Printer Control Codes The LX-80 printer is easy to use, especially with commercial software that has print control features. This chapter explains some of the how a computer communicates with your printer.
Computer and printer interaction would be terribly confusing if different kinds of computers and printers used different numbers for the same letter of the alphabet. Therefore, most manufacturers of computers, printers, and software use the American Standard Code for Information Interchange, usually referred to as ASCII (pronounced ASK-Key).
Printer Codes T O take advantage of the many print features of the LX-80, you can use a software program that sends the correct codes or you can use another method to send codes. It’s not possible to be as precise and specific as we would like in the rest of this chapter because the LX-80 works with so many different applications programs and computer systems.
l The ESCape and control keys on your computer’s keyboard. With this system you send the ESCape code by pressing the ESCape key and a carriage return by pressing the control key and the M at the same time. (See Appendix B or the Quick Reference Card for the control key codes.) Embedded codes A program that uses embedded codes usually has its own set of codes that you type into your document or file. When the program receives one of these codes, it sends the proper code to the LX-80.
If your word processing program allows inserted codes, it will probably do standard printing without such codes. It is only for special features that you will need to use inserted codes. For example, if you want to have headings in wide bold printing (called expanded emphasized), you would probably have to use inserted codes. For the program we mentioned above you would type Control-V, then the code for expanded emphasized, Control-V again, and then the text of the heading.
Chapter 5 LX-80 Features Beginning with this chapter we describe many of the printing fea- Demonstration Programs Along with our discussion and examples of the LX-80 features, we include demonstrations in the BASIC programming language so that you can see these features in action.
If you don’t want to do the exercises in BASIC, you don’t have to. Many users are quite happy with their printers without ever learning load paper. Therefore, you shouldn’t be intimidated by the information in this manual. In most cases the software that you use for word cating with the printer for you. In fact, because of Epson’s long-standing popularity, many progneed to do is specify in an installation program that you are using an Epson printer.
Changing Pitches Now you can try other pitches. As we explained in Chapter 3, the 20 LPRINT CEIR$( 27 > “M” ; This line uses the command for elite, ESCape “M”, to turn on that mode. Your printout should look like the one below. i’; B i: g E i- C; H 1 J x L M bi a ,Q Q 17 5 T [ ! !j’ W yi, ‘Y Z i \ j .” _ ’ ij.
To avoid having one program interfere with the printing modes of another, you can cancel a mode one of two ways: l l With a specific cancelling code, such as the ESCape "P" that we used above to cancel elite. Each mode has a cancelling code, which you can find in the discussion of the code and in Appendix B. Pica is an exception to this rule. To cancel pica, turn on elite. By resetting the printer, a method explained in the next section.
In fact, if you need even more than the 132 characters per line that compressed gives you, you can combine elite and compressed for a mode we call compressed elite. It is not really another pitch, because the size of the characters is the same as in the compressed mode; only the space between the characters is reduced.
All the modes demonstrated in this chapter are compared in Table 5-1. Table 5-1. Summary of LX-80 pitches Print sample Codes CPI On t 1 inch + Near L,et;ter Quality 10.00 ,3 ‘; (:‘;i’>, !Y.yti ‘I !\,‘!“[ 10.00 Elite pri.rrt 12.00 ESC r.oepr essej 0’ !. nt 17.16 15 ~iqtt-ess~ ei 1 te f3-if-$ 20.00 ESC ESC “x” 1 “M” Off ESC “x” 0 ESC “P” 18 “M” 15 ESC “P” 18 Remember that you don’t have to use BASIC to change modes; you can use any method that sends the printer the proper codes.
Chapter 6 Print Enhancements and Special Characters Now that you have seen how you can change the pitch of your LX-80 printing, we can show you many more ways to vary and enhance your printing. So that you won’t have to type in dozens of programs to try all the features, we give you just one master program that can demonstrate any feature.
Emphasized works only in draft pica and NLQ modes. In elite and compressed the dots are already so close together that even with the reduced print speed, the LX-80 cannot fire, retract, and again fire the pins quickly enough to print overlapping dots. You do sacrifice some print speed and ribbon life with emphasized, because the print head slows down and prints twice as many dots, but the increase in print quality is well worth it.
You should get the following printout when you run this program and type “E” and “emphasized” in answer to the questions. This sample USPS ESCape E t.o proi-fuce emphasized pr-inting. The code to turn off emphasized is ESCape “F”. Double-strike The other bold mode on the LX-80 is double-strike. For this mode the printer prints each line, then moves the paper up slightly and prints the line again. Each dot is printed twice, with the second one slightly below the first as you can see in Figure 6-2.
Expanded Mode Perhaps the most dramatic mode on the LX-80 is expanded. It produces extra-wide characters that are good for titles and headings. For this mode, the dot pattern of each character is expanded and a duplicate set of dots is printed one dot to the right. You can see the difference between pica and expanded pica in Figure 6-3. Figure 6-3. Expanded and standard characters You can try expanded yourself by using the code “W1” in the master program.
LX-80 printer can print such complicated combinations as doublestrike emphasized expanded underlined italic subscript, although we’re not sure that you would ever want to use such a combination. The point is, however, that the LX-80 has the ability to produce almost any combination you can think of; it’s up to you to decide which ones you want to use. To see a few combinations, remove line 90 from the master program. (In MBASIC simply type 90 and press RETURN to delete the line.
The code to turn italic mode on is ESCape “4”. Try it in the master program if you wish. When you use this code in the master program, enter “4” in answer to the first question just as if it were a letter of the alphabet instead of a number. ESCape “5” turns off italic mode. Those of you who use this code in an applications program should remember that any character in quotation marks in our discussions of ESCape codes is an alphanumeric character, not a numerical value.
Figure 6-J. The underline mode As shown in Figure 6-5, the underline mode is continuous, but some word processing and other applications programs produce an underline that leaves spaces between characters as demonstrated in the printout below. If your software prints this type of underline, it is using the LX-80’s underline character (ASCII 95), not the underline mode. Because the underline character is only five dots wide, it does not fill the spaces between characters.
For any combination, just add up the values of each of the modes you want and use the total as the number after ESCape “!“. For example, to calculate the code for expanded italic underlined pica, add the following numbers together: underline italic expanded pica 128 64 32 -4 224 To print this combination, therefore, you use ESCape “!” followed by the number 224. In BASIC the command is CHR$(27)“!” CHR$(224).
Indeed, Master Select is such a powerful feature that it may occasionally be more powerful than you want it to be. Because it controls eight different modes, a Master Select code will cancel any of those eight that are not selected. For example, suppose that you have a page in elite and want part of it printing in italic. If you use ESCape “!” 64 to turn on italic, your LX-80 will begin printing in italic pica instead of italic elite because the 64 code does not include elite. Use 65 for italic elite.
In order to print any of these characters, first select one of the following character sets and then use the individual characters within that set. 0 1 2 3 4 5 Italy SP ain Japan Norway Denmark II 6 7 8 9 USA France Germany United Kingdom Denmark I Sweden 10 You select the character set in one of two ways: with an ESCape code or with a switch in the back of your printer.
Table 6-2. International characters in draft mode Table 6-3. International characters in draft italic The number at the top of each column in the tables is the ASCII code that prints the characters in that column. Once you have selected an international character set with the DIP switches or the ESCape “R” code, you can use the tables to see which characters on your standard USA keyboard will produce the international characters you want.
Graphics Character Set The LX-80 printer’s Read Only Memory (ROM) also contains the 32 graphics characters that you see in Figure 6-6. Figure 6-6. Special graphics characters Undoubtedly you can think of uses for many of the shapes and symbols available in this set, and you can combine the line graphics characters (the ones on the first row) to form various sizes and shapes of boxes and other figures that use straight lines.
The next printout shows the characters in emphasized expanded pica: The design of all the special graphics characters is shown in enlargements in Appendix A. Because normal line spacing leaves space between the lines of graphics characters just as it does between lines of text, you must change the line spacing when you combine line graphics characters to form boxes or other figures. For most programs ESCape “1” gives you the best line spacing for combinations of graphics characters.
Chapter 7 Page Formatting Although the LX-80 printer has many sophisticated commands to set margins, line spacing, and horizontal and vertical tabs, we won’t take up your time with extensive discussions of these because most of these functions are taken care of by applications programs. This chapter merely describes a few commands that the average user might need. If you want more information, you can find all the commands in Appendixes B and C.
You should be aware that a few applications programs reset the printer before each document or file they print. These programs will, of course, cancel your new margin settings. See Chapter 2 to find out how to test for a reset code in your program. The maximum right margins on the LX-80 printer are 80 in pica, 96 in elite, 137 in compressed, and 160 in compressed elite. For further information on this command see Appendix B.
Skip Over Perforation If you are using continuous pin-feed paper for printing program listings or other material not controlled by an applications program, you may find that the LX-80 prints right over the perforations between pages. The LX-80 has an ESCape code to prevent this: the ESCape “N” command. You send ESCape “N” followed by the number of lines you want the LX-80 to skip at the bottom of a page.
1 116 inch 1 3 blank rows 1/6 inch 1 3 blank rows Figure 7-l. Standard line spacing The default line spacing illustrated in Figure 7-1 is the only one you need for almost all printing of text, but in some cases you may want to increase or decrease the space between lines. The LX-80 has several commands to do this. ESCape “0” decreases the line spacing to 9-dot (9/72-inch), ESCape “1” decreases it to 7-dot, and ESCape “2” returns it to 12-dot.
Paper-Out Sensor Under the platen (the black roller) of your LX-80 printer is a small switch that senses whether or not paper is in the printer. When the end of the paper passes this switch, it sends a signal that sounds the beeper and stops your printing. This saves wear on your print head, ribbon, and platen, but because of the distance between the switch and the print head, it stops the printing about 2 inches from the end of the page.
Chapter 8 User-Defined Characters The LX-80 has 416 different characters stored in its ROM (Read Only Memory). Although this number includes draft, italic, international, special graphics, and Near Letter Quality characters, sometimes you would like to have a few more. For those occasions when you need a special character or a few letters in a different typeface, the LX-80 allows you to create your own characters and print them just as if they were ordinary letters.
After you have created your own characters with our programs, certain keys that you seldom use will generate the user-defined characters. For example, you will be able to type = to print t . Your user-defined characters can be utilitarian or imaginative, anything from a scientific symbol to script letters for your initials. Just follow the simple steps below.
When you place your dots on this grid, remember that dots cannot go on horizontal lines, but they can go on vertical lines so long as they do not overlap any other dots. As you design your characters, draw the dots as large as you see them in the example on the left in Figure 8-2. If you draw them smaller, you may have overlapping dots without realizing it. .overlapping dots dot on horizontal line I Figure 8-2. Correct and incorrect designs If you do accidentally call for overlapping dots, don’t worry.
So that you can see how the program works, we’ll present the steps used to create the Greek letter sigma. First is the grid we used to design the character. 123456789 Figure 8-3. Design for sigma Running the program For each of the nine columns, the program will ask for the numbers of the rows in which you want dots to appear. Enter the row numbers one at a time, pressing the RETURN key after each one.
Now wait a moment for your computer to calculate the dot patterns and your LX-80 to print the new character in two different typestyles. Your printout also gives you nine numbers, which you will use in the next program. You should get the printout you see below: When you get to this point with a character of your own, you see how it looks and whether or not you like it. If you want to make any changes, move the dots as needed and re-run the program.
90 100 110 120 130 140 150 160 170 180 190 200 210 290 300 FOR P=58 TO 63: LPRINT CHR$(P);: NEXT P K=l: IF K>3 THEN A=58 ELSE A=60 LPRINT CHR$(27)":"CHR$(0)CHR$(B)CHR$(PI); LPRINT CHR$(27)"%"CHR$(l)CHR$(O); LPRINT CHR$(27)"&"CHR$(O)CHR$OCHR$(A-1tK); FOR Z=l TO K LPRINT CHR$(128); FOR X=1 TO 9 READ R LPRINT CHR$(R);: NEXT X LPRINT CHR$(O)CHR$(O); NEXT Z DATA 130,68,170,16,130,0,130,0,198 FOR P=58 TO 63: LPRINT CHR$(P);: NEXT P SYSTEM To use this program for your own character or characters, change the DATA
The two lines when printed by your own program provide you with a key to the characters your LX-80 will now print. When you press the key for one of the characters in the top row, the printer will print the corresponding character in the bottom row. In the example above, if you type = your LX-80 will print t (although your screen will continue to show the character =).
2 1 128 64 32 16 8 4 64 I 2 I I I 1 3 4 5 6 I 1 7 8 9 10 J 1112 Figure 8-5. Grid for NLQ characters On this grid you can use any numbered line or space. As you can see, that includes the bottom line and the line on the right side. You should remember to leave one or two columns blank for space between characters, however. Each NLQ character definition requires 36 data numbers. Therefore, each vertical column must be divided into three sections for the calculation of data numbers.
/ 128 First data number - ( 128’ 64 64 32 32 16 > =229 8 4 4 2 \ 1 1 128 64 Second data number 32 16 < 8 4 2 Third data number \ 1 128 64 84 =64 Figure 8-6. Data numbers for one column To calculate the data numbers for this column, you see which dots are used in the top group (the top eight positions) and add their values together. Then you go down to the middle group (the next 8 positions) and add the values of any dots that are used there.
8 0 0 255 255 192 32 0 0 32 0 iJ 0 0 0 8 0 0 128 64 32 16 8 4 2 1 128 64 32 16 4 a 0 16 0 0 64 0 0 64 0 0 16 0 0 4 0 0 Figure 8-7. Arrow design and data numbers If you look at each column individually, you can see how the data numbers were calculated. First NLQ definition program Now type in and run the following program. It has the data numbers for the arrow design. For a character of your own, change the data numbers in lines 130-150.
la LPRINT CHR$(27) "x"CHR$(l) 20 LPRINT CHR$(27)":"CHR$(I)CHR$(O)CHR$(0); 30 LPRINT CHR$(27)"%"CHR$(l)CHR$(O); 40 LPRINT CHR$(27)"&"CHR$(O)"<("; 50 LPRINT CHR$(O)CHR$(lZ)CHR$(0); 60 FOR X=1 TO 36 70 READ C: LPRINT CHR$(C); 80 NEXT X 90 LPRINT "YOUR CHARACTER IN PICA: < < <" 100 LrjRINT "IN EXPANDED EMPHASIZED PICA: "; 110 LPRINT CHR$(27)"!*< < <" 120 LPRINT CHR$(27)"!"CHR$(0) 130 DATA 4,0,0,8,0,0,16,0,0,32,0,0 140 DATA 64,0,0,255,255,192,64,0,0,32,0,0 150 DATA 16,0,0,8,0,0,4,0,0,0,0,0 When you run this pro
When you run this program it prints six characters, then redefines one or more of them and prints them again. As with the draft characters, you use this two-line printout as a guide to the new characters your LX-80 will print. You can use them with an applications program or a program you write yourself.
Chapter 9 Introduction to Dot Graphics The Epson dot graphics mode allows your LX-80 printer to produce pictures, graphs, charts, or almost any other illustrative or creative material you can devise. Instead of using the standard letters, numerals, and symbols stored in the LX-80’s ROM (Read Only Memory), the graphics mode prints dots column by column and line by line. You plan where you want the dots to appear and then use a program to tell the LX-80 where to put them.
I MHWZIMS ~I;IENCE FIl;TION --- ------- ---- EE';;T - s;ELLEF;; -------- Some commercial software programs perform what is called a screen dump, in which whatever is on the computer screen is sent to, and printed by, the printer. This function is sometimes accomplished by a “print screen” command. If you have a program for screen dumps or any other software that produces graphics, all you need to know about Epson dot graphics is how to use the software.
Print Head The graphics mode on the LX-80 is quite different from the text modes, Instead of sending codes for letters and printing functions, you send codes for dot patterns, one number for each column in a line. Since none of the predefined characters or symbols in the printer’s memory is used, your program controls where each dot is printed. For each column on a print line, the print head prints the pattern of dots you have specified.
The LX-80 has several different graphics densities, but we’ll keep things simple by using only one in the first exercises. The code for entering single-density graphics mode is ESCape “K” nl n 2. In Microsoft BASIC the command is given in this format: L P R I N T CHR$(Z?)“K’*CHR$(Nl)CHR$(NZ); ESCape “K” specifies single-density graphics, and the next two numbers (n, and n2) specify the number of columns reserved for graphics.
128 64 32 16 8 4 2 1 not used 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Figure 9-1. Pin labels To fire any one pin, you send its number. To fire more than one pin at the same time, add up the numbers of the pins and send the sum to the printer. With these labels for the pins, you fire the top pin by sending 128. To fire the bottom graphics pin, you send 1. If you want to fire only the top and bottom pins, you simply add 128 and 1, then send 129.
With this numbering system any combination of the eight pins adds up to a unique decimal number between 0 and 255. Although you use a decimal number, it is, of course, converted to a binary number before it goes to the printer. Now that you know the principles of Epson graphics, we’ll give you two simple exercises, more densities, and then something more complex as a basis for writing your own programs.
30 LPRINT CHR$(27>"K"CHR$(lOO)CHR$(O); 40 FOR X-l TO 50: LPRINT CHR$(85)CHR$(42); 50 NEXT X If you run the program now, you’ll see how one line of the pattern looks: To see a how more than one line combines to form a figure, enter and run the following program, which uses two of the lines you have already typed and adds several more.
Line 20 begins a loop to produce multiple print lines. Lines 30 and 40 were covered above, but an LPRINT is added to line 50 to produce a line feed after line 40. Lines 60 and 70 are like lines 30 and 40 except that line 70 uses a reversal of the patterns in line 40. As the loop is executed, the program prints lines 40 and 70 alternately so that the patterns of the print lines will fit together well. Notice that the graphics command can be in effect for only one print line.
You are familiar with the command format that uses the ESCape code and a letter, but LX-80 graphics commands can also be in the following format: LPRINT CHR$(27)"*"CHR$(M)CHR$(Nl)CHR$(NZ); with m being the mode number found in the left column of Table 9-l. As usual, nl and n2 reserve the number of columns for graphics. The seven modes include six densities, with two speeds for doubledensity. Reassigning Code The LX-80 has a graphics command that changes one graphics mode to another.
the maximum number of dots you can reserve on the LX-SO, then, is: CHR$(27)"Z"CHR$(128)CHR$(7); or, in the other format: which is 128 dots plus 7 times 256 dots, for a total of 1920 dots in one row. Once you have chosen the number of columns you want to use, you can have your program do the calculations for you with the following format: CHR$(27)"L"CHR$(N MOD 256)CHR$(INT(N/2~6)); N is the total number of columns you want to specify.
Design Your Own Graphics In this section we take you through the development of a graphics program. The example is not especially complicated, but it does include the same steps you would use for a more complex figure so that you have the basis for designing graphics on your LX-80. You will plan your figure with dots on graph paper, but before beginning to place the dots, you should decide which graphics density you want.
Figure 9-4. Arrow design After plotting all the dots as in Figure 9-4, you calculate the numbers for each pin pattern by dividing the design grid into separate print lines. For the arrow design the grid was divided into three lines, each seven dots high. Then each column was examined and the sums of the pin values determined. This process for the first line is shown in Figure 9-5. The pin values are on the left side and the sums are at the bottom of each column.
The numbers for the second and third lines were calculated in the same manner. Once the numbers for the pin patterns are calculated, they go in DATA statements, separated by commas.
Graphics Programming Tips Now that we’ve shown you how to design your own graphics, we’ll review and emphasize a few elements of graphics programming. As usual, we use MBASIC in the examples, but the principles apply to any programming language. Semicolons and command placement After the graphics command is issued, every number sent to the LX-80 is interpreted as a pin pattern and printed on paper. Therefore, you must be careful where you put graphics commands in your program.
What went wrong? To help you understand the graphics command and avoid some of the more common errors made with it, we’ll examine this program in detail. First look at line 20. ESCape “K” calls for single-density graphics, and the two CHR$ numbers specify 50 columns of dots. Once that command is given, every number sent to the printer is interpreted as a pin pattern and printed on the paper.
You may also wonder why the program prints not only the different pin patterns but also the character “J” a number of times. The reason lies in the number of columns you reserved with the graphics command. After the LX-80 receives all the numbers reserved by a graphics command-50 in this case-it leaves the graphics mode and resumes interpreting numbers as printable characters or print commands.
10 G$zCHR$(27>+"K"+CHR$(l00)+CHR(0) 2c3 A$=CHR$( 85 > +(;EW$( 42 > 30 B$~~CHR$(42)tCMR$(85) 40 I,PRINT CHR$(27)"1"; FOR Rr-1 TO 3 60 LPRINT G$; 70 FOR X=1 TO 50: L,PRINT A$;: NEXT X 80 LPRINT 90 InPRINT G$; 100 FOR X=1 TO 50: LPRINT B$;: NEXT X 110 LPRINT: NEXT R 120 LPRINT CE
Appendix A ASCII Codes and Character Fonts This appendix provides information about the way ASCII codes are used on the LX-80 printer and about the character fonts associated with those codes. The first section summarizes the codes. The second section displays the decimal and hexadecimal numbers, a printout, and an enlarged dot matrix for each of the special graphics characters and the draft international characters. Other dot matrixes are in Chapter 3.
Dee Hex CHR Dee Hex cm cl 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 :: 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 a0 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 4A 4B 4C 4D 4E 4F 50 i: a3 a4 a5 86 a7 88 a9 90 91 92 93 94 z: 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 5A 58 5c 5D 5E iii: 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 20’ 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 6A 6B 6C 6D 6E 6F 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 7A 78 7C 7D 7E 7F 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 a 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 1
Special Graphics Characters Dec Hex Character 129 81 L.. 130 82 Y 138 8A .1 131 83 4 139 8B .,. .:.:.: :.:.I 132 84 t- 140 8C 133 85 141 8D m 134 86 I 142 8E I 135 87 I-’ 143 8F + Hex 89 Character tiiiiil 136 88 “I 144 90 L.
Dec Hex Character Dec Hex Character 145 154 9B 155 9C 156 9C 148 91 94 !k + 150 96 -is 152 u A-4 98 A -.L. 157 9D : ,:. 158 9E .
Draft International Characters Roman characters Italic characters ,I 1 i A-5
Appendix B Control Codes in Numeric Order You can use any of the methods explained in Chapter 4 to send these control codes to your LX-80. If you use MBASIC, you send a control code using LPRINT CHR$(27) followed by CHR$(n), where n is a number from the decimal (Dee) column below. For a few codes, those with a dash in the ESC column, you omit the ESCape code. For the codes above decimal 27, you can use either the character in the symbol column (in quotation marks) or CHR$(n).
Hex Symbol Function OA LF 11 0B VT 12 0C FF 13 OD CR 14 OE SO 15 OF SI 17 11 DC1 18 12 DC2 19 13 DC3 20 14 DC4 24 18 CAN Line feed. Empties the printer buffer, performs a line feed at the current line spacing, and resets the buffer character count to 0. Vertical tab. Empties the printer buffer, then advances the paper to the next vertical tab stop. Form feed. Empties the printer buffer, then advances the paper to the next top of form. Carriage return.
ESC Dec Hex Symbol 27 1B ESC ESC 33 21 ! ESC 37 25 % ESC 3 8 26 & Function Escape. Prepares the printer to receive control codes. Master Select Selects 1 of 64 unique print mode combinations. Format: ESC “!” n where n stands for a number between 0 and 255. Activates a character set. ESC “%” 0 0 selects the ROM set, and ESC “%” 1 0 selects the RAM set defined by ESC “&“. Defines user characters in RAM. Format: ESC “&” 0 cl c2 a d, . . .
ESC Dec Hex ESC 4 2 2A Symbol ::. ESC 4 5 2D - ESC 4 7 2F ESC 4 8 ESC 4 9 ESC 5 0 30 31 32 0 1 2 ESC 5 1 33 3 ESC 5 2 ESC 5 3 ESC 5 6 34 35 38 4 5 8 ESC 5 7 39 9 ESC 5 8 3A ESC 60 3C B-4 < Function Turns graphics mode ON. Format: E S C “v’ m nl n 2 followed by n data numbers, where n = total number of dot columns, nl = n MOD 256, n2 = INT (n/256), m selects mode O-6. See Chapter 9 for modes. Turns underline mode ON.
ESC Dec Hex Symbol Function ESC 63 3F ? ESC 64 40 @ ESC 65 41 A ESC 66 42 B ESC 67 43 C ESC 67 43 C Redefines one of the four alternate graphics codes--“K”, “L”, “Y”, or "Z"--as one of the seven graphics density numbers used with the ESCape “‘$” command. Format: ESC “?s” n where s is K, L, Y, or Z and n is O-6. Reset code, which resets the printer to its power-up state, including resetting top of page. Clears all text and control codes from the print buffer.
ESC Dec Hex Symbol ESC 68 44 D ESC 69 45 E ESC 70 ESC 71 46 47 F G ESC 72 ESC 7 4 48 4A H J 4B K ESC B-6 75 Function Resets the current tabs and sets up to 32 horizontal tabs in the current pitch. Tabs may range up to the maximum width for the character and printer size. For example, the maximum tab for pica characters on an 8-inch line is 79. Tab settings are not affected by subsequent changes in pitch. Format: ESC “D” nl n 2 . . .
ESC Dec Hex Symbol Function ESC 76 4C ESC 7 7 4D M ESC 78 4E N ESC 79 ESC 80 4F 50 O P ESC 81 51 Q ESC 82 52 R Turns low-speed double-density graphics mode ON. Prints 960 dots per 8-inch line. Format: ESC “L” n l n 2 followed by n data numbers, where n = total number of dot columns, ni = n MOD 256, n 2 = INT (n/256). For example, to print 960 dots, n l = 192, n 2 = 3. Turns elite mode (12 cpi) ON. Cannot mix with NLQ, pica, or emphasized mode. Sets skip-over-perforation to n lines.
ESC Dec Hex Symbol Function ESC 83 53 S ESC ESC 84 85 54 55 T U ESC 87 57 W ESC 89 59 Y 5A Z Turns script mode ON. Either type of script is printed in double-strike. Format: ESC “S”CHR$(n) where n = 0 produces superscript, and 1 produces subscript. Turns script mode OFF. Turns unidirectional mode ON. Prints each line from left to right. Format: ESC “U” n where n toggles the mode on and off: 0 turns it OFF, 1 turns it ON. Turns expanded mode ON; stays ON until turned OFF.
ESC Dec Hex Symbol Function ESC 94 5E A ESC 97 61 a ESC 98 62 b ESC 101 65 e Turns nine-pin graphics ON. Format: ESC “*” d nl nz followed by 2 times n data numbers, where n = total number of dot columns, nl = n MOD 256, n2 = INT (n/256). The printer expects two data numbers for each column of print. The d selects the density, where 0 produces single-density and 1 produces doubledensity. Sets justification format in NLQ mode.
ESC Dec Hex Symbol Function ESC 102 66 f ESC 108 6C 1 ESC 109 6D m ESC 115 73 S ESC 120 78 X 127 7F DEL Prints spaces or line feeds without carriage returns. Horizontal format: ESC “f0” n where n is the number of spaces and equals 0-127. Vertical format: ESC “f1” n where n is the number of line feeds and equals 0-127. Sets the left margin. Format: ESC “l”CHR$(n) where n ranges from: in pica 0-78 in elite 0-93 in compressed 0-133 in compressed elite.
The printer’s high- order control codes from 128 to 155 mirror their low-order counterparts (O-27). In some cases it is necessary or more convenient to use the high-order codes instead of the low-order ones. For example, if your system will not send a 9 for a horizontal tab, use 137 instead.
Control Key Chart Some applications programs can use control key codes for decimal values 0-27. The table below gives you the proper values. The Control key column indicates that you press the control key at the same time you press the key for the letter or symbol in that column. For example, you press the control key and A at the same time to send the value 1. Some programs that use this system cannot use control-@, and many programs use the control keys for other purposes.
Appendix C Control Codes by Function This appendix shows most of the control codes in Appendix B, but this time they are arranged by categories. If your computer cannot generate lowercase letters, use the equivalent decimal ASCII values. This appendix enables you to find a particular code quickly but does not give all the details on the format and use of each code. See Appendix B or the appropriate chapter for further information. Near Letter Quality Mode ESC “x” 1 ESC “x” 0 ESC “a” Turns NLQ mode ON.
Print Enhancement ESC “SO” ESC “S1” ESC “T” ESC “-0” ESC “-1” Turns Turns Turns Turns Turns superscript mode ON. subscript mode ON. either script mode OFF. underline mode OFF. underline mode ON. Mode and Character-Set Selection ESC “!” ESC “4” ESC “5” ESC “@” ESC “R” ESC “m” Master select. Turns italic mode ON. Turns italic mode OFF. Reset code. Selects an international character set. Selects and cancels special graphics characters.
Forms Control ESC “8” ESC “9” ESC “C” 0 ESC “C” ESC “N” ESC “O” Turns the paper-out sensor OFF. Turns the paper-out sensor ON. Sets the form length in inches. Sets the form length in lines. Turns variable skip-over-perforation ON. Turns skip-over-perforation OFF. Page Format ASCII 9 or 137 ASCII 11 ESC “D” ESC “Q” ESC “1” Activates a horizontal tab. Activates a vertical tab. Sets horizontal tab stops. Sets the right margin. Sets the left margin.
Appendix D The DIP Switches Several tiny switches called DIP (for Dual In-Line Package) switches are in the back of your LX-80 printer. They control a number of important printer functions. For most uses they can be left as they were set at the factory, but you may want to change some settings. The design of the LX-80 gives you easy access to the switches. You can see them in the back of the printer as indicated in Figure D-l. Figure D-1.
Always turn the power OFF (with the switch on the right side of the printer) before you change the setting of any of these switches. Any changes made while the power is on will be ignored until you turn the printer off and back on. So set all switches with the power off. In Table D-l we show you the functions of all the switches. Then we explain each of them. Table D-1. DIP switch functions Switch 1 No.
Switch 1-5 controls the paper-end detector. When it is ON, the detector is inactive, causing printing to continue even when the printer is out of paper. When it is OFF, the printer stops when the end of the paper passes the paper-end detector. Some computer systems ignore the setting of this switch. See Appendix F. Switch 1-4 selects the paper length. When it is OFF, the length is 11”; when it is ON, the length is 12”. Switch 1-3 controls the optional cut-sheet feeder.
Appendix E Using the Optional Tractor Unit The optional tractor unit allows you to use continuous paper with pin feed holes along the sides. The unit is adjustable so that the continuous paper can be any width from 4 to 10 inches. Printer Location When you use the tractor and continuous paper, you must put your LX-80 where the paper can flow freely in and out of the printer. Use a printer stand or any other arrangement that fits your working area.
Figure E-2. Continuous paper without stand Tractor Unit Installation To install the removable tractor unit, first pull the friction lever toward the front of the printer. Then hold the tractor with the gears to the right as shown in Figure E-3. Figure E-3.
In each tractor slot are two pegs that fit into the notches on the tractor fittings. Tilt the tractor back so that the rear notches fit over the rear pegs. Then tilt the unit forward until it clicks into place. That’s all there is to it. Now install the paper separator and pull out the paper guide as shown in Figure E-4. Fit the notches in the bottom corners of the separator over the pins at the front of the paper slot.
When you want to use single sheet paper in your LX-80, you can remove the tractor unit quite easily. Just push back the two tractor release levers shown in Figure E-5, tilt the unit backwards, and lift it up. Figure E-5. Tractor release levers Loading Continuous Paper Once your tractor is installed, you can load continuous paper. See that the printer is turned off, and open the front lid.
Figure E-6. Pin feed bolder adjustment Next, open the pin feed covers as shown in Figure E-7 and feed the paper under the paper separator and into the paper slot; push the paper through until it comes up between the ribbon guide and the platen. Figure E-7.
Next pull the paper up until the top is above the pin-feed holders. Fit the holes on the left side of the paper over the pins in the left holder and close the cover. Now fit the right side of the paper in the right holder, moving the holder as needed to match the width of the paper. Close the second cover, make sure the paper has no dips or wrinkles, lock the right holder in place, and push the paper bail against the paper. Now you are ready to set the top of page position.
Appendix F Troubleshooting and Advanced Features This appendix approaches troubleshooting from several directions. The first section uses a columnar format to match solutions with problems. Other sections cover beeper error warnings, hexadecimal data dumping, coding and seven-bit solutions, and specific solutions for several popular personal computer systems. Problem/Solution Summary Possible problems are listed on the left and solutions on the right.
affect your system if possible. You can also POKE the problem codes directly to the printer port. Seven-bit computers cannot use the eighth pin (128). If you have a seven-bit computer and any of your graphics data numbers are larger than 127, change the numbers. Be sure that no other commands or carriage returns come between the graphics command and its data. See Chapter 9. Printer mode. “freezes” in graphics The printer expects a certain number of pin patterns, determined by nl and nz.
Paper-out sensor Can’t deactivate paper-out sensor with DIP switch l-5 or ESCape “8”. Computer systems that monitor printer cable pin 12 will ignore both ESCape “8” and the setting of switch l-5. These systems will stop the printing when no paper is in contact with the paper-end detector (a small switch located beneath the platen). Certain printer cables are designed to overcome this problem, or you can tape a business card over the switch. Be sure to remove the card if you use a cut-sheet feeder, however.
Now give your printer the command to resume printing. If your example is now in compressed, you can use this same sequence each time you want to use SelecType. The procedure is not complicated; once you practice it a few times, it gives you fingertip control of your printing. Method 3 Another method that may work with your software is to give the print command with the printer turned OFF.
Occasionally you may wish to cancel one or more modes with SelecType instead of resetting the printer with power switch. T o cancel all modes controlled by SelecType, simply enter SelecType mode and then press the FF button without pressing the ON LINE button. (This is the zero code from Table 2-l.) This is useful when you make a mistake while setting codes and want to start over again, and it does not interfere with top of page, user-defined characters, or other items that are not controlled by SelecType.
6) Press the ON LINE button to put the printer on-line. Now you have cancelled emphasized without affecting any other modes. Some users think that this procedure is too complicated and prefer to cancel all the SelecType settings and then reset the ones they want. Use whichever method you prefer. If you want to cancel modes individually, remember to watch the ON LINE light. It blinks mainly on when a mode is set and mainly off when it is not.
Therefore, if you ran the following BASIC program while your LX-SO was in the data dump mode, you would get the printout below it. The printer will print all but this last line and then stop. Press the ON LINE button to make the printer print the last line. 10 20 30 40 50 FOR X-70 TO 73 L,PRINT CHR$(X): NEXT X I,PRINT CHR$( 27) “E” LPRINT “Sample tczxt,” LJ’RINT CHR$( 27) “0” You can consult Appendix A or the Quick Reference Card to see the meaning of the hexadecimal codes.
Put the printer in data dump mode and then RUN the program. Remember to press the ON LINE button to make the LX-80 print the final line. Then compare your printout with the list of hex codes in order in the middle columns of page A-2 in Appendix A. If any are skipped or repeated, you will know that your BASIC language changes some codes before it sends them to the printer.
Unfortunately, this process is also different for each computer system. We’ll give the procedure for a couple of systems here; if your system is neither of them, use the procedure as a model. Consult your computer’s manual to determine if you can do the same on your system. A fourth approach is to change the printer driver program in your system. This requires a knowledge of machine language and of the way your computer works.
The printer’s status is stored in location 49601 and the outgoing values are sent to 49296. Special printer drivers An even better (but more difficult) way to overcome these problems is to modify the printer driver so that the codes are passed correctly to the printer without any PEEK S or POKE S. If you do not want to write such a driver yourself, your computer dealer may be able to help you. Or you may find aid in the pages of a trade journal.
To find out whether your system is an 8-bit system, capable of generating all 256 ASCII codes, enter this simple test: 10 P’OR X=160 TO 254 20 L,PRINT CHR$( X> ; 30 NEXT X If you get italic characters when you RUN this, you are using an 8-bit system. If you have a 7-bit system, you need to understand what happens to the control codes you send. The LX-80 automatically interprets these codes the way your system sends them-as the lower half of the range.
Apple II solutions There are two types of problems that you who own Apple II computers will need to address. The first is that the Apple II is an S-bit computer, but its printer interface only handles seven bits. The second is that there is one problem code number: nine. The printer interface card furnished with the Apple II computer only passes seven bits to the LX-80, which means that you have a 7-bit system.
TRS-80 TM solutions A routine to POKE codes to the memory of a Model I is given in the POKEing codes subsection. A special printer driver for either the Model I or the Model III is shown in the Special printer drivers subsection. One of those methods should solve any problems with the programs in this manual. IBM-PC TM solutions There are two problems in using the IBM Personal Computer BASIC to drive a printer.
And for the programs in this manual, don’t forget to use PRINT #l wherever we use LPRINT. This won’t work for those of you who have the original release of the Disk Operating System (DOS 1.0). It can’t run a printer like a file. IBM has, however, issued a free update (DOS 1.05); take a disk to your dealer to get your copy. Another printer problem with DOS 1.0 is that it doesn’t send CHR$(7) to the printer; it just rings the computer’s bell. This has also been corrected in subsequent versions.
Appendix G Printer Maintenance Always Always keep your printer in a safe and clean location. Keep it away from : Dust and grease Heaters and furnaces. Safe temperature range is 41°F (5°C) to 95°F (35°C) Now and Then Clean particles and dust from the printer every so often with a soft cloth or brush. Use a mild cleanser for the outside framework and, after removing the ribbon cassette, denatured alcohol for the inside. See your Epson dealer for replacement ribbon cassettes.
Appendix H Technical Specifications Printing Printing method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Impact dot matrix Printing speed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100 characters per second per line in Paper feed speed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Approximately 150 ms/line (at 1/6 inch/line) Approximately 100 ms/line (during continuous line feed) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bidirectional, logic seeking Printing direction Unidirectional (left to right) in graphics mode Character set . . . . . . . . .
Characters per line: Maximum characters per line 80 Pica 40 Pica expanded 96 Elite 48 Elite expanded 132::. Compressed (35::. Compressed expanded Compressed elite 160 +137 if right margin is changed. ‘:68 if right margin is changed. Paper Paper width Pin-feed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Paper feed 4” to 10” Tractor feed with optional tractor Single sheet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . up to 8.5” Friction feed Number of copies . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Environment Temperature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O perating 41°F to 95°F (5°C to 35°C) Storage -22°F to 149°F (-30°C to 65°C) Humidity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Operating 10% to 80% (no condensation) Storage 5% to 85% (no condensation) Shock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Operating 1 G (less than 1 millisecond) Storage 2 G (less than 1 millisecond) . . . . . . . . . . . Vibration Operating 0.25 G, 55Hz (maximum) Storage 0.
Appendix I The Parallel Interface The LX-80 printer uses a parallel interface to communicate with the computer; this appendix describes it. Connector pin assignments and a description of respective interface signals are shown in Table I-1. Table I-1. Pins and signals Sji,l Return Pin 19 1 Signal STROBE IN IN IN IN IN IN 87 9 10 2 28 DATA1 DATA2 DATA3 DATA4 DATA5 DATA6 DATA7 DATA8 ACKNLG 11 29 BUSY 12 30 PE z 4 E ;: z z Direction Description STROBE pulse to read data in.
Table I-1, continued Notes: 1. The column heading “Direction” refers to the direction of signal flow as viewed from the printer. 2. “Return” denotes the twisted-pair return, to be connected at signal ground level. For the interface wiring, be sure to use a twisted-pair cable for each signal and to complete the connection on the return side. To prevent noise, these cables should be shielded and connected to the chassis of the host computer or the printer. 3. All interface conditions are based on TTL level.
4. Data transfer must be carried out by observing the ACKNLG or BUSY signal. (Data transfer to this printer can be carried out only after receipt of the ACKNLG signal or when the level of the BUSY signal is LOW.) 5. Under normal conditions, printer cable pins 11, 12, and 32 are activated when the paper-end condition is detected. The ESCape “8” code disables pins 11 and 32, but not pin 12. Those computers that monitor pin 12 halt printing when the paper is out, making ESCape “8” ineffective.
Table I-2. Signal interrelations ACKNLG On-Line ]SLCTlN IERROR 1 BUSY ) 1 DATA ENTRY 1 OFF HIGH/LOW LOW HIGH Not generated Disabled ON HIGH HIGH LOW/HIGH Generated after data entry Enabled ON LOW HIGH Same Same Enabled (normal entry) <-When SLCT IN is at high level, data entry is enabled, but the input data will be disregarded until SLCT IN is at low level. Note: ERROR status is assumed to rest only in off-line state, and the ERROR status does not always mean SLCT IN.
INDEX A American Standard Code for Information Interchange. See ASCII Apple computers, F-10, F-11-12 See also Seven-bit systems ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange), 29-30 codes listed for all characters, A-2 Automatic test. See Test pattern B Bail. See Paper bail Beeper, F-6 Bidirectional printing, 24 Board, interface, 13 Bold printing. See Double-strike; Emphasized C Cable, 13-14 Centronics, 13 Codes.
D Data dump mode, F-6-8 Data transfer sequence, I-3 Density. See Graphics mode Dimensions of printer, H-3 DIP switches, D-1-3 Dot graphics. See Graphics Dot matrix, 23-27 Double-strike mode, 43 ESCape “G” turns it on; ESCape “H” turns it off. Can also be set with SelecType Driver. See printer driver Dumping data in hexadecimal, F-6-8 Elite mode, 24-25, 37-38 ESCape “M” turns it on; ESCape “P’ turns it off.
ESCape “E”. Turns emphasized mode on, 41-43 ESCape “F”. Turns emphasized mode off, 41-43 ESCape “G”. Turns double-strike mode on, 13 ESCape “H”. Turns double-strike mode off, 43 ESCape “J”. Produces an immediate line feed, B-6 ESCape “K”. Turns single-density graphics mode on, 76 ESCape “L”. Turns low-speed double-density graphics mode on, 80 ESCape “M”. Turns elite mode on, 24-25 ESCape “N”. Sets skip-over-perforation, 57 ESCape “0”. Turns skip-over-perforation off, 57 ESCape ‘P”.
G Graphics, 73-89 column reservation numbers, 81-82 densities, 80-81 designing, 83-85 nine-pin, B-9 problem codes with, 89 reassigning code, 81 special graphics characters, 52-53 summary table, 80 H Head. See Print head Hex dumping. See Data dump mode I IBM Personal Computer, F-13-14 Inserted codes, 32-33 Interface, 13, I-1-4 International characters, 49-51, A-5 DIP switch setting or ESCape “R” selects one. Italic mode, 45-46 ESCape “4” turns it on; ESCape “5” turns it off.
Location of printer, 4, E-1-2 Lubrication, G-1 M Maintenance, G-l Margins, 55-56 Master Select, 47-49 Matrix. See Dot matrix N Near Letter Quality (NLQ) mode, 12, 26-27, 39 Can be set with SelecType, DIP switch, or ESCape code Nine-pin graphics. See Graphics O ON LINE light and button, 11 See also SelecType P Page, top of, E-6 Panel buttons, selecting typestyles with.
Print head and dot graphics, 75-78 and dot matrix printing, 23 Print pitch summary table, 40 Printer driver for problem codes, F-10 Protective lid. See Lid Q Quadruple-density. See Graphics densities QX-10, 80, F-14 R Reset code, 38 with user-defined characters, 67 Resetting the printer, 38 Ribbon, installation and replacement, 5-8 Right margin. See Margins S Script mode, 49 ESCape “S0” turns superscript mode on. ESCape “S1” turns subscript mode on. ESCape “T” turns either mode off.
T Technical specifications, H-l-3 Temperature, H-3 Test for reset code, 19-20 for seven-bit system, F-11 pattern, 12 Top of page, E-6 Tractor, optional, E-1-6 Troubleshooting, F-1-14 TRS-80, F-9-10, F-13 U Underline mode, 46-47 ESCape “-1” turns it on; ESCape “-0” turns it off. User-defined characters, 61-72 ESCape I‘&” defines characters; ESCape I‘:” downloads ROM characters into RAM; ESCape “%” selects a character set.
® Spectrum LX-80 Printer
Control Codes by Function Near Letter Quality Mode ESC “x” 1 ESC “x” 0 ESC “a” Turns NLQ mode ON. Turns draft mode ON. Activates NLQ justification modes. Character Width (Pitch) ASCII 15 ASCII 18 ASCII 14 ASCII 20 ESC “M” ESC “I”’ ESC “W0” ESC “W1” Turns Turns Turns Turns Turns Turns Turns Turns compressed mode ON. compressed mode OFF. one-line expanded mode ON. one-line expanded mode OFF. elite mode ON. elite mode OFF. either expanded mode OFF. continuous expanded mode ON.
Special Printer Features ASCII 8 ESC 25 ESC I‘<” ESC “U0” ESC “U1” ESC "s0" ESC “s1” Backspaces. Enables and disables the optional cut-sheet feeder. Turns one-line unidirectional mode ON. Turns continuous unidirectional mode OFF. Turns continuous unidirectional mode ON. Returns to normal speed. Turns half-speed mode ON. Line Spacing ESC “0” ESC “1” ESC “2” ESC “A” n ESC “3” n ESC “J” n Sets line spacing to 1/8-inch. Sets line spacing to 7/72-inch. Sets line spacing to l/6-inch (default).
User-defined Characters ESC “&” ESC “:” ESC “%” Defines characters in user RAM. Copies the character set from ROM to RAM. Activates ROM or RAM character set. Dot Graphics ESC “+” ESC I“” ESC “K” ESC “L” ESC “Y” ESC “Z” ESC “ /&, 7, Selects one of seven graphics densities. Reassigns a graphics density. Turns single-density graphics mode ON. Turns double-density graphics mode ON. Turns high-speed double-density graphics mode ON. Turns quadruple-density graphics mode ON. Turns nine-pin graphics mode ON.
ASCII Codes Dot Hex CHR Dee Hex CHR none none none none none none none BEL BS HT LF VT 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 a0 al 82 a3 a4 a5 86 a7 aa a9 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 loa 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 4A 40 4C 4D 4E 4F 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 5A 58 5c 50 5E 5F 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 6A 68 6c 6D 6E 6F 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 7A 7B 7C 70 7E 7F 0 1 2
Control Keys Decimal 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 i4 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 Hexadecimal 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 OA OB oc OD OE OF 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 1A Control key @ A B C D E F G H ; K L M N 0 ii S T U V W X Y Z
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