All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system,
or transmitted, in any form or by any means, mechanical, photocopying, recording or other-
wise, without the prior written permission of Epson America, Inc. No patent liability is as-
sumed with respect to the use of the information contained herein. While every precaution has
been taken in the preparation of this book, Epson America, Inc. assumes no responsibility for
errors or omissions. Neither is any liability assumed for damages resulting from the use of the
information contained herein.
Printout on page 45 courtesy of PalSoftware Corporation, Los Angeles, CA, drawn using
ArtPak Presentation System.
Artpak is a trademark of PalSoftware Corporation.
HomeWriter, LX-90, and PIC are trademarks of Epson America, Inc.
IBM is a registered trademark and PCjr is a trademark of International Business Machines
Corporation.
WordStar is a registered trademark of MicroPro International Corporation.
Demonstration Programs
How to Run BASIC Programs
Pica Printing
Changing Pitches
Cancelling Codes
..................................
..............................
..............................
Resetting the Printer
Pitch Comparison
Near Letter Quality Mode
.......................
...................
...........................
.............................
......................
17
17
18
19
19
20
20
21
21
. . .
III
5.
Print Enhancements and
Special Characters
Bold Modes
Emphasized Mode
Double-Strike
Expanded Mode.. .............................
Mode Combinations
Underline Mode
Master Select
Superscript and Subscript
.............................
..................................
.............................
.................................
...........................
...............................
.................................
.......................
23
23
23
24
25
25
26
27
28
6.Page Formatting
Margins.. ....................................
Skip Over Perforation
Line Spacing.. ................................
Paper Out Sensor
Justification with NLQ
7.
User-Defined Characters
Defining Your Own Characters
Designing Process
Definition program 1
Running the program
Definition program 2
Running the program
Defining NLQ Characters
NLQ grid
NLQ definition program
NLQ definition program
8.Introduction to Dot Graphics
Dot Patterns
The Print Head and Graphics
Graphics Mode
Pin Labels
First Graphics Program
WIDTH Statements
Multiple-Line Exercise
Density Varieties
Reassigning Code
Column Reservation Numbers
Designing Your Own Graphics
String variables
...............................
..........................
.............................
.........................
.......................
..................
.............................
.........................
........................
.........................
........................
.......................
..................................
1
....................
2
....................
....................
..................................
....................
...............................
....................................
.........................
............................
..........................
..............................
..............................
...................
...................
.............................
29
29
30
30
31
31
33
33
34
36
37
38
39
39
40
42
43
45
46
46
47
48
49
50
50
52
53
53
54
57
iv
Appendixes
LX-90 Characters ..............................
A.
Standard Character Mode (Draft)
Standard Character Mode (NLQ)
Alternate Character Mode (Draft)
Alternate Character Mode (NLQ)
Control Codes in Numeric Order
B.
Control Key Chart
Control Codes by Function
C.
.............................
Near Letter Quality Mode
Character Width (Pitch)
Character Weight
Print Enhancement
..............................
............................
Mode and Character-Set Selection
Special Printer Features
Line Spacing
Forms Control
Page Format
..................................
................................
..................................
User-Defined Characters
Dot Graphics
D.
The DIP Switches
.................................
.............................
......................
......................
........................
.........................
........................
................
................
................
................
..................
................
A-l
A-2
A-4
A-6
A-8
B-l
B-9
C-l
C-l
C-l
C-l
c-2
c-2
c-2
c-2
c-3
c-3
c-3
c-3
D-l
Troubleshooting and Advanced Features
E.
Installation of Commercial Software Programs
SelecType Features and Solutions
Troubleshooting
Beeper Error Warnings
Graphics
.....................................
Data Dump Mode
IBM PC BASIC Solutions
...............................
.........................
.............................
.......................
................
Index.. ......................................
...........
.....
E-l
E-l
E-2
E-3
E-3
E-4
E-4
E-6
F-l
V
Introduction
The Epson LX-90 printer combines low price with the high quality
and advanced capabilities formerly available only on more expensive
printers.
The LX-90 User’s Manual tells you how to set up your printer. This
Printer Interface Cartridge Operation Manual gives you the specific
information you need to use the LX-90 with your PCjr computer.
This manual won’t waste your time with unnecessary information,
but it also won’t neglect anything you need to know about the LX-90
and its features.
You can read as much or as little of this manual as you wish. The
first chapter tells how to test the printer and connect it to your computer. The second chapter explains SelecType, a feature that offers
you five special typefaces. The other chapters explain the main features of the LX-90, and the appendixes give technical information on
the printer.
Note
Although all references in this manual are to the Epson
LX-90 printer, this PIC can also be used with the Epson
HomeWriter™-10.
The samples of typestyles and graphics on the next page are a pre-
view of what your LX-90 can do.
1
Expandedemphasized
Typewriter-style Near Letter Quality
Emphasized bold printing
Double-strike bold printing
Compressed narrow
Elite printing
printing
Chapter 1
Installation and Operation
After you have set up your printer and loaded the paper (following
the directions in the LX-90 User’s Manual), you are ready to plug in
your Printer Interface Cartridge (PIP™) and begin printing.
Inserting the Printer Interface Cartridge
Inserting the PIC is easy. The cartridge slides into the rectangular
opening, as shown in the LX-90 manual. Be sure the printer is OFF
when you insert the PIC. Once the PIC is installed, you are ready to
test your printer.
Printing the Test Patterns
It’s time to see the LX-90 in action. You’ll start with a test pattern.
Don’t connect the printer to your computer yet-just follow these
steps:
1. Make sure that your printer has paper in it and that the power
switch (on the right side of the printer) is off.
2. Press the LF button on the control panel, and at the same time,
turn the printer on with the power switch.
The LX-90 begins printing letters, numbers, and symbols in the
draft mode. It won’t stop until you turn it off or until it gets near the
end of the paper.
To see the same test in the NLQ (Near Letter Quality) mode, turn
the printer on while pressing the FF button. Figure l-1 shows what
both test patterns look like.
Before connecting the LX-90, be sure that all your computer equip-
ment is turned off.
Plug the PIC cable into the socket marked S in the back of your
PCjr. Now the printer can communicate with your computer.
A
-'ab
Control Panel
After connecting your LX-90 to your computer system, turn on the
printer and look at the control panel on the top.
Figure 1-2. Control panel
You have already used the control panel for a special purpose,
printing the test patterns. Here are the main functions of the lights and
buttons on this panel:
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. Don’t worry if this light flickers somewhat during printing;
this flickering is normal.
l
The PAPER OUT light glows red when 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.
In addition to the lights, the control panel has three buttons.
l
ON LINE-switches the printer between on-line and off-line status.
When the printer is on-line, the ON LINE light glows and the
printer is ready to accept data.
The other two buttons, FF and LF, work only when the printer is
off-line (when the ON LINE light is off). If the ON LINE light is on,
press the ON LINE button before you use these.
5
l FF (Form Feed)-advances continuous paper to the top of the
next page or ejects a single sheet of paper.
l
LF (Line
Feed)-advances the paper one line at a time.
The control panel can also be used to turn on several printing func-
tions using SelecType, a feature which is described in the next chapter.
Using Your Printer
If you have a word processing or other commercial software program, just load the program into your computer, follow the printing
instructions, and watch your LX-90 print.
If your software program requires you to specify which printer you
are using, see Appendix E for instructions.
If you plan to use your
LX-90
for printing program listings, load a
program and use the appropriate listing command for the programming language you are using.
For example, if you are using the BASIC that is built into your PCjr
computer, type NEW and then enter the following simple program:
10 FOR X=1 TO 5
20 PRINT
30
NEXT X
Then make sure your printer is turned on and type the following:
X/3
LLIST
Then press
You can now begin using the LX-90 with your software, or you can
find out about the special features of the printer in the next chapters.
You may be especially interested in SelecType, the feature described in
Chapter 2, which you can use with nearly all software.
ENTER
and your LX-90 will list the program.
6
Chapter 2
SelecType
The LX-90 enables you to use a feature called SelecType to produce
five special typestyles:
Typewriter-style Near Letter Quality,
Emphasized bold printing,
Double-strike bald printing ,
Compressed narrow printing,
or Elite printing.
Choosing typestyles with SelecType is simple. A few taps on the
printer’s control panel tell the printer which style you want, and
SelecType lets you choose the typestyle each time you print. For
example, you can print the first draft of a letter or report in the standard mode and the final version in the NLQ mode.
SelecType Operation
Using SelecType is simple. You turn on SelecType and select a
typestyle, then turn off SelecType and print.
Turning SelecType On
1. Make sure that the printer is on and that the POWER, READY, and
ON LINE lights are all on.
2.
Press both the
trated in Figure 2-1.
ON LINE
and
FF
buttons at the same time, as illus-
Figure 2-1. Turning SelecType on
When you press the
ON LINE
and
FF
buttons, the LX-90 signals in
three ways that SelecType is on.
l
The printer beeps.
l
The READY light turns off.
l
The ON LINE light begins flashing.
Selecting typestyles
In SelecType, each button has a function:
l
ON LINE selects typestyles.
. FF sets the styles.
l
LF turns SelecType off.
After turning on SelecType, follow these three steps to select a
typestyle:
1. Find the typestyle you want in Table 2-1.
8
Table
2-1.
SelecType modes
Mode
1
NLQ
2
Emphasized
3
Double-strike
4
Compressed
5Elite
2. Press the ON LINE button the number of times indicated in the
Typestyle
ABCDEFGHIJKLMnopqrstuvwxyz
ABCEDEFGHIJKLMnopqrstuvwxyz
ABCDEFGHIJKLMnopqrstuvwxyz
ABCDEFGHIJKLMnopqrstuvwxyz
ABCDEFGHIJKLMnopqrstuvwxyz
mode column. Be sure that the printer beeps each time you press
the
ON LINE
button.
3. Press the
4. Press the LF button to turn SelecType off. The control panel
FF
button to set the typestyle.
returns to its normal functions, but the printer is off-line.
5. Press the
ON LINE
button, and you are ready to print.
SelecType exercise
You will probably use SelecType mainly with commercial software,
but since there are so many different commercial software programs,
the sample exercises are in BASIC because it is built into the PCjr.
You don’t need to know anything about programming for this exercise because it is merely for practice. If you would rather not use
BASIC, use your word processing or business program to create a
short file or document of the type you will usually print.
If you do want to use BASIC for this exercise, simply turn on your
computer and printer. Then type the short program listed below.
Only the words inside the quotation marks are printed. You can put
anything you want there.
l0 LPRINT "This is an example of"
20 LPRINT "LX-90 printing."
9
Now, run the program by typing RUN and pressing
ENTER,
or
print your file or document by following the printing instructions of
your software. The LX-90 will print your example in standard singlestrike printing, as shown below:
This is an example of
LX-90 printing.
Now that you have created a sample, follow these steps to print it in
emphasized 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. You hear a
beep to signal that SelecType is on.
3. As shown in Table 2-1, the code for emphasized is two. Therefore,
press the
you hear a beep each time you press the
ON LINE
button two times. (Remember to make sure
ON LINE
button when
you are in SelecType mode.)
4. Now that you have selected the emphasized mode, push the
FF
button once to set it.
5. Push the
LF
button once to return the panel to its standard opera-
tion .
6. Press the
ON LINE
button so the LX-90 is ready to print.
Now you have set the LX-90 to print in emphasized mode. Print
your sample once more. It should appear in emphasized mode just as
you see below:
This is an example of
LX-90 printing.
Turn off your printer to cancel the emphasized setting, and-if you
wish-try this exercise with other modes. If you are using commercial
software and SelecType will not change the typestyle, see “SelecType
Features” in Appendix E.
10
Mode combination
Two of the SelecType modes (NLQ and emphasized) can be combined to create an impressive effect. If you want to see this combination, turn your printer off and back on and follow the instructions
below :
1. See that 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 once and then the FF button once.
Since one is the code for NLQ, you have now set the
4.
Press the ON LINE button one more time and then the FF button
once again.
This makes a total of two times, and thus sets the
sized also.
5. Press the LF button to return the panel to its standard operation.
6.
Press the ON LINE button to put the LX-90 on-line.
Now print your sample document or run your sample program. If
your printing appears in
LX-90
LX-90
for NLQ.
for empha-
emphasized Near Letter Quality
as you see here, you have successfully combined the two modes. If
you get any other results, turn your printer off and back on and then
try the steps again.
You can combine other modes using the same technique, but some
modes will not mix with others. Table 2-2 shows which modes can be
combined. A dot in a box indicates that the two modes can be combined.
11
Table 2-2. Mode combinations
Mode
NLQ
Emphasized
Double-strike
Compressed
Elite•
NLQ
Emphasized
•
•
•
Double-
strike
•
•
CompressedElite
••
•
•
Don’t worry about harming your printer if you try to combine two
modes that the LX-90 can’t mix. Your settings cannot damage the
printer because it is prepared for the possibility of receiving codes for
conflicting modes. If it receives codes for two modes that it can’t com-
bine, it uses only one of the codes.
SelecType Tips
After you turn on a mode with SelecType, it usually stays in effect
until the printer is turned off. If, for example, you use SelecType to
print a document in emphasized, anything you print after that will be
emphasized unless you first turn the printer off and back on.
If you like NLQ or compressed well enough to use it most of the
time, you can turn it on and keep it on with a special switch in the
back of your printer. See Appendix D for instructions.
For more information on the SelecType typestyles, see Chapters 3,
4, and 5.
12
Chapter 3
Elements of Dot Matrix Printing
and Computer/Printer Communications
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, particularly the ones on user-defined characters and
graphics.
The Print Head
The LX-90 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. The size varies slightly depending upon the age of the
ribbon and the type of paper used. As the head moves horizontally
across the page, these pins are fired time after time in different patterns
to produce letters, numbers, symbols, or graphics.
For example, to print a pica capital T, the head fires the top pin,
moves 1/60th of an inch, fires the top pin again, moves 1/60th of an
inch, fires the top pin and the six below it at the same time, moves
1/60th of an inch, fires the top pin, moves another 1/6Oth of an inch,
and fires the top pin once more to finish the letter. All this happens in
only l/lOOth of a second.
Figure 3-7. A capital T
13
Changing Pitches
In addition to pica, in which there are
LX-90 can also print in other widths, or pitches. It does so by reducing
the distance between pin firings. In the elite mode it prints 12 characters per inch and in the compressed mode it prints slightly more than
17
characters per inch. The pattern of the dots is not changed, but the
horizontal space between them is reduced.
10
characters per inch, the
Figure 3-2 shows enlargements of four sample letters in
three pitches. These letters are chosen to show how the LX-90 prints
letters that are uppercase and lowercase, wide and
and without descenders (the bottom dots of the j and y).
each of
narrow,
the
and with
This is pica.
This is elite.
This is compressed.
Figure 3-2. The three pitches
The dot pattern of each character is carefully designed so that in
pica no dot overlaps another. The reason is that in
printing the pins cannot fire and retract and fire again quickly enough
to print one dot overlapping another.
of
the LX-90
normal
high-speed
14
NLQ Mode
The preceding examples are in the LX-90’s draft mode, but the
LX-90 also has the high-quality NLQ (Near Letter Quality) mode that
you have seen in previous chapters.
The NLQ letters are more fully-formed than the draft letters
because they are made up of many more dots as you can see below.
Figure 3-3 shows enlargements of two letters in draft mode compared
with the same two in the NLQ mode.
Figure 3-3. Near Letter Quality and draft characters compared
With the two modes, draft and NLQ, the LX-90 lets you choose
high speed or high quality each time you print. You can print your
ordinary work or preliminary drafts quickly in the draft mode and use
the NLQ mode for final copies or special purposes.
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 4 and the operation of the
switch (called a DIP switch) in Appendix D.
15
ESCape and ASCII
The details of printer-computer communication are complex, but
for most purposes all you need to know is that the computer sends a
series of codes (each consisting of one or more numbers) to the printer,
and the printer interprets them.
Some codes tell the printer to print a character, and other codes tell
it to turn on or off certain printer functions, such as emphasized or
Near Letter Quality. Because the codes between 0 and
cally standardized by the American Standard Code for Information
Interchange (ASCII) they are referred to as ASCII numbers in this
manual.
Nearly all of the codes for printer functions require more than one
number and begin with a special code, called the escape code. This
code signals that the next number is a code for a printer function and
its name is usually printed with the first three letters capitalized
(Escape) or it is abbreviated ESC or (ESC) .
In the demonstration programs in this manual, you’ll see how
ASCII and ESCape codes are used in the BASIC programming lan-
guage.
l
LPRINT signals that information is to be sent to the printer.
127
are basi-
l
The CHR$ (character string) function is used for numerical codes.
l
CHR$(27)
l
Quotation marks are used for printable characters, such as letters of
is the ESCape code.
the alphabet.
Your word processing or business program may use other methods
to send those codes, such as pressing the ESC key for the ESCape
code. See your software manual for further information and use
Appendixes A and B of this manual to find the proper codes. Appendix E also has some suggestions on using LX-90 features with applications software.
16
Chapter 4
LX-90 Features
The next four chapters describe many of the printing features of the
LX-90. You can read these chapters if you wish, but you may not need
to. Whether or not you use the rest of this manual depends upon your
expertise, your interest, and the software you plan to use.
Demonstration Programs
Along with discussion and examples of the LX-90 features, these
chapters include demonstrations in the BASIC programming language so that you can see these features in action. Although you will
probably not do much of your printing using BASIC, the demonstrations are in BASIC because it is built into your PCjr, so the examples
are ones that every one of you can try.
You don’t need to know anything about BASIC to type in and run
these programs. All the instructions you need are on the next page.
As you run the programs (or even as you read the explanations and
look at the printed examples), you learn how the LX-90 responds to
the messages your computer sends it by printing letters, numbers,
symbols, and graphics in various print modes.
Even if you never use BASIC again, you will know the capabilities
of your printer, capabilities that can often solve your printing prob-
lems. For example, if you need a special symbol, such as the scientific
symbol for one of the planets, you will know that you can turn to the
chapter on user-defined characters and create such a character.
If you don’t want to do the exercises in BASIC, you don’t have to.
In most cases the software that you use for word processing, business,
or graphics does the calculating and communicating with the
17
printer for you and all you have to know about the printer is how to
turn it on and how to load paper. If you need help with the installation
program for your software, see Appendix E.
How to Run BASIC Programs
If you want to know just enough about BASIC to run the demonstration programs in this manual, here’s all you need. For
more information, see the manuals for the PCjr.
Even if you don’t have a BASIC cartridge, you can still use the
version of BASIC that’s built into the PCjr’s memory. Simply
turn on your PCjr with no cartridges or disks in it. When the
BASIC copyright notice and the message
screen, you can begin entering and running programs.
If you do have a BASIC cartridge, plug in the cartridge, insert a
disk containing DOS in the disk drive (if you have one), and turn
on the PCjr. Then enter the new date and time as requested by
the onscreen messages (or press
displays the prompt A). Type BASICA and press ENTER.
When the BASIC copyright notice and the message
you can begin entering and running programs. If you want to
save programs, replace your DOS disk with a blank formatted
disk.
ENTER
Ok
appear on your
twice). The screen then
Ok
appear,
With either type of BASIC,
manual exactly as you see them. Be sure to include all spaces and
punctuation marks, especially semicolons. Press
end of each line. Since the PCjr uses a 40-column display in the
standard mode, it breaks some lines into two parts on the screen,
but that does not affect the operation of the program. If you
make a typing mistake, retype the whole line; the new line will
replace the old one.
When you have typed all the lines, press the
F2
key to run the program.
If you have made changes to a program and want to see all of it
on the screen, press Fn, F1, and then ENTER to list the program. When you are completely through with one program and
want to start another, type NEW and press
simply type the programs in this
ENTER
Fn
key and then the
ENTER.
at the
18
In Chapter 3 you saw the enlargements of the three LX-90 pitches.
Now you’ll learn how to produce them.
Pica Printing
The first exercise is a simple three-line program to print a sample
line of characters in pica, the standard pitch. Enter this program:
40
FOR X=65 TO 105
50 LPRINT CHR$(X);
60 NEXT X: LPRINT: LPRINT
Now run the program. You should get the results you see below,
pica characters per inch.
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVXYZ[\]ˆ-'acdefghi
10
Changing Pitches
Now you can try other pitches. As explained in Chapter 3, the
LX-90 uses the same pattern of dots for pica, elite, and compressed
characters, but it changes the horizontal spaces between the dots to
produce the three different widths.
In elite mode there are 12 characters per inch, and in compressed
there are
“M” command and prints in compressed when it receives the ASCII
command. Print a sample line of elite characters by adding the line
below to your previous program. (Simply type this line and press
ENTER;
mode. When you run the program, your printout should look like the
one below.
17.16.
The LX-90 prints in elite when it receives the ESCape
15
you do not need to retype the other lines.)
20 LPRINT CHR$(27)"M";
This line uses the command for elite, ESCape "M“, to turn on that
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ[\]ˆ-'abcdefghi
The next addition to the program cancels elite with ESCape “P” and
turns on compressed with ASCII
30
LPRINT CHR$(27)"P"CHR$(15);
15:
19
Now run the program to see the line printed in compressed mode.
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ[\]ˆ-'abcdefghi
Cancelling Codes
As you saw in the third version of the print pitch program, you
must cancel a code when you don’t want it any more. With very few
exceptions, the LX-90 modes stay on until they are cancelled. It is
important to remember this because an LX-90 mode can stay on even
if you change from BASIC to another type of software. For example,
if you run the program above and print a memo with a word processing program afterward, the memo is printed in compressed because
the printer is still in compressed mode. To cancel compressed, use
ASCII 18. In BASIC, you use this format:
LPRINT CHR$(18)
To avoid having one program interfere with the printing modes of
another, you can cancel a mode one of two ways:
l
With a specific cancelling code, such as the ESCape "P" used above
to cancel elite and the ASCII 18 to cancel compressed. 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 or compressed.
l
By resetting the printer, a method explained in the next section.
Resetting the Printer
Resetting your LX-90 cancels all modes that are turned on. You can
reset the printer with one of two methods:
l
Sending the reset code (Escape “@“)
l
Turning the printer off and back on
Either one of these methods returns the printer to what are called its
defaults, which are the standard settings that are in effect every time
you turn the printer on. The two effects of resetting the printer that
you should be concerned with are: it returns the printing to singlestrike pica, thus cancelling any other pitches or enhancements
20
you may have turned on, and the current position of the print head
becomes the top of page setting.
Some of the demonstration programs end with a reset code
(Escape “@“) so that the commands from one program will not interfere with the commands in the next one. After you run a program with
a reset code in it, remember to change the top of page setting before
you begin printing full pages.
Pitch Comparison
Now that you have used three short programs to produce samples
of the three main pitches, you can choose the pitch that you prefer or
the one that best fits a particular printing job. Most people use either
pica or elite for printing text and compressed for spreadsheets or other
applications in which it is important to get the maximum number of
characters on a line.
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 called 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. You can see this mode,
which allows 160 characters to fit on a line, if you replace line 30 in
your last program to produce the following program:
20 LPRINT CHR$(27)"M";
30
LPRINT CHR$(15);
40
FOR
X=65 TO 105
50
LPRINT CHR$(X);
60
NEXT X: LPRINT
With this addition, the program turns on compressed but doesn’t
turn off elite, giving you the printout below:
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ[\]ˆ_'abcdefghi
Near Letter Quality Mode
The examples so far in this chapter are in the draft mode, but you
can also use a software command to turn on the NLQ mode, which
you turned on with SelecType in Chapter 2.
21
Enter and run the following program to see how the NLQ mode is
turned on by an ESCape sequence:
NEW
10 LPRINT CHR$(27)"x"CHR$(l);
20 FOR X=65 TO 105
30
LPRINT CHR$(X);
40
NEXT X: LPRINT
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ[\]ˆ-'abcdefghi
Note that you use a lowercase x, not a capital X, in line
10.
Because
of the high resolution of the NLQ mode, it prints only in pica, not in
elite or compressed.
All the modes demonstrated in this chapter are compared in Table
4-1.
Table 4-1. Summary
Print sample
1 inchOnOff
Near Letter Quality
Pica print
Elite print
Compressed print
Compressed elite print
Remember that you don’t have to use BASIC to change modes; you
can use any method or software that sends the proper codes to the
printer.
of
LX-90 pitches
CPI
10.00
10.00
12.00
17.16
20.00
Codes
ESC "x" 1ESC "x" 0
ESC "M"
15
ESC "M" 15ESC "P" 18
ESC "P"
18
22
Chapter 5
Print Enhancements and Special
Characters
Besides the pitches (pica, elite, and compressed) covered in Chap-
ters 3 and 4, the LX-90 offers many other typestyles.
Bold Modes
Two of the typestyles (emphasized and double-strike) are bolder
than standard printing.
Emphasized Mode
In the emphasized mode the LX-90 prints each dot twice, with the
second dot slightly to the right of the first. In order to do this, the print
head must slow down so that it has time to fire, retract, and fire the
pins quickly enough to produce the overlapping dots. This method
produces better-looking, more fully-formed characters that are darker
than single-strike characters.
To see an example of emphasized, type and run the following program. (See “How to Run BASIC Programs” in Chapter 4 if necessary.)
NEW
10 LPRINT "This is standard printing."
20 LPRINT CHR$(27)"E";
30
LPRINT "This is emphasized printing."
100 LPRINT CHR$(27)"@"
This is standard printing.
This is emphasized printing
23
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
pins quickly enough to print overlapping dots.
You do sacrifice some print speed with emphasized, because the
print head slows down and prints twice as many dots, but the increase
in print quality is well worth it. Indeed, you may want to use emphasized instead of the NLQ mode for some purposes because emphasized
printing is faster than NLQ printing. The code to turn off emphasized
is ESCape “F”.
LX-90
cannot fire, retract, and again fire the
Double-Strike
The other bold mode is double-strike. For this mode the LX-90
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
“G” to turn on double-strike.
10 LPRINT "This is standard printing."
20 LPRINT CHR$(27)"G";
30
LPRINT "This is double-strike printing."
100 LPRINT CHR$(27)"@"
can
see if you
run
this program, which uses ESCape
This is standard printing.
This is double-strike printing.
Unlike emphasized, double-strike combines with any draft pitch
(but not with NLQ) because it does not overlap dots horizontally.
Since each line in this mode is printed twice, the speed of your printing
is slowed. The code to turn off double-strike is ESCape “H”.
Some users prefer the effect of emphasized, and others prefer
double-strike. You can look at the printout below and decide for yourself.
This
this is emphasized printing; and
is standard
printing ;
this is double-strike printing.
24
Expanded Mode
Perhaps the most dramatic mode on the LX-90 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 twice as
many dots are printed. You can see the difference between pica and
expanded pica if you enter and run this program:
l0 LPRINT "This is standard printing."
20 LPRINT CHR$(27)"W1";
30
LPRINT "This is expanded."
100 LPRINT CHR$(27)"@"
This is standard printing
This is expanded.
For this mode the letter W and the numeral one together turn the
mode on and the letter W and the numeral zero together turn it off.
Thus ESCape “Wl” turns on expanded and ESCape "WO” turns it off.
Those of you who are programmers may be interested in another
form of expanded. In this alternate form, called one-line expanded,
the printing is the same as that in the example but it is turned on by
ASCII 14 and is turned off by a line feed, ASCII 20, or ESCape “W0”.
Mode Combinations
You can also combine modes using control codes. For example, you
can make a title especially vivid by combining emphasized and
expanded. In fact, you can combine nearly all of the print modes on
the LX-90; your LX-90 printer can print such complicated combinations as double-strike emphasized expanded underlined subscript,
although you may never want such a combination. The point is, however, that the LX-90 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 emphasized combined with expanded, change two lines in
your previous program:
20 LPRINT CHR$(27)"Wl"CHR$(27)"E";
30
LPRINT "Emphasized expanded"
25
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