kelvin@nth.UUCP (Kelvin Thompson) (12/15/88)
A couple of weeks ago I posted a request for information about the Laserwriter IISC, Apple's low-cost laser printer. Most of the replies I got were fairly negative about the printer, mostly because of the demands it places on its host Mac. I got the impression that unless you absolutely cannot find a way to afford Apple's higher-end printers, you should avoid the IISC. A succinct summary statement: } From: cs.utexas.edu!emx.utexas.edu!rchan (Ricardo Chan) } } We had a IIsc for a while and we ended up upgrading the printer to a IInt } because the quality isn't satisfactory and graphics are very limited when } using MacDraft. The biggest complaint had to do with fonts. You have to store a lot of large fonts on your host Mac, and there aren't very many of these fonts available. Also, I think that special styles of fonts (e.g. italics, bold) are generated on the fly, rather than from separated bit images. } From: emx.utexas.edu!rchan (Ricardo Chan) } } The fonts take a large space in your System file because you need a font } 4 times the size of the one you want to print. If you want to print } Times 12 you need Times 48 to print and Times 12 to display on the } screen. That also means you are restricted to the fonts they give } you unless you have large fonts for everything you want. } From: cs.utexas.edu!coherent.com!dplatt (Dave Platt) } } (4) You really do need a hard disk, and enough free memory to construct } an in-memory image of the page in question. The hard disk is needed } because you must have 4x-oversize copies of the fonts that you want } to use, so that the IIsc driver can (for example) use a 40-point, 72 } dot/inch Times image to construct a 10-point, 300 dot/inch image on } the page. These oversize fonts take up lots of space! } From: David Casseres <cs.utexas.edu!apple.com!casseres> } } Note that the main PostScript feature missing in the IISC is PostScript } fonts. With the IISC you get only Times, Helvetica, Courier, and Symbol, } in standard sizes (i.e. if you try for 48-point Times you'll see jaggies). } I've heard that 3rd parties are "working on" more of the large bitmap fonts } that the IISC uses. } } Another point to bear in mind: the very large fonts required by the IISC } occupy so much disk space that it's kind of impractical to use them much } on a floppy-based system. } From: lanai.cs.ucla.edu!beto (Alberto Avritzer) } } The main problem that I find with the SCII is in using } Latex, because of the well known font problem. } } I was told that they would fix that problem and allow } latex use it's full set of fonts. One correspondent also brought up the issue of RAM: } From: David Casseres <cs.utexas.edu!apple.com!casseres> } } Your 3rd point involves another one that you may not be aware of: the } driver software for the IISC needs lots of memory to work well, and } performance is closely linked to available memory. You didn't say what } sort of Mac your friends are going to be using, but while 1MByte RAM does } work, the IISC is at its best in a system where you can run MultiFinder } and do background printing, i.e. at least 2 MByte. When printing in the } background, the IISC ties up the Mac about the same as any other Apple } printer that prints in the background. } } Finally, there are cases, related to tight RAM space, where the IISC fails } to print large-size text that has QuickDraw "styles" such as bold, outline, } shadow, etc. This is only a problem if you are hung up on 24-point outline } text, and las than about 4 MByte of RAM. On the plus side, it looks like the IISC isn't too bad as far as speed: } From: David Casseres <cs.utexas.edu!apple.com!casseres> } } On the other hand, if you have } lots of RAM, like 5 MByte, you can print in the foreground if you like, } and OUTPERFORM a LaserWriter Plus on most documents and even outperform } an NT on quite a few documents. } From: cs.utexas.edu!emx.utexas.edu!rchan (Ricardo Chan) } } Speed is not a problem. It works pretty fast. About as fast as the IInt. } but the quality leaves a lot out. Thanks to everybody that replied. -- -- Kelvin Thompson {...,uunet}!cs.utexas.edu!nth!kelvin Graphics Hack kelvin%nth.uucp@cs.utexas.edu
casseres@Apple.COM (David Casseres) (12/16/88)
In article <346@nth.UUCP> kelvin@nth.UUCP (Kelvin Thompson) writes: >A couple of weeks ago I posted a request for information about >the Laserwriter IISC, Apple's low-cost laser printer. Most of >the replies I got were fairly negative about the printer, mostly >because of the demands it places on its host Mac. I got the >impression that unless you absolutely cannot find a way to >afford Apple's higher-end printers, you should avoid the IISC. Well, I don't think it's *that* bad. Many people who have bought the IISC seem to be happy with it. >} From: cs.utexas.edu!emx.utexas.edu!rchan (Ricardo Chan) >} >} We had a IIsc for a while and we ended up upgrading the printer to a IInt >} because the quality isn't satisfactory and graphics are very limited when >} using MacDraft. I don't know what the problem is with MacDraft, a program that has never worked well for me with *any* printer. With MacDraw or MacDraw II the IISC prints very nice graphics. >} From: cs.utexas.edu!coherent.com!dplatt (Dave Platt) >} >} (4) You really do need a hard disk, and enough free memory to construct >} an in-memory image of the page in question. The second statement is erroneous; the page is not imaged in RAM all at once, but one object at a time. Even if an object is too big for avail- able RAM, it will be broken down into slices. >} The main problem that I find with the SCII is in using >} Latex, because of the well known font problem. Gee, what's Latex? I would like to know what it is and what the "well known" font problem is. >On the plus side, it looks like the IISC isn't too bad as far as speed: >} From: David Casseres <cs.utexas.edu!apple.com!casseres> >} >} On the other hand, if you have >} lots of RAM, like 5 MByte, you can print in the foreground if you like, >} and OUTPERFORM a LaserWriter Plus on most documents and even outperform >} an NT on quite a few documents. Let me amplify that a bit. I am used to using a LaserWriter IISC, but as a result of a recent office move I don't have it set up yet. Instead I'm using a LaserWriter IINTX on a spooler (print server). It is just across the hall from my cubicle, but I HATE IT!!! I know my system is tied up exactly the same amount of time (well, mostly -- read on), but having to go across the hall makes printing seem slow. Then there are the times when I have to wait for someone else's job to finish before mine starts. And then there's a peculiar effect, which is that some applications, when they know they're printing to a PostScript printer, start generating PostScript internally, and this slows down printing at the *application* end. This affects the time the system is tied up, even when using background printing. >} From: cs.utexas.edu!emx.utexas.edu!rchan (Ricardo Chan) >} >} Speed is not a problem. It works pretty fast. About as fast as the IInt. >} but the quality leaves a lot out. I have to comment on this because to many people, "quality" means the clean- ness of the image. I claim that the IISC offers the same quality, in this sense, as the PostScript LaserWriters, as long as you stay within its envelope. This envelope is: Use only the Times, Helvetica, Courier, and Symbol fonts provided (or other fonts that have the large sizes) and only the "standard" sizes, 9, 10, 12, 14 18, and 24 points. Avoid a few applications that are only intended for PostScript printing. There are not many of these, and the newest versions of them are starting to print very nicely indeed on the IISC. A hard disk is needed to make the IISC really practical. 2 MBytes or more of RAM are highly desirable but NOT essential. A footnote to all this: In my very personal opinion, the IISC is best understood if you forget that it bears the name "LaserWriter." Think of it as a fast, high-resolution Macintosh printer that uses a laser marking engine and is upgradeable to a PostScript LaserWriter. Think of the Apple line of printers as being made up of three families: the ImageWriters, the IISC, and the PostScript LaserWriters. David Casseres
Ilan@cup.portal.com (ilan - rabinowitz) (12/17/88)
I have been using the IISC at home for over 5 months. I have been quite satisfied with the fonts, graphics quality, and esspecially the speed. The only laser printer that has event come close tho its speed is the NTX, which is still about twice as slow as my SC on most tasks. If you need a printer which prints fast, the SC is the way to go. However, I am using 4 MB RAM which must help quite a bit. Since I need the RAM anyhow the speed comes for free. I also have an 80MB hard drive, but 40MB would have been quite sufficient for my needs. - Ilan -
folta@tove.umd.edu (Wayne Folta) (12/18/88)
As a user who just got a loan to upgrade from the SC to an NT, I would disagree with those who say the SC is okay. First, the bitmap fonts DO NOT look as good as their PostScript equivalents, in any size. And try using italics with Apple's standard fonts! You get the ugly obliqued italics that don't space properly--same as on your screen. Second, combinations, such as PageMaker and the LaserWriter IISC DO NOT work. As mentioned in a previous article, large (18- and 24-point) text will not work reliably in any typestyle except normal. If you try to get 18-point bold text, you will often get letters scattered around the page. (Aldus blames Apple, Apple blames Aldus, I pay the penalty.) Other combinations--that cause crashes when printing is attempted: MacVision 2.0, Digital Darkroom 1.0. Third, you CAN NOT get fonts to allow printing at larger than 32 points. (Not using the standard Apple SC driver, and font mechanism.) Because the Mac does not allow fonts larger than 128-points--I think--so the 4x fonts limit you. Fourth, don't try any kerning. I had *terrible* results with (again) PageMaker, which allowed characters to touch when it printed a line. I believe that this problem would show up in other programs (e.g. Word), if they attempted to print nice, tight lines. Wayne Folta (folta@tove.umd.edu 128.8.128.42)
rod@brillig.umd.edu (Rodrigo Fontecilla) (09/30/89)
I bought a Mac IIx and a Laserwriter II SC and the backgrounder does not work. I have read in this group recently differnt opinions about it. Can anybody tell me what's the real thing. If it does, how can I make it work ?
kingchu@ttidca.TTI.COM (King-Hang Chu) (03/08/90)
Hi everyone,
Does anyone have any information on the bitmap printing speed of the
Laserwriter II sc connected to the SCSI bus with a MAC II ci or cx ??
I would also like to know the overhead time involve in the printing of
the first page and where can I find a computer dealer in the California
or U.S. area with such a set up. Any information or help regarding the
above subject will be appreciated. Please email to me at the following
address : kingchu@ttidca.tti.com or post to this newsgroup. Thanks.