[comp.lang.postscript] fun with postscript

burgess@eniac.seas.upenn.edu (Richard Burgess) (05/01/91)

I am in the market for a new printer for home use.
With ATM, I do not really NEED a postscript printer.
However, I have had lots of fun with Goscript and 
Ghostscript and would like to get some info on 
potential postscript printers/cards.

How fast does a IIp print with cartridge?
How fast does a III print with cartridge?
IIIp anyone????

recommended cartridge?

minimum ram needed?
recommended ram for decent use?

Is the TI microlaser really as good as they say?

Thanks much

 


--
*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************
Richard Burgess       BURGESS@ENIAC.SEAS.UPENN.EDU
University of Pennsylvania

tneff@bfmny0.BFM.COM (Tom Neff) (05/01/91)

In article <42360@netnews.upenn.edu> burgess@eniac.seas.upenn.edu (Richard Burgess) writes:
>I am in the market for a new printer for home use.
>With ATM, I do not really NEED a postscript printer.

(Sure you do -- ATM doesn't solve everything.)

>However, I have had lots of fun with Goscript and 
>Ghostscript and would like to get some info on 
>potential postscript printers/cards. ...

>minimum ram needed?
>recommended ram for decent use?

Regardless of the printer or cartridge you pick, letter size 300dpi
PostScript will need at least 1.5MB of RAM.  2MB or more is even better.

>Is the TI microlaser really as good as they say?

Anyone who knows the answer is automatically one of "them." :-)  But it
is a very good little printer -- for home use I would definitely
recommend it, unless you already have a LJII or better.  
-- 
The genius of you Americans is that you never make   **  Tom Neff
any clear-cut stupid moves, only complicated stupid  **  tneff@bfmny0.BFM.COM
moves that leave us scratching our heads wondering
if we might possibly have missed something. -- Gamel Abdel Nasser

schuster@panix.uucp (Michael Schuster) (05/02/91)

In article <42360@netnews.upenn.edu> burgess@eniac.seas.upenn.edu (Richard Burgess) writes:
>
>IIIp anyone????

I should have a IIIP by tomorrow. Assuming my third party RAM card for the
IIP works in the IIIP, I can report on the HP/Adobe PS Cart with the
IIIP. HP assures me it will work, but with two "gotchas" - you cannot switch
the startup page or RET programatically ... only using the front panel. i
can live with that.

The CPU on the IIIP is 60% faster than the IIP ... so cpu intensive
code should run appreciably faster/



-- 
 Mike Schuster                                      |    CIS: 70346,1745
 NY Public Access UNIX:  ...cmcl2!panix!schuster    |    MCI Mail, GENIE:
 The Portal (R) System:  schuster@cup.portal.com    |           MSCHUSTER

richard@pegasus.com (Richard Foulk) (05/13/91)

>I should have a IIIP by tomorrow. Assuming my third party RAM card for the
>IIP works in the IIIP, I can report on the HP/Adobe PS Cart with the
>IIIP. HP assures me it will work, but with two "gotchas" - you cannot switch
>the startup page or RET programatically ... only using the front panel. i
>can live with that.

Anybody know if this is true of the LJ3 also?  It would be nice to be
able to turn off the RET (resolution enhancement) on some things.  Some
bitmaps look slightly better without it.


-- 
Richard Foulk		richard@pegasus.com

mr@ogre.cica.indiana.edu (Michael Regoli) (05/13/91)

In <1991May13.084753.21863@pegasus.com> richard@pegasus.com (Richard
Foulk) writes: 

>>I should have a IIIP by tomorrow. Assuming my third party RAM card for the
>>IIP works in the IIIP, I can report on the HP/Adobe PS Cart with the
>>IIIP. HP assures me it will work, but with two "gotchas" - you cannot switch
>>the startup page or RET programatically ... only using the front panel. i
>>can live with that.

>Anybody know if this is true of the LJ3 also?  It would be nice to be
>able to turn off the RET (resolution enhancement) on some things.  Some
>bitmaps look slightly better without it.

This is true with the HPLJIII.  RET control and start-up page options
can only be changed via the front panel.

And, in case you were curious, in order to go from PostScript to PCL5,
or vice versa, you have to power down and remove/insert the cartridge.

--

michael regoli
mr@cica.indiana.edu
regoli@iubacs.BITNET
..rutgers!iuvax!cica!mr

jeffe@eniac.seas.upenn.edu (george) (05/13/91)

:>>IIIP. HP assures me it will work, but with two "gotchas" - you cannot switch
:>>the startup page or RET programatically ... only using the front panel. i
:>>can live with that.
:
:>Anybody know if this is true of the LJ3 also?  It would be nice to be
:
:This is true with the HPLJIII.  RET control and start-up page options
:can only be changed via the front panel.

I havn't uset either, but the HP Postscript cartridge manual describes
postscript operators "setdoret" and "setdostartpage" for controling
RET and startup page activity.  

since I have the manual open, if anyone is interested

integer setdoret   ! integer 0=off 1=light 2=medium 3=dark 
doret !returns integer RET setting
boolean setdostartpage ! boolean = on or off
dostartpage !returns boolean on/off

the RET setting is semi-persistant,
while the startup setting is persistant (obviously.. )

--
-george            george@mech.seas.upenn.edu

kdg@world.std.com (Keith D Gregory) (05/13/91)

In article <1991May13.084753.21863@pegasus.com> richard@pegasus.com 
(Richard Foulk) writes:
[someone else writes:]
>>I should have a IIIP by tomorrow. Assuming my third party RAM card for the
>>IIP works in the IIIP, I can report on the HP/Adobe PS Cart with the
>>IIIP. HP assures me it will work, but with two "gotchas" - you cannot switch
>>the startup page or RET programatically ... only using the front panel. i
>>can live with that.
>
>Anybody know if this is true of the LJ3 also?  It would be nice to be
>able to turn off the RET (resolution enhancement) on some things.  Some
>bitmaps look slightly better without it.

According the the manual enclosed with the HP PostScript card, "setdoret"
allows you to change the RET setting (including turning it off), 
"setdostartpage" allows you turn the startup page on or off.

-kdg

schuster@cup.portal.com (Michael Alan Schuster) (05/14/91)

>>I should have a IIIP by tomorrow. Assuming my third party RAM card for the
>>IIP works in the IIIP, I can report on the HP/Adobe PS Cart with the
>>IIIP. HP assures me it will work, but with two "gotchas" - you cannot switch
>>the startup page or RET programatically ... only using the front panel. i
>>can live with that.

>Anybody know if this is true of the LJ3 also?  It would be nice to be
>able to turn off the RET (resolution enhancement) on some things.  Some
>bitmaps look slightly better without it.

No. The problem is that the PostScript cartridge "works" on a IIIP by
"pretending" it is running on a IIP. Therefore, Series III features
cannot be switched in or out because the PostScript interpreter does
not know they are there. However, since the PS Cart recognizes a plain III,
you can adjust RET with the cartridge running.

Don't expect HP to bother fixing this, btw. Current feeling is that Level I
PostScript is a dead issue, and a cartridge-based Level 2 interpreter would be
too slow. So expect an add-in board (like PacificPage XL) with built-in CPU.


 Mike Schuster                                      |    CIS: 70346,1745
 NY Public Access UNIX:  ...cmcl2!panix!schuster    |    MCI Mail, GENIE:
 The Portal (R) System:  schuster@cup.portal.com    |           MSCHUSTER