[comp.periphs.printers] Running a DEC LA75 off a PC

granoff@vaxwrk.enet.dec.com (Mark H. Granoff) (02/23/90)

In article <12742@bambam.WELLESLEY.EDU>, denis@bambam.WELLESLEY.EDU
(Denis Haskin) writes:
> Hiya -- is anyone out there using a DEC LA75 as a printer for a PC?  I
> am but am having problems.  Essentially, it seems that the printer and
> the PC aren't using flow control.  I thought it was the cable and got
> a new one but that hasn't helped.  The only way to print things
> without the printer's buffer overflowing and garbaging the output is
> to set the line speed *way* down--300 baud.

(Hi Denis!  Long time, since Clark...)

I assume you've got the serial version and not the parallel version (LA75P)?

In any case, I just got an LA75P for my PC.  In preparation, I went out and
bought a centronics printer cable.  I didn't know that the LA75P came with one,
and as it turns out, there's a good reason!

When I used the cable I bought, I got some character garbling (specifically,
space came out as an 'a' with an accent).  When I switched cables (to the DEC
supplied cable), the problem went away.  Apparently, something ain't quite
"standard" about the LA75P's centronics interface...

If you've got the serial LA75, did it come with an RJ11-style cable?  How are
you connecting that up to your serial port?  I'll see what else I can dig up if
you haven't already resolved the problem.

Regards-

Mark

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