a752@mindlink.UUCP (Bruce Dunn) (05/04/90)
> marshall@wind55.seri.gov writes: > > I tried mailing this to Eric 5 times. I give up. I spent a lot of time > typing this in and I don't want it to go to waste. So, my fellow netters, > please bear with me. > > [message on problems with specific WINDOWS printer drivers deleted] Eric at Microsoft has kindly offered to receive constructive comments on WINDOWS printer drivers. I also tried to mail something to Eric and had it bounce. The address that I used was "ericbi@microsoft.UUCP" The system replied that it had never heard of this machine. Eric, if you are reading this could you please provide an address at which you can be reached, and alternate addresses if you have them so that people can get mail to you if your main address fails. Also, for those at MICROSOFT, is there a general address to which people could send comments and questions about MICROSOFT products? -- Bruce Dunn Vancouver, Canada a752@mindlink.UUCP
marshall@wind55.seri.gov (Marshall L. Buhl) (05/04/90)
I tried mailing this to Eric 5 times. I give up. I spent a lot of time typing this in and I don't want it to go to waste. So, my fellow netters, please bear with me. Eric, Thanks a million for caring what the users think. Most software companies act like the don't care. That's one reason why I buy so many MS products. I do have some problems with Windows printer drivers. When I was a beta tester for WinWord, I sent you folks a letter explaining that I couldn't recommend WinWord because of these drivers. I'll reiterate here. HP LaserJet: I'm a PC Word lover. I've been using it for years. One thing I really like about PC Word is that when I go to print on my LaserJet, it asks me if I want to download all fonts, newly added fonts or no fonts. When I'm using softfonts with Windows, I must download every font every time I print. When I'm using a 30 pt font, this can take forever. I usually use 2 typefaces of many sizes and combinations of bold and italic. This is a lot of stuff to download. It takes just too long to print. This is why my branch will stick with PC Word until optional downloads are added to Windows. Epson LQ series: In the early days of PC Word, MS provided LQ drivers that supported the double density mode of the LQ series. When I got my first LQ-850, there was no driver for it, so I modified the LQ-800 driver to suit the LQ-850. I put in double density for the proportional fonts and a 24 pt font. The 24 point font was generated by using the double-wide AND double-high escape sequences. This looks MUCH better than the 16 pt font that was produced by just using double-wide. The letters retain their natural aspect ratio and don't look squashed. The Windows driver for the LQ-850 seems to be about the same as the standard driver that now comes with PC Word. The problem is that PC Word lets me edit the printer driver. I can't do this with Windows drivers. It is SO frustrating. Output on my LQ-850 from WinWord looks real wimpy. The characters look thin and not fully formed. You don't use the double density mode. Also, you use those squashed letters for titles. They really look tacky. The LQ-850 is a fantastic printer IF you take advantage of all it's features. Windows (nor even PC Word for that matter) does not. These are the only two printers I've used with Windows, so I can't comment about any others. If you would like a copy of my PC Word LQ-850 driver, I will be happy to send it to you with a sample document that displays all the available fonts. It really is MUCH better than the standard one that comes with PC Word. You could use the escape sequences I came up with to produce first rate output for Windows. Thanks again for asking, Marshall -- Marshall L. Buhl, Jr. EMAIL: marshall@seri.gov Senior Computer Engineer VOICE: (303)231-1014 Wind Research Branch 1617 Cole Blvd., Golden, CO 80401-3393 Solar Energy Research Institute Solar - safe energy for a healthy future
ericbi@microsoft.UUCP (Eric BIDSTRUP) (05/08/90)
In article <1666@mindlink.UUCP>, a752@mindlink.UUCP (Bruce Dunn) writes: Eric, if you are reading this > could you please provide an address at which you can be reached, and alternate > addresses if you have them so that people can get mail to you if your main > address fails. > Also, for those at MICROSOFT, is there a general address to which people > could send comments and questions about MICROSOFT products? > -- My appologies for any problems my incomplete email address may have caused, I am a relative novice at using the USENET. The 'best' (as I understand it) address to attempt to email me at is microsoft!ericbi@uunet.UU.NET If that fails, I can be reached via normal mail at Microsoft Corporation One Microsoft Way Redmond, WA 98073-9717 Attn: Eric Bidstrup Please send any feedback via email or mail, no phone calls please. Other general questions/comments can be sent to the same address, except marked Attention: Customer Service. While I am interested in constuctive feedback, please do not mail me with general comments/questions or flames on topics other than Windows Printer Drivers. For those that have responded, I thank you for taking the time to do so, but given the number of responses I am not able to respond to each message. thanks -Eric Bidstrup