[comp.sys.mac.hardware] Deskwriter doesn't like system 7.0b4 ?

rcbalc@rw8.urc.tue.nl (Luc Cluitmans) (03/11/91)

I've been playing for about aweek now with system 7.0b4. It's great!
Except for one thing: I can't print more than one page on my deskwriter...

These are the symptoms of my problem:
1) When trying to print from any application with the new Deskwriter
   driver (v2.1) a dialog tries to get on my screen after clicking OK
   in the Printer dialog. The putting up of the dialog doesn't succeed:
   only a rapidly flashing outline of the dialog appears on the screen
   and the system freezes. There is only a white plane in the dialog,
   so I can't see whether it comes from the system or from the deskwriter
   driver.
2) When using the old driver (v2.0) the behaviour as slightly better:
   I can print one page before the system freezes. Sometimes it simply
   freezes and sometimes something is putting up the ghostly dialog.
3) When using the old driver when there is no paper in the printer the
   ghost-dialog is put up immediately (and the system freezes). My
   conclusion: The handling of the interrupts coming from the printer
   goes wrong.
4) It seemed to be a problem with some dialog? well, let's try to change
   the settings of the dialogs in the Deskwriter Driver 2.1 (Sorry HP...):
   change all info-bits of the DLOG's, DITL's and CNTL's to unpurgeable,
   systemheap and preload. Using the new driver the results got much better:
   With the system I could safely print a two-page folder-listing; A four-page
   NISUS 3.0 document came out, ehhh... garbled at page three but it came out
   without hanging the system...; Claris CAD 2.0 gave various results:
   some documents came out perfect, Another one cleared the whole screen to
   white before hanging the system...

System information:
Mac Plus /4Meg memory / 60 Meg harddisk (with two partitions of 30 Meg each)
HP Deskwriter connected with a serial cable; I Don't have any appletalk cables.
INIT's : ATM, SF-INIT, Afterdark
System software version 7.0b4

As far as I can see the Deskwriter driver has problems with handling the
memory properly under system 7.0b4. But is it a bug in system 7.0b4 or
a bug in the Deskwriter drivers? Has anybody noticed this before?
That's why I post this article to c.s.m.hardware and to c.s.m.system; 
Please reply to comp.sys.mac.system.

(HP or Apple listening ?)

Thanks for any help,
   Luc Cluitmans.         rcbalc@urc.tue.nl

-- 
............................................................................
 Luc Cluitmans                                              rcbalc@urc.tue.nl
 Don't Worry, Be happy!
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