Cream of the Crop 1/Cream of the Crop 1.iso/PRINTER/EPSON.ARJ/NU-EPSON.DOC

Text File | 1989-07-19 | 19KB | 426 lines

                                 NU-EPSON 2.3

                         The Pop-Up Printer Controller

                        Copyright (C) 1985 Charles Rich

NU-EPSON is a memory resident printer controller that pop's up for you any time
you need to set your printer.  With NU-EPSON you can change your printer's style
and format instantly.  You'll never need to exit to DOS to change your printer
again.  You can stay inside your word processor, editor or whatever.

To load NU-EPSON, put your program disk in your default drive, type NU-EPSON and
then press carriage return.  When the brief installation message comes up,
NU-EPSON is loaded.  After that you can call NU-EPSON any time by pressing
Alt-Caps Lock.  Just hold the Alt key down and press Caps Lock.

When summoned, NU-EPSON pop's up with a menu of printer styles and motion
controls.  The styles are on the left side of the menu.  The motion controls are
on the right.  The styles are Compressed, Double-strike, Emphasized, Italic,
Tiny, and Wide.  The motion controls are: Form feed, Line feed, Quiet, and
Uni-directional.  NU-EPSON also offers Hex Input mode and a Reset feature.  On a
color monitor the styles are displayed in cyan, and the motion controls are
white.  This is a visual reminder.

NU-EPSON is ready for your selections as soon as it comes up.  Just type the
letters corresponding to the combination of features you want.  Press the
backspace key to delete any entries.  Submit your selections when everything is
just right, by pressing the carriage return.  NU-EPSON will disappear, sending
your commands to the printer.

You can enter up to eight selections on the regular entry line.  Although you'll
probably never need to send that many.  If you try to enter more than eight
selections NU-EPSON will beep to alert you.  If you really want to send more
than eight commands, just submit the first eight and call NU-EPSON a second time
and submit the remaining commands.  You can repeat this as often as you need.

If you call NU-EPSON while your printer is turned off, or is off line, you will
get a flashing "Printer" message.  Just turn your printer on, or put it back on
line and NU-EPSON will continue.  Press the carriage return if you want to exit
instead.

The next few pages cover all the features of NU-EPSON in detail.  If you have
any questions or comments please let me know about them.  My address is at the
end of this documentation.  If you'd like a reply, please enclose a
self-addressed stamped envelope.


NU-EPSON'S PRINT STYLES

The following is a detailed description of NU-EPSON's print styles.  The best
way to get familiar with them is to experiment.  They can be combined almost any
way you'd like, and many combina- tions are quite useful.

C  Compressed Mode

This is easily the most popular print width after the standard pica.  You get
132 characters per line with Compressed Mode instead of 80.  This is great for
any reports and spreadsheets that need extra width yet must retain high
legibility.  Your printer will print 17.16 characters per inch instead of the
usual 10.

D  Double-Strike Mode

This print mode gives you darker type by filling in the vertical spaces between
dots.  Your printer reprints each line after shifting the paper down 1/216".

E  Emphasized Mode

This mode reprints each line after shifting the print head slightly, filling in
the horizontal space between dots.  This is darker than Double-Strike, and the
two modes used together make a very dark, solid type style.  Note that the Epson
printer won't print Emphasized and Compressed Modes together, it will ignore the
Compressed Mode setting.

I  Italic Mode

Use Italic Mode when you want your printing to look a little fancier.  You can
mix Italic Mode with any other mode such as Compressed, Wide, Tiny or any
combination.







                               NU-EPSON  page 2

T  Tiny Type

This is a combination of Compressed and Superscript modes, with 1/12" line
feeds.  This is the tiniest print you can get from the Epson, and it's still
really legible.  This is great for long program listings, archiving or novelty
effects.  You'll find other uses--it grows on you.

W  Wide or Expanded Mode

This doubles the width of your type.  When combined with Double Strike and
Emphasized modes, this is the most atten- tion getting style.  This is a good
combination when printing bulletin board notices and announcements.  You can
also mix Wide Mode with any other mode for some interesting type styles.



NU-EPSON'S MOTION CONTROLS


F  Form Feed

This is an instant action key for Nu-Epson.  Pressing "F" sends a form feed to
your printer, advancing the paper to the top of the next page.  This lets you
begin print jobs at the top of a fresh sheet of paper.  It spares you from
reaching over, taking your printer off-line, pressing the form feed button and
then putting it back on line.  This doesn't echo an "F" on the entry line, and
you can issue it as many times as you like.  It won't fill the entry buffer.

L  Line Feed

This is another instant action key for Nu-Epson.  When you press "L", Nu-Epson
sends a line feed to your printer, advancing the paper one line.  This lets you
skip lines instantly.  This too, won't echo an "L" on the entry line, and you
can issue it as many times as you like.  It won't fill the entry buffer.

Q  Quiet or Half-Speed Mode

This runs your Epson printer at half its normal speed for a slightly quieter
print job.

U  Unidirectional Mode

This makes your Epson print in one direction only.  This is good for graphics
output in non-standard print modes since it reduces misalignment from row to
row.

H  Hex Input Mode

This gives you the "Hex:" prompt so you can send customized control strings with
your menu choices.  When you're through with Hex Input, hit the carriage return
to come back to the regular entry line.  You'll see an "H" in the command line
as a reminder of your Hex string, if you entered one.  Your Hex string will then
be sent along with your menu choices.  Hex Input is discussed more fully below.

R  Reset

This sends the "Master Reset" code to your Epson.  After that, your printer is
in the same state as when it's first turned on.  This means that all the mode
settings are cleared and the current line position is the new top of form.  When
used with the line feed key, this is an easy way for setting the top of form.
Just advance to where you want the new top of form to be and press Reset.
NU-EPSON will chirp and flash "Reset" to alert you, when pressed.  Reset also
clears the command entry line.


NU-EPSON'S HEX INPUT MODE

In the back of your Epson User's Manual you'll find a complete set of control
codes for your printer.  There are commands for setting your printer's margins,
underlining, changing character sets, defining form lengths, line feeds and so
on.  These are all the possible ways you can set your printer.  With Hex Input
Mode, NU-EPSON lets you send all of these, easily.

Press "H" to invoke the Hex Input Mode.  The "Hex:" prompt will appear and you
can create your hex string by simply typing it from the keyboard.











                               NU-EPSON  page 3


As an example, let's turn on underlining.  You can make your printer print
underlines by sending it this sequence: <ESC>"-1".  So, in Hex Input mode press
the escape key, then the negative sign, then the number 1.  NU-EPSON will
convert them to hex for you.  You'll see these hex values echoed on the Hex
Input line as: 1B 2D 31.  Press the carriage return and you'll go back to the
usual input line.  The "H" in the entry line reminds you that you have defined a
hex string at that point.  Press the carriage return again and NU-EPSON will
disappear, submitting your commands to the printer.  That's all there is to it.
No more fooling around with hex conversion tables and firing up the BASIC inter-
preter every time you want to change your printer.

The Hex Input Mode will let you send up to nine hex characters to your printer.
If you try to send more than nine characters, NU-EPSON will beep to alert you.
Since most control codes are about three characters long this lets you send two
or three configurations at once.

For example, you could set the left and right margins, and redefine the number
of lines in a page with just one hex input string.  We'll do this later.  If you
need to send a longer sequence simply call NU-EPSON again and submit the rest of
the sequence.  You can repeat this as many times as you need to.

If you make mistakes in your hex entry, press the backspace key to correct them.
This will step the cursor backwards, clearing entries one by one.

Press the carriage return when you're happy with your hex input string.  This
returns you to the regular entry line where you can continue setting your
printer from the menu if you want.  If you created a hex string in Hex Input
mode you'll see an "H" on the regular entry line where you called Hex Input.
This is to remind you of your Hex input string.  If you didn't enter anything in
Hex Input mode, there won't be an "H" in the regular command line.  Since
NU-EPSON holds only one line of hex input, you can only create one hex string at
a time.  This means you can only have one "H" on your command entry line.

If you try to get into Hex Input Mode twice from the regular command line
NU-EPSON will beep, alerting you that you have already created a hex input line.

If you want to get into Hex Input Mode anyway, just delete the "H" from the
previous hex input.  NU-EPSON will then let you enter hex commands again.

If you need to submit a hex string that's too long for one entry line, simply
send it piece by piece.  Enter the first nine hex characters and send them.
Then call NU-EPSON again and send another nine characters.  You can repeat this
as many times as you like.


USING THE ALT-KEYPAD

Some of the Epson printer commands need you to give a number for a parameter.
For instance, you need to give a number when setting margins, or the number of
lines to print per page, or for the number of line feeds per form, and for
character spacings, etc.  The control codes in the back of the User's Manual ask
for these numbers like this: CHR$(n), with "n" being the number you want.  The
Alt-Keypad lets you send these numbers to NU-EPSON.  Whenever a control code
says CHR$(n), you'll use the Alt-Keypad to send that number.

The Alt-Keypad is a normal feature of the IBM PC's keyboard.  If you hold the
Alt key down and then enter a number using only the numeric keypad on the right
hand side of the keyboard, the keyboard will send the ASCII character
corresponding to that number.  In Hex Input mode, NU-EPSON converts all your
keystrokes into the hexadecimal value for the character you pressed, including
characters entered from the Alt-Keypad.

So, to put the number 50 in NU-EPSON's Hex Input line, hold the Alt key down and
press the 5 and 0 on the numeric keypad. when you release the Alt key you'll see
a 32 in the hex string.  That is the number 50 in hexadecimal.  As another
example, to put the number 127 into a hex input command, hold the Alt key down
and type 127 on the numeric keypad, release the Alt key.  This generates a 7F in
the entry line. 7F is 127 in hexadecimal numbers.

Note that when the Caps Lock key is turned on, your computer will invert the
case of the letters of the alphabet, changing "A"'s to "a"'s and vice versa.
This means then, that if Caps Lock is set and you enter the number 100 from the
Alt-Keypad, which corres- ponds to the letter "d", with Caps Lock on, your
computer will intervene and convert that lowercase "d" to a capital "D".  Now,
the "D" character is ASCII character number 68, not 100 as you intended.  Since
NU-EPSON converts keboard input into hexadecimal, you'll get the hex number 44
instead of hex 64.  The upshot of all this is that if you start getting numbers
that aren't right, check the Caps Lock key.







                               NU-EPSON  page 4


The numbers from 65 to 90 correspond to uppercase letters.  They should all
start with 4's or 5's in hexadecimal.

The numbers from 97 to 122 correspond to lowercase letters.  They should all
start with 6's or 7's in hexadecimal.

Note that if you forget to hold the Alt key down when you type on the keypad it
will generate 00's.  This is useful for when you need to send a CHR$(0).  Also,
ProKey users should remember that ProKey wants you to press Shift-Alt while
using the numeric keypad, otherwise you'll only get 00's, too.


AN EXAMPLE OF HEX INPUT

Hex Input Mode is a very simple way to send your custom codes.  You'll get the
hang of it quickly. for practice, try sending "Hi there" to your printer by just
using the Hex Input Mode.  Call up the Hex Input Mode and type "Hi there" right
from the keyboard.  You should see: 48 69 20 74 68 65 72 65.  Those are the
hexadecimal values for those letters.  Before sending it do one more thing.
Enter the number 10 from the Alt-Keypad.  Hold the Alt key down and press 1 and
0.  This generates a 0A, the line feed character.  We need the line feed to
flush the printer buffer and print our message right away.  Your Hex Input Line
should look like this now: 48 69 20 74 68 65 72 65 0A.

Now, let's submit it.  Press the carriage return and get back to the regular
entry line.  Then press carriage return again to exit NU-EPSON and submit the
hex string.  Your printer will print "Hi there".  Sending hex command strings to
your printer is the very same thing.  But instead of being sequences of
characters that spell something meaningful to you, they say something meaningful
to your printer.


AN EXAMPLE USING MANY FEATURES

When you use Tiny Type to print programs source code, or long lists, you'll find
that margins of 26 and 106, with skip over perforation set for 12 lines make
nicely formatted listings.  You can set it as follows.

Start by re-establishing the top of form three lines down from the perforation,
about 1/2-inch down.  Simply tap "L" three times, until the paper is positioned
correctly, then press "R" to send a Master Reset to the printer.  That is now
the new top of form.  You'll see why we did this when we set our skip over
perforation "clear zone," below.

Next, press "T" to invoke Tiny Type.

Press "H" for Hex Input Mode.  In Hex Input Mode press Escape, l (lower case
"L"), and use the Alt-Keypad to send the hexadecimal number for 26.  This will
set the left margin at 26 spaces.

Next press Escape, Q (capital "Q"), and use the Alt-Keypad to send 106.  This
establishes the left margin at 106 spaces.

Finally, press Escape, N (capital "N"), and use the Alt-Keypad to send the
Number 12.  This sets the skip over perforation zone to twelve lines.  We want
to reserve 1/2-inch above and below the perforations.  One-half inch is equal to
six tiny lines, since we're setting the printer to Tiny Type.  That's why we set
the top of form 1/2-inch below the perforation.  Now, subsequent perforations
will fall right in the middle of our 12 line perforation zone, giving us
1/2-inch top and bottom margins.

Your Hex Input entry line should say: 1B 6C 1A 1B 51 6A 1B 4E 0C.

Press carriage return and you'll come back to the regular entry line.  It should
look like this: "TH".  "T" for Tiny Type, and "H" for your Hex Input string.
Press the carriage return to send your new configuration to the printer, and
that's it.  That's all there is to it.  In practice it's very simple.

Now print a listing from your word processor, or from DOS. It will be centered
in the pages with a half inch margin at the top and bottom of each page.















                               NU-EPSON  page 5


SOME USEFUL COMMAND STRINGS

These are some of the control codes you'll probably use the most:

          Set Elite Mode On
          <Esc>M    That's Escape, then uppercase "M".

          Set Elite Mode Off
          <Esc>P    That's Escape, then uppercase "P".

          Set left margin at #
          <Esc>l#   That's Escape, then lower case "l", then
                    use the Alt-Keypad to enter the number for
                    your left margin.

          Set right margin at #
          <Esc>Q#   Press Escape, then capital "Q", then the
                    number for your right margins.

          Skip over perforation, variable
          <Esc>N#   Press Escape, then capital "N", then the
                    number of lines for your "perforation zone".

          Set the form length in lines
          <Esc>C#   Press Escape, then capital "C", then use the
                    Alt-Keypad to enter the number of lines for
                    your new page definition.

          Set the form length in inches
          <Esc>C(00)#   Press Escape, capital "C", hex 00 (get
                    this by pressing any of the numeric keypad
                    keys without pressing the Alt key), then use
                    the Alt-Keypad and send the length of your new
                    page in inches.

          Turn underline on
          <Esc>-1   Press Escape, the minus sign, then press the
                    number 1.  Use the numbers at the top of the
                    keyboard for this.

          Turn underline off
          <Esc>-0   Press Escape, then minus sign, then type the
                    number 0.  Again, use the numbers at the top
                    of the keyboard for this.

          Sound the printer bell
          7         Use the Alt-Keypad and press 7.  The printer
                    bell will ring once.

                                --------------

                            A Word About ShareWare


Shareware is based on the concept that good software shouldn't cost an arm and a
leg.  Share Ware gives you a chance to use your software before paying for it.
Also, you are actually encouraged to copy ShareWare programs and share them with
your friends.  Once you know you like a program, then send a check or money
order for the price of the utility.  Prices are usually very modest.


NU-EPSON is a ShareWare program.  Please make as many copies as you like and
share it with others.  I only ask that you don't alter NU-EPSON or this
documentation, and that you include this documentation when passing it around.
You can support ShareWare development, and share back by sending your $25.00
donation to:

                      Charles Rich
                      P.O. Box 95650
                      Seattle, WA  98145-2650

                    Thanks! and enjoy NU-EPSON