line matrix printers?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Alan Zhong
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A

Alan Zhong

hi, we are using Printek FormMaster 8003se. the maximum speed in fast
draft mode is 800cps.
i am looking at IBM 6400 now, one of the model is 1000 lpm (model
i10).
so what are the difference between cps (is that character per second?)
and lpm (line per minute)?
we usually do 6LPI (line per inch), printing 8x11 inch forms, mixed
cases(i am confused here too, upper case only is 80 characters per
line, and mixed case is 96 characters per line? correct me if i made a
mistake).

so my questions are:
1) what are the difference between cps & lpm
2) why upper case and mixed case make difference in speed and
characters per line
thankx a lot.
 
hi, we are using Printek FormMaster 8003se. the maximum speed in fast
draft mode is 800cps.
i am looking at IBM 6400 now, one of the model is 1000 lpm (model
i10).
so what are the difference between cps (is that character per second?)
and lpm (line per minute)?
we usually do 6LPI (line per inch), printing 8x11 inch forms, mixed
cases(i am confused here too, upper case only is 80 characters per
line, and mixed case is 96 characters per line? correct me if i made a
mistake).

so my questions are:
1) what are the difference between cps & lpm
2) why upper case and mixed case make difference in speed and
characters per line
thankx a lot.
Click to expand...


I could just say RTFM. But:

The 6400 is a line printer; it prints an entire horizontal line of
dots at once. A dozen or so of thse lines makes up a line of type;
thus the natural unit of speed is lines. A character printer has a
print head that is up to 24x24 dots; it moves along the line printing
one character at a time (and maybe goes back over the same area with a
small offset when printing high quality), so these are rated at cps.

Read all about the 6400 at
<http://www.printers.ibm.com/R5PSC.NSF/Web/6400m>
About mixed case, in the user's manual there it says:
"The speed of text printing is measured in lines per minute (lpm).
This speed is dependent upon the number of dot rows required to
produce a line of characters, regardless of the number of characters
in the line. Because more dot rows are required to print lowercase
characters with descenders, those character lines will print at a
fractionally lower rate."
 
thankx alan,
got new infomation but i have more questions to ask...

1)i am still confused on lpm, is it "lines of text per minute" or
"lines of dots per minute"?

is it possible to configure how many "lines of dots" per line of text?
because i can make it print 6 lines per inch.

let me do the math here:
if i am printing a form full of characters by 6 lpi, 10 cpi, in a 8x11
form, using a dot matrix printer with 800cps speed. i end up printing
8 inch * 10 cpi = 80 characters per line,
11 inch * 6 lpi = 66 lines,
80 * 66 = 5280 characters per form,
5280 / 800 cps = 6.6 seconds per form.

how much time per form does the line printer need for the fast draft
mode?

2) i see that the line printer prints a line regardless of how many
characters per line. is it true that the dot matrix printer will save
a lot of time when the line contains only a small among of characters?

3) is it true that the line printer is harder to have paper jam and
easy to maintain?

thankx again so much.
 
Alan Zhong said:
1)i am still confused on lpm, is it "lines of text per minute" or
"lines of dots per minute"?
Click to expand...

Lines of text per minute.
2) i see that the line printer prints a line regardless of how many
characters per line. is it true that the dot matrix printer will save
a lot of time when the line contains only a small among of characters?
Click to expand...

Depends on the printer. On a true line printer, no.
3) is it true that the line printer is harder to have paper jam
Maybe.

and easy to maintain?
Click to expand...

Easy as writing a check. High-speed impact printers are very
mechanical, and are typically sold with a maintenance contract which
they will need. Not that having a contract means it'll be quickly
fixed; it just means there'll be someone there to tell you that they
don't have the part and it'll arrive in the next few days.

The best option for uptime and economy is to modify your software to not
need impact printers. If you have preprinted forms, change the software
to print the form and the information. If you need multiple copies,
change the software to print multiple copies. Then you can use laser
printers for cheap supplies, silence, and reliability.

If it's impossible to change your software, you may be better off with
several slower, less expensive impact printers. That gives you some
redundancy, so when one fails, you'll still be able to print. And extra
printers may cost less than the maintenance contract for the faster
printer.
 
thankx alan,
got new infomation but i have more questions to ask...
Click to expand...

Warren has answered your questions; but as this is a really high
powered and expensive printer I think the vendor will be more than
happy to demo it and explain everything. If it's used or something
like that, just look at the manuals on IBM's site as previously
linked. (Or just contact a vendor and pretend you're thinking of
buying a new one.) The last time I used a line printer was about 30
years ago, so I can't be much more help.
 
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