fixed-width font

A font whose characters are allotted the same amount of horizontal space, no matter the width of the character. Thus the uppercase M receives the same amount of space as the letter l.

font

A set of characters and symbols that share a common typographic design and style.

font family

The collection of all sizes and styles of a font.

halftone

A grayscale image that is composed of small dots. The dots can be close together to create black or more widely spaced to create gray or white areas in the image. Newspaper photographs are common examples of halftones.

Imaging cartridge

The Imaging cartridge contains a photosensitive print drum and supply of toner.

initialization

The act of returning the printer to its defaults (fixed set of conditions).

interface

The connection between the printer and the computer. A parallel interface transmits data one character or code at a time, and a serial interface transmits data one bit at a time.

landscape

Printing that is oriented sideways on the page. This orientation gives you a page that is wider than it is high and is useful for printing spreadsheets.

memory

The part of the printer's electronic system that is used to store information. Some information is fixed and is used to control how the printer operates. Information that is sent to the printer from the computer (such as downloaded fonts) is stored in memory temporarily. See also RAM and ROM.

orientation

Refers to the direction in which characters are printed on a page. This direction is either portrait, like this page, or landscape with the text printed on a page turned sideways.

outline font

A font whose outline is described mathematically, allowing it to be rendered (printed or drawn) smoothly at any size.

PCL

The command language built into the Hewlett-Packard LaserJet series printers.

photoconductor unit

A component of the printer that contains a photosensitive print drum.

pitch

A measure of the number of characters per inch (cpi) for fixed-width fonts.

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