The quickest and easiest way to print graphics on your printer is to use a commercial graphics program. With such programs you usually create an image on your monitor and then give a command to send the image to the printer.
If you use commercial software that produces graphics, all you need to know about dot graphics is how to use the software. If, on the other hand, you wish to do your own programming or merely wish to understand how the FX prints graphics, read on.
The print head
To understand dot graphics you need to know a little about how the FX’s print head works.
The print head has nine pins. As the print head moves across the page, electrical impulses cause the pins to fire. Each time a pin fires, it strikes the inked ribbon and presses it against the paper to produce a small dot. As the head moves across the paper, the pins fire time after time in different patterns to produce letters, numbers, or symbols.
Using Software and Graphics |