291
DGlossary
A
Active column The horizontal location on the paper where the next
character prints. After printing a character, the printer
advances the active column.
Active position Theposition on the paper where the next character
prints. The active position is defined by the horizontal
position (active column) and the vertical position (active
line).
ASCII Abbreviation of American Standard Code for
Information Interchange.
B
Baud A unit of speed that measures the rate at which
information is transferred. Baud rate is the reciprocal of
the lengthin seconds of the shortest pulse usedto
carry data. For example, a system in which the shortest
pulse is 1/1200 second operates at 1200 baud. On RS-
232 serial lines, the baud rate equals the data flow rate
in bits per second (bps). To communicate properly, a
printer must be configured to operate at the same baud
rateas its host computer.
Bold A typeface with a heavy line thickness produced by a
double strike print method.
See also
character weight.
Compare with
shadow printing.
Buffer Areserved area in printer m emory that data is written to
and read from during data transfers.