95
point A unit of length in printing and typography, used to
specify type sizes, heights of font characters, etc.
There are 72 points in a vertical inch; thus, one point
equals 1/72 inch, or approximately 0.0138 inch.
Some examples of point sizes are: This is 8 point type.
This manual is printed in 10 point type. This is 14

point type.

POR Power On Reset.
port A channel used for receiving data from or
transmitting data to one or more external devices.
portrait Printed parallel to the short edge of a page.
Postnet A bar code standard defined by the United States
Postal Service.
print mode Synonym for print attribute. Includes character
attributes such as italic, underlining, super/subscript,
as well as Draft, NLQ, and DP.
protocol In general, a set of rules governing the exchange of
information between computer systems. For printers,
a protocol is the coding system used to convey and
print characters and graphics. A printer protocol
includes character codes, printer function codes, and
machine-to-machine communication codes. In this
manual, protocol and emulation mean the same
thing. See also compatibility and emulation.
PSA Printronix System Arch itecture. A print engine design
that puts all data and electro-mechanical control logic
on one circuit board. The use of flash memory on this
board permits rapid access to stored printer
emulations and fast processing of print data.
R
RAM Random-Access Memory. Also called main
memory or working memory, this is the active
memory of a printer, into which programs are loaded.
This memory can be read from or written to at any
time-hence the term random-access. RAM is also
termed volatile because whatever is in RAM is lost
when power is turned off or interrupted. See also
ROM.
RD Receive Data. Serial data stream to the printer.
read To retrieve data from memory (RAM , NVRAM) or
mass storage (hard disk, floppy diskette, etc.).
Ready mode Online. The printer is ready to receive and process
commands and data.