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downloadedand stored in RAM (Random Access Memory) for use.

Designing and printing your own characters has two re-

quirements: firstly, designing the shape of the character, calculating the data necessary to make the shape, and sending that data to the printer, and secondary, sending the command to

print the downloaded characters instead of the standard

characters. There are a number of design constraints for download draft quality characters:

The matrix or grid on which you design the characters is five boxes wide by twenty-four boxes high.

Horizontally, dots may be centered in a box, or may straddle a line, making the actual character grid 9 dots wide by 24 dots high. Vertically, dots can only be centered in a box. See Figure 7-2.

Dots cannot overlap - that is, you may not have a dot inside a box next to one that is on a line.

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a

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Figure 7-2. Dotscanbeinsideboxesorstraddletheverticallines ofthegrid.

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P’

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Star Micronics NB24-10/15 user manual 109