Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

baslinux - Re: [BL] BL2 won't print or scroll in console mode

baslinux AT lists.ibiblio.org

Subject: Baslinux mailing list

List archive

Chronological Thread  
  • From: Sindi Keesan <keesan AT iamjlamb.com>
  • To: baslinux AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [BL] BL2 won't print or scroll in console mode
  • Date: Sat, 14 Aug 2004 17:31:36 -0400 (EDT)

Linux prints text (cat filename.txt > /dev/lp0) on a different computer
with only one parallel port and no MDA card, and the same software as
here. Is there something I should be doing differently on a computer with
two parports? I did not need to specify IRQ 7 or anything different.
Perhaps I should have one DOS and one linux computer since all the DOS
stuff works on here. We had both parports working with DOS and Windows.
I will make sure lp1 is disabled onboard and try again here.


On Sat, 14 Aug 2004, Sindi Keesan wrote:

> insmod parport
> insmod parport_pc
> insmod lp (otherwise I get /dev/lp0: No such device)
>
> cat mesg.txt > /dev/lp0
>
> Or use wp to try to print text.
>
> Linux accepts the command but does nothing. What does this indicate?
> Probably that I am doing something dumb, but I made sure to have the
> printer turned on and plugged in, and lp loaded, as suggested in other
> lists.
>
> The printer (Panasonic, same model worked on another linux computer and
> works now in DOS, on lp0 = lpt1).
>
> I also tried using ghostscript, command-line with a script to use a
> printer filter (full path of filter given in the script). Same result.
> No error message, just nothing but cursor moving to the beginning of the
> next line and blinking. Ctrl-C to exit.
>
> This computer has two parallel ports - lp0 is in the MDA card and it is
> recognized when I look at dmesg: parport0: PC-style at 0x378 [SPP]
> The second port is not recognized (I think I disabled it in CMOS but I
> should check anyway). Do I need to specify IRQ 7 somewhere as for plip?
> I can't find my BL2 notes on this.
>
> I had to specify 0x378 when loading parport_pc or the MDA screen would get
> scrambled when parport_pc probed for addresses.
> -------------------------
> I suppose I should try this again in the computer with only one parallel
> port. This computer, in linux, also has no scroll buffer. Shift-PgUp
> (which I assigned to Scroll_Backwards with loadkeys) or Shift-PageUp do
> nothing - they are supposed to show you the previous page. Similarly for
> Scroll_Forwards. I tried four different keyboards all of which work on
> two other linux computers set up with a clone of the same software. The
> DOS Kermit scroll buffer works. This linux scroll buffer is also normally
> usable in X but I did not bother testing there, or with BL3 (yet).
>
> No other known problems with this computer except for the MDA card
> requiring that extra string when doing insmod parport_pc. I could try a
> different MDA card.
>
> Can other BL2 or BL3 users scroll backwards a page with Shift-PageUp?
> It works for me on all other computers I tested with BL2 (at least four)
> and is not the keyboard (I tried 84 and 104 key keyboards). Shift-PgUp
> does not normally scroll so don't try that.
> --------------------------
> I would really like to get linux printing with ghostscript since I am
> having trouble with a DOS pdf print job that prints every other page
> shifted 1.5" to the right, or even more than that, which not only wastes a
> lot of black ink printing a dark stripe on the left but cuts off 1.5" of
> text on the right. It also used up my inkjet cartridge. But I have the
> same version of gs (5.10) in DOS and linux at present. I suspect there is
> something odd about this pdf file which gs does not like.
>
> I can view the whole page onscreen with gs or bmv (ps reader for linux),
> and since I can scroll with bmv, I was hoping I could somehow scroll right
> and then print the correct part of a page. Or print with xpdf.
>
> pdftoimage gives me a bunch of error messages so I can't convert to image
> and print that. Usually it works but maybe it cannot handle pdf that is
> nothing but scanned images. pdftops worked at least. And this is not a
> pdf 1.5 file so gs 5.10 also works on it.
>
> I may try printing in DOS with psview, which I think lets you scroll and
> print parts of pages. I have been trying to translate from the screen and
> it is hard on the eyes due to poor copy which for some reason prints a bit
> better on paper. bmv only goes to 1280 but xpdf at 1600 looks no better
> and takes about 30 sec per page to display or scroll. P300 cpu.
>
> Any ideas would be appreciated. I would HATE to have to use Windows
> (assuming ghostscript works right there after I download it for 2 hours).
> I am supposed to get this stuff translated within a few days. Maybe the
> local university library has the journal. Maybe ps would print out better
> than pdf? Got to refill the cartridge first to find out. Or print
> dot-matrix.
>
> Thanks for any help.
>
> Sindi
>
> _______________________________________________
> BasLinux mailing list
> BasLinux AT lists.ibiblio.org
> http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/baslinux
>





Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page