Star Micronics 10X User manual

GEMI -10X/ 5X
USE MANUAL
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Your Gemini
User's Manual
Not Intended
for Sale

Trademark Acknowledgement
Geminl·10X, Gemini·15X, grafstar, Universal/Atari Parallel Interface,
Universal/Commodore Parallel Interface: Star Micronics, Inc.
Apple, Apple II, Apple 11+, Apple lie, Apple III, Applesoft: Apple Computer Inc.
Atari
400, Atari 800, Atari 850: Atari Inc., a Warner Communications Company
Commodore, VIC·20,
C·64: Commodore Business Machines, Inc.
CP/M: Digital Research
IBM Personal Computer, IBM
PC: International Business Machines Corporation
Microsoft BASIC: Microsoft Corporation
Osborne 1: Osborne Computer Corporation
TRS·80: Radio Shack, a division of Tandy Corporation
© 1983, Star Micronics, Inc.
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Preface
Congratulations on having purchased a serial, impactdotmatrixprinterthat
offers you more quality, greater flexibility and convenience, and superior
reliability than you could find in any other printer
in the same price range.
As you already know (or are about
to learn), the Gemini-10X and
Gemini-15X let you print both regular and italicized alphabets, as well as
normal, elite(smaller), condensed, enlarged, emphasized, and double-strike
characters. You can print
on regular stationery, multiple-sheet forms, fan-
fold computer paper, or paper fed from a roll (European style).
The graphics capability provided by the Gemini printers is limited only
by your graphic talents, and includes three bit-image modes: Low Resolu-
tion
(60 by 72 dots per square inch), High Resolution (120 by 144) and Ultra
High Resolution
(240 by 144). With all this printing powerat your fingertips,
what are you waiting for? Let's get started!
This User's Manual
is organized to serve both the first-time userand the
sophisticated computer buff. The first five chapters provide the basics you
need for putting your printer
to work in most home and office applications.
Chapters 6 through
10 deliver information for intermediate and advanced
users, supported
by technically rich appendices. If you are a beginner, you
might want to look at Chapters
6-10 sometime in the future, when your
curiosity about how the printer does what it does has replaced your initial
interest
in what it can do.
Take a moment to examine theTable ofContents
on the following page.
It shows you how this manual is organized
to best serve your information
needs. You should note, if you are just now unpacking yournew printerfrom
itsshipment packaging, thatAppendix G shows you what you have and how
it all fits together. This manual's first several appendices are computer-
specific, and help you connect yournew Gemini with your computer. At the
back
of this manual, there is a glossarythat gives simpledefinitions of com-
mon terms. Following the glossary is
an index to help you quickly find
answers to your questions.
A Quick-Reference Guide
is printed on the inside folding flap of the back
cover. By reading this manual carefully, and practicing withyourGemini, you
should soon be able to achieve full printer performance just by referring to
this Quick-Reference Guide.
Congratulations on your purchaseof aGemini. May it work foryou long
and well.
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This User's M
of the Gemini_1~~U:ln~e~~. t~e operators
1n1-15X printers.
The Gemini-10X accommodate Inches wide.
s paper up to 10 .
The Gemini-1
print mor 5X can handl
e characters per I~ paper up to 155 .
iv me.' Inches wid
e, and can
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Table of Contents
• Chapter
1. Introduction 1
Chapter
2. Paper and Ribbon 13
I Chapter
3. The Gemini Self-Test 39
Chapter
4. Interfacing Gemini with Your Computer 47
Chapter 5.
Putting Gemini to Work for You
57
• Chapter
6. The Fundamentals of Dot Matrix Printing 81
Chapter 7.
The Full Range of Printing Capabilities 99
• Chapter
8. Downloadable Characters 115
Chapter
9. The Function Codes 123
I Chapter
10. Maintenance 143
Appendix
A.
Apple" Plus
151
Appendix B.
Atari 800/400 165
• Appendix
C. Commodore VIC-20, C-64 179
Appendix
D. IBM-Personal Computer 192
I Appendix
E.
Osborne 194
Appendix
F. TRS-80 206
• Appendix
G. When You First Get Your Gemini 217
Appendix H. ASCII Code Charts 226
I Appendix
I. ASCII Code Tables 230
Appendix J. International Character Sets
231
Appendix K.
Character Style Tables 232
I Appendix
L. Control Circuit Block Diagram
241
Appendix M.
Function Code Summary 242
• Appendix N. Gemini's Parallel Interface 246
Appendix
O. Code Chart 250
• Glossary 254
Index 258
I Consumer Response
261
Regional Service Offices
265
FCC
Notice
266
I Warranty
Reference Guide
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I INTRODUCTION
Allow us to introduce you to yourGemini printer: "Gemini, this is
your new user:' "User, this is the remarkable new Gemini - a
versatile and dependable printer that lets you do tricks with the
dot matrix and bit image capabilities:'
In this chapter, we'll answer the question: What are the parts
of the printer and how do they work together? We'll define the
operating environment forGemini, and we'll discuss itstechnical
specifications. Ifyou are just now unpacking your newlyacquired
Gemini, refer to Appendix G
to learn how the pieces fit together,
then return to this chapter
to discover how to put your printer to
work for you.
A TOUR AROUND GEMINI
Let's begin with a tour around the outside of the Gemini. On the
top, right, front part
of your machine, you'll see the controlpanel
(as shown in Figure
1-1). These three buttonsand the fourstatus
lamps are your day-to-day operational controls. These are fully
explained later
in this chapter, but for nowwe'll move on because
this is
an express tour.
On the right side of your printer is a large knob and, toward
the back, you'll find the
"on/off" power switch. The knob is
attached to the platen (pronounced plat-en), which is the padded
roller around which the paper is fed to the printing mechanism.
Hence, the handle is called the platen knob, and allows you to
manually turn the platen (with the power "off"), just like
on a
typewriter.
The power switch, located on the lower right side, is the
"on/off" switch that controls the flow of electricity to your
machine. The Gemini printers use
U.S. standard 110-120volt A.C.,
found in wall outletsofhomesand offices. As asafety precaution,
you should make sure that your printer is turned
"off" before
plugging the three-pronged safety plug into the electrical outlet.
Turning the cornerand examining the back
of your machine
(as shown in Figure 1-2), you'll see the power cord, grounding
connector, interface ports, and
DIP switches.
The
DIP switches (a popularacronym forthe electronicterm,
"dual in-line package") control important printerfunctions. Some
companies call these "microswitches" because their engineers
made them so small you almost need a microscope
to find and
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I Gemini User's Manual
set them. Other products call them "internal switches" because
you must take their printers apart to get
to them. The Gemini DIP
switches are easy to set, which is explained in Chapter 4.
Next to the DIP switches is the connector for the parallel
interface. This is where you connect yourGemini toyour personal
computer,
so they are "interfacing;' and able to communicate with
each other. (Appendices A through F provide information
on
hooking-up your Gemini with six widely used types of
microcomputers.) This connector is for a "parallel" interface, a
type of interfacing that is accomplished
by having the printer
"parallel-wired" like a string of double-wired Christmas lights,
where each lightbulb burns independently. Data from your
computeris sent down the cable wires toyourGemini side-by-side,
or "parallel:'
Between the parallel interface
and the powercord is the "port
hole"
(a punch-out plastic tab) forthe serialinterface. This optional
interfaceallows you to connect Gemini with a computer requiring
serial communications.
Printercover Control
panel
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Figure 1-1. The operational controls are on the right side of the •
Geminiprinters.
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