Star Micronics LC24-300 COLOUR User manual

USERS MANUAL
LC 24 - 300 COLOUR
QBF 80825595

VDE Statement
This device carries the VDE RFI protection mark to certify that it meets the radio inter-
ference requirements of the Postal Ordinance No. 243/1991.The additional marking
Wfg. 243/P” expresses in short form that this is aperipheral,device (not operable alone)
which only individually meets the Class BRFI requirements in accordance with the DIN
VDE 0878 part 3/11.89and the Postal Ordinance 243/1991.
If this device is operated in conjunction with other devices within aset-up, in order to
take advantage of a“’General(Operating Authorization” in accordance with the Postal
Ordinance 243/1991.the complete set-up must comply with the Class Blimits in accor
dance with the DIN VDE 0878 part 3/11.89, as well as satisfy the preconditions in
accordance with 52and the prerequisites in accordance with 53 of the Postal Ordinance
243/1991.
As arule. this is only fulfilled when the device is operated in aset-up which has been
type-tested and provided with aVDE RFI protection mark with the additional marking
“Vfg 243”.
Machine Noise Information Ordinance 3. GSGV. January 18, 1991:The sound pressure
level at the operator position is equal or less than 70 dB(A) according to 1S0 7779.
Bescheinigung des Importers
Hiermit wfrd bescheinigt. dafi cfer
COMPUTER DRUCRER Q24260
in Ubereinstimmung mit den Bestimmungen der
VDE 0878 3/22.89. EN 55022; 1987,BMPT Vfg. 243/1991 und 46/1992
funk-entstort ist
Dem Zcntralamt fur Zulassungen im Femmeldewesen wurde das hwerkehrbringen
dieses Gerates angezeigt und die Berechtigung zur Uberpfifung der Serie auf die Einhal
tung der Bestimmungen eingeraumt.
Star Micronics Deutschland, GmbH
WesterbachstraJe 59. D-60489
Frankfurt, Germany
The abouestatements apply only toprinters marketed in Germany
Trademark acknowledgments
LC24-300 Colour,LC24-200 Colour, LC24-200, SF-1ODW,SPC-8K: Star Micronics Co
Ltd.
L9S5fY, L9S60, LQ105O, L9106O: Seiko Epson Corporation
IBM PC, IBM Proprinter X24E, IBM Froprinter XL24E, IBM Proprinter X24, IBM
Proprinter XL24: International Business Macbines Corporation.
TrueType Macintosh: Apple Computer Inc.
PostScript: Adobe Systems Incorporated.
MS-DOS, Microsoft Windows, Windows 3.1: Microsoft Corporation
Grappler: Orange Micro lnc
Notice
●All rights reserved. Reproduction of any part of this manual in any form whatsoever.
without STAR’s express permission, is strictly forbidden.
.The contents of this manual are subject to change without notice
.Afl efforts have been made to ensure the accuracy of the contents of this manual at
the time of printing. However, should any errors be found. STAR would greatly
appreciate being informed of them,
.The above notwithstanding, STAR can assume no responsibility for any errors in
this manual, @Copyright 1993Star Micmnics Co., Ltd

I
Guide to this manual
Even though the LC24-300 Colour is basically avery
simple printer to use, it is also capable of many complex
functions. We have grouped this manual into two main
sections, divided into seven chapters and an appendix.
For normal everyday use, you may never need to refer to
Section II at all. We strongly recommend however that
you read through Section I(Chapters 1, 2 and 3) before
connecting and using the printer for the first time.

Guide tothismanuai.... ..........................................................................iii
Introduction 1
Features .........................................................................................................I
Parts ................................................................................................................4
Unpacking and setting up 7
Choosing aplace for the printer .........................................................T
Unpacking the printer ............................................................................ 8
Setting up your printer .................................................................. 9
Fitting the platen knob. ............................................................................9
Removing the front cover ...................................................................... 7~
Installing the ribbon cartridge .............................................................. 70
Removing the ribbon cartridge ............................................................ 72
Installing the roller unit. ......................................................................... 72
Removing the roller unit ........................................................................ 73
Replacing the front cover ......................................................................73
Installing the paper guide ...................................................................... 74
Installing the mute cover ....................................................................... 74
Connecting the printer to the computer .......................................75
Setting up your printer with your computer ..............................IT
Setting up with MS-DOS ........................................................... ...........77
MS-DOS ..................................................................................................... 17
MS-DOS application software ................................................................ 17
Setting up the printer in Windows ..................................................... 79
Installing TrueType fonts (for Windows) ...............................................27
Selecting different fonts ...........................................................................22
Using your printer 23
Loading paper ........................................................................... ......23
Adjusting the print gap ..........................................................................24
Loading cut sheet paper ............................................ ...........................26
Loading and parking fanfold paper ...........................................,.........27
Loading paper from the rear of the printer .............................................28
Loading paper from the bottom of the printer ......................................30
Parking paper ............................................................................................31
Unparking the paper ................................................................................32
Using the control panel 33
Ready and not-ready modes .................................................................33
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Pausing printing ....................................................................................... 33
Feeding paper through the printer .....................................................34
One line or several lines at atime. ............................... ......................... 34
Apage at atime ....,.... L................................... ......................................... 34
Individual form tear-off ...........................................................................34
Loading paper ..........................................................................................35
Micro-feeding paper (backwards and forwards) ...................................35
Setting the top of aform .......................................................................35
Changing the autoloading position ....................................................36
Eject and park ...........................................................................................37
Quiet printing ...........................................................................................37
Changing the way your printout looks .............................................38
Selecting the different fonts ................................................................... 38
Changing the pitch of the font ............................................................... 39
Changing the zoom size .......................................................................... 40
Selecting the print color .......................................................................... 41
Controlling the printer’s memory ....................................................... 42
Saving Macros .......................................................................................... 42
Re-moving the macro ............................................................................... 43
Clearing the buffer ...................................................................................43
Setting the printer back to default settings ..........................................44
Locking the printer .................................................................................. 45
Font lock ................................................................................. .................45
Font unlock ............................................................................................... 45
Pitch lock. ................................................................................................. 45
Pitch unlock .............................................................................................. 46
Pitch and font lock ...................................................................................46
Pitch and font unlock...............,, ...............................................................46
Test printing .............................................................................................47
Short test. ................................................................................................. 47
Long test. .................................................................................................. 47
print area test mode ................................................................................ 48
Hexadecimal dump mode ....................................................................... 49
Adjusting the dot alignment ................................................................50
Electronic DIP switches ........................................................................5.2
Using the Electronic DIP switches ......................................................53
Banks and numbers .................................................................................53
Selecting the switch bank. ...................................................................... 53
Selecting the switch number .................................................................. 54
Changing aswitch’s value ...................................................................... 54
An example..., ........................................................................................... 54
Exiting Electronic DIP Switch mode ......................................................54
What you can change with the Electronic DIP Switch mode ......55
Meanings of the switches .....................................................................56
A1- Emulation ..........................................................................................56
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I
A2-Auto Emulation Change (AEC) mode. ............................................ 56
A3-RAM usage .......................................................................................57
A4-Colorand zoom ..........................................................................,.....57
A5-Auto LF with CR.. .............................................................................57
A6 -Auto sheet feeder. ...........................................................................57
B1 -Graphics direction ............................................................................57
B2 -Paper-out . . . .. ... . . .. .. . .. . . .. .. ...................................................58
B3 -Tear-o if............. .................................................................................58
B4 -Reserved ...........................................................................................58
B5 and B6 -Multi-part mode ..................................................................58
Cl and C2 -Print mode ...........................................................................59
C3 through C5 -Page length ...................................................................59
DI -Character table .................................................................................59
D2 through D4 -character code tables ..................................................60
D5 -CR centering .....................................................................................61
El through E5 -LQ Font selection ........................................................ 61
FI -Electronic DIP switch settings .........................................................62
Optional accessories 63
Accessories available............................,..,.............................................63
The SF-IODW ............................................................................................63
Unpacking .................................................................................................63
Installing the SF-1 ODWASF......... ...........................................................64
Using the SF- IODW........... ................... . .. . . . ..... .. . . ..... . .. . .............65
The SPC-8K serial/parallel converter ..................................................67
Baud rate. ............................... ... . .. . .. . . . .... .... .. . .... .. .... . .. . ...... 68
Number of bits in aword ........................................................................68
Parity .............................................:...................................... .....................68
Handshaking ........................................ ....................................................69
Connecting the SPC-8K converter ..........................................................69
Using the SPC-8K......... ............................................................................70
The serial connector on the SPC-8K......... ..............................................71
Setting up an MS-DOS computer ...........................................................72
Setting up aWindows computer...........,.........,... ...................................73
Troubleshooting 75
Common problems and solutions ...................................................76
Power switch is on, but POWER indicator is neither lit nor flashing.. 76
Printer sounds as if it is printing, but is not .... ........ ..... ........76
Printing is weak.,.....,.......,......,............. .....................................................76
Printer tests work, but printer will not print out data from attached
computer ... . . . .. .. . . . . . . .................................... . .... .. . . . . . . .. 77
Font selection changes unexpectedly ...................... . . .. . .... . .. .. .. . 77
Printer will not feed paper properly .......................................................78
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The printer will not print in color ........................................................... 78
Line spacing is incorrect.... ...................................................................... 79
Over-printing occurs ................................................................... .........79
Incorrect number of lines per page ........................................................80
Malformed text or graphics ..................................................................80
Poor printing quality.... ............................................................................ 80
Forms are smudged ................................................................................. 81
Printing is too dark.. ................................................................................
Printer case is hot. ................................................................. :!
Printer makes excessive noise..............,............. ...................................82
Printer prints beyond the edge of the paper .........................................82
Left margin moves towards the right during printing ......................... 83
Some incorrect characters are being printed ........................................84
Printer behaves erratically ........................ .............................................85
Printing ceases.... .....................................................................................85
Display messages (non-error) ..............................................................85
Display messages (error) . ....................................................................87
Beep tones .................................................................................................88
Checking system sofiware settings ............................................. W
In Windows ...............................................................................................89
In MS. DOS.. ...............................................................................................90
Software commands 91
Introduction ................................................................................................91
Font control commands ........................................................................93
Character set commands ......................................................................98
Character size and pitch commands ................................................ 702
Vertical position commands .............................................................. ~70
Horizontal position commands .......................................................... 777
Graphics commands.... ......................................................................... 127
Download character commands ....................................................... 725
Other printer commands ... ................................................................. 729
Appendix 135
Specifications .. ..................................................................................... 135
Parallel interface.. .................................................................................. 140
Character sets. ........................................................................................ 147
Standard character set #2... ................................................................ 742
International’ character sets. ............................................................... 744
IBM character set #2 ............................................................................. 745
Code page #437 (U. SEA.).......... .......................................................... 145
Code page #’850 (Multi.lingual) ............................................................. 747
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Code page #860 (Portuguese) ............................................................... 148
Code page #861 (Icelandic) .............................................’. ...................... 149
Code page #863 (Canadian French) ...................................................... 150
Code page #865 (Nordic) ....................................................................... 151
Character set #l ..................................................................................... 752
IBM special character set................................,..... ............................... 753
Glossary 155
Index 167
Costumer service information 171
Pageviii

I
Chapter1Introduction
Thank you for buying aSTAR LC24-300 Colour printer.
We are confident that it will provide you with years of
reliable, high-quality printing. We think we have made
the LC24-300 Colour one of the fastest, quietest, and
easiest to use dot matrix printers ever. We hope you
agree with us.
Features
color
Fu&:
Easy to use:
You only need to add acolor ribbon cartridge
to print vibrant, full-color documents. You
can choose from up to 256 colors, depending
on your computer software.
The LC24-300 Colour speeds through drafts
at 360 characters per second (15 pitch).
When printing in its 360 dpi letter-quality
mode (that’s more dots per inch than some
laser printers!), it turns out beautifully-fin-
ished work atup to 100 characters per
second.
With clearly labeled buttons, an informative
LCD screen, and easy paper loading, the
LC24-300 Colour can be used by anyone,
even without previous computer or printer
experience.
With the LC24-300 Colour’s Electronic DIP
Switch feature, you can change the printer’s
default power-on settings from the front
panel.
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LCD screen: You can see your printer’s settings at a glance
by looking at the informative LCD screen. It
shows what font you are using, how big it is
(the font pitch) and other useful information
(this feature does not apply when you use the
printer with Windows 3.1 or later).
Fonts: The LC24-300 Colour is amulti-font printer,
which means that it can print text in avariety
of different type styles (fonts)—10 in all.
These include:
Draft Roman
Samerif Courier
Prestige Sdpk
ORATOR Orator-2
H-GothicSLQ Roman
You can print these fonts in different styles,
such as emphasized, bold, shadow, and out-
line, as well as being able to change the size
of the font.
Graphics: The advanced 24-pin print head can print up
to 360 dots per inch (and in color too!) mak-
ing it an ideal printer for graphics programs,
and for programs running under Windows
3.1 and later.
Zooming: You can print documents at 50V0or 67V0of
their actual size. As aresult, you need only
use asingle sheet of paper to print large doc-
uments, such as spreadsheets.
Paper t~pes: You can print on awide variety of different
paper types and sizes; from fanfold computer
paper, to single sheets and stationery, to
multi-part forms. Even when fanfold paper is
loaded, the LC24-300 Colour allows you to
print on single sheets, saving you time and
Page2

effort. Atear-off function allows you to tear
off single printed fanfold paper sheets from
the printer without wasting paper. You can
feed fanfold paper from either the rear or the
bottom of the printer.
An optional automatic sheet feeder is also
available, which holds up to 50 sheets of
paper.
Compatibility By emulating the industry-standard Epson
and IBM printers, the LC24-300 Colour
allows you to printjust about anything your
computer software can generate. The NEC
graphics command set is also supportted for
even better graphics compatibility.
The Automatic Emulation Change feature
means that the printer can automatically
change to the appropriate printer emulation
for the application software, depending on
the data received.
Special drivers and scalable fonts are
included to allow you to produce high-quality
printout from Windows 3.1 and later applica-
tions.
Page3

Parts
This is what your new printer looks like. These diagrams
may be useful in the next few sections to identi& the dif-
ferent parts mentioned.
front
er
b
power
h)
The printer (with interface cable connected)
peperkh
edjustm
ribbon
ver
The printer with the front and rear covers removed and no interface
cable connected
Page4

Parts -an explanation
The paper guides hold single sheets and sets their posi-
tion so that they are fed into the printer correctly.
The paper entrances are where paper feeds into the
printer. There is one for single sheets, and two for com-
puter (fanfold) paper—rear and bottom.
The release lever grips single sheets as they are fed in.
The lever should be pushed towards the back of the
printer to hold single sheets properly, and released
(pulled forward) when fanfold paper is in use.
The platen knob lets you feed paper through the printer
manually. Usually, though, you will find that the
[PAPER FEED] button (see “Feeding paper through the
printer” on page 34) is the most efficient way of doing
this.
The front cover protects internal components and
reduces printing noise.
The mute cover further reduces printing noise.
The display screen shows information about the print-
er’s current setting.
The control panel has buttons to control the printer.
The power switch turns the printer on and off.
The interface connector accepts the cable connector
that links the printer to the host computer.
The print head transfers the image to the paper.
The ribbon cartridge contains the ribbon which the
head uses to mark the paper.
The paper thickness adjustment lever lets you adjust
the position of the print head for different paper thick-
nesses and for multi-part forms.
The roller unit helps to grip paper and pull it through
the printer.
Page5

The tractor unit grips the sides of fanfold computer
paper. When you use the tractor unit, the tractor cov-
ers must be closed.
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I
Chapter2Unpacking and
setting up
Choosing aplace for the printer
Before you start unpacking and setting up your printer,
make sure that you have asuitable place to put it. By a
“suitable place”, we mean:
●
●
●
●
●
●
●
●
●
Afirm, level surface where the printer will be stable,
and vibration-free.
Away from any heaters.
Away from direct sunlight.
Not in an excessively humid area.
Somewhere that is clean, dry and dust-free. Basi-
cally, computer equipment works best in the same
kind of temperature and humidity as you do.
Allow 6“ (15cm) of free space either side of the
printer and adequate space for paper behind the
printer, if you want to use fanfold (computer) paper.
If you want to use the bottom feed for fanfold (com-
puter) paper, you should locate the pile of paper at
least one page length (about 12” (30cm)) below the
printer.
Make sure the printer is connected to asteady
power supply. It should not be on the same electric
circuit as appliances like copiers or refrigerators
that cause power spikes and surges.
Use apower supply of the correct voltage as speci-
fied on the printer’s identification plate.
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I
Unpacking the printer
As you unpack the printer from the box, make sure that
you have all the following items:
2Printer driver A’ -4
and font disk \\&2\ guide
m
If any of these are missing, please contact your supplier.
Optional accessories that you may have purchased are:
●Serial-Parallel converter (SPC-8K)
●Automatic sheet feeder (SF-10DWI
For details of how to install these optional accessories,
see Chapter 5.
You will also need a cable to connect the printer to your
computer (available separately). For IBM or IBM-com-
patible computers, this will generally be aparallel cable,
with a25-pin,‘D’ connector at one end and a36-pin
Arnphenol-type (Centronics) connector at the other end
(a “Centronics” printer cable). This cable should be no
longer than about 6’ (2m].
Page8

If your computer has no parallel port available, you will
need to use the Serial-Parallel converter (SPC-8K) and a
cable to connect your computer to the printer. See “The
SPC-8K serial/parallel converter” on page 67 for full
details.
Setting up your printer
Remove the printer and all supplied parts from the
packing material. Put the printer on the place you have
prepared for it. Save the packing material and carton in
case you need to move the printer in the future.
Fitting the platen knob
This knob is packed into arecess of the packaging mate-
rial in the printer box.
To.fit the knob, rotate the knob on the shaft (lining up
the flattened side of the shaft with the flattened part of
the hole on the knob). After you have lined up these flat-
tened sides, push the knob firmly onto the shaft.
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I
Removing the front cover
You will need to remove the front cover (the smoked
plastic cover on the top of the printer) to install and
change ribbon cartridges. Lift the cover from the rear
using the grips on the sides, then lift up to remove the
cover from the body of the printer.
Installing the ribbon cartridge
You have the choice of using acolor or ablack ribbon
with the LC24-300 Colour. Both ribbons are installed
and removed in the same way.
●Take the slack out of the ribbon by turning the knob
on the ribbon cartridge clockwise
arrow). (as shown by the
Page10

●
Place the cartridge on the cartridge carrier inside
the printer. Make sure that the ribbon is between
the print head and the print head shield. Press the
cartridge so that it “clicks” into place. If the cart-
ridge does not “click” into position on both sides,
you may need to turn the cartridge knob about 1/4
of aturn clockwise.
Once the cartridge is in the carrier, tighten the ri-
bbonagain by turning the cartridge knob clockwise
(about 1/2 aturn). Check once more to make sure
that the ribbon is between the print head and print
head shield (if it isn’t, take the cartridge out, and try
again).
Page11

Removing the ribbon cartridge
●To remove the ribbon cartridge, press the cartridge
grips inward and lift the cartridge upward out of the
printer.
Installing the roller unit
●Open the rear cover by pushing the cover grips
backward and upward.
●Pick up the roller unit so that the small illustration
is on top of the roller unit, and the smoked plastic
side (with six small black rollers) is facing you.
●Hold the roller unit so that the top is tilted slightly
away from you..Slide the hooks on either side of the
back of the roller unit over the platen (the large
black roller) and under the silver bar behind and
above the platen. The hooks should both be between
the metal plates at either end of the silver bar.
Page12