On Dec
20, 2024, at 10:39 PM, Paul Berger via cctalk
<cctalk(a)classiccmp.org> wrote:
The chain with box drawing characters mention in the original post where used to
print
the ALD. The 1403 had logic that limited the number of hammers that could fire at
once,
there was a test routine that would repeatedly fire the maximum number of hammers it
was
called the "Chain Breaker Routine". The only drum printer I ever saw
operating
I think it was a Honeywell printer and the person demoing it printed out some pictures,
the printer could fire most if not all hammers at once which made quite a racket.
Paul.
As a field engineer for Honeywell, I always dreaded the holidays because so many
people
would launch print jobs which used repeated overstrikes to create pictures. Those jobs
sometimes fired the maximum number of hammers at a time to speed up the picture
creation
which would sometimes cause multiple hammer actuator fuses to blow. More than once I
had
to buy all the 2 amp fuses from multiple Radio Shacks to get the printer operational
again. Those overstrikes also caused the paper to become more saturated with ink which
resulted in more paper/ink residue getting deposited in the print chain, which required
heavier than normal cleanings during the next preventative maintenance window.
Another thing which caused more work for field engineers around the holidays were jobs
sent to the card punches to play Jingle Bells by punching fully laced cards in time to
the
music. It was entertaining unless they caused card jams too bad for the operators to
be
able to clear by themselves. Fully laced punch cards are too flexible to pass through
the
punch path cleanly.
- Rod