On the Emulation of TU58s

[tony duell]

[Centronics belt-grabbing printer]


> Is that the same screwball printer that has a metal platen spinning behind the paper with horizontal raised lines on 
> it, and a single vertical striker in the printhead that strikes at the moment when the platen and striker intersect at 
> the desired X/Y location of the dot to be printed? I've considered buying one just to hear what it sounds like.

No. That sounds like a Seikosha (?spel) Unihammer printer. Radio Shack sold it as the DMP110, I think
Amstrad and Commodore sold them too (probably with different firmware). From what I remember 
(I have a DMP110, but haven't used it for many years) they produce a fairly high-pitched buzz.

Then of course there is the Olivetti sparkjet printer. A really crazy thing that blasts solid toner from a 
rod of same by producing a spark from said rod to a fixed electrode. The toner doesn't all end up
on the electrode, some goes on the paper. Or at least that#s the idea. Setting one up is an interesting
job (I turned a pointed pin to make things a little easier) and the quality is non-existant even when it is
working properly.

-tony