Subj : Re: Printing on Commodore printer without Commodore 64
To   : Rami
From : Andreas Kohlbach
Date : Sun Jul 30 2017 18:10:08

On Sun, 30 Jul 2017 01:48:55 -0700 (PDT), Rami wrote:
>
> On Sunday, July 30, 2017 at 7:26:50 AM UTC+3, Pekka Takala wrote:
>> On 29.07.2017 11:42, Rami wrote:
>> > Hello fine Commodore people,
>> >
>> > I have Commodore MPS 803 printer (I think it is 803, it is in the
>> > storage at the moment) and have been toying with the idea of
>> > hooking it up to Raspberry Pi or similar... And later maybe even
>> > add a CUPS driver and allow remote printing.
>> >
>> > I think I did try to dig up information for this couple of years
>> > ago and came to understand that the printer serial protocol is
>> > non-standard and documentation for it is hard to find. Someone
>> > also mentioned some Nuts and Volts article but I was unable to get
>> > it from the publisher.
>> >
>> > So I would appreciate any information on C64 serial printer
>> > protocol / modern tools / github repos / whatever you can provide.
>> >
>> > Thanks!
>> >
>> >
>> The protocol is essentially the same protocol as commodore 1541 disk
>> drive protocol is. The printer just uses device number 4 instead of 8.
>>
>> Trust me, it is much easier to find a suitable matrix printer for your
>> PC than to attach the commodore printer to your pc. The cbm protocol is
>> very tight in timing.
>>
>> Sell the printer to someone c64/vic20/c128 enthusiast.
>
> Thanks Pekka. If the timing is as tight as you say I might just let
> this be for now. The idea was basically just hook up something almost
> useless to modern computer setting for fun and laughs.

Not really related. In the early 2000s I bought a Star NL-10 dot matrix
impact printer from Micronics to my Linux box, which I shot at the local
flea market for $5. It didn't take five minutes for the landlord, who
lived in the same building (which is already bad in itself ;-) to knock
at the door and ask WTF am I doing. *g* If it was 20 years earlier (the
80s) no one would had cared about the noise it produced. But it was fun.

Btw. I have forgotten how I get it running. The PC then had a parallel
port and it seems Linux just served the printer right.

> I do have (I think) two Commodore 64s (and 2*A500, A500+ and A1200) so
> I think I keep the printer, find some continuous feed paper for it and
> hook it up to C64. :)

I have no real hardware, only emulate the C64 and Amiga. I once tried to
print from The Print Shop from the C64 to the Linux host via CUPS the
emulator (VICE) runs on. But I set it up wrong and the result was messed
up 50% of the time, the other 50% the emulator crashed when printing.
--
Andreas
You know you are a redneck if
your favorite hangout is the phillips 66 near the freeway.

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