PANASONIC KX-P2135 PRINTER for the TI

by Jerry Novak of PUNN
With things like Microsoft Word and soft fonts for the "dark side" set, seems like yet another good reason to move on to PCs right? Well maybe not necessarily! I'm in love with my TI computer and not about to part with it even though I am DOS and Windows '95' literate. Paging through Computer Shopper awhile back I stumbled onto a Tri-State Computer advertisement for printers, specifically a Panasonic KX-P2135 dot matrix printer for $100 (with factory rebate). I did a bit of research and found out that it's a 24 pin color printer, Proprinter and Epson compatible, so I figured I couldn't go wrong and ordered one.
When it arrived, I was a bit disappointed, because the Panasonic folk built the package to cater to PC/Windows users, supplying Windows and DOS setup disks, and a manual that told little more than how to use both disks and the controls on the user panel. Also, it has only a parallel port, no serial one. However on the DOS disk, is a text file that contains all of the necessary printer codes plus a complete description of the printer's graphics modes- Now we're in business! Downloading a copy of it to an IBM formatted disk on a friend's computer, I took it home, transferred it to a TI disk via PC Transfer and printed it.
I found that the printer has two emulation modes, IBM Proprinter X24E and Epson LQ-860, both of which will work with the likes of TI Writer, Artist and PagePro. The Proprinter side is O.K. with color, the 6 resident fonts in letter quality mode and its other features, but it's the Epson side that really shines! Besides draft and the same 6 LQ fonts in letter quality, it has italics, emphasized, double strike, outline, shadow, double high and double wide highlights, all of which can be used singly or in unison. In addition, one pass can be made with a font on one color, while a second can be in another color in outline, shadow or both if one so desires. It can super/subscript print, set and use vertical and horizontal tabs. It can underline, overscore and strike through text in one pass with solid or broken, single or double lines, this of course in addition to the standard IBM character line box set capabilities, Print quality is of course 24 pin excellent with a decent ribbon.
As if all this isn't enough, the printer will extend TI Writer's 80 column (pica) limit with its own on board "word processor" mode. There are printer codes that will let one center, right align or right justify text, in 40, 48. 60, 68, 80, 96, 120, 137, 160 column, text. In 40, 48, 60, 68, 80, 96, 120, 137, and 160 column proportional, or proportional compressed modes, It can also micro justify by user selected amounts.
Graphics capabilities far exceed the TI's with 8 pin 60, 120, 240, 80 (CRT1), 90 (CRT 2) dpi and 24 pin 60, 120, 90 (CRT 3), and 180 and 360 dpi settings, However, I'm sure some enterprising individual will find a way to use the higher than 60 dpi settings.
As an option, for an extra 50 bucks (spendy I know, but worth it) I bought the 32k buffer memory chip, which allows extra document buffer room, and / or downloading of an extra couple of fonts, one for draft and one for letter quality. All of the previously mentioned highlights, will work with this font as well. I didn't purchase the other option, a fifty leaf cut sheet feeder, as the 2135 comes with a fifteen sheet feeder as well as a back side tractor feed.
Summing it up, I feel that anyone with a bit of programming skills or proficient in using .TL codes should be able to do far more with this printer than writers of TI-Writer, Artist, or PagePro ever envisioned for our TIs. This printer has still other features, more than I care to mention here, Making it A+ valuable addition to any TI or Geneva system, even with the lack of a conventional manual!
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