Epson MX-80 User Manual page 58

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Chapter 9

and RUN.

OK gang. Different folks are getting different results. Most users will, while

making loud and angry noises, see the Printer TAB over to 63, then the carriage

return to print position 0 and continue from there. This is a computer software

deficiency — it's not sending the right messages to the Printer. Very common.

Those users who find their Printer merrily printing numbers in 78 different

columns can give their computers a little pat on the — ah, keyboard. (TRS-80's

released after Spring 1980 with the abbreviated power-up message MEM SIZE?

R/S L2 BASIC work fine.)

Computer users who are experiencing success can go one step further. Let's go

into compressed character mode and see just how many positions we can TAB

over to. Change the program to read:

5 L P R I N T

C H R $ ( 1 5 ) ;

1 0 FOR N = 0 TO 1 3 2

2 0

L P R I N T

T A B ( N ) ; N

3 0 NEXT N

4 0 L P R I N T

C H R $ ( 1 8 )

and RUN.

How sweet it is. We TAB to 131. Everyone else just groan, while your Printer

drops back to start again at the left with numbers 64 and 128.

All is not lost if your computer can't match the Printer's ability. If printing on a

form that uses the full 80 (or 132) column width, use program TABs as long as

possible, then insert spaces the rest of the way. It's frustrating (believe me, I

know), but it's about the only universal way out. And, it does work.

The PRINTER has Horizontal TABs

Yes, the MX-80 itself has the ability to internally store Horizontal Tab positions.

This is not the same as just being told by the BASIC program to TAB over so far.

Once set, we* can quickly shift to each internal TAB point by use of a control

code, CHR$( 137)