How to choose: Laser Printers, Inkjet Printers, Dot
Matrix Printers
by David Arnold Livingston
Man is always in constant search for knowledge which
he
makes use to create innovations that will make his
life
better. Among the varied inventions of man is a
computer printer. The first computer printer can be
traced back in the year 1953 which was developed by
Remington-Rand as a match for Univac computer. Laser
printers were evolved from the dry printing process
or
Xerox invented by Chester Carlson in 1938. 1971
witnessed the birth of the first laser printer which
was then named as EARS. The next years are period of
experiments and added inventions which paved the way
to
the first IBM printer. The IBM 3800 Printing System
was
considered as the first high-speed laser printer
with a
speed of more than 100 impressions-per-minute.
Nowadays, a computer printer is of vital importance
in
the different areas of human activities. It goes
hand
in hand with a computer as a component that
generates
the hard copy or a readable text from the stored
data
on the computer's system. Several printer
technologies
are available today but it can be categorized into
two
types - namely the impact and the non-impact
technologies. A computer printer that uses the
impact
technology is equipped with a system that requires
contact with the paper or whatever material that can
be
used to produce the readable text.
Dot Matrix and Character Printers are the two major
classifications of Impact printer technology. A
character printer is a computerized typewriter made
up
of a group of bars which serve as the platform for
letters and numbers. Like a typewriter, the right
characters are hit or struck to touch the ink
ribbons
which in turn pass on the characters to the paper.
It
can be used with speed but has limited uses.
Computer
printers with Dot matrix technology have a group of
small pins needed to strike the ink coated ribbon to
pass on the image to the paper.
A printer using the Non-Impact technology does not
need
contact with the paper to produce the desired image.
An example of this is the commonly used Inkjet
painters
and Laser printers. An inkjet printer directly
sprays
drop of inks into the paper while a laser printer is
equipped with a toner, heat and static electricity
to
produce the image. Inkjet printers are used in
almost
all offices, business, café and many other
establishments. The printed image coming from an
inkjet printer has tiny dots that usually have a
diameter of 50-60 microns.
Print head assembly, paper feed assembly, power
supply,
control circuitry and interface ports are the parts
making up a typical inkjet printer. The quality of
the
produced image in an inkjet printer is also
dependent
on the type of paper used. Brightness and absorption
are the main factors that determine the quality of
the
printed image. The brightness is determined by the
smoothness of the paper's surface. Smooth surface
reflect more light which makes the image brighter.
Absorption refers to the ability of the paper to
take
in the ink. Papers with good absorption capacity
have
images that will stay tight while poor absorption
capacity can result in blotting.
Monochromatic and multi-colored images can be
produced
depending on the type of printer. Monochrome printer
is
only capable of generating images with only one
color,
commonly black, while a color printer can produce
colored images. A printer can transform a group of
characters, a vector image and a bitmapped image
into a
printed version. Other printers however cannot
process
all of these types. By examining your needs, you can
choose the optimum printer for you.
About the Author
David Arnold Livingston is a successful entrepreneur
and shares his knowledge of computer printer
resources at:
http://www.ravenprinter.com/
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