Glossary of Terms
The manufacturers of laser printers use a wide range of terms
to try and distinguish features of their printers, so there are
many terms in use which have the same meaning. Within this book
"industry standard" terminology is used wherever possible,
however the specification sheet for a printer may use different
terms, so this glossary includes many of the common terms used
by different laser printer manufacturers.
- 10-Base-T
- an alternative name for twisted-pair network connections
- A3, A4, A5 paper
- standard European paper sizes, A3 measures 297 mm x 420 mm,
A4 measures 210 mm x 297 mm, and A5 measures 148 mm x 210 mm.
- Adobe PostScript
- a page description language (PDL) developed by Adobe Systems
Incorporated, and used on many high-end printers.
- Adobe Type 1 font
- a font definition format for outline fonts developed by Adobe
for use with PostScript. Type 1 fonts include a "hinting"
mechanism which helps in the aesthetic reproduction of fonts at
small sizes to overcome the restrictions imposed by low resolution
printers.
- Adobe Type 3 font
- a font format for outline fonts developed by Adobe for use
with PostScript. Type 3 fonts do not have a "hinting"
mechanism and are easier to create.
- Adobe Type Manager (ATM)
- a font management and rasterisation program which converts
Adobe Type 1 and Type 3 fonts to bitmaps for printing or display
on a computer screen. ATM is available as a program to run in
the Windows environment to allow the display of PostScript fonts
by Windows programs, and is built-in to some other graphical user
interfaces.
- AMPV
- Average Monthly Print Volume, a method of expressing the monthly
volume of usage a printer is intended for.
- AppleTalk
- A network protocol used by Apple Macintosh computers, normally
used in conjunction with LocalTalk, Apple's proprietary network
topology.
- ASCII
- "American Standard for Computer Information Interchange",
ASCII defines a number of character set encodings (the assignment
of characters to numbers for use by computers) for different latin-based
languages. ASCII encoding is used on most computers other than
IBM mainframe and minicomputers which have their own character
set encoding, EBCDIC.
- AUI
- a type of connector used in standard "thick" Ethernet
installations to connect devices to the network. An AUI connector
is a 15-pin D-type plug.
- B4 paper
- a rarely used European paper size measuring 250 mm x 353 mm
- belt
- a common term for a photoreceptor made as a continuous flexible
belt.
- bitmap
- an array of dots, normally containing an image formed by a
pattern of "white" dots and "black" dots.
- bitmap font
- a font in which each character is stored as an array of dots,
the pattern of which forms a letter or symbol.
- bitmap graphic
- an array of dots, in which the pattern of the dots forms a
picture or other non-text item such as a line.
- Bi-Tronics
- a fast bi-directional parallel communications interface developed
by Hewlett-Packard, which is backwards compatible with the Centronics
parallel interface.
- BNC
- a bayonet-style co-axial connector normally used to connect
devices to thin "cheap" Ethernet networks.
- Boise specification
- the specification for Bi-Tronics communications ports, developed
by Hewlett-Packard engineers at Boise in the USA.
- built-in font
- see resident font
- bus and tag connection
- the connection mechanism normally used to connect devices
to the IBM 370 Channel interface on IBM mainframes.
- cache memory
- RAM which is used as a temporary holding place to allow fast
access to some transient data. In printers cache memory primarily
refers to the font cache, where bitmaps generated from outline
fonts are held ready for use.
- CAD
- Computer-Aided Design, a type of computer software application
used for engineering drawings, which often requires a special
printer language emulating a pen plotter.
- cartridge
- may refer to ROM cartridge, font cartridge, emulation cartridge,
toner cartridge, toner/developer cartridge or print cartridge.
- Centronics
- a parallel communications interface designed by the Centronics
corporation for use with printers, and adopted as the de facto
standard for parallel communications between computers and printers
- channel interface
- abbreviation for the IBM 370 Channel interface used by IBM
mainframes for the connection of peripherals.
- character
- an individual letter, number or other symbol in a font.
- character attributes
- a misnomer for typestyle, commonly used to refer to bold,
italic, underline and other typestyle qualifiers used with a typeface.
- charged roller
- a roller in a laser printer which imparts an electrostatic
charge to another surface. Charged rollers are used in some small
printers in place of corotrons to reduce ozone emissions.
- client/server
- generic term for a network topology where the network has
two type of computer attached, those which access the network
(clients) and those which provide facilities to network users
(servers).
- CMYK
- Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black. A colour encoding method frequently
used on colour printers, where a colour other than black is defined
by the proportions of cyan, magenta and yellow required to reproduce
the colour. Black is provided separately to ensure ultimate "blackness".
- communication port
- an alternate term for a communication interface
- communication interface
- a communication interface is a mechanism through which data
may transmitted or received by a computer, printer or other computing
device. Communications interfaces normally fall into three categories,
serial, parallel and network interfaces.
- consumable
- any replaceable component of a laser printer, such as the
toner, photoreceptor etc.
- contour font
- an alternative term for an outline font.
- control panel
- the panel on the front of a printer which allows the user
to configure the printer by selecting which emulation is used,
which communications port to use etc. The control panel normally
includes a status display which shows configuration menu options
and printer operation status messages to the user.
- controller
- normally an abbreviation of printer controller, the dedicated
computer in a printer which creates the image to be printed.
- corotron
- a wire in the printer mechanism which carries a very high
voltage to generate an electrostatic charge on a nearby surface,
such as a photoreceptor or sheet of paper. There are several corotrons
in most printers. The high voltage in corotrons ionises the air
surrounding the corotron and generates ozone gas as a by-product.
- coverage
- normally refers to the amount of the paper which is covered
with toner. A typical page of text will have a coverage of 4 -
5%.
- CRU
- Customer Replaceable Unit, an alternative term for a consumable.
- Dataproducts
- a parallel communications interface designed by the Dataproducts
corporation for use with printers, and used by some minicomputers
for parallel connection to printers.
- developer
- the mechanism and magnetic powder used to transfer toner from
the toner hopper onto the photoreceptor.
- dot
- a single point written by a laser, or a single point in a
bitmap.
- download
- to transfer data from a computer to a printer
- downloaded font
- a font which is stored in a computer, and sent to the printer
via the communications interface when required, to be stored in
the printer. Normally downloaded fonts are held in RAM on the
printer, and are lost when the printer is switched off. Some printers
are able to hold downloaded fonts on hard disk to prevent loss
when the printer is switched off.
- drum
- a common term for a cylindrical photoreceptor.
- DTP
- desk-top publishing, a class of computer application used
for the production of newsletters, magazines, manuals and other
complex documents. The complexity of documents produced using
DTP packages means that they are normally used with PDL printers.
- duplex
- double-sided, a sheet of paper on which both sides are printed.
- EBCDIC
- "Extended Binary-Coded Decimal Interchange Code",
EBCDIC defines the character set encoding (the assignment of characters
to numbers for use in computers) used by most IBM mainframes and
minicomputers. The majority of non-IBM computers and personal
computers use ASCII.
- edge enhancement
- a generic term for the edge-smoothing technique which reduced
the jagged appearance of angled lines on laser printers, as used
in HP's Resolution Enhancement Technology, and copied by many
other printer manufacturers.
- emulation
- a generic term for a printer language. Most printers mimic
or "emulate" the behaviour of the market-leading models
of printer by copying their printer language.
- engine
- normally an abbreviation of printer engine, the mechanism
which "writes" a bitmap onto paper.
- EPROM
- Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory, a type of memory chip
which normally holds information permanently, but which can be
wiped clean and reprogrammed under specific conditions, normally
using ultra-violet light.
- escape code
- a special control character used by computers and printers,
character number 27 decimal, 1B hexa-decimal in the standard ASCII
character set.
- escape code language
- A printer language in which each command is preceded by a
special character, normally the escape code, to signify that what
follows is a command rather than data.
- escape sequence
- a sequence of characters which form a command to be obeyed
by the printer, preceded by the escape code and ended with a termination
character.
- Ethernet
- the most popular physical connection mechanism for connecting
groups of computers together in a network. Ethernet can be used
to form client/server or peer-to-peer networks.
- eurolegal paper
- a European paper size measuring 8½" x 13".
Eurolegal is supported by relatively few laser printer manufacturers.
- face-up
- refers to an output tray on a printer in which pages are delivered
with the readable side upwards. As each sheet is placed on top
of the last, multi-page documents delivered to a face-up tray
are normally in reverse page order.
- face-down
- refers to an output tray on a printer in which pages are delivered
with the readable side facing down. As each sheet is placed on
top of the last, multi-page documents delivered to a face-down
tray are normally in the correct page order.
- FAX modem
- a specific type of modem used for sending and receiving facsimiles.
Used by some manufacturers to refer to a facsimile option on a
laser printer, as a facsimile option must include a FAX modem.
- firmware
- software which is stored in ROM. In printers the firmware
is normally the software permanently stored in the printer controller.
- first print out time
- the time taken between a printer receiving the data for the
first page of a print job, and delivering the page to the output
tray. Most printers do not start printing immediately the data
is received, but need a few seconds in which to assimilate the
data, setup the page formatting, and start the motors which drive
the paper path.
- flash memory
- a type of EPROM which can be wiped clean and reprogrammed
electronically, and thus may be used for semi-permanent storage
of downloaded fonts as an alternative to a hard disk.
- font
- a collection of characters in a particular typeface, typestyle,
and character set. A bitmap font is normally also defined by size
and orientation.
- font cache
- an area of RAM in a printer which is used for the temporary
storage of bitmap fonts which have either been read from hard
disk, or created from outline fonts.
- font cartridge
- a ROM cartridge containing either bitmap or outline printer
fonts.
- fuser
- the mechanism in a laser printer which binds the toner to
the paper. Most fusers use hot rollers and fuse the toner into
the paper using heat and pressure, but a few printers have radiant
fusers which fuse using heat alone.
- fuser oil
- a temperature resistant oil used on fuser rollers to prevent
toner adhering to the surface of the rollers. On small printers
the fuser oil is normally contained in the fuser cleaning pad.
- GDI
- Graphical Device Interface, a term normally used to refer
to the software mechanism used by Microsoft Windows software to
exchange information which is to be displayed or printed between
the Windows environment and Windows applications.
- grey scale
- a technique where shades of grey are synthesised using patterns
of black and white dots.
- gsm
- grammes per square metre, the standard European measurement
of paper weight.
- hard disk
- an electromechanical mechanism used in computers and some
printers for the semi-permanent storage of data including fonts.
- host computer
- any computer to which the printer being discussed it attached,
but commonly used to refer to mainframe computers.
- HPGL
- Hewlett-Packard Graphics Language, a vector graphics language
used by Hewlett-Packard plotters and commonly output by CAD software.
Some laser printers emulate HPGL to allow their use with CAD packages.
- HP-IB
- Hewlett-Packard Interface Bus, a parallel communications mechanism
used primarily for the connection of scientific and engineering
instruments and computers, but also provided on a few printers.
- HP PCL
- Hewlett-Packard Printer Control Language. The most popular
and widely emulated Escape Code printer language. PCL is available
in several variants including PCL 3 , 4 and 5, each of which provides
more facilities than the previous variant.
- input tray
- an alternative term for a paper tray
- Intellifont
- a font definition format for outline fonts developed by Compugraphic
for use with laser printers. Intellifont outline fonts are used
by HP PCL 5 printers and many PCL 5 emulations.
- i.p.m
- images per minute or impressions per minute, a measure of
the speed of a laser printer, where each sheet of paper has more
than one image as in duplex printing.
- job separator
- a sheet produced by some workgroup printers before each print
job to identify the user to whom the job belongs.
- LAN
- a Local Area Network is a method of interconnecting groups
of computers, allowing them to share resources such as disk storage
and printers.
- landscape
- refers to the orientation of a page. A page is said to have
landscape orientation when the text is read parallel to the long
edge of the paper.
- laser
- an acronym for "Light Amplification by the Stimulated
Emission of Radiation", a laser beam is characterised by
comprising light waves which are phase synchronised and parallel
to obtain maximum intensity.
- L.E.D
- an abbreviation for Light Emitting Diode, a solid-state electronic
component which emits light.
- ledger paper
- a North American paper size, measuring 11" x 17".
- legal paper
- a North American paper size, measuring 8½" x 14".
- letter paper
- a North American paper size, measuring 8½" x 11".
- LocalTalk
- the physical wiring and connection mechanism used in AppleTalk
networks.
- logo
- a graphic device, such as a company logo or special symbol,
which can be stored as a character in a special font for use with
laser printers.
- media
- anything which a laser printer can print on, e.g. paper, card,
transparencies and labels.
- modem
- modulator-demodulator, a device which converts serial
communications data into audible tones for transmission over telephone
links.
- memory
- data storage space, typically RAM. The larger the amount of
memory in a printer, the more data the printer can hold, and hence
(generally) the more complex the pages it can produce.
- network
- normally refers to a Local Area Network (LAN), although there
are also Wide Area Networks, and public telecommunications systems
are often referred to as networks in the context of interconnecting
computers.
- network interface
- an interface which allows a printer to be connected directly
to a LAN, normally in the form of a card which plugs into the
printer controller, but also available as an external box called
a print server.
- network printer
- a printer which is designed to connect to a network and be
used by groups of users, a sub-class of workgroup printers.
- network protocol
- the software data transfer mechanisms which pass data between
computers and between computers and printers, on a LAN.
- network topology
- the manner and design in which computers are connected to
a network, the topology describes both the physical connection
mechanism, such as Ethernet, and the network type, such as client/server.
- office printer
- a printer which is designed for general purpose office use,
and may be used by an individual user, or shared by a small group
of users.
- offset mechanism
- a mechanism in the output part of some workgroup and production
printers which pushes alternate jobs sideways in the output stack
thereby separating one job from another.
- organic photoconductor (OPC)
- a type of photoreceptor material commonly used for photoreceptor
belts and also used on the photoreceptor drums of some smaller
printers.
- outline font
- a font in which each character is represented by sets of equations
or vectors which define the outline of the character. An outline
font cannot be printed "as is", but must first be scaled
to the appropriate size, and "filled" with dots to make
a bitmap. As outline fonts can be scaled they may be used to create
characters of any size, and may be rotated to any angle.
- output tray
- a shelf or tray on the outside of the printer which receives
and collects the printed pages.
- ozone
- a unstable corrosive gas (O³) produced by the ionisation
of air which occurs around corotron wires.
- ozone filter
- a carbon filter, normally a mesh, which ozone gas oxidises,
thus reducing the ozone to oxygen.
- paper feeder
- the part of a printer which feeds sheets of paper from a stack
into the printing mechanism. Normally the paper feeder feeds from
a paper tray, but some designs of paper feeder do not use a tray.
- paper path
- the path which the paper describes as it moves through the
printer from the paper feeder to the output tray.
- paper tray
- normally a cassette which holds a particular size of paper
and inserts into the paper feeder, however some cassettes are
adjustable for several sizes of paper, and some paper feeders
provide adjustable paper guides eliminating the need for a paper
tray.
- parallel interface
- a communication mechanism used to transfer data from a computer
to a printer, several bits at a time. Most parallel interfaces
are 8 bits wide, and thus transfer one byte in each transaction,
however a few are 16 bits wide, transferring two bytes simultaneously.
- PC
- a Personal Computer, normally meaning an IBM-compatible personal
computer, but equally valid in describing other personal computers
such as the Apple Macintosh.
- PCL
- Printer Command Language, normally in reference to Hewlett-Packard
Printer Command Language (HP PCL), but most manufacturers emulating
HP PCL leave out the HP.
- PDL
- Page Description Language. A programming language used to
describe a page for display or printing in terms of the text and
graphics on a page, and effects which may be applied to them.
- peer-to-peer
- a network topology in which all computers on the network are
able to access each others resources, as opposed to client/server
networks where clients access common resources provided by servers.
- personal printer
- a small laser printer, typically producing 4 - 5 p.p.m, which
is physically compact to allow easy use on a desk, and sufficiently
inexpensive to justify ownership by an individual for their personal
printing needs.
- photoreceptor
- the component in a laser printer which is light sensitive,
and in which on exposure to light the surface electrostatic charge
changes, enabling a pattern of electrostatic charge to be created
with a laser. The pattern of electrostatic charge is then used
to attract toner and transfer it to a sheet of paper.
- pixel
- a "picture cell element", commonly used as a misnomer
for a dot in laser printing. It is a misnomer because a laser
printer dot is an indivisible unit, whereas a pixel may actually
comprise several dots arranged in a matrix to form a shade of
grey.
- port
- an abbreviation of communications port, an alternate term
for a communications interface.
- portrait
- refers to the orientation of a page. A page is said to have
portrait orientation when the text is read parallel to the short
edge of the paper.
- p.p.m
- an abbreviation of pages per minute, the standard measure
of throughput or speed for laser printers. p.p.m is an adequate
measure for simplex printers, but duplex printers are more appropriately
measure in images per minute (i.p.m)
- print cartridge
- a print cartridge is a printer consumable which normally contains
all the major replaceable elements in a laser printer, such as
toner, developer and photoreceptor.
- print drum
- a common term for a cylindrical photoreceptor.
- print engine
- the mechanism which transcribes a bitmap created by the printer
controller into a printed image.
- print job
- any group of pages which are to be printed together.
- print server
- a device used to connect a stand-alone printer to a LAN.
- printer controller
- the dedicated computer in a printer which receives data to
be printed from a computer, along with commands defining how the
data should be formatted, and uses these to create (rasterise)
a bitmap describing the image required on the paper which is then
passed to the print engine for transcription to the paper.
- printer driver
- a software utility incorporated into a software application
package on a computer which enables the application to determine
the commands required by the printer to format data for printing,
and which provides the application with information about the
facilities provided by the printer.
- printer font
- any font which is designed for use on a printer.
- production printer
- a large heavy-duty printer designed for almost continuous
printing in a production environment, either for large quantities
of small documents such as invoices and account statements, or
for small quantities of large documents such as reports, short-run
books, newsletters etc.
- rasterisation
- the process of converting data and command received from a
computer into a bitmap containing an image to be printed.
- resident font
- any font which is built-in to a printer by the manufacturer
as one of the standard features offered by the printer.
- resolution
- the number of individual dots a printer can print in a given
area, normally expressed as dots per inch (d.p.i).
- RAM (random access memory)
- a type of temporary storage space used in computers and printers
which is created using integrated circuits and which may be written
into and read from by the computer as required. RAM only preserves
its contents while power is present, so the contents of RAM are
lost when the power is switched off.
- RGB
- Red, Green, Blue. a colour encoding method normally used on
computer displays in which each colour to be displayed is described
in the proportions of Red Green and Blue required to make the
colour.
- RJ45
- a connector commonly used with twisted-pair networks, an RJ45
plug is very similar to a telephone plug.
- ROM (read-only memory)
- a type of permanent storage space used in computers and printers
which is created using integrated circuits, and which may be read
from by the computer, but may not be written to. ROM preserves
its contents indefinitely, so the contents remain even when power
is removed.
- ROM cartridge
- a small case containing a printed circuit board on which several
ROM chips are mounted, and which can be inserted into a special
slot in a printer. The ROM chips are normally used to hold fonts
or printer language emulations.
- RS232C
- a common serial communications method used by most computers.
- RS422
- a serial communications method which offers higher performance
than RS232C, but is less commonly used.
- scaleable font
- a font which can be scaled to any size, used as an alternative
term for an outline font.
- screen font
- a font which is designed for display on a computer screen.
- serial interface
- a communication mechanism used to transfer data from a computer
to a printer, one bit at a time. Serial communication is much
slower than parallel communication, but may be used to transfer
data over long distances and requires fewer wires.
- simplex
- single-sided printing, where one side of a sheet of paper
is printed on, and the other side is not.
- sixel graphics
- a method of encoding bitmap graphics so that they may be reliably
transmitted using serial communication links.
- soft font
- an alternative term for a downloaded font.
- software driver
- a generic term for a software utility such as a printer driver.
- speed
- commonly used to describe the throughput of a laser printer
measured in p.p.m or i.p.m.
- s.p.i
- "spots per inch", used by some manufacturers as
an alternate term for "dots per inch".
- stacker
- a paper output tray, normally a high capacity output tray
that incorporates a motorised elevator which lowers the height
of the output paper stack to allow more paper to be added to the
top of the stack.
- status message
- a message displayed on the control panel of a printer to indicate
the status of the printer, or indicate an error condition or the
need to replace a consumable.
- status sheet
- a page generated by a printer controller to indicate the status
of a printer, including information about the configuration of
the printer.
- throughput
- the productivity of a printer in terms of pages printed in
a given time, normally measured as pages per minute (p.p.m).
- Token Ring
- a network topology often used in conjunction with IBM minicomputers.
- toner
- a fine coloured plastic powder which is used to form an image
on a sheet of paper.
- toner cartridge
- a cartridge or cassette which holds toner for ease of loading
into a printer.
- toner/developer cartridge
- a cartridge containing both toner and developer for loading
into a printer, usually including the developer roller and the
associated drive gears which rotate the roller, and the toner
hopper which is formed by the cartridge casing.
- TrueType
- a font definition format for outline fonts which is used by
Microsoft Windows for the creation of screen fonts and downloaded
fonts.
- twisted pair
- a low-cost connection method for creating Local Area Networks,
often used to distribute connections from a multiple connection
point (a "hub") on an Ethernet network.
- Type 1 font
- an abbreviation of Adobe Type 1 font, generally used by other
font suppliers when supplying fonts in Adobe Type 1 format.
- Type 3 font
- an abbreviation of Adobe Type 3 font, generally used by other
font suppliers when supplying fonts in Adobe Type 3 format.
- typeface
- a the visual design of a set of characters or a font.
- typestyle
- a modifier used to vary the appearance of a typeface without
changing its basic shape, such as bold or italic.
- UI (user interface)
- any part of a device which is used for communication between
the device and the user or vice versa, on a printer the user interface
is the control panel.
- vector graphics
- a method of describing lines and curves as mathematical equations
or vectors.
- warm-up time
- the time taken after switching for a printer to achieve a
state where it is ready to print. The warm-up time is normally
dictated by the time taken to heat up the fuser to its operating
temperature
- winchester disk
- a particular type of hard disk using technology developed
by IBM laboratories in Winchester.
- workgroup printer
- a medium-sized laser printer designed to handle the printing
requirements of several users, normally attached to a LAN or multi-user
computer.
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