Print Issues

The earliest computer printers used mechanisms like chains, daisy wheels, or type balls, which printed (impressed) individual characters on paper output. For these technologies, the print mechanism must include the national characters you want to print.

For example, if you are using a traditional mainframe line printer with a print chain to produce reports, and you want to print the euro symbol (€) for the European Community common currency, the print chain will have to include that symbol.

However, today's computer printers typically use technologies such as ink jet or laser printing that are able to print any shape, not just text. Available characters are determined by printer firmware (fixed software routines embedded in specialized microchips), or software controlling the printer.

Note the following issues involving printing technologies and NLS:

• To correctly print a script normally not used by a printer, you may need to specify bitmap images for text or something similar.
• A printer may have a set of system fonts that it uses unless instructed otherwise. These printers typically use font substitution, in which incoming text for printing is parsed symbol by symbol, and the nearest matching symbol in a system font is used. This system works for most applications, and improves performance. However, system fonts may not support the national characters you need.

In these cases and in others you may encounter, consult the printer documentation for information on how to proceed. Additionally, consult the documentation for your operating system and network. Print options are often under operating system or network control.