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Timex Interface RS232
Manual

This manual is in Portuguese. Maybe I will translate it to English.

Timex Computer Interface RS232
(C) Copyright of TMX Portugal, Lda.

1. Introduction

The unit Interface RS232, enables you to connect your TC2068, TC2048 or ZX Spectrum computer, to a serial printer, enabling you to use the qualities of that kind of printer.

2. Install

Here you must have:
-TC2068 (*), TC2048 or ZX Spectrum
-TV ou composite monitor
-Timex 2080 printer
-RS232 cable
-Tape recorder
-Tape with RS232 software

(*) by using TC2068, your must use the Spectrum emulator cartridge or the Time Word word processor cartridge.

Now you must do:
1º connect the computer has showed in the manual
2º connect the Interface RS232 to edge connector of your computer
3º connect  the RS232 cable to the printer and to the Interface RS232
4º configure the printer, using the printer manual to:
        1200 baud
        No parity
        1 Stop bit
        CR+LF
5º turn on the printer and finnaly the computer
6º LOAD the program that is in RS232 tape with:
        LOAD "RS232"

Note: This program have autostart.

Now you must certify that the rotine is functioning properly. For that, start to put your printer in On-lone and then type the following instruction:

        PRINT #7;"test"

witch, the printer respond printing the word test in the paper.

3. Using

3.1 For the user in Basic

After LOADing the program, it puts in de address 65100, being protected from any basic program.
Warning: When use the NEW command, you must type RAND USR 65100 to initialize the printing routine.

For the user, to use the Interface RS232 very easely, established a way of comunication very simple.
This way the channel 7 was associated to the Interface RS232 to comunicate to the printer. Just use instructions witch syntax is an extension to the PRINTing commands in basic.

3.1.1 Direct commands do the printer:

PRINT #7;"test"
PRINT #7;"test"; TAB 1;"test"
PRINT #7;A$

3.1.2 commands to list programs

LIST #7
LIST #7,100

3.1.3 Adapting the printing routine to a program

To include the printing routine using the Interface RS232, in a basic program, is necessary to include this instructions in the main program:

CLEAR 65099
LOAD "RS232.OBJ" CODE 65100
RANDOMIZE USR 65100

This instructions reserv space for the machine code routines and start channel #7.

3.2 for the user in machine code

The programmer can use directly the routines, the same way to other channels. For that, just:

LD         A,07            ;cannel 7
CALL    1601H        ;open the channel
LD         A,"A"           ;send caracter "A"
RST      10H              ;to current channel
RET

In the above example, the sequence sends caracter "A" to the printer and then it returns to the main program.
When you want to use the printer in graphic mode, you must call it directly. You can do it, for example:

LD        A,0FEH         ;byte 0FEH
CALL   FE72H          ;send the byte to the interface
RET                            ; return to the main program

To send more bytes through the Interface RS232, you can use a identical program:

                LD         HL,buffer                 ;address of the text
                LD         B,bufend-buffer     ;size of the text
LOOP     PUSH   BC
                LD         A,(HL)
                CALL    FE72H                      ;send the caracter
                POP      BC
                INC       HL
                DJNZ    LOOP                        ;last caracter?
buffer     DEFM                                     ;"printer test"
bufend   EQU     $