[Printing-architecture] Q: Dot-by-dot (dot perfect) raster printing?

[Printing-architecture] Q: Dot-by-dot (dot perfect) raster printing?

[Honoh Suzuki]

Hi,

Sorry for the multi-posting (I first tried Gutenprint in vain).  I have a newbie question.  

Is it possible to do raster printing dot by dot (dot perfect)?  

My understanding is that, nowadays, it is generally not possible because the printer driver (backend) always tweaks the original image during printing for re-scaling and dithering.  But I badly need it to print my computer-generated holograms, probably with [debian or chromebook] + [lasers and/or inkjets, e.g., EPSON, HP, Brother, etc.].  

The dot size doesn't have to be the finest possible.  For example, a 300dpi image on the 600dpi printer would do.  

The physical degradation (toner or ink splash etc) is unavoidable, but at least I want to avoid degradation at the software level.  

I imagine there might be a simple option (like --as_is or --dot_by_dot) to lpr.  

I'd appreciate any clue or pointer to the archive, source code, snippet, etc. Thanks.  

Re: [Printing-architecture] Q: Dot-by-dot (dot perfect) raster printing?

[Michael Sweet]

Honoh,

> On Jun 3, 2021, at 3:50 AM, Honoh Suzuki <honoh@sci.u-toyama.ac.jp> wrote:
> 
> Hi,
> 
> Sorry for the multi-posting (I first tried Gutenprint in vain).  I have a newbie question.  
> 
> Is it possible to do raster printing dot by dot (dot perfect)?  

In general, no.  You can be dot-aligned but most printers will take a 300/360/600/720dpi image and upscale and dither it to a higher resolution with the corresponding colors and dot sizes.

If you generate a printer-specific language like PCL or ESC/P, it is possible to send bitmap graphics (or in the case of many Epson printers, 2-bit per color graphics) that are not altered by the printer, but this is very printer-specific.

________________________
Michael Sweet