For those purposes a cheap-to-run dot matrix is much more appropriate, saving the inkjet for work where a higher quality of printing is required. With all due respect, that's an even more silly solution.  You are proposing using *two* printers with all consequent maintenance costs.   Dot matrix printers are cheap, and if you print a lot of stuff (like source listings, for example, which also lend themselves better to continuous form paper), Alistair's suggesting makes perfect sense. Printers don't require much maintenance in my experience. Very true. I have an old Epson RX-80 here that's been going since 1984. Apart from changing ribbons, it's never needed any maintenance, and it's still working perfectly. Alistair

My solution is this:  don't *print* so many drafts!   Print Preview was created for a reason, you know...  I know printing drafts is a hard habit to kick but if you want to be thrifty, then no matter what printer you use not printing is always less costly than printing. It's not so much drafts, for me, as listings. I've recently had to print out the complete sendmail source, for the OS/2 port I'm working on. It fills two large files. Imagine how much that lot would have cost inkjet-printed? Rattling the lot out overnight on the old dot-matrix on cheap (60 gsm) continuous paper probably saved me a small fortune. And yes, I do need a printed copy to work from. Virtual desktops have their place, but flipping back and forth between the window you're reading from and the one you're typing into is an exercise in pain. And even with a 15 monitor, it's still very inconvenient to fit both windows on screen at once. Not to mention that you can't easily flip back and forth in an on-screen listing [1], especially one spread over a couple of dozen source files. Alistair [1] Of course, the copy on disc is easier to grep, but you can't have     everything. Or so I'm told.

Not to mention that you can't easily flip back and forth in an on-screen listing [1], especially one spread over a couple of dozen source files. You also can't leave on-screen listings in piles on your desk so you can find them a month later when you need to show someone else why you did what you did.

And print previews are not usually readable or accurate.  There are almost always significant differences between what a preview shows and what you see on paper. And dot matrix draft output is the same as laser-printed output? You're suggesting that we all have two printers, a dot matrix *and* a laser; the former for printing drafts and listings, the latter for printing final output and graphics.  While I won't argue that there may be some who need listings in such quantity and with such frequency that a dot matrix printer might be useful, the fact remains that while a dot matrix printer can print drafts and listings it *can't* print with the same quality as a laser, and at the same time a laser can do most of the things a dot matrix can (i.e. drafts and listings), and do them better. _VTL_______________________________________________________________________ Viet-Tam Luu    Team OS/2    Corel Engineering 1996    NWC: Never forget. 2B Math/CS, University of Waterloo   http://www.csclub.uwaterloo.ca/~vtluu/ You go there you're gone forever / I go there I'll lose my way / if we stay here we're not together / Anywhere is - Enya & R. Ryan, Anywhere Is

Having a decent printout of an Epson or clone is not possible. All you can do is a draft print out. Good enough for program listing. That what I use for my listings. It sucks but its cheap. For good printout it has to be either laser or ink jet. Both are excellent, laser tend to be cheaper to use than ink jet.

You're suggesting that we all have two printers, a dot matrix *and* a laser; the former for printing drafts and listings, the latter for printing final output and graphics.  While I won't argue that there may be some who need listings in such quantity and with such frequency that a dot matrix printer might be useful, the fact remains that while a dot matrix printer can print drafts and listings it *can't* print with the same quality as a laser, and at the same time a laser can do most of the things a dot matrix can (i.e. drafts and listings), and do them better. What is your point, then? You started out arguing that everybody should use nothing but softcopy for drafts and listings.  Then you got angry because some people pointed out that you're wrong.  Now you change the subject and flame me for my statement.  Your response reads like you didn't even read what I wrote. Go away and don't come back until you have a clue.