Host based printer and a print control method of the same

摘要

A host based printer has a control unit on which an external RAM can be optionally mounted. Whether or not the external RAM is mounted thereon is determined. When affirmative, image data received from a host computer is temporarily stored in the external RAM serving as a reception buffer. The image data retrieved from the reception buffer is sent to a decoding circuit to produce dot image data which in turn is sent to a line buffer for printing. When the external RAM is not mounted, the print control is implemented with a buffer-less configuration in which the received image data is directly sent to the decoding circuit and the decoded data is sent to the line buffer for printing. Accordingly, the host based printer can operate with a buffer-less configuration while preserving operability of general host based printers.