>Hi everybody,
>
>I have a client that uses a DOS-based application in all his stores in order to collect information and have it sent to a central office.
>
>Updating the application to windows is out of the question for the time being as it serves all their current and mid-term future needs superbly.
>
>The problem I'm having right now is finding printers that are still useable from a DOS-only environment.
>
>I'm asking for help in order to find out which current-breed printers are DOS-compatible. All you need to do if you can help me is download a text file that resides at http://www.tastrade.com/dosprinter, reboot your computer in DOS mode, and simply copy the text file to your lpt1: port (just issue the following command: COPY PTEST.TXT LPT1:).
>
>All I need to know is whether the data prints and the page ejects.
>
>Please post here the printer brand and model number.

This is kind of a waste of time. You should only be asking for printers currently available from various manufacturers; you should identify in advance which models are likely candidates and ask specifically for people who may have those models to test for you.

Of course, if your client is likely to buy a bunch of these printers that should get the attention of any sales rep from a printer manufacturer, who can in turn get a definitive answer from technical sales.

All dot-matrix printers are DOS compatible.

Whether ink jets are DOS compatible depends on whether graphical rendering of a single line is done on the printer or if it depends on the PC's CPU to render it (a so-called GDI printer). All cheap ink jets are GDI printers and will not be DOS compatible.

The same principles apply to laser printers except they render at the page level instead of the line level. All cheap laser printers are GDI printers. Those lasers that tout their on-board CPU speed and on-board RAM are those most likely to be DOS compatible. Lasers will need to be PCL compatible (the vast majority are); I believe PostScript-only printers will not print from DOS.