I am dealing with an issue regarding dot-matrix printing after migrating systems from Windows XP to modern Windows environments.
Context: Back in Windows XP, when printing from Microsoft Word to a dot-matrix printer (connected via LPT1), I could easily select native printer fonts directly from the font drop-down list. These fonts usually appeared with a printer icon next to them, with names like Draft 10cpi, Courier 10cpi, or Roman 10cpi. Printing with these fonts allowed the printer to work in direct text mode (draft mode), which was extremely fast.
The Problem: Since migrating to Windows 7 (and this persists in Windows 10/11), these native printer fonts have completely disappeared from the MS Word font list. Consequently, Word forces everything to print using TrueType fonts (graphics mode). This causes the dot-matrix printer to print pixel-by-pixel, making the printing process painfully slow and wearing out the ribbon quickly.
My Questions:
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What architectural changes in Windows 7+ or MS Word caused these native device fonts to be hidden or removed?
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Is there any solution, driver tweak, or workaround to restore these draft fonts so I can print in pure text mode directly from MS Word on a modern Windows OS?
Any insights or workarounds would be highly appreciated.
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Originally posted in Stack Overflow https://stackoverflow.com/questions/79908173/why-are-native-printer-draft-fonts-10cpi-missing-in-ms-word-on-windows-7-comp
Comment by macropod –
why not download the font
Response by OP:
i can’t, it’s the driver’s default font and the font only appears when
the dot matrix printer is connected, you can only install fonts with
the type (true type), i can’t install them
