Editing Dot matrix printing (section)

===IBM 5103===
[[File:IBM 5103 printer in Tekniska museet (1).jpg|thumb|IBM 5103 printer in [[Swedish National Museum of Science and Technology|Tekniska museet]]]]
The IBM 5103<ref>{{cite book |title=IBM 5103 printer |date=April 1979 |url=https://www.computerhistory.org/collections/catalog/102621955 |access-date=2021-07-15 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210715210729/https://www.computerhistory.org/collections/catalog/102621955 |archive-date=2021-07-15}}</ref> was the only IBM printer that could be attached to the [[IBM 5100]], an early day portable computer. Printing was 8 DPI, 10 pitch, 6 LPI, and capable of printing bidirectionally from a 128-character set. Two models were offered:<ref>{{cite web |title=IBM Archives: IBM 5120 Computing System |date=23 January 2003 |website=[[IBM]] |url=https://www.ibm.com/ibm/history/exhibits/pc/pc_6.html |access-date=15 July 2021 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210516205203/https://www.ibm.com/ibm/history/exhibits/pc/pc_6.html |archive-date=16 May 2021 |quote=two previously announced products: the IBM 5103 models 11 and 12 bidirectional, matrix printers}}</ref> 80 and 120 characters per second.<ref>{{cite web |title=IBM 5103 Dot matrix printer |website=computermuseum.informatik.uni-stuttgart.de |url=https://computermuseum.informatik.uni-stuttgart.de/dev/ibm_5110/technik/en/5103.html |access-date=2021-07-15 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210715210729/http://computermuseum.informatik.uni-stuttgart.de/dev/ibm_5110/technik/en/5103.html |archive-date=2021-07-15}}</ref>

====Near Letter Quality (NLQ)====
{{Main|Near letter-quality printing}}
''Near Letter Quality'' mode—informally specified as almost good enough to be used in a business letter<ref name="MX6-3">{{cite book |title=Dot Matrix, InfoWorld Jul 28, 1986 |date=28 July 1986 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Vy8EAAAAMBAJ&q=dot%20matrix%20letter%20quality&pg=PA40}}</ref>—endowed dot-matrix printers with a simulated typewriter-like quality. By using multiple passes of the carriage, and higher dot density, the printer could increase the effective resolution. In 1985, ''The New York Times'' described the use of "''near letter-quality,'' or NLQ" as "just a neat little bit of hype"<ref name="NYT.dot2"/> but acknowledged that they "really show their stuff in the area of fonts, print enhancements and graphics."

NLQ printers could generally be set to print in "draft mode", in which case a single pass of the print head per line would be used. This produced lower quality print at much higher output speed.