Hardcopy HP DesignJet 650C Questions

GRASS GRASS user
1

The group I work with is considering purchasing a large
format (C,D,E) as well as A & B size color hard copy for
GIS/Remote Sensing Raster Technolgy.

We are considering the DesignJet HP 650C plotter/printer by
Hewlett Packard. Our representative is stating
  resolution of color 300 dpi, b/w 600 dpi;
  36 inch plot width with 150 feet ( :-} ) length.
  HPGL and PS languages.

The price seems very affordable for the features, format size,
speed, and floor space required by the porinter compared to other
devices of similar format.

Does anyone have experience creating output for this device?

Are there considerations for typical appraoches to
GRASS hardcopy ppm, etc. we should be aware of up front?

Are other competitive products available we should consider?

Any comments would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

Steffen Meyer
---------------------- CSU-CWRES-IDS Group ----------------------
  Integrated Decision Support Group IDS group
  Center for Water Resource Engineering and Science CWRES
  410 University Services Center, 601 South Howes Street
  Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado 80523 USA
  Phone: (303) 491-7620, -7626 -5144 FAX: (303) 491-2293
  sm646601.Longs.LANCE.ColoState.EDU (129.82.109.16)
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2

Steffen Meyer (sm646601@longs.lance.colostate.edu) writes on 06 Jan 94:

We are considering the DesignJet HP 650C plotter/printer by
Hewlett Packard. Our representative is stating
resolution of color 300 dpi, b/w 600 dpi;
36 inch plot width with 150 feet ( :-} ) length.
HPGL and PS languages.

Does anyone have experience creating output for this device?

Are there considerations for typical appraoches to
GRASS hardcopy ppm, etc. we should be aware of up front?

ps.map seems to be the up-and-coming method of choice for grass maps,
and since this reads PostScript, you may be in luck. I have not used
ps.map to create plots this wide (I assume it is possible).

If you have grass already setup there (I assume you'll be using grass
to create output), I'd recommend getting the necessary documentation
and try to configure ps.map to create a file for this. Then, put it on
disk and take it to your vendor and see how a printed map looks.

Depending on how costly this beast is, it is not out of the question
to ask to try it out for a week or two before buying.

--Darrell