Depending on which model of Wizzard you own, there are at least two fonts inside your the engraver. To use additional fonts and logos, the Wizzard has two slots on the left side for inserting additional "external" cartridges.
Using The Wizzard External Font Cartridge
Depending on which model of Wizzard you own, there are at least two fonts inside
your the engraver. To use additional fonts and logos, the Wizzard has two slots
on the left side for inserting additional "external" cartridges.
The current Wizard XL allows for the use of six additional logos/fonts through
these ports. Should you insert two standard cartridges with more than six fonts/
logos, only the first six will be read. Keep in mind that a logo set counts
as one logo. The limitation is six different names, not necessarily six logos.
And, this may even be different in different models.
Standard Lamro Logos External Font Cartridge (EFC)
The major differences between a standard Dahlgren font/logo cartridge is the absence of a top cover, and font and logo chips or EPROM's can be inserted into the easy opening and closing ZIF sockets.
The external font cartridge can be used next to a standard Dahlgren font/logo cartridge. Always make sure the EFC in the front slot when using a standard Dahlgren font/logo cartridge. Otherwise, the EFC may not be read. (Note: This varies from model to model - it will not harm your machine to try the front or the back)
CUSTOM LOGOS
The main use of the EFC for most Wizzard owners is for custom logos. The price for a custom Wizzard logo ranges from $45.00 to $95.00. The price depends on the complexity, of the artwork. See Sources for logo suppliers.
LOGO RESTRICTIONS
Depending on which external font cartridge you own, you have a limitation of two to four chips. Each Wizard chip holds approximately 8,000 bytes of information. Thus, the more complex the logos you have digitized, the higher the will be cost due to the extensive digitizing and cost of extra chips.
STOCK LOGOS
While the custom logo has been the primary use of most Wizard owners, logo companies now provided literally thousands of stock logos available to the Wizard owner. Now, you can take your standard fonts and combine them with stock borders, corner sets, ornamentals, and fonts to provide a plaque that your customer will appreciate even more. And, the price of a stock logo is less than a custom font or logo.
PROPER USE OF THE EFC
With any piece of equipment, their are some common problems that can develop by failure to follow the correct procedures. The guidelines provided are usually applicable to most cartridges, however you should refer to your manufacturer’s specific instructions for your particular type of external font cartridge.
Inserting An EPROM Into The EFC
..............1 ........ 2 ........3 .......4 order and sequence of chips
With your Wizzard turned off, remove the EFC from the Wizzard.
Make sure the legs on the EPROM (logo chips) are all straight. To open the sockets
to accept chips, toggle the lever to the up, or loose position. Position the
small notch on the chip facing upwards, or to the back of the Wizzard when the
EFC is inserted (most chips have a colored dot at the top next to this notch
to help you).
Gently place the font/logo chip in the first slot. The first slot is always the slot opposite from the card edge connector, or the end inserted into the Wizzard. Additional chips should be placed in the next available slot. There should never be an empty socket between chips.
Close the socket lever to the down or ‘locked’ position
External Font Cartridge with Eproms Inserted
With the Wizzard power turned off, insert the EFC into Slot #1, the one closest to the keyboard.
Turn on the Wizzard, and make sure it initializes and the layout screen appears.
IF YOUR WIZZARD DOES NOT INITIALIZE IN 20 SECONDS, TURN YOUR MACHINE OFF. Putting another logo the the cartridge may fix the problem, somtime it takes 2 other logos in the cartridge to fix the problem, if not refer to the Common Problems below before restarting.
Once you are at the Job Layout screen, move the cursor to the font selection (usually Gothic). Press the SPACE BAR several times past the standard fonts, and the newly based font/logo name should appear. If the name doesn’t appear, or the name is garbled, refer to the Common Problems below.
COMMON PROBLEMS
The MOST COMMON and DEADLY problem is inserting chips in the external font cartridge UPSIDE DOWN. If the chip you are using does not have a colored dot, make sure that the small notch (only on one end of a chip) is pointed up, or towards the back of the engraver. Inserting a chip upside down will generally damage the chip beyond repair, and require the chip to be replaced. If you reinsert the ‘upside down’ chip correctly, the font/log name will not appear, or if it does, it is blank or in random characters.
Inserting chips in the cartridge in the wrong sequence, not starting with socket
#1, or leaving blank spaces or sockets between chips. Usually this will not
zap chips.
Some logos require more than one chip. The chips for the logo must be inserted
in the cartridge in the proper sequence. If they are out of sequence, the Wizzard
does not recognize the logo. Usually inserting the chips in the wrong sequence
will not damage the logo or the Wizzard.
Inserting or removing the cartridge while the Wizzard is powered up. This is the #1 cause of major damage to your EFC and your Wizzard motherboard.
Name appears blank. Using a non-terminating logo (see below) in a Wizzard XL or XL Extra may prevent it from initializing. Placing a terminating logo as the last logo in a cartridge generally fixes this problem.
Leaving the computer on for more than 10-15 seconds after it fails to initialize.
If you turn on your machine with a chip inserted upside down and go to answer
the phone, there is a strong possibility of burning up your Wizzard motherboard.
The colored dots on the chips are primarily used to remind the engraver of the
proper UPWARD position of the chips. In addition to the yellow chip for the
top of the chip.
NON-TERMINATING LOGOS
The standard Dahlgren Font/logo cartridge is programmed with a stop bit, or terminator that causes the Wizzard to stop searching for more fonts/logos on the current cartridge board.
Using a cartridge that does not have a terminating logo in it will generate FONTx ERRORs at the bottom of the Wizzard screen. These errors arise because the Wizzard expects other logos to follow the last non-terminating logo in a cartridge, and there are none. The ‘x’ in the error message is the position of a “missing” logo. These error messages can be ignored and the Wizzard will function properly.
The same error occurs with all makes of EFC’s.
However, there are a few (number or serial number sequence unknown) Wizzard XL’s and XL Extras that will not initialize without a stop bit, or terminator programmed in a chip. Usually the name will appear blank.
Terminating logos must be the last logo in a cartridge with no chips after it and no empty sockets before it. A terminating logo does not allow logos placed after it to be accessed by the Wizzard.
The current chips produced by Lamro Logos usually do not have a stop bit unless requested. If you own an XL or Extra that will not initialize with the EFC, you can request us to make the logo termanating.
All chips could be imbedded with a stop bit, but this would defeat the purpose of the design of the external font cartridge. A terminator on each chip would stop you from using your choice of logos in any sequence needed on a special layout.
Our thanks to Robert Hensley and the Engravers Network for these graphics and info.