PURPOSE: To easily perform a uniform layout printing and a right-justification printing only by a manual printer by providing a means for measuring the magnitude of a required printing area, a means for storing printing data, and a means for allocating the printing data into the required printing area.

CONSTITUTION: A manual printer is set to a printing area measuring mode, and a required printing area is scanned. In the printing area measuring mode, a signal from a head position detection circuit 4 is not transmitted to a printing timing signal generation circuit 7 but to a printing width measuring circuit 5, and therein the width of the printing area is measured. In accordance with the printing area width, the printing data in a buffer memory 9 is suitably laid out. In a trial product, a right-justification and a uniform-layout are changed over for use. The printer is changed over to a printing mode, the required printing area is again scanned. In this case, a signal from the head position detection circuit 4 is transmitted to the printing timing signal generation circuit 7. A head 3 prints the data in the buffer memory 9 in accordance with this printing timing signal.