On Fri, Mar 11, 2011 at 01:38:05AM -0000, Meg wrote:
> Just a couple of comments -
>
> > > The reason I say "most of the time" is that the print driver stops the print process if it thinks one of the cartridges is low on ink - even when there's plenty of ink left.
> >
> > I've seen things like that, but it's usually been the printer's, rather
> > than the driver's, fault. One can check by going into the printer's web
> > interface--the majority of them have one--and checking what the printer
> > says.
>
> I guess I'm not seeing the difference between the printer and the driver - probably due to my ignorance.
Or my poor description. Just one example--I have an aging HP all in one
that constantly, regardless of O/S (operating system) will claim that
it's out of paper. As it ages, no matter how much we clean the rollers,
it will still say so--that's what I meant by the printer rather than a
Linux/OS X/Windows driver (though I don't think I've tried it with
Windows.)
That's OK. But I also don't know what you mean by a web interface. What would that tell me? (Maybe my printer doesn't have one; it's about 8 years old.)
That's possible. My printer (I have one all in one that is an inkjet
color--used mostly for scanning, and a low end B&W laser) are both
network printers. If I open a web browser and go to the printer's IP
address, there is a web interface that let's me manage the printer.
However, even when these printers are connected through USB ports, they
will sometimes have a similar management program, that allows you to
manage the printer--not by using the computer, but by using a sort of
mini operating system in the printer itself.
It is certainly possible that some of the older printers don't have it.
> > (Apple by the way, now owns cups, which is what the vast majority of
> > Unix like systems now use for printing.)
>
> I agree; when my last laptop died, at the beginning of December, I first bought a used (refurbished) MacBook. One of the reasons I returned it was that Snow Leopard wouldn't work with my printer either. At the time I got the impression that this was because the printer was so old. But Snow Leopard also wouldn't work with my wireless modem, so I couldn't print *or* connect to the internet. That MacBook was the prettiest useless computer I've ever owned. (And one of the most expensive.)
Well, as a satirical piece by the Onion had one of its interviewees
saying, the average Apple fan will, "....buy anything from Apple, as
long as it's shiny and expensive." (Studies have shown that like
magpies and monkeys, we humans _are_ attracted by shiny things.)
>
> I have heard of cups, but really don't know anything about it except that it is somehow related to printing.
>
It stands for common unix printing system--it used to be far more
problematic than it is now, and we used to say it stood for Can't
Usually Print Stuff. In many systems designed to be simpler for the
user, you won't even run into it--it will be hidden behind their printer
programs.
> > Xsane is a more sophisticated program. Most of the time, the more
> > sophisticated drivers are for Windows and Apple, (and sometimes just
> > Windows, with Apple, as well as Linux, being a step child), and one will
> > find that while Linux will scan, it won't be able to use various
> > features.
>
> My knowledge of Xsane is about the same as with cups - I've heard of it and know it's related to scanning, but that's about it.
>
Heh, me too. I just use it because I'd installed it before hearing of
simple scan--most of my scans are pretty straightforward. But it looks
fancy. :)
> I should mention that I don't have a problem with not being able to make adjustments before scanning. I just do it afterward with Picasa or Gimp, or I go over to Windows and use Irfanview. I just finished scanning all my old photos. Some of them were in really bad shape, faded or turning red, so they would have needed more adjusting than scan software would have done anyway.
>
Yes, I do something similar, I tend to use ImageMagick, another graphic
program.
--
Scott Robbins
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