Re: [gentoo-user] printing problems

[Alan McKinnon <alan.mckinnon@gmail.com>]

On 03/11/2015 18:05, Dale wrote:
> Philip Webb wrote:
>> I am trying to get printing to work properly in my recently built machine.
>> 'hp-probe' identifies my printer as 'HP Deskjet 2510 series'.
>> When I print a text file from Gvim or a ps file from LO,
>> there are blank bands across the page, omitting lines or parts of letters.
>>
>> I have managed to get Kwrite to print properly
>> via  file -> print -> options -> layout -> schema :
>> when set to 'normal' 'KDE' 'Vim dark', everything comes out as it should
>> (there are some amusing color effects, but it's all there).
>>
>> Alongside Gentoo, I installed Mint 17.2 (Xfce),
>> which started printing properly via Gedit + LO
>> after I set print quality to 'high' via the 'http://localhost:631' menu
>> (I didn't go back to test Gvim there, but assume it would work too).
>> Gedit has its own internal print-quality menu too.
>>
>> I have compared  /etc/hp/hplip.conf  in Gentoo vs Mint :
>> the Gentoo version of Hplip is 3.14.10 , Mint has 3.15.2 ;
>> the Gentoo version of Cups is 2.0 , Mint has 1.7 ;
>> the Gentoo version of Hplip was built with 'foomatic-ppd-install=no',
>> the Mint version with '...=yes'.
>>
>> I can contrive to print text + ps files easily
>> by copying them to an appropriate partition & rebooting into Mint,
>> but Gentoo is supposed to make these things easier, not more difficult.
>>
>> Finally, I've never got the print icon in Gvim to work :
>> I use the 'prtdialog' plug-in, which prints, but only badly as above.
>>
>> Can anyone offer advice or suggestions ?
>>
> 
> 
> I don't know if this will help or not but since you seem to be grasping
> at straws, grab this one and hold on for dear life.  For the longest
> time, every time hplip, cups and friends were updated, I had to delete
> and readd my printer.  If I didn't, printing was not going to happen,
> period.  I might also add, I'd restart cups just to be sure, after the
> delete and again after the readd.  Once I did that, printing worked like
> a charm.  If I didn't know better, I'd think the ink lasted longer too. 
> ROFL  Just kidding but . . . .   If nothing else works, may want to try
> that. 
> 
> Oh, the last time I did the setup, I ignored cups completely.  I went in
> as root and set up the printer using the hplip command.  That was at
> least a couple years ago.  Since then, whenever I get ready to print,
> and replace the dried out cartridges, it just works.  I have a D4260,
> currently out of ink, again. 
> 
> I think the actual command is hp-setup.  I use KDE and that opens a GUI
> to do the set up.  Generally, it is just clicking next.  It just seems
> to figure out the rest itself, unless you have more than one printer
> hooked up then you may have to select something. 
> 
> None of this may help but maybe one will.  May be worth a shot.  ;-) 

That's my experience too. I print very little by for ages now everytime
a change was made to a printer or cups (even teeny minor ones), I'd
delete and re-add all printers plus restart cups.

Why does cups behave like this? Buggered if I know. I have an
unexpressable opinion based on a certain fruity vendor who seems better
at suing Samsung than actually writing code....


-- 
Alan McKinnon
alan.mckinnon@gmail.com