On Fri, 29 May 2009 01:09:45 -0700, per...@pluto.rain.com wrote: > CUPS is a PITA, but it may nevertheless be the "least bad" > solution if one is stuck with a junk printer.
Don't get me wrong, please: I do not like CUPS, and I don't use it (I prefer apsfilter). CUPS requires too much dependencies that I don't have any use for. But regarding its alternatives... there are none. Those "modern"# printers can usually only get to work using CUPS, because apsfilter doesn't support the "most modern" printers, has no support for PPD files (as far as I know, never needed it), and the printers itself cannot be made confirming to standards. > Decent, network-capable, PostScript printers do not have to be > costly. I didn't say they have. It's always a question of the printers quality (how good it works, how long it works) and the amount of toner they come with; for inkjet stuff, criteria are similar (allthough I don't know an inkjet printer with PS and network). Even used stuff, therefore cheap, is still of high quality. > I bought a Samsung ML-2571N at Fry's for something like > $60(US) a year or two ago. All I had to do was plug it into the > network, add its IP address to /etc/hosts, add a suitable entry > to /etc/printcap, and lpr "just works". No need to bother with > CUPS. Done the same with HP Laserjet 4000 duplex - it even received an IP automatically via DHCP, so I just had to "arp -a" and edit /etc/hosts and /etc/printcap. The lpq / lprm tools seemed to operate on the printer server inside the printer. > For color, I got a > Xerox printer or a few hundred US$ a while back. Like the Samsung > it has PostScript, networking, and lpd support built in; another > pair of /etc/hosts and /etc/printcap entries and lpr "just works" > for it also. I'll note this for the upcoming topic of getting a color laser printer some times in the future. :-) -- Polytropon >From Magdeburg, Germany Happy FreeBSD user since 4.0 Andra moi ennepe, Mousa, ... _______________________________________________ freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions To unsubscribe, send any mail to "freebsd-questions-unsubscr...@freebsd.org"