Extract a printer driver?

[izzy0242mr]

Okay, so with Lion, I'm sure we all have those old printers that don't work anymore.

I have an HP OfficeJet G55, and it doesn't work with Lion.

However, I also have an old MacBook that is running Leopard, and it works just fine. The solution I have right now is to plug in the MacBook to the G55, turn on Printer Sharing, and then my Mac running Lion is able to add the printer AND print from it when it's shared. It says it has "OfficeJet G55" as the driver.

My dilemma is that I can't print when I plug the printer into my Lion Mac, but obviously Lion has *some* driver that works in order to send info to the Leopard computer and then print that way. Is there any way to extract the driver that Lion is using for the shared printer and install it?

Thanks!

 

[Intell]

Lion sends the print file over to Leopard as a generic print document for printing. The Leopard machine then formats it and handles the printing. Windows can do similar things. This way the printer doesn't need to be installed on the remote machine, only the server machine.

Lion itself doesn't have the print drivers for that printer. What it's actually doing it printing to a virtual printer that is then sending the virtual page to Leopard where it is printed from the virtual page onto the physical printer.

 

[blueroom]

Cheaper to buy a new printer than the ink is worth.

 

[izzy0242mr]

Lion sends the print file over to Leopard as a generic print document for printing. The Leopard machine then formats it and handles the printing. Windows can do similar things. This way the printer doesn't need to be installed on the remote machine, only the server machine.

Lion itself doesn't have the print drivers for that printer. What it's actually doing it printing to a virtual printer that is then sending the virtual page to Leopard where it is printed from the virtual page onto the physical printer.

Darn…that's what I suspected, but I was trying to be optimistic. Could I use anything from the package in Home Folder>Library>Printers, or am I out of luck?

 

[Intell]

I think it just isn't going to work. Even if you did extract it, it may call on some things that don't exist in Lion or it may be hard coded to only work in Leopard.

 

[izzy0242mr]

I think it just isn't going to work. Even if you did extract it, it may call on some things that don't exist in Lion or it may be hard coded to only work in Leopard.

Confirmed, it didn't work. Oh well…