Print to a printer connected to a networked pc

[cool11]

I read these lines
http://www.apple.com/macosx/features/windows/

as I am interested in printing through windows.

I have a local network with mac and pc connected to a hub.

How can I setup the mac os x to display a windows(driver)-only printer which is connected to the pc?
Can I print directly from mac os x to the printer attached to the pc? The printer does not have any mac driver at all.

Is it possible to print from mac environment to this printer?

 

[phuong]

you need to share the printer with a name
then in osx you click on "More Printers..." with the Alt button held down
then you choose Advanced and then Windows Samba printer or something like that
then you enter the path to that printer with the name you set earlier

 

[iSaint]

I hooked up my Brother laser printer to a switch in my classroom. It was easier to set it up on my Powerbook than it was the Windows machine the school owns. The Powerbook 'found' the printer, while I had to set up a new TCP port (after having to find it) on the Windows XP machine.

 

[cool11]

At last, mac found the printer through network neighborhood.
But when I want to print something to this printer, no printing job appear to the window that mac os x display about printings and finally I get no printing at all. It seems to try to print (display the bar that fills) but then the window displays 'no job printing' in 'active' print tasks.

So I added printer quite easily, but no print at all.
What is going on?

 

[cool11]

This printer does not have any mac driver. Should it have one in order to work with mac-windows printer sharing? Is this the problem that prevent me from printing?

I also found this article

http://iharder.sourceforge.net/current/macosx/winmacprinter/

about hp 722 printer. Mine is hp 720, almost the same as 722.

Do I have to take care to all these things this article describes?
I think is a very long adventure!

Can you imagine now why I cannot use the printer and have a 'no printing job' message without getting any printings?

 

[cool11]

Today I installed a package called guteprint.

http://gimp-print.sourceforge.net/MacOSX.php3

Unfortunately it didnt have a specific driver for my printer. So I select generic one.
I hoped that with shared printing I did not need any driver at all.

But I get no printings at all.
Any idea why this happens?

 

[MisterMe]

...
Any idea why this happens?

There are many CUPS printer drivers besides those which are included with Gutenprint--like this one.

 

[cool11]

There are many CUPS printer drivers besides those which are included with Gutenprint--like this one.

Well, I hope this really helps the whole situation. It is on a linux page, too difficult for me to discover it.

Do I have to put it somewhere in hard disk in order to use it? It is a .ppd file, how to use it?

 

[MisterMe]

... too difficult for me to discover it.

Do I have to put it somewhere in hard disk in order to use it? It is a .ppd file, how to use it?

You put it in the same place that you put every other .ppd file on your computer. Place it in your /Library/Printers/PPDs/Contents/Resources/en.lprog/ folder if you are a native English speaker. If you are not a native English speaker, then choose the *.lprog folder for your native language.

 

[cool11]

I put the file to this path.
I cannot understand. I see all file in this folder having extension .gz.
The only file with .ppd extension was the new one I pasted.

I tried to add the printer once again(print & fax, etc), and in 'more printers' window I did not found the driver I added.

What is going on?

 

[MisterMe]

...
I cannot understand. I see all file in this folder having extension .gz.
The only file with .ppd extension was the new one I pasted.

I tried to add the printer once again(print & fax, etc), and in 'more printers' window I did not found the driver I added.

...

Those PPD files with the .gz extension are G-zipped PPD files. The OS unzips them as needed. However, PPD files that have not been G-zipped will work with virtually every operating system--including MacOS X--that supports PostScript printer drivers. The PPD file that you downloaded should appear in the same folder as the PPD files installed by the Gutenprint package. The Gutenprint package includes documentation for CUPS in the form of two PDF files and a file named ReadMe.html. I suggest that you read them carefully. How to Print with Gutenprint.pdf is the shorter PDF file. Start with this file. If you can't find your answers in it, then move on to Gutenprint User's Manual.pdf.

 

[cool11]

Thanks for your report.
I read the pdf of guteprint.
Now I found the driver.

But...even now, I try to give a printing, it calls the appropriate mac os x window and it displays 'no job printing'.

So many difficulties to setup it correctly.

Why this happens, once again?