Problems with printing from Snow leopard to network printer.

[NStocks]

So I'm trying to print to a network printer, connected to a Vista PC. My Brother (windows fanboy) is able to print just fine through his wireless PC (Win7) but I can't get my head around why I cannot.

I saved a webpage that helped me out before (used on Leopard) which use to work but it no longer work

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/362447/

Please can somebody help me sort this out, I've spent 2 hours trying to print!

(And it's not even for me, My brother order a Mac after his £1K sony Vaio is extremely poor quality. He ordered it 4 weeks ago, it came last friday and after 2 hours on the phone to Sony, they agreed to refund it.So I want to set up wireless printing when his Mac comes)

Thank You

 

[NStocks]

anyone?

 

[NStocks]

I still haven't managed to get this working...

Can anyone help me on how to print from Mac (Snow Leopard) to a printer contacted to a windows Vista computer via the network.

 

[MisterMe]

I still haven't managed to get this working...

Can anyone help me on how to print from Mac (Snow Leopard) to a printer contacted to a windows Vista computer via the network.

There is no such thing as "a network printer" or "a printer contacted to a windows Vista computer." You have one or more specific model printers from specific manufacturers. To print, you need print drivers that are compatible with your specific printer and configuration.

For a printer connected to a Windows computer can be shared by Windows as a generic PostScript (LaserWriter) printer. This is pretty standard for Windows. To print from your Mac, setup a printer as a LaserWriter or any other networked PostScript printer using your PC as a print server. That is, the job goes to the PC which hands it off to the printer.

For a non-PostScript printer connected to the network, you need a CUPS driver that is compatible with your printer. However, a limited number of printers are too dumb to be supported by CUPS. These are door stops when as far as your Mac is concerned.

Your Finder Help menu will give you quite a bit information about this. It is also the subject of of about 27,382 previous threads on this forum. A simple search will reveal them all. Nothing that I can tell you is new or new here.

 

[DrDaveT]

I dont' understand your answer. I had the specific printers, on the network through an XP machine, installed in 10.5. Then I upgraded to 10.6 yesterday, and now I can't see the other computers, and the printers are unavailable. If you have a past thread which addresses this Snow Leopard issue, I would appreciate the post.

Thanks much.

 

[MisterMe]

... I had the specific printers, ...

Which specific printers?

 

[DrDaveT]

We're talking about an Epson Stylus Photo RX500 and a Lexmark T640, attached to an older XP machine (that just serves to host the printers), on the network at home. In 10.5, the MacBook Pro could see the other machines, and consequently could see these printers (and installed them). Now, the MacBook Pro can't see any of the computers on the network (Xp, Win 7, Vista), and so can not find the printers. It does have access, on the same network, to the internet.

Do you have a thread you could direct me to which walks one through the steps to address this issue with Snow Leopard?

Thanks...

 

[MisterMe]

We're talking about an Epson Stylus Photo RX500 and a Lexmark T640, attached to an older XP machine (that just serves to host the printers), on the network at home. ...

Have you tried connecting to the Windows computer via TCP/IP?

 

[DrDaveT]

Is there a thread I could look at that would tell me how to do that on a Mac? Actually I'm not sure I know how to find the IP address on the XP. Would the installed printer have it's own IP address of the XP computer?

 

[MisterMe]

Is there a thread I could look at that would tell me how to do that on a Mac? Actually I'm not sure I know how to find the IP address on the XP. Would the installed printer have it's own IP address of the XP computer?

Wow! Just wow!

You may consult your Windows documentation to learn how to share your printer. You may consult the MacOS X Help menu to learn how to use a shared Windows printer. You may search this forum for any of the many threads on the subject.

If you don't know how to check you Windows computer for its IP-address, then you may check your router's administrative web page for this information. If you printer has its own IP-address, then this this information will be included when you print a test page. If the printer uses your Windows computer as its print server, then you must use the Windows computer's IP address.

 

[DrDaveT]

Glad I could wow you.

What I don't understand is why we are talking about these "solutions". My printers are shared on the network, and were installed on this MacBook Pro under 10.5. Now that I've upgraded to 10.6, my MacBook Pro can't even see the other computers on the network, let alone the shared printers. And others are having this problem as well. What's up with that? Has someone figured out what is so different about 10.5 to 10.6 that network connectivity would be changed so much? I'm not familiar enough with Mac to know ins and outs, but I suspected that a Mac guru had the "work around" for this problem by now (maybe some settings need to be changed?), but I haven't come across it on a search yet. That is why I'm posting on this thread.

My search has told me I'm not alone in this experience. Can someone list out the fix to get 10.6 to see the network computers again? Or was 10.6 a clever way to keep Apple from playing nice with Win?

Thanks...

 

[MisterMe]

... My printers are shared on the network, and were installed on this MacBook Pro under 10.5. Now that I've upgraded to 10.6, my MacBook Pro can't even see the other computers on the network, let alone the shared printers. And others are having this problem as well. What's up with that? Has someone figured out what is so different about 10.5 to 10.6 that network connectivity would be changed so much? ...

Wow! Just wow!

It is a well-known fact that the print architecture of MacOS X 10.6 is dramatically different than the print architecture of MacOS X 10.5. One of the consequences of the change is that, for standard configurations, upgrading from MacOS 10.5 to MacOS 10.6, the OS discards your old print drivers and downloads new ones from the Internet.

You have appear to have a non-standard configuration. Only you know for sure. Whines that you are not a Mac guru do not cut it. None of us came out of the womb knowing the Mac. We learned. The thing about the Mac is that you don't have to be a guru. However, you do have to know something. In your case, you have to know how to look where you are told for information that you are told to read. Then you have to follow those instructions.

It was your choice to share your printers from Windows and to access from your Mac rather than to share your printers from your Mac and to access them from Windows. [That said, it is not at all clear that either is proper for your configuration. Since you have not clearly described your configuration, who knows?] Your choice has made configuring your printer more difficult. However, hundreds of new Mac users do what you are trying to do everyday. They ask questions; they are given answers; and they get to work. I have given you enough information to at least get started. You may get started and then return if you hit a snag. Or you may continue to whine: "Well, it used to work." The choice is yours.

 

[DrDaveT]

Wow! Just wow!

It is a well-known fact that the print architecture of MacOS X 10.6 is dramatically different than the print architecture of MacOS X 10.5. One of the consequences of the change is that, for standard configurations, upgrading from MacOS 10.5 to MacOS 10.6, the OS discards your old print drivers and downloads new ones from the Internet.

You have appear to have a non-standard configuration. Only you know for sure. Whines that you are not a Mac guru do not cut it. None of us came out of the womb knowing the Mac. We learned. The thing about the Mac is that you don't have to be a guru. However, you do have to know something. In your case, you have to know how to look where you are told for information that you are told to read. Then you have to follow those instructions.

It was your choice to share your printers from Windows and to access from your Mac rather than to share your printers from your Mac and to access them from Windows. [That said, it is not at all clear that either is proper for your configuration. Since you have not clearly described your configuration, who knows?] Your choice has made configuring your printer more difficult. However, hundreds of new Mac users do what you are trying to do everyday. They ask questions; they are given answers; and they get to work. I have given you enough information to at least get started. You may get started and then return if you hit a snag. Or you may continue to whine: "Well, it used to work." The choice is yours.

Wow! Just Wow! (now I get to use it)

Turns out all I needed was direction to my settings, like the "workgroup". As a Mac newbie, I'd never had to set my workgroup (for some reason in 10.5). Once I stumbled on to it in System Pref>Network, I set it and all the computers showed up in the sidebar. Then I installed the printers using printer wizard, since it could now see all the network computers.

Hope someone struggling sees this and saves themselves some time by looking at the network settings, especially at the "workgroup" setting when you upgrade to Snow Leopard.

 

[tpg]

Wow! Just wow!

It is a well-known fact that the print architecture of MacOS X 10.6 is dramatically different than the print architecture of MacOS X 10.5. One of the consequences of the change is that, for standard configurations, upgrading from MacOS 10.5 to MacOS 10.6, the OS discards your old print drivers and downloads new ones from the Internet.

You have appear to have a non-standard configuration. Only you know for sure. Whines that you are not a Mac guru do not cut it. None of us came out of the womb knowing the Mac. We learned. The thing about the Mac is that you don't have to be a guru. However, you do have to know something. In your case, you have to know how to look where you are told for information that you are told to read. Then you have to follow those instructions.

It was your choice to share your printers from Windows and to access from your Mac rather than to share your printers from your Mac and to access them from Windows. [That said, it is not at all clear that either is proper for your configuration. Since you have not clearly described your configuration, who knows?] Your choice has made configuring your printer more difficult. However, hundreds of new Mac users do what you are trying to do everyday. They ask questions; they are given answers; and they get to work. I have given you enough information to at least get started. You may get started and then return if you hit a snag. Or you may continue to whine: "Well, it used to work." The choice is yours.

We were all new to this stuff once. I would like to think that if people are having trouble with something, they are free to ask for help without getting what seems essentially to be an impatient "RTFM" response! I'm sure a good number of people won't know what CUPS or postscript is - of course they're going to be confused. And as for it being a well known fact that the underlying print system has changed, I assure you that a lot of people wouldn't know, and frankly wouldn't care.

If you don't want to help no-one is forcing you to post!

To the OP/DrDaveT: I'm glad your problem got resolved in the end. If you need help - ask for it! That's the point of a forum.

 

[Denarius]

We were all new to this stuff once. I would like to think that if people are having trouble with something, they are free to ask for help without getting what seems essentially to be an impatient "RTFM" response! I'm sure a good number of people won't know what CUPS or postscript is - of course they're going to be confused. And as for it being a well known fact that the underlying print system has changed, I assure you that a lot of people wouldn't know, and frankly wouldn't care.

If you don't want to help no-one is forcing you to post!

To the OP/DrDaveT: I'm glad your problem got resolved in the end. If you need help - ask for it! That's the point of a forum.

Agreed. Misterme, your reaction to a perfectly reasonable question makes you look like an inadequate. More to the point why are you bothering to look at other people's posts if you are both unwilling and incapable of contributing constructively? And don't try to kid me that telling them to go and read about Windows networking, Mac networking, WINS and cups for the sake of a workgroup question that can be resolved with a 2 line answer and brief explanation is constructive.

To the OP, there was nothing stupid about the question, sorry that I haven't been around to give an answer and cudos for finding the answer yourself.