# Printer problems with Leopard



## squirri (Oct 28, 2007)

I have an Epson Stylus R220 which I use for printing CD/DVDs.  I did an Upgrade from Tiger to Leopard then fired up the Epson Print CD program.  Everything OK until I tried to print a CD, when it told me that the driver needed to print to the CD tray was not available.  After much mucking about I was able to get the Epson Print Assistant software to reinstall(downloaded the version marked September 2007 from the Epson site).

I can print CD's, but the print area has shifted to the right(more than the printing position tweaks will allow.

If I boot back up into Tiger from my Superduper cloned volume it all works correctly, so it's not the printer.

The way printers are handled seems to have changed rather a lot in Leopard - the old printer setup utility has vanished!

Anyone else with the same problem - and a fix!?!?


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## dmetzcher (Oct 28, 2007)

I am having a similar problem with my Lexmark X5470 printer.
Printer Setup Utility is gone, and this is causing all applications that attempt to print using this printer to immediately crash.
I installed the latest driver, from 9/27/07, but it appears that it hasn't been updated for Leopard, because it still tells me to add the printer to Printer Setup Utility's list, which I assume it is trying to do on it's own as it installs the printer software. I had to select the driver manually for the printer, but it still doesn't work.

The same is true for FlashPaper, though I am not planning on upgrading this, so I can live with it, as I have never used it before.

My assumption is that I have to wait for Lexmark to realize that Apple released a new version of the Mac OS and, in turn, release a new version of their printer installer. Is this correct? Does anyone know how good they are about doing this? Not being able to print is a real hassle.


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## DeltaMac (Oct 28, 2007)

Lexmark has included newer drivers standard in Leopard.
Here's a relevant list, which includes the X5400 series. It shows vers 1.5
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=306684

Also, the Lexmark site has a download for that printer, vers 1.0.3 (from 27-Sep-06, not 07 - so way too old.)

For the Epson R220, same result, newer drivers are included with Leopard.
Related software, such as the epson label printer software probably still needs to be updated for Leopard.

You should try some of the other software, such as Discus, or even The Print Shop, both of which claim to support most any direct-to-disk printer. Or, wait for Epson to update their direct-to-disk software.


The Printer Setup Utility is still in Leopard, but is not user accessible, other than through the Add Printer function in your System Preferences/Print & Fax pane. That's where you go to add a printer. It should work much the same as for most USB printers. Connect your printer to the USB port. Cycle the printer off, then back on. Open that Print & Fax pref pane, and you should see the printer already without needing to do anything. Restart if you want to try that, too.


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## dmetzcher (Oct 28, 2007)

DeltaMac said:


> Lexmark has included newer drivers standard in Leopard.
> Here's a relevant list, which includes the X5400 series. It shows vers 1.5
> http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=306684
> 
> ...



I did exactly what you said. I disconnected the printer, went into the printers preference panel, removed the Lexmark printer, and then reconnected the printer. I powered it on, then off, then on again. Then, I added it via the preference panel, selecting "5400" from the list, as I did before. I opened TextEdit, typed "test", attempted to print, and TextEdit crashed.

What am I doing wrong? The computer has been powered off several times since the upgrade


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## dmetzcher (Oct 29, 2007)

Also, the same problem (crashing apps) happens when I attempt to print to a PDF. It's like printing is broken in general. I can print to PDF, and I can "Preview", if I click that button in the print dialog either.


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## dmetzcher (Oct 29, 2007)

dmetzcher said:


> Also, the same problem (crashing apps) happens when I attempt to print to a PDF. It's like printing is broken in general. I can print to PDF, and I can "Preview", if I click that button in the print dialog either.



If I go back into the Print & Fax preference panel, and remove the Lexmark printer, I can print to PDF and use the "Preview" (in Preview) feature. But I have to remove the printer in order to get this to work.

Is there a way to completely remove the Lexmark software that I installed before? Would that help at all?


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## squirri (Oct 29, 2007)

I did download the latest driver from Epson.  However, when it had nearly finished it said that it could not add the printer due to an error(I guess Epson have not twigged yet that the way printers are added has changed).

I tried the on/off cycling.  I now have 3 flavours of Epson driver to choose from - 2 Epson ones(I guess the original bundled with Leopard plus the one I installed) and a Project Gutenberg one which I think is what comes with CUPS.

I tried switching off the printer and then removing it from the Print/Fax prefs.  When I powered it back up again it got added back in automatically.  Sometimes Mac OS is too clever for its' own good!

I think you are right though - the one piece of software missing from the Epson site seems to be the PrintCD program.  I'll try and flag this up on their site.


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## DeltaMac (Oct 29, 2007)

dmetzcher said:


> Is there a way to completely remove the Lexmark software that I installed before? Would that help at all?



You could remove the Lexmark folder from /Library/Printers
Use Spotlight to find any files with Lexmark, or X5400 series, and delete those.
Then, do a custom install of just the Lexmark printer software from your Leopard DVD.

When the install is complete - try a Repair Disk Permisssions from your Disk Utility. Leopard appears to take Much longer than Tiger to do repair permissions. I have done that twice, and each took nearly an hour to finish.


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## dmetzcher (Oct 29, 2007)

DeltaMac said:


> You could remove the Lexmark folder from /Library/Printers
> Use Spotlight to find any files with Lexmark, or X5400 series, and delete those.
> Then, do a custom install of just the Lexmark printer software from your Leopard DVD.
> 
> When the install is complete - try a Repair Disk Permisssions from your Disk Utility. Leopard appears to take Much longer than Tiger to do repair permissions. I have done that twice, and each took nearly an hour to finish.



I will try that. Thanks.

Do you know if the Lexmark folder in /Library/Printers is the one that the original Lexmark software would have created, or is that folder already there by default after the Leopard install? In other words, is that folder the one that Apple provides, and will deleting it cause any issues (assuming I put it back with the custom install of the Lexmark printer software from the Leopard DVD)?

Thanks, and sorry for all the questions...I've never had printer problems on the Mac before, so this part is a bit new to me.


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## Natobasso (Oct 29, 2007)

Remember,  you're on the bleeding edge of technology with this new Leopard release, and some printer companies will be a little behind the curve in updating their software. Some older printers lose support entirely. Check with the company's website support/download page to make sure your device is still supported.

I agree with deleting the printer from the print list and re adding it as if it were new.


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## DeltaMac (Oct 29, 2007)

Just don't expect updated drivers from those manufacturers _unless_ they state at the download site that they support OS X 10.5 or higher.

The drivers that are built-in to Leopard will be good, at least for a few weeks/months, and newer than anything that you will find at the various web sites.

Epson is pretty good, and has a support page about Leopard, and the printers that are not yet supported are listed there as 'available for download soon'
http://www.epson.com/cgi-bin/Store/support/SupportLeopard.jsp?BV_UseBVCookie=yes


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## eric2006 (Oct 29, 2007)

You may want to see if your printer's drivers are in Gutenprint:
http://gimp-print.sourceforge.net/MacOSX.php3

These drivers are working on my system.


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## dmetzcher (Oct 29, 2007)

DeltaMac said:


> You could remove the Lexmark folder from /Library/Printers
> Use Spotlight to find any files with Lexmark, or X5400 series, and delete those.
> Then, do a custom install of just the Lexmark printer software from your Leopard DVD.
> 
> When the install is complete - try a Repair Disk Permisssions from your Disk Utility. Leopard appears to take Much longer than Tiger to do repair permissions. I have done that twice, and each took nearly an hour to finish.



I removed the drivers for Lexmark (deleted Lexmark folder in /Library/Printers), and reinstalled using the Leopard DVD. Attempting to print does not crash the app I am using, but I do get the following error from the printer status utility...

------------------------------------------------------
/usr/libexec/cups/backend/usb failed
Missing USB class driver.
------------------------------------------------------

Any idea what this might mean? I have attached a screenshot.

Thanks...I'm getting further along than before.


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## dmetzcher (Oct 31, 2007)

Lexmark got back to me...they have no plans to release new drivers for my printer.

Anyone know what this error is? At this point, I'm dead in the water.

------------------------------------------------------
/usr/libexec/cups/backend/usb failed
Missing USB class driver.
------------------------------------------------------


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## burnhace (Nov 6, 2007)

Somehow this thread got diverted from the original subject of "Epson Print CD" not working in Leopard to the subject of Lexmark printers having problems.  To bring it all back home, I too have an Epson R220 and upgraded to Leopard recently.  It prints EVERYTHING just fine, including pdf files.  However, there is a glitch in the Epson Print CD program that I have tried to get around by re-loading the original software, also by going to the Epson site for their upgraded software. I can only say that the problem has gotten worse.  At first I could print a CD on Manual Print, but it was printed off center.  Now I can't print at all.  I get a message that the CD print door is open, which it should be since I am trying to use it.  

I think buying new software packages is another wild goose chase.  For the money, you might as well buy a new printer.  It's easier to return a new printer that doesn't work than new software that doesn't work.  I have had no reply from Epson to my request for a driver that works with Leopard.  

I suspect that the old driver would work fine, but has been deleted in the upgrade process.  Leopard then refuses to acknowledge a previous (though functional) version as being anything other than obsolete.


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## Melodia27 (Dec 27, 2007)

burnhace said:


> Somehow this thread got diverted from the original subject of "Epson Print CD" not working in Leopard to the subject of Lexmark printers having problems.  To bring it all back home, I too have an Epson R220 and upgraded to Leopard recently.  It prints EVERYTHING just fine, including pdf files.  However, there is a glitch in the Epson Print CD program that I have tried to get around by re-loading the original software, also by going to the Epson site for their upgraded software. I can only say that the problem has gotten worse.  At first I could print a CD on Manual Print, but it was printed off center.  Now I can't print at all.  I get a message that the CD print door is open, which it should be since I am trying to use it.
> 
> I think buying new software packages is another wild goose chase.  For the money, you might as well buy a new printer.  It's easier to return a new printer that doesn't work than new software that doesn't work.  I have had no reply from Epson to my request for a driver that works with Leopard.
> 
> I suspect that the old driver would work fine, but has been deleted in the upgrade process.  Leopard then refuses to acknowledge a previous (though functional) version as being anything other than obsolete.




Just updated my mac to leopard. I am having the problem with the print cd printing off center. Paper is set to A4 and correct printer. How do you re align?

Melody


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## MisterMe (Dec 27, 2007)

Melodia27 said:


> Just updated my mac to leopard. I am having the problem with the print cd printing off center. Paper is set to A4 and correct printer. How do you re align?
> 
> Melody


Aligning print-outs to standard templates is not a Leopard issue. This issue is age-old and is usually handled through the print driver. The alignment may be application-specific or it may be global. One would expect a CD/DVD label printing app to add alignment options to the driver. When you are ready to print, check all of the settings in your _File/Print_ dialog box.


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## Melodia27 (Dec 27, 2007)

MisterMe said:


> Aligning print-outs to standard templates is not a Leopard issue. This issue is age-old and is usually handled through the print driver. The alignment may be application-specific or it may be global. One would expect a CD/DVD label printing app to add alignment options to the driver. When you are ready to print, check all of the settings in your _File/Print_ dialog box.




Thanks for your reply.
I have been using this printer and osx Tiger for a year. No problems at all.
This just happened when I updated to Leopard. 
What I did was to just adjust the position manually. It printed fine with these
guestimates.
Tho it is a pain to do this. Just have to until I get a new printer.
Thanks!

Melody


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## MisterMe (Dec 27, 2007)

Melodia27 said:


> ...
> I have been using this printer and osx Tiger for a year. No problems at all.
> This just happened when I updated to Leopard.


_Post hoc, ergo propter hoc._


Melodia27 said:


> What I did was to just adjust the position manually. It printed fine with these
> guestimates.
> Tho it is a pain to do this. Just have to until I get a new printer. ...


Way back in the days of MacOS 8.0, I had to adjust the aspect ratio of my LaserWriter 8500. The _File/Print_ dialog box allowed for the adjustment.

I cannot explain why things seemed to be honky-dory for you before your update to Leopard, nor can I explain why it was necessary to adjust your settings after the update. That said, these adjustments are not a sign of the Apocalypse. You make them once and then save your printer's settings.

Check Epson's website to ensure that you have the latest driver for your printer. Unless your printer has other issues that you have not mentioned and your printer is producing satisfactory output, there is no need to replace it. You have no guarantee that you won't have to adjust your next printer. Spend your money for something that you really need or want.


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## Melodia27 (Dec 27, 2007)

Hey-Ok, now for what happened after I wrote all  this!
I have two epson printers-200 and 220-guess what, I
had the wrong cd in for my 220.
Once I corrected that-everything is working fine!!!!
Thanks for your efforts in helping!!
Melody


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## Natobasso (Dec 28, 2007)

burnhace said:


> ...It prints EVERYTHING just fine, including pdf files...



Um yeah! PDF files would be the best thing to print since they take the RIP out of the printing process; this is where most of the print errors occur.


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## julesyp (Jan 12, 2008)

Hi,

I previously owned a G5 running panther with an Epson Stylus Photo R200 Inkjet printer attached. Everything worked fine and it printed directly to CDs no problems at all.

However, I recently bought a new Mac Pro with Leopard pre-installed and connected up the printer and now it refuses to print to CDs. I contacted Epson and they informed me that I need to upgrade my Print CD software and the only way to do this is for me to pay them £10 so they can send me a CD. Does anyone know of other software that will work or an alternative means of acquiring a recent version of Epson Print CD software? The lovely people at Epson told me the latest version available was 1.4.1 and that you can't buy it in the shops!

Any suggestions very welcome, thanks.


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## Frida (Jun 10, 2008)

I found this on the Lexmark support site. Dunno if it will help any of you guys.

http://support.lexmark.com/cgi-perl...0:549:0:0&framed=&docid=ENUS28962&relevance=1


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## dmetzcher (Jun 10, 2008)

Frida said:


> I found this on the Lexmark support site. Dunno if it will help any of you guys.
> 
> http://support.lexmark.com/cgi-perl...0:549:0:0&framed=&docid=ENUS28962&relevance=1



Actually, I think the following document helped me the most, especially the troubleshooting section.

http://www.lexmark.com/lexmark/sequentialem/home/0,6959,204816596_1160493508_0_en,00.html

I followed the steps in the troubleshooting section, deleted the correct files, and then re-added the printer, and it works great now. I feel like the driver sometimes has its issues, given that some documents just stop printing helf way through, or half a page through, but I can usually get them going again and print them. At least it mostly works.


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## Frida (Jun 10, 2008)

dmetzcher said:


> At least it mostly works.



A bit like "windoze"  it _mostly_ works


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