printing on OS X -- could do better?..

octane

octane

I have issues, OK!
Eric Raymond thinks so. But he's especially peeved with the open source community.

However, the article does highlight the still overly-technical nature of some parts of OS X where 'Aunt Tillie' is going to get a little flummoxed, especially when printing:

If the designers were half-smart about UI issues (like, say, Windows programmers) they'd probe the local network neighborhood and omit the impossible entries. If they were really smart (like, say, Mac programmers) they'd leave the impossible choices in but gray them out, signifying that if your system were configured a bit differently you really could print on a Windows machine...
Click to expand...
 
No operating system is perfect, we all know this. But OS X has taken several steps back in some areas.

While extending printer options, how those options are arranged and presented to the user leaves something to be desired...
 
I do have a question. How do I set up OS X to print my pages in reverse order? Very annoying to have to reorder my pages everytime I print something out.

Joshua
 
jhawk28 said:
I do have a question. How do I set up OS X to print my pages in reverse order? Very annoying to have to reorder my pages everytime I print something out...
Click to expand...

There's loads of options under the drop-down / pop-menu in the Print... dialog.

But, some functions are printer-specific and might not be supported.

First have a look in the Print... dialog, then go your printer manufacturers website and see if you can rustle up some details...
 
I have stumbled with the printing issue since I began using osx. I have now became accustomed to the ins and outs of using it. The CUPS printing system has made me learn more about linux/unix though. I agree it is not easy for joe user but some things will never be easy for the non computer person.
 
The real problem here is that Apple seems to think that they've _solved_ the problem with including CUPS (the problem being that not really many printers were supported on Mac OS X up until version 10.2, where CUPS was introduced).

Well, the printers are supported now through CUPS, but the interface is really, really bad. And the printer interface for directly supported printers is _just_ as bad. PS printing in Mac OS 9.x and earlier is far superior to what we have in OS X. Sure, we can live with it, but - I think - we don't really _want_ to.

Apple should dedicate (if they haven't done so, yet) a group of people to printing. Definitely.
 
My biggest printing issue is that even when I have downloaded and installed OS X native print drivers for a printer, I can't use these drivers over a network, only when the printer is plugged in locally. Otherwise I have to use CUPS, which I feel should be used as a last resort for compatibility with PC-only printers rather than for printers that have available OS X drivers.

I also get tired of the pull down menus in the printer settings, requires to many clicks to change a few settings. I actually find Windows' printer dialogs less confusing for most tasks.

And it doesn't seem to make sense to have your printer presets visible for any printer, they should be printer-specific. And I've noticed that even with a printer preset selected by default, I have to re-select it to get the settings to actually change from the defaults. (May just be my printer drivers, I don't know.)
And when printing web pages with Aqua controls (like pull-downs and buttons) they always come out screwed up. At least the new version of Safari fixed the 3" page margins, now I can use it to print web pages.
 
fryke said:
.... PS printing in Mac OS 9.x and earlier is far superior to what we have in OS X. Sure, we can live with it, but - I think - we don't really _want_ to.

Apple should dedicate (if they haven't done so, yet) a group of people to printing. Definitely.
Click to expand...
I can't identify with the problems that the non-PostScript printer owners are having. My printer is a PostScript printer. I honestly have no idea how MacOS 9 PostScript printing is superior to MacOS X 10.3 PostScript printing. Although it is true that MacOS X 10.0 did not allow for printer-specific features, this was remedied in MacOS X 10.1. Your printer must be PostScript 2 or higher. Do you really insist on using your PostScript 1 printer? Print Center and Printer Setup Utility use the same PPD file as does MacOS 9. All printer-specific features supported by MacOS 9 are enabled in MacOS X 10.3. What am I missing?
 
jhawk28 said:
I do have a question. How do I set up OS X to print my pages in reverse order? Very annoying to have to reorder my pages everytime I print something out.

Joshua
Click to expand...

If using M$ Word to print, it has the option you can set.
 
I have a Brother laser printer. It has the ability to print on both sides. Since 10.1 I have to had that option. The Brother driver for Mac is basic, and does not provide much functionality. I wish for better printer ability using Mac.
 
btoth said:
My biggest printing issue is that even when I have downloaded and installed OS X native print drivers for a printer, I can't use these drivers over a network, only when the printer is plugged in locally. Otherwise I have to use CUPS, which I feel should be used as a last resort for compatibility with PC-only printers rather than for printers that have available OS X drivers.
Click to expand...

I can use my laser printer and inkjet both of which are on a Windows 2003 network(not locally).
Have you made sure that you are connecting to the printer over appletalk when you add the printer, and make sure appletalk is turned on in the system preferences. The printer should appear in the list if it is on the network(and if you have the drivers on your machine and the server), if not then something may be set up wrong on your network/server.
 
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