Printer sharing help needed
A call out to AI for some help with printer sharing! 
Here is the situation:
Our studio has an ethernet network with 5 macs attached and one laser printer. We print to the laser printer via appletalk and this works fine.
We also have an epson 2400 inkjet printer, which does not have a network card. We have this connected via firewire to our file server mac (a blue and white G3). The G3 is set to printer share and we can all see the printer as a shared printer in our print dialogue boxes.
What we don't have are any of the printer specific options for the 2400. So we cannot set paper type, colour settings, resolution etc. We just get a standard print dialogue.
The options I have so far are:
- Buy a network card for the 2400 [expensive]
- Buy a copy of iRIP X [expensive and yet more software to maintain]
Have I not set-up printer sharing correctly, which is why I cannot see the printer settings? Should I be using USB and not firewire? Anything else I've missed?
Thanks everyone (in advance)
Here is the situation:
Our studio has an ethernet network with 5 macs attached and one laser printer. We print to the laser printer via appletalk and this works fine.
We also have an epson 2400 inkjet printer, which does not have a network card. We have this connected via firewire to our file server mac (a blue and white G3). The G3 is set to printer share and we can all see the printer as a shared printer in our print dialogue boxes.
What we don't have are any of the printer specific options for the 2400. So we cannot set paper type, colour settings, resolution etc. We just get a standard print dialogue.
The options I have so far are:
- Buy a network card for the 2400 [expensive]
- Buy a copy of iRIP X [expensive and yet more software to maintain]
Have I not set-up printer sharing correctly, which is why I cannot see the printer settings? Should I be using USB and not firewire? Anything else I've missed?
Thanks everyone (in advance)
Comments
The setting comprised 3 Macs, one desktop and 2 Notebooks.
The Desktop was connected via USB and Print sharing was set to share.
The 2 other mobile Macs shared the printer easily, but couldn't change the
settings, annoying. The Notebooks just used the last setting, the desktop
printed with.
The solution was: i updated all the Printer software. I don't know why
exactly, but that that fixed the sharing. Are you sure, you've installed
the very same Printer software on every Mac? Just an idea to start with.
Btw, as far as i know, printer sharing just works properly via USB.
i'm wondering if the problems might be down to using firewire rather than USB. i'm using firewire because the G3 that the printer is connected to doesn't have USB2. at home i have usb printer sharing to an epson R800 connected to an airport base station and it just works.
i have updated the printer software on the G3 and on my Macbook Pro.
I think trying USB might be worth a go...
...
i'm wondering if the problems might be down to using firewire rather than USB. i'm using firewire because the G3 that the printer is connected to doesn't have USB2.
...
I think trying USB might be worth a go...
To my knowledge it doesn't matter, if it is either USB or USB2.
To cut it short: USB just should work easily AND fast enough, give it a try.
i've updated both the sharing machine and the client machine with the latest epson drivers (just to be sure)
i've switched from firewire to usb
still cannot get the options within the print dialog on the client machine
could it be because the shared machine is running 10.3.9 and all the others (which are connecting to it) are on 10.4? i cannot upgrade the shared machine to 10.4 as it is a G3 tower and i only have tiger on dvd
latest update on progress...
i've updated both the sharing machine and the client machine with the latest epson drivers (just to be sure)
i've switched from firewire to usb
still cannot get the options within the print dialog on the client machine
could it be because the shared machine is running 10.3.9 and all the others (which are connecting to it) are on 10.4? i cannot upgrade the shared machine to 10.4 as it is a G3 tower and i only have tiger on dvd
Well, could be the reason, why it doesn't work so far. But i admit i don't know.
Maybe the Epson Drivers don't support that kind of sharing,
maybe the drivers merely support basic sharing. Just a wild shot in the blue.
To prove that idea wrong, i'd connect the Epson Printer with one of
the other Macs via USB, set this said Mac to printer share and see what happens.
i have connected the printer via usb to a machine running 10.4. then i made a new printer on another 10.4 machine using this shared printer. i still cannot change print options.
what is interesting is that when i do a get info on the shared printer (not from the machine connected to the printer) the pop-up window has no driver version number.
BUT when i do this to another shared printer (an epson R800 which i have at home and is connected to an airport hub as a shared printer). i do see the driver version and i can select colour/paper options etc.
it seems the 2400 isn't sending the driver over the shared connection, or something isn't right with it being shared from a machine, where as sharing from an airport hub seems to work...
the results of some more fiddling around...
i have connected the printer via usb to a machine running 10.4. then i made a new printer on another 10.4 machine using this shared printer. i still cannot change print options.
what is interesting is that when i do a get info on the shared printer (not from the machine connected to the printer) the pop-up window has no driver version number.
BUT when i do this to another shared printer (an epson R800 which i have at home and is connected to an airport hub as a shared printer). i do see the driver version and i can select colour/paper options etc.
it seems the 2400 isn't sending the driver over the shared connection, or something isn't right with it being shared from a machine, where as sharing from an airport hub seems to work...
When you select the printer in the Printer Utility, and hit get info, I believe there is a tab for selecting printer model. Do you have the correct model selected there? I believe, OS X uses your selection there to choose which driver to use from its database which then determines the print options that show.
The other thing to check, does OS X have built in drivers for that printer? Are they installed?
Sorry if these are just shots in the dark...