Looking for PCL5 printers that are not host-based GDI (Windows Only) printers (again)...

[Jean-Pierre A. Radley]

Mike Schwartz propounded (on Wed, Apr 24, 2013 at 02:38:21PM -0500):
| > > to directly from Linux over a network without requiring any Windows
| > > printer drivers, do you think the LJ Pro 400 will work in that
| > > situation?  As I recall, you work mostly with the Windows version of
| > filePro...
| > >
| > > Thanks,
| > > Mike
| > 
| > Check HP site and the listed a number of Linux drivers for this black and
| > white laser printer.
| > 
| > The printer comes with a gigabit port and usb port.  It is pcl5e
| compatible.
| > They do not list the font sets included but I am sure that this
| information is
| > available on line.
| > 
| > Richard
| 
|     The HP web site directs me outside of HP to a Linux Imaging and Printing
| web site.  That web site offers my some CUPS and other drivers, but doesn't
| answer this question:  If I send a raw PCL print stream out from the Linux
| box (not using any funky, unsupported Linux drivers that may be CUPS drivers
| or whatever) then can the printer accept and print that PCL document?
| 
| Thanks,

Under the printing system we've known and loved since the days of Xenix,
actual ASCII characters are sent to the printer, which has a repertoire
of fonts and can convert each such ASCII character into a bunch of ink
dots to be placed on the page.

If you're being offered anything called a driver under Unix or Linux,
that's because the printer has no such conversion capability, and relies
on the driver in the computer to generate an arrangement of ink dots. A
printer that requires such a driver will most liekly fail to do anything
with a stream of ASCII bytes. That's host-based printing.

HP's PCL3 or PCL5 language could include, in the midst of the stream of
ASCII bytes, ESCape sequences which convey font or size or margin or
color or other instructions to the printer.  It's certainly possible
for such PCL instructions can be interpreted by a driver, but that's
still host-based printing, which is not a direct answer to the OP's
request.

CUPS is essentially a host-based printing scheme that runs on
Unix/Linux; it has to be furnished with specific drivers for specific
printers.  Don't be scared of it, and know that it can also directly
handle PDF, PostScript and other non-text input.

Another alternative is to use the binary called 'pcl6' (which has
NOTHING to do with HP's PCL6, which in turn is NOT a superset of PCL5,
which in turn IS a superset of PCL3). This binary understands PCL3/5,
and converts it to another format (perhaps PDF or PostScript).  You
can insert the commands to do this in a UNIX SYSV printer interface
script, and if your new printer is listed as directly accepting PDF or
PostScript input, you're all set.  You can find 'pcl6' for OSR5 or OSR6
at ftp.jpr.com.

Finally, referrring to filePro 5.7.03,"PDF output directly from filePro
is the latest and most anticipated feature of this release."

-- 
JP