Baslinux mailing list

[Robert Steinmetz <rob AT steinmetznet.com>]

Samuel W. Heywood wrote:

> It is my understanding that not many printer drivers have yet been
> developed for Linux platforms for printing graphical fonts. 
Many Printers will work just fine to print graphical fonts. Some with 
Linux Drivers, some  with drivers using Ghostscript. and some with built 
in Page Description Languages, like Postscript or PCL IF you want to use 
Linux, check to see if the printer has a driver before purchasing it. 
Most HP and Epson printers can work, but some very low end models won't.

> Nowadays many printer manufacturers are producing and marketing printers that
> are very purposefully designed to be totally unusable with any operating
> system other than Window$.
>  
I think this is a little harsh. Many printer manufacturers are making 
dumb graphic printers which are designed to be sold for the lowest 
possible price and to sell as many expensive printer cartridges as 
possible. These printers rely on the computer to process the print job 
and to control the printer directly, these printer programs create the 
raster information in the computer which then send that preprocessed 
information to the printer. The manufacturers often only write the 
special programs for Windows because that is where 90+ percent of the 
action is. They also often refuse to release the information necessary 
to write a program for Linux or Mac. These printers are usually designed 
for home use and often have very high per page costs. They work fine for 
home users who have low volume needs.

> Sam Heywood
>
>