Printing Success - Here's how.

[dadamia_(_at_)_toad_(_dot_)_net]

All,

I finally got my OpenBSD 3.4 system to print with my HP-694C printer!
Thanks to all who responded to my two previous postings seeking help.

First, here's a list of things that did NOT work for me.

1.  Stock lpr with ifhp filter like that described in the FreeBSD
    handbook.

2.  Apsfilter

3.  LPRng

Some of you claim to be using 1 and 2, but I could not get them to
work.  I did not hear from anyone who was using LPRng.


Several of you suggested CUPS.  I did get CUPS to work, but it wasn't
easy.  The OpenBSD CUPS port would not install.  (This might be fixed
by the time you read this.)  Here's what I had to do:


1.  Download and install cups-1.1.20-source.tar.gz.

    Note the following excerpt from the CUPS install file:

    "CUPS no longer includes the Ghostscript-based pstoraster filter.
    You *must* download Ghostscript separately and patch it using the
    files in the pstoraster subdirectory, or download the ESP
    Ghostscript distribution from the CUPS web site."

    Does that mean that the OpenBSD gs package won't work?  I didn't
    check; I just followed their suggestion and got ESP Ghostscript.

    Don't forget to use gmake instead of make.  Also, the default
    installation is in /usr.  You may want to specify /usr/local on
    the configure command line, just to be consistent with OpenBSD
    practice.


2.  Download and install espgs-7.07.1-source.tar.gz (the
    abovementioned EPS Ghostscript).

    In order to compile this you need the libjpeg sources.  So, you
    must also download jpegsrc.v6b.tar.gz.

    The configure script is set up to include the "omni" driver by
    default.  This is some IBM printer thing, whose source file is not
    included.  So, unless you really need this, you must run configure
    with "--without-omni".  My configure command looked like:

	    ./configure --without-omni --with-drivers=HP,EPSON

    The instructions don't say to use gmake, but the "make install"
    step will fail unless you use gmake.
    

3.  Add this line to your /etc/rc.local file:

    /usr/local/sbin/cupsd

    You might try adding an lpadmin line after that to set up your
    printer.  (There's an example in the instructions.)  If that
    works, you're done!  (It works on my Arch Linux system, but I
    could not get it work on OpenBSD.)

4.  Set up your printer using the CUPS web interface.  That is, point
    your browser to http://localhost:631/admin .  If your printer is
    connected to you PC parallel port, its URI is probably
    "parallel:/dev/lpt0" and it's a "parallel polled" printer.


Well, I'm happy that I finally got it working,  But I think someone
needs to fix up the OpenBSD distribution to make this (or some other
approach) easier.

Duane

---------------------------------------------------------
Duane A. Damiano                    duane_(_at_)_damiano_(_dot_)_name
P. O. Box 22429                     Phone: 410-685-6221
Baltimore MD 21203-4429  U.S.A.

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