tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5650649138973583402.post6103445991734247470..comments2023-09-20T07:28:27.572-05:00Comments on Linux in Exile: It's called multitasking, peopleJim Hallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11598443864678006773noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5650649138973583402.post-44253401318385274142009-07-24T16:47:26.798-05:002009-07-24T16:47:26.798-05:00Yes, installing the driver from the CD is the best...Yes, installing the driver from the CD is the best choice. There is a chance that they actually updated the driver on the manufactures website after releasing the disk due to a last minute bug fix, but if you install a newer driver you might get worse bugs, so better stick to what you got.Pumamannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5650649138973583402.post-57943300286397777102009-06-16T06:41:52.809-05:002009-06-16T06:41:52.809-05:00Thanks, Nickname_unavailable.
In this case, I kno...Thanks, Nickname_unavailable.<br /><br />In this case, I know the printer driver was for Vista. When the new printer arrived, our tech support guys hadn't put the driver on the network yet. So they did the next best thing: they put the install CD next to the printer, so those of us who needed to print to that printer could install the driver.<br /><br />The driver CD helpfully had a separate directory for "Windows XP" and "Windows Vista" (and "Mac OSX", IIRC). I installed the driver for Vista.JHhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05264061238864151815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5650649138973583402.post-40403963425136306302009-06-15T17:27:28.937-05:002009-06-15T17:27:28.937-05:00Ensure that you have the correct driver installed ...Ensure that you have the correct driver installed for your printer. <br /><br />When Vista came out, many older printer drivers, while still installable, were not fully compatible with Vista.<br /><br />If the driver is the issue, it's the printer manufacturer's fault, not Windows.<br /><br />Printer manufacturers want you to buy new printers as often as possible ... so they often do not create new drivers when new OS's come out, intentionally making their hardware obsolete.<br /><br />It's an old old story. Recall how we all had to throw out our scanners and to a lesser extent printers when Windows XP came out? Same deal.<br /><br />I expect the true Linux people to respond now about how they just write their own drivers. Awesome! But in the real world, you are the exception, most people just don't know how to do that.Kenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02668829196805920633noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5650649138973583402.post-5317722949002398242009-06-11T09:23:29.514-05:002009-06-11T09:23:29.514-05:00evaned, I've never changed any of the settings...evaned, I've never changed any of the settings in MS Office, so I'm still using whatever defaults came with it. I just checked now, and under Word Options - Advanced - Print, the option for "Print in background" is checked.<br /><br />I like Wayne's comment, though. :-)JHhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05264061238864151815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5650649138973583402.post-18569426124054424602009-06-11T09:04:02.525-05:002009-06-11T09:04:02.525-05:00Re the option "Print in Background"
I o...Re the option "Print in Background"<br /><br />I once heard, or read a parable about "the knob on the side of the TV." Those of you who are old enough will remember when TV's had knobs on the side, or on the back (or, if you were very lucky, on the front) labeled "Horiz Sync, "Vert Sync," and so on. Sometimes the picture on your TV would get out of whack and you would have to fiddle with the knobs make it good again. We didn't think much about the knobs on the side (or back, or front), since all TV's had them. I guess we consumers thought they were a required part of all TV's. The knobs not only let you make the picture good, they let you make the picture bad, too. If your played with the knobs, things could get so out of whack that a parent, thinking that the set was busted, might end up with the repairman out to the house.<br /><br />When advances in circuitry later made affordable TV's which could do the adjustments automatically, those knobs went away and we learned that the knobs were not required after all.<br /><br />Whenever you see an option in software such as "Print in Background," it's a knob on the side. It's a sign that the system isn't quite good enough to work correctly on its own. And, like the knobs on the side of the TV, it doesn't just let you compensate for the system's shortcomings and make things work. It lets you break things, too.Wayne Conradhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10595005905880642013noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5650649138973583402.post-42587755218868213302009-06-11T00:58:34.834-05:002009-06-11T00:58:34.834-05:00Actually, one thing to check; doesn't sound li...Actually, one thing to check; doesn't sound like it's the problem, but it's probably worth a check:<br /><br />In Word's options (click the Office icon, the options are in there), look under Advanced, then scroll down to the printing section. There should be an option "Print in Background"; make sure it's checked.<br /><br />I think there are two problems with this being the culprit. First, that sounds more like allowing you to continue working on the document while it prints, not the relation between printing and another program. In other words, I think that would make printing modal with respect to Word, but not with respect to other programs. Second, you say that "printing page 1 of ..." appears at "the bottom of the window" which isn't how I would describe how printing looks with that option unchecked.<br /><br />Still, seeing as it'd take all of 30 seconds to check, might as well take a look.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5650649138973583402.post-20437993916296147612009-06-11T00:52:34.130-05:002009-06-11T00:52:34.130-05:00Windows does use a spooler; it has since at least ...Windows does use a spooler; it has since at least Windows 95, and I have some evidence it was in earlier Windows versions.<br /><br />I can sort of answer your "But if Windows does this, then why does printing from MS Office take a back seat" question: because Office hasn't finished spooling it yet. The same problem would happen if Linux context switched out KWrite or OO Writer or whatever while it was still prepping the data.<br /><br />Of course, this just pushes the question back to why either (1) Office isn't continuing to send the print job to the spooler (which I suspect is the problem) or (2) Windows isn't giving it a chance to. And I have no answer to that.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com