Printing options

[James Richard Tyrer]

Michael Goffioul wrote:
>> I would guess that the problem is that the Qt PostScript driver is 
>> embedding the image in a PS file and leaving the job of scaling it to 
>> the printer resolution to the printer.  Actually, this is the correct 
>> way to do it in some cases.  But, the processor in you printer takes a 
>> long time to scale the image.
>>
>> By converting it to the resolution of the printer using: "ps2ps" with 
>> the faster processor on your system, it is much faster.
>>
>> So, this *is* a KDE Print issue.  Should KPrinter be aware of the 
>> resolution of the printer and use the Qt PostScript driver to make a 
>> PS file with that resolution.
> 
> 
> In the end, the resolution used in the PS file is determined by the
> application itself (look into QPrinter/KPrinter constructor). KDEPrint
> provides since a few months a mechanism to propagate the resolution
> extracted from the driver up to the application, but to my knowledge,
> no application uses that feature.

> OTOH, this feature only works with Foomatic drivers, and some *fully*
> Adobe-compliant PPD files (and there aren't that much out there). Here
> you enter the wonderful world of printer-manufacturers-provided PPD
> files, where every manufacturer uses its own "standard" and it's
> often impossible to know the printer resolution (for example if the
> PPD file uses keyword like "Draft/Normal/Photo").

Yes there is a problem with PPD files. :-(  Fortunately, I don't have that 
problem. :-)

I am using GhostScript with OpenOffice (I use it when I must deal with M$ 
Office files) so I am using either their 'generic' PPD file which I have 
edited to conform to my printer to print or the Adobe distiller PPD file to 
produce a PS for conversion to PDF.

> So basically, what you describe already exists in KDEPrint, but the
> application has to use it.

It is easier for OpenOffice to implement this since it is a stand alone 
application, but it would be better if KPrint was able to use a PPD file 
directly to determine the printer characteristics or have a choice to 
ignore them when "printing" to a generic PS file.

The VALinux/HP/GNULpr (now inactive) project provides the ability to use 
PPD files with LPR.

More applications are becoming PPD aware, so it is something to add to the 
wish-list.

--
JRT

PS	I will look into this further when I get my new system up and running. 
A few days I hope. :-|