printer posts

Filed under: Hardware, OS, Peripherals, Odds and ends, Snow Leopard

HP experts to provide real-time support for Snow Leopard users on 9/9

by Steven Sande (RSS feed) on Sep 1st, 2009

Have you upgraded to Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard and found that your HP printer or All-in-one is having issues? HP announced today that experts from the company will be providing real-time support on September 9th to help you out.

From 8 AM to 5 PM PDT on September 9th, 2009, HP's Mac-connect team will be monitoring the HP Mac Printing & Scanning Board (part of the HP Support Forums). HP customers who post questions about compatibility with Snow Leopard can expect a quick response from the HP team. After the real-time session, the Mac-connect team will continue to provide help through the Forums.

HP noted in their press release today that "HP has worked closely with Apple throughout the Mac OS X v10.6 Snow Leopard development process, enabling customers to enjoy built-in print driver support for more than 1,300 worldwide HP peripherals out of the box – the most ever offered by HP for a new Mac OS. In addition to print driver support, HP is providing scan support for the latest HP Inkjet All-in-Ones built into the operating system."

More information about HP products and Mac compatibility can be found at www.hp.com/go/mac.

Tags: all-in-one, HP, printer, printing, scanner, snow leopard, SnowLeopard, support

Filed under: Cool tools, Productivity, Tips and tricks, Freeware

Try Bonjour on your PC for using Mac printers

by Mel Martin (RSS feed) on Jul 26th, 2009

It's not a hidden secret, but lots of people simply don't know about it. We mentioned it ourselves more than a year ago in answer to a reader question, but I think it's worth a revisit.

Here's my scenario. People show up at the house with PC laptops and want to print something. A boarding pass, an email, a web page. They screw around with Windows control panels trying to find the printers on my Mac network. In my case, they are both shared on a Mac Pro.

Enter Bonjour. It's the Apple answer to zero configuration networking. All you have to do is download Bonjour for Windows. There's also a 64-bit version if you need it.

Once it is downloaded you'll get a Printer Wizard, which will instantly find the printers available on your network, including the shared ones. (Make sure you are sharing them in the Sharing pane of System Preferences.)

Now when your guests want to print, they will be all set. No other drivers are needed. I now keep the Bonjour for Windows .exe on a thumb drive. I hand it to guests, and they are ready to roll.

Bonjour can do more than discover printers. Per Apple:

Bonjour for Windows includes a plugin to discover advertised HTTP servers using Internet Explorer. Click the Bonjour icon in the Internet Explorer toolbar to enable Bonjour browsing. If you have Bonjour devices on your local network with embedded HTTP (Web) servers, they will appear in the list.

It's possible you have a printer that doesn't support Bonjour, but most do. In my case an Epson and a Brother laser printer worked with no glitches. Bonjour requires Windows 2000/2003, Windows XP or Windows Vista.

If only everything in life was this simple.

Tags: Bonjour, connecting PC to Mac network, networking, printer, printer wizard, PrinterWizard

Filed under: Accessories, Analysis / Opinion, Hardware, Peripherals, Reviews

TUAW review and giveaway: Polaroid PoGo Instant Mobile Printer

by Steven Sande (RSS feed) on Mar 25th, 2009

This review has an interesting history. Back at the end of January, Polaroid sent a note to TUAW requesting that we ask our readers to join in asking Apple to support Bluetooth printing from the iPhone. Polaroid had a very good reason for doing this, since the iPhone is a phenomenally successful smartphone. Those millions of iPhone users would make a very good market for Polaroid's new PoGo Instant Mobile Printer, a tiny pocket-sized photo printer that prints out 2" x 3" borderless prints.

I asked Polaroid if we could test a PoGo for our readers who don't own iPhones, and also to see how it works with the Mac. The results of our tests follow, along with details of a giveaway where two lucky TUAW readers can win a PoGo and a 30-pack of the special paper that it uses.

Continue reading “TUAW review and giveaway: Polaroid PoGo Instant Mobile Printer”

Tags: bluetooth, iphone, mac, printer, windows, zink

Filed under: Accessories, Peripherals, iPhone, Jailbreak/pwnage

Polaroid: Help us convince Apple to add Bluetooth transfer support

by Steven Sande (RSS feed) on Jan 30th, 2009

We received an interesting email this morning from Polaroid -- they are asking for the assistance of iPhone owners to convince Apple to provide Bluetooth transfer support for the platform. Adding Bluetooth transfer support would make it possible for the iPhone to print to the new Polaroid PoGo Instant Mobile Printer (photo at right).

The PoGo (US$99.95) is a pocket-sized inkless printer that prints full-color photos from cell phones using Bluetooth. Unfortunately, the iPhone doesn't have Bluetooth transfer capabilities, although a solution for jailbroken iPhones has been in the news lately. As a result, the PoGo and iPhone don't play together.

Polaroid would like to change that:

To encourage Apple to become compatible with the Polaroid Pogo printer, we are asking iPhone owners to submit an enhancement request form at the following link and to express their interest for better Bluetooth transfer capabilities including OPP profile so they can print to the Polaroid Pogo printer.

http://www.apple.com/feedback/iphone.html

Thanks in advance for your help!

Would you consider a pocket printer for your iPhone if Apple made the necessary changes to the OS? Leave us feedback.

Continue reading “Polaroid: Help us convince Apple to add Bluetooth transfer support”

Tags: iphone, iphone3g, polaroid pogo, PolaroidPogo, printer

Filed under: Macworld, Accessories, Multimedia, Interviews, TUAW Interview

TUAW Macworld Video: HP Products for Mac

by Steven Sande (RSS feed) on Jan 7th, 2009

If you were one of the many people who were expecting Apple to announce some sort of Mac mini-based home media server yesterday, you weren't alone. We talked about another media server solution, HP's MediaSmart Server, a small Mac-compatible device that can be used for Time Machine backups, iTunes and iPhoto library storage, and more.

I visited with Rick Spillers, HP's Mac-connect Worldwide Product Manager, at the HP booth yesterday to talk about HP iPrint, printer and scanner solutions, and other products from their Mac group. Also on the video is Glen Roberts, who discusses the MediaSmart and how it works well in homes with both Macs and PCs.

The video is after the break.

Continue reading “TUAW Macworld Video: HP Products for Mac”

Tags: hp, macworld 2009, Macworld2009, mediasmart, mwsf, printer, video

Filed under: Terminal Tips

Terminal Tips: Make extended print dialog show by default

by Cory Bohon (RSS feed) on Sep 15th, 2008

When you print something in Mac OS X, the standard print dialog window will pop up. However, if you always use the extended options (such as landscape/portrait orientation, number of copies, etc.) then you might have to click the blue arrow constantly. With this Terminal hack, the print dialog will open with the extended options already shown by default. Just open Terminal.app (/Applications/Utilities/) and type in the following command:

defaults write -g PMPrintingExpandedStateForPrint -bool TRUE

If changing back to the original settings makes you happy, then replace "TRUE" with "FALSE" in the command above.

Want more quick Mac tips like this? Visit TUAW's Mac 101 and Terminal Tips sections.

Tags: Mac, Mac OS X, MacOsX, printer, Terminal, Terminal Tips, TerminalTips

Filed under: Accessories, Software Update

Apple releases HP Printer Driver update 1.1

by Cory Bohon (RSS feed) on Jul 15th, 2008

Apple just released an update for HP Printer support in Mac OS X. The update weighs in at a whopping 405.1 MBs and includes "latest drivers for printers you have used on your system."

In order to download the update via Software Update (Apple menu > Software Update), you must have the affected printer connected to your computer, or have a print queue already setup. You can also download the installer package from the Apple Support downloads site. This software works on Macs running OS X 10.5.3 or higher.

Thanks, Ed!

Tags: driver, hewlett-packard, HP, Printer, Software Update, SoftwareUpdate

Filed under: Peripherals, TUAW Tips, Leopard

TUAW Tip: Auto-quit Printers in Leopard

by Mat Lu (RSS feed) on Nov 13th, 2007

I just ran across this simple, but handy tip over at Mac OS X Hints. One of the little annoyances of Leopard that didn't make our recent post is the way Leopard handles printers. When you print something it starts the little application that controls the print queue for that device but (unlike Tiger) the application remains on your Dock after the print job is finished.

If this annoys you (like it does me), it turns out that there's a simple fix. Just right click on the Dock icon and select "Auto Quit." Now the printer queue application will quit itself (and so disappear from your Dock) once it's finished processing your print job.

I'm not entirely sure why this behavior is not the default (as it was before), but it's a nice little discovery that removes yet another little annoyance.

Tags: Auto-Quit, Leopard, Print-Queue, Printer

Filed under: Peripherals, Retail, Apple

Apple the exclusive retailer of new Samsung printers

by Mat Lu (RSS feed) on Sep 21st, 2007

I don't recall this happening any time recently; the Korean newspaper Chosunilbo is reporting that Apple is the exclusive US retailer for a new line of Samsung printers, at least until January 2008. The printers in question are the slick piano black monochrome laser ML-1630 ($199.95) and multifunction laser SCX-4500 ($299.95) and both qualify for Apple's $100 rebate when purchased with a new Mac. Looking at these printers I can't help but think they'd blend perfectly with the black bezel ring of the new iMacs.

[via Engadget]

Tags: ML-1630, Printer, Samsung, SCX-4500

Filed under: Features, Troubleshooting, Ask TUAW

Ask TUAW: Windows Printing, AutoFill, FireWire HDs, MacBook power adapters and more

by Mat Lu (RSS feed) on Aug 29th, 2007

It's time again for Ask TUAW, our weekly feature where you ask the questions and we make up the answers... er, I mean carefully research and determine the optimal solution. This week we'll be tackling questions about printing from OS X to a printer connected to a Windows box, AutoFill in Safari, problems with a FireWire hard drive, using a MacBook Pro power adapter with a MacBook, and more.

As always readers' suggested answers are most welcome! Please leave your questions for next week in the comments.

Continue reading “Ask TUAW: Windows Printing, AutoFill, FireWire HDs, MacBook power adapters and more”

Tags: Ask TUAW, AskTuaw, ChronSync, CornerClick, Do Something When, DoSomethingWhen, FireWire, Printer, QuickSilver, SteerMouse, Windows

Filed under: Software, Productivity, Tips and tricks

Faster printing through Quicksilver or a simple drag and drop

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on Jul 23rd, 2007

At TUAW HQ we absolutely love Quicksilver, the powerful, incredibly extensible and indispensable productivity tool, as it's capable of speeding up just about any conceivable operation on your Mac. Still, with everything Quicksilver is capable of, I honestly never thought it could be used to help you print documents faster. Sure enough, I have been taught my lesson to never doubt Quicksilver's reach by Mark Fisher, author of this Faster Printing with Quicksilver. In summary, Fisher's how-to walks you through adding your printer to Quicksilver's catalog so it can be used as a target for sending files to print. Combined with the Quicksilver comma trick, you can send multiple files to your printer at once, all from the streamlined efficiency of Quicksilver's search interface.

One downside to Fisher's tip, however, is that it requires a bit of digging around in Quicksilver, not to mention a decent workout training oneself through the app's arguably steep learning curve. If all this tinkering simply isn't your bag, there's a much easier trick I wrote about last year for creating a drag-and-drop desktop printer. This is much easier for virtually anyone to set up for themselves, and as a commenter on that post mentioned, you can drag that desktop printer to the right side of your Dock and delete the Desktop icon altogether, saving precious space for... well, probably all those documents you need to print off to begin with.

Ultimately, either of these tips are a great way print your documents more efficiently, as they remove the need to open each individual app and print the documents manually, one by one.

[via 43 Folders]

Tags: documents, printer, printing, quicksilver, tips, tricks

Filed under: Software, Productivity, Internet Tools

Location Switch Automator action

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on Jul 17th, 2006

Location Switch is an Automator action that adds some painfully missing features to Mac OS X's built-in Locations option (y'know, that feature you never touch in the Apple menu?). Location Switch can a whole host of application preferences and settings based on which location you chose, such as sound volume, SMTP servers, default printer, etc. Before you use it, however, the action requires some customization on your part, so check out the accompanying ReadMe file for instructions, and open the action in Automator to give it your personal touch.

Location Switch is available free from Automator World, but if you enjoy it, consider sending its creator, Charles Schoenfeld, a donation at his site.

[via Hawk Wings]

Tags: action, automator, features, location, mac, network, options, os x, OsX, preferences, printer, servers, settings, smtp, utility

Filed under: Cool tools, Tips and tricks

Enable drag-and-drop desktop printing

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on Jan 17th, 2006

Since I don't actually own a printer, I find it ironic that I'm posting a tip about printing more efficiently on a Mac. Regardless, this is a handy little tip right out of Apple's Pro site for all you chronic printers out there: if you print a lot of documents throughout the day without necessarily needing to edit them, you can create a "desktop printer" onto which you can simply drag and drop a file to print it. No opening the document or Office, and no dialogs to click through. It's pretty simple: select your printer in the Printer Setup Utility, go up to Printers > Create Desktop Printer (cmd shift D) to create your very own printing secretary on your desktop. Now, if only OS X had a coffee option...

Tags: Apple Pro, ApplePro, desktop, drag and drop, DragAndDrop, printer, printing

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