Debian bug report logs - #902, boring messages

Message sent to debian-devel@pixar.com:

Subject: Bug#902: lpr can't print a PostScript file ?!
Reply-To: iwj10@cus.cam.ac.uk (Ian Jackson), debian-bugs@pixar.com
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Resent-From: iwj10@cus.cam.ac.uk (Ian Jackson)
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Message-Id: <m0sDEVn-0000XQZ.ijackson@nyx.cs.du.edu>
Date: Sun, 21 May 95 18:09 BST
From: iwj10@cus.cam.ac.uk (Ian Jackson)
To: Debian bugs submission address <debian-bugs@pixar.com>

Package: lpr
Version: 5.9-6

I've been trying to print a PostScript file, without much success.

Just typing `lpr <postscript-file>' prints it as ASCII.  IMO it should
automatically recognise it.

I've tried reading lpr(1), lpd(8) and printcap(5), but none of these
manpages seem to provide any way to tell lpr that I'm giving it a
PostScript file.

One of the manpages says
     Refer to the 4.3 BSD Line Printer Spooler Manual for a complete discus-
     sion on how setup the database for a given printer.
but I can't find that document anywhere, and in any case I shouldn't
have to delve so deeply just to print a perfectly ordinary ps file !

Is it just me, or is the type-specification system described in lpr(1)
a mess ?  Surely it should be extensible ?

Some sites I've used have had a scheme where you passed a type string
to lpr (this usually used the -T option, though this claims to set the
`title' with this lpr).  This allows you to have different `types' for
things like "postscript, draft" vs. "postscript, high density" (useful
if you have a dot-matrix printer) or "text printed normal size" vs.
"text printed very compactly".

Ian.

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From: iwj10@thor.cam.ac.uk (Ian Jackson)
To: iwj10@cus.cam.ac.uk (Ian Jackson)
Subject: Bug#902: Acknowledgement (was: lpr can't print a PostScript file ?!)
In-Reply-To: <m0sDEVn-0000XQZ.ijackson@nyx.cs.du.edu>
References: <m0sDEVn-0000XQZ.ijackson@nyx.cs.du.edu>

Thank you for the problem report you have sent regarding Debian GNU/Linux.
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Ian Jackson
(maintainer, debian-bugs)

Message sent to debian-devel@pixar.com:

Subject: Bug#902: lpr can't print a PostScript file ?!
Reply-To: grib@arlut.utexas.edu (William Gribble), debian-bugs@pixar.com
Resent-To: debian-devel@pixar.com
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From: grib@arlut.utexas.edu (William Gribble)
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To: iwj10@cus.cam.ac.uk, debian-bugs@Pixar.com
Date: Mon, 22 May 1995 09:45:55 -0600 (CDT)
In-Reply-To: <m0sDEVn-0000XQZ.ijackson@nyx.cs.du.edu> from "Ian Jackson" at May 21, 95 06:09:00 pm
Content-Type: text

> Package: lpr
> Version: 5.9-6
>
> I've been trying to print a PostScript file, without much success.
>
> Just typing `lpr <postscript-file>' prints it as ASCII.  IMO it should
> automatically recognise it.

What's worse, in my opinion, is that there's no way at all to print a
binary file using lpr.  While I would like lpr to automatically handle
postscript, on my non-postscript inkjet I'd be happy if this worked
(as it did in days of yore with SLS, then Slackware):

gs -q -sDEVICE=escp2 -r360x360 -sOutputFile="|lpr -h" - < foo.ps

Under debian, this prints garbage characters until I reset the printer.
I assume that somewhere along the line lpr thinks it's smarter than it is
and it's stripping to 7 bits or trying to line wrap or something.

As it is, I have to do something like

gs -q -sDEVICE=escp2 -r360x360 -sOutputFile=/tmp/lpr_tmp - < foo.ps
su
cat /tmp/lpr_tmp > /dev/lp1

Which is, needless to say, suboptimal.

> Ian.

b.g.

Message sent:

From: iwj10@thor.cam.ac.uk (Ian Jackson)
To: grib@arlut.utexas.edu (William Gribble)
Subject: Bug#902: Info received (was Bug#902: lpr can't print a PostScript file ?!)
In-Reply-To: <9505221445.AA02272@mamba.arlut.utexas.edu>
References: <9505221445.AA02272@mamba.arlut.utexas.edu>

Thank you for the additional information you have supplied regarding
this problem report.  It has been forwarded to the developers to
accompany the original report.

If you wish to continue to submit further information on your problem,
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we can identify it as relating to the same problem.

Please do not reply to the address at the top of this message,
unless you wish to report a problem with the bug-tracking system.

Ian Jackson
(maintainer, debian-bugs)

Message sent to debian-devel@pixar.com:

Subject: Bug#902: lpr can't print a PostScript file ?!
Reply-To: "James A. Robinson" <jimr@simons-rock.edu>, debian-bugs@pixar.com
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To: grib@arlut.utexas.edu (William Gribble), debian-bugs@pixar.com
Cc: iwj10@cus.cam.ac.uk
In-Reply-To: Message from grib@arlut.utexas.edu (William Gribble)
   of "Mon, 22 May 1995 09:45:55 MDT." <9505221445.AA02272@mamba.arlut.utexas.edu>
Date: Mon, 22 May 1995 18:06:53 -0400
From: "James A. Robinson" <jimr@simons-rock.edu>

> > Package: lpr
> > Version: 5.9-6
> >
> > I've been trying to print a PostScript file, without much success.
> >
> > Just typing `lpr <postscript-file>' prints it as ASCII.  IMO it should
> > automatically recognise it.

One of you should probably package apsfilter, or put together a better
set of magic filters.  If I have time I will try and put apsfilter
together, but I've only ever used it on a PS printer.


Jim

Message sent:

From: iwj10@thor.cam.ac.uk (Ian Jackson)
To: "James A. Robinson" <jimr@simons-rock.edu>
Subject: Bug#902: Info received (was Bug#902: lpr can't print a PostScript file ?!)
In-Reply-To: <m0sDfcj-000018C@plato.simons-rock.edu>
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Thank you for the additional information you have supplied regarding
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If you wish to continue to submit further information on your problem,
please do the same thing again: send it to debian-bugs@pixar.com, ensuring
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Please do not reply to the address at the top of this message,
unless you wish to report a problem with the bug-tracking system.

Ian Jackson
(maintainer, debian-bugs)

Message sent to debian-devel@pixar.com:

Subject: Bug#902: lpr can't print a PostScript file ?!
Reply-To: tobias@server.et-inf.fho-emden.de (Peter Tobias), debian-bugs@pixar.com
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In-Reply-To: <m0sDEVn-0000XQZ.ijackson@nyx.cs.du.edu> from "Ian Jackson" at May 21, 95 06:09:00 pm
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Ian Jackson wrote:
> I've been trying to print a PostScript file, without much success.

lpr -d file.ps

> Just typing `lpr <postscript-file>' prints it as ASCII.  IMO it should
> automatically recognise it.

No, that's not the job of lpr. If you it to recognize such files
automatically you should use a magic filter (like apsfilter for
example).

BTW: If someone is planning to create a package with a magic filter
I would be happy if this person would also take over the lpr package
because I can't test the lpr stuff (no printer :-)).


Peter

--
 Peter Tobias                                EMail:
 Fachhochschule Ostfriesland                 tobias@et-inf.fho-emden.de
 Fachbereich Elektrotechnik und Informatik   tobias@perseus.fho-emden.de
 Constantiaplatz 4, 26723 Emden, Germany

Message sent:

From: iwj10@thor.cam.ac.uk (Ian Jackson)
To: tobias@server.et-inf.fho-emden.de (Peter Tobias)
Subject: Bug#902: Info received (was Bug#902: lpr can't print a PostScript file ?!)
In-Reply-To: <9505250909.AA17259@server.et-inf.fho-emden.de>
References: <9505250909.AA17259@server.et-inf.fho-emden.de>

Thank you for the additional information you have supplied regarding
this problem report.  It has been forwarded to the developers to
accompany the original report.

If you wish to continue to submit further information on your problem,
please do the same thing again: send it to debian-bugs@pixar.com, ensuring
that the Subject line starts with "Bug#902" or "Re: Bug#902" so that
we can identify it as relating to the same problem.

Please do not reply to the address at the top of this message,
unless you wish to report a problem with the bug-tracking system.

Ian Jackson
(maintainer, debian-bugs)

Ian Jackson / iwj10@thor.cam.ac.uk, with the debian-bugs tracking mechanism

This page last modified 07:43:01 GMT Wed 01 Nov