PS driver for Windows 7?

[cgtyoder]

Well, people are moving to Windows 7, and so must I. However, my trusty (and ancient, by electronics standards) Minolta PageWorks/Pro 25 printer, with Adobe PS 3 (3010.106) SIMM, is now just a very large piece of metal and plastic on my desk. It is working perfectly well with OS X 10.6 and Win XP.  Why should I have to shell out another $400 or whatever to replace a printer that is working perfectly?

Does anyone know of a free or for sale generic PS driver for Windows 7? Of course I would like something free, but if there's something to buy, I would happily do that. Any suggestions as to how to get a (networked) PS printer to work with W 7?  (I do still have its PPD.) Thanks for any pointers.

-Conrad

[Dov Isaacs]

Note that this forum is for discussion of PostScript programming, not support of PostScript drivers.

Why would you think that there won't be support for your PostScript printer under Windows 7 and that you would have to replace it to go from one version of Windows to the next version of Windows? There is built-in support for PostScript printers in all flavors of Windows 7 via the Add Printer wizard.

I recently "built" a Windows 7 system and had no problem finding driver support for my fleet of 14 year old HP LaserJet 5M PostScript Level 2 printers (not the CloneScript stuff that was sold later!). You may find that you will need to select the option Windows Update for Windows 7 to download the configuration files for the older printers, but it is amazing how many very old PostScript printers are indeed supported completely. And in the event that you cannot find your Minolta printer model (might be listed under Konica-Minolta), contact Konica-Minolta and see whether they can assist you!

          - Dov

[cgtyoder]

Hey Dov, thanks for the response (not sure if you remember me - Conrad Yoder - used to work in Partner Tech).

[I realize that this is primarliy a programming group, but there is no "PostScript Other" group, so I was hoping someone hear might have some insights in this related group. My apologies if this is creating too much noise.]

I too built my own Windows 7 PC, and I already checked - even with the Windows Update printer drivers, there is no driver (let alone a PS one) for my printer (and I looked under all the various Minolta-related mufacturers also). Your HP LJs are slightly more common than my 10-year old printer as well. (K-M doesn't even list the Pageworks/Pro 25 as a printer on their web site.)

I will contact them, although I am keeping my expectations at an appropriate level (read: low).

[Dov Isaacs · Accepted solution]

Certainly do remember you. Hope you are doing well in your current pursuits.

One thing you can do if K-M can't provide a "driver installer" for you for Windows 7 (minimum they require is a .inf file and a .PPD file, believe it or not), is to choose a similar printer in terms of tray configurations, PostScript language level, etc. Easy to hack that stuff. Unfortunately, the old AdobePS 1.0.6 driver installer that associates a PPD with a new PSCRIPT5 driver instance simply doesn't work with Vista or Windows 7.

          - Dov

[cgtyoder]

Thanks for the recommendation. I had tried hacking it together with another similar printer, but that didn't work. I decided to try again, and this time it did, for whatever reason.  My process, for anyone who might find this helpful in the future:

1. I used its IP addr to specify the printer, and said it was a Minolta PagePro 9100 (had to change its port to the correct one)

2. Print test page; find out what PPD it is using.

3. Replace that PPD with the proper one, but keep the same filename as the original

4. Reboot

Worked for me after that. The printer now has all its normal configuration options, even though Windows still thinks it is a PagePro 9100.

[SixtySeconds60]

Not all Postscript drivers are created equal. Each printer manufacturer makes their own Postscript flavour. If your default printer is a Lexmark Postscript printer, and you prepare a properly formatted document, then it will print exactly as formatted. However, send the document to a colleague who uses, say, a HP Laserjet 4350 printer, you will see that the pagination has changed. 12pt Times New Roman printed on one Postscript printer can appear thinner or thicker on another Postscript printer. In my office, we prepare legislation for Parliament, and the pagination of a Bill is very important. What we print in house must equal to what sub-contracted printers print in bulk using a different printer (eg Xerox). To achieve this, we use the Adobe Universal Postscript driver. This works in XP, but there is no such driver for Windows 7 (and even Vista). The universal Postscript installer winsteng.exe freely available on the Adobe website works very well in Win XP (run it and nominate the printer's PPD file), but unfortunately wingsteng.exe does not work in Windows 7 (and Vista). So, I too must find a work-around. The "Add a Printer" process adds a printer using the printer's proprietary Postscript driver, not the Adobe universal Postscript driver.

[Dov Isaacs]

There is no such beast as an Adobe Printer Driver for any version of Windows beyond WIndows NT4 and WIndows'98. The Adobe Printer Driver Installer simply associates a user-specified PPD (PostScript Printer Description) file for a particular printer model with the PSCRIPT5 driver that comes with the operating system for versions of Windows starting with Windows 2000. In most cases, it is not at all different than using the Add Printer wizard.

Note that the Adobe Printer Driver Installer does not work with any version of Windows beyond Windows XP and with no 64-bit version of Windows. (It is a 16-bit application and such applications won't even run on 64-bit Windows.)

Adobe has not plans to update that installer given that the original versions of Windows for which it was intended no longer are supported by Microsoft and similar functionality for PostScript printers is available through the Add Printer wizard (normally using the same PSCRIPT5 driver as a base used by the old Adobe installer) or through custom installers provided by individual printer manufacturers. Very, very few printer vendors provide truly unique PostScript drivers for their (typically) CloneScript printers; such drivers typically don't work properly with PostScript-centric applications such as Adobe Acrobat & Reader, Adobe FrameMaker, Adobe's Creative Suite applications, QuarkXPress, CorelDraw, etc. Many vendors (including those using Adobe PostScript) use PSCRIPT5 as a base with their own PPD as well as proprietary driver plug-ins that provide some "product differentiation" to the driver (sometimes good, sometimes bad).

          - Dov

[Xenotral]

I don't know wether my -- on-thread-topic, factual and technically correct -- answer in this thread has been censored for personal or company policy reasons, but in both cases this will have severe consequences.

[Dov Isaacs]

Your posting was removed because it was in fact technically and factually incorrect which could lead end users to create PostScript printer driver instances which would appear OK but in fact are defective.

          - Dov

[Guest]

Hey Dov and Conrad:

I know this may not be the best place to continue this discussion, but I just wanted to say thanks.

I had a similar problem as Conrad, but mine is with a 10 year old Xerox Docuprint N2825 sitting on my office net. It's a shared printer on a Win2000 machine and is also directly connected to a network switch. I kept trying to set the printer up thru the share, but Win7 kept saying there is no suitable driver. There is no "Windows Update" choice, but it says that it is checking Windows Update and then fails.

I finally figured out from Conrad's last post to try seetting up thru the IP address and eventually got to a dialog with the "Windows Update" button. That lead to the updated Xerox Global Driver. And success!

However, in the printer's Properties, I'm not seeing the all the usual features, like edge-to-edge printing and several flavors of 600x600 dpi, 1200x1200 dpi, etc. The  Printer Properties dialog/Options tab/Configuration option does let me pick from some other models, none match my old N2825. It's on the default setting of: Basic Printing Mode.

I had previously downloaded Xerox's Global Driver (X-GPDWin_PS_x64_English.exe). The driver does unpack with a subfolder of PPDs, one is for the N2825! Is there a way to merge this PPD with the Xerox Driver and get the features back? I feel like I'm so close, but so far away.

Thanks again!

JohnS

[cgtyoder]

As I mentioned in my previous post, you should find out what PPD is currently being used, then delete it and rename the one you want to use with the same name, and put it in the same dir as the original.  Then reboot.  That worked for me.

[Guest]

Conrad:

Thanks for the helping hand. It appears that the Xerox Global driver doesn't utilize PPD files. At least, I can't find any in the Windows\system32\spool\DRIVERS\x64\3 folder where the Test page says all the pertinent files are.

The list of models/features available in the Printer Properties/Options tab/Configuration setting, appears to be generated from a list in the XrUNIVpB.ini file. These entries correspond to folders, each containing lots of stuff, but none are PPD files.

There is a XrUNIVpB.p3p file and a XrUNIVpB.p3p.BPD file (a Binary Printer Description file created on 2/27). Are either of these something I can work with?

BTW, is there another forum/section that I should be posting these queries to?

Thanks,

JohnS

[Dov Isaacs]

The Xerox drivers hack around with the standard PSCRIPT driver of Windows using the driver's plug-in architecture. The .BPD file is actually a binary copy of the .PPD file currently in use, but you really can't hack around with it. I suspect that Xerox's code is building a PPD on-the-fly and mucking around with that.

There are a number of ways to deal with this problem:

(1)     Contact Xerox directly and ask them for a solution. They still do support 10 year old printers. Why? Because selling supplies such as toner and replacement belts and imagers, etc. is an extremely lucrative business. They make much more on those items than the original printer itself. So try calling them.

(2)     I've played with their "global driver" without any success. It attempts to be too clever in how in interacts with the driver. My approach has been to get the driver for a similar printer, hack the PPD file, strip away the plug-ins as defined in the .INI file associated with the driver instance, and go from there. Definitely not a task for the faint of heart or mere mortals.

          - Dov

[Guest]

Dov:

Thanks very much for the in-depth reply and efforts to help.

Alas, Xerox does not support my printer anymore...unless I want to pay them to talk to me. Their email reponse just points me back to their web page with old PPD files, even tho the description says it's a 32 and 64 bit PS driver.

You wouldn't happen to know if there is a "generic" PScript driver that I could plug the older PPD into?

Thanks,

JohnS

[Dov Isaacs]

Alas, no such beastie. 

          - Dov

[viski_b]

My solution when upgraded to win 7. In printer dialog box select  printer service properties. then go to ports , add port , local port, \\your network path\printer name. then use adobe ps driver 5.2.2 but first right click then chose properties, compatibility, check run this program in compatibility ( i use windows 2000) then OK. again right click and choose run as administrator.chose it is directly conected(local printer), choose port that you have created previosly then browse to your printer PPD location. It should apear in box , select it and hit next. You should now dialog box for configuration.If all goes fine you should have working printer driver under win7.

[bevhoward]

Understanding also that this is a "programming" rather than "driver" forum, I'll venture to stick my neck out as a another programmer trying to get the generic ps driver to work with my code and also can't find any other resource.

problem exists at the time of driver install ....long before getting to code output

example, Immediately after installing the driver, the "print test page" fails at the filename dialog box.

The dialog will not accept any filename and the "presented" filename is invalid... i.e. showing the "my documents" folder contents and suggesting "My Documents\Test Page.pdf" in that folder and failing on a "path does not exist" if it's edited to a simple 8.3 filename

The resultant log contains

PDF Printing failed, error code = 0x00000002
Test Page
C:\Documents and Settings\Bev\My Documents\Test Page.log

Driver uninstalled, reinstalled, rebooted, etc no joy my system is XPPro SP3

driver downloaded from

http://www.adobe.com/support/downloads/detail.jsp?ftpID=1500

Here's hoping that someone will toss a lost programmer a crumb of a clue on where to look for a solution.

Thanks in advance,

Beverly Howard