Why does the software to make ink shoot on my paper have to be so fucking large? A "basic" print driver for my OfficeJet is over 50MB. If I want to actually use the fucking thing I have to download a 254MB motherfucking monster! Complete bullshit. HP you have to do better than this if you want my business!

 

/rant/

Think yourself lucky that you can find drivers which actually work. We have a Canon iP5200R, one of the earliest WiFi compatible printers. The only drivers I have found which correctly setup the printer to connect to the home network are on the original driver CD. Any of the more up-to-date downloads only seem to work for when connecting via USB. I even got to the point of copying the original CD because I nearly lost it once.

Must all be chuff, chances are the .inf file your printer's needing is tiny.

Why doesn't it work with the basic print driver?

 

I like that you can often get many laser printers working by selecting the driver in windows with the nearest number, that's worked plenty of times for me.

You wouldn't necessarily get all the tray options, duplexing unit options etc. with a driver meant for another printer.

Very true, but for a quick print it's useful.

Aye, that's true. (nod)

 

Though having a standard driver can have its benefits. At work, we've got a entire printer fleet running off one PCL driver, just 'cos the macros (for printing different letterheads etc) that were created ages ago for our normal template happen to work well with it. It's stopped us using the 'correct' driver for our printers!

 

That said we might be going with some wax/thermal printers soon which'll be able to handle all our letterheads from a single tray. (woot)

I would suspect so. And you're right. If you want to be able to print it's 50 some MB, if you want to print/scan/fax it's 254mb. And there is one in the middle that must let you print, and scan when it's really important?

What graphitone said. If you want all the options you pay dearly for them!

50MB still seems huge for a driver - but if you need all the extra gubbins that the driver sticks in, like you say, that's the price you pay.

 

The same .inf file should hold true for scanning as well, though it's been a while since I've had to mess around with scanner drivers - when I did install them last most of the MB was taking up with all the software that Canon wanted me to use, but after a bit of searching I found the .inf file (so you do have to either browse the driver CD or download the whole suite just for that one file) and just pointed the device to use that driver, and it's been recognised fine as a TWAIN device.

I was just going to do the basic print driver, but then I had a Peater moment and thought, what if I ever want to scan something!

 

Then when it's all installed you have shortcuts to buy their ink and all kinds of monitoring software and shit. It's a big unruly beast.

I really don't understand what could possibly fill 50MB.

See also: Stuffit Expander, a twenty-nine megabyte archiving program similar to WinRar (1.5MB).

Mac archiving progs fuck me RIGHT off. Why isn't there a good WinRar on it?

No 7zip?

apparently there are some unofficial packages based on it, I might give it a go but such things usually involve command lines and faff and I get annoyed and give up.

Curiously, your thread title is a phrase that has been quoted to me countless times by laydeeees of my acquaintance.

HA! After I posted it I thought "shit I should have worded that just a bit differently, it could have been so much better!"

 

I've been with my wife for 19 years, her days of flattering me are long gone!

I'm shocked it took 15 posts before you swung into this thread with such a comment.

Sorry, my eye's not been on the ball. John.

quote:

I've been with my wife for 19 years, her days of flattering me are long gone!

You could agree a pact. You say that her black pudding & custard is the inspired innovation of a true home-maker, she tells you in return that your cock's a monster. Quid pro quo.