slow color printer 2

[kamonster]

Hello all,

We've been having a problem printing multiple copies of an 11 x 17 document on a Color LaserJet 5500tn. The original is a Quark file. But it processed for so long, we tried converting it to a PDF and printing that. That works better but it is still so painfully slow it isn't working well. The PDF is 66MB. Our computers are connected directly to the printer through its IP address. We run Windows XP computers. I was thinking of getting more memory for the printer- it currently has 96 MB but i'm not sure if this will fix the problem. Can anyone offer advice?

Thank you!

 

[DansDadUK]

Most of the HP LaserJet printers (apart from the cheap 'host-based' ones) have three different drivers available, one for each of the traditional Page Description Languages (PDLs):

PCL5 (PCL5e or PCL5c)
PCL6 (a.k.a. PCL XL)
PostScript (a.k.a. PS)

Most Microsoft applications seem to work best using the PCL6 driver, although there are some problems with PCL XL errors being generated, in which case try the PCL5 driver.

Adobe applications seem to work better using the PostScript driver (Adobe 'owns' PostScript, and the related PDF format).

So set up a printer instance which uses the PostScript driver, and select this printer for your Quark document.

 

[gbaughma]

It is true that PDF files will print faster to a PostScript printer.

However, a couple of other things that you might want to check:

Is the printer plugged into a SWITCH? (Not a hub)

Is the printer showing retransmit or other networking errors?

Is the network running at the highest speed that is supported?

Is there any chance of inductance, RF, or other interference to the network cable going to the printer?

Is all printing slow, or just PDF Files?



Just my 2¢
-Cole's Law: Shredded cabbage

--Greg

http://parallel.tzo.com

 

[kamonster]

Thank you both for your thoughts.
I haven't noticed speed issues for other types of documents, just the PDFs and Quark files.
We tried changing the switch that it plugs into. The old one was really old and was a 10 base T. The new one is a 10/100. It seems to help a bit. We'll continue testing it. Combined with the PS driver hint- i've been looking for that kind of information for a long time. Thank you both!