[Desktop_printing] Multi-Language PPD files and PPD file specs

Michael Sweet mike at easysw.com
Thu Jan 19 18:30:38 PST 2006


Till Kamppeter wrote:
> Michael Sweet wrote:
>> Everything is still open for discussion, and in particular I will
>> be talking with Apple about the various PPD extensions next week...
>>
>> So feel free to email me your concerns/issues and I'll weigh in
>> with them on it... :)
>>
> 
> I think we should do PPD extensions in a way that they can get some kind
> of a global standard:
> 
> - PPDs should get multi-platform, it should stop with different PPDs for
> the same printer on different platforms (NT, XP, Mac, Linux, ...)

This *should* be possible, however we will need to convince the
printer manufacturers to do this.  Developing a freely distributable
standard Windows PostScript printer driver extension that supports
the CUPS PPD extensions may be a way to do this...

> - PPDs should get multi-language (we have one model for this in CUPS 1.2)

We may still end up with "regional" PPDs, but I think the CUPS model
will work well.

> - PPDs should have the same PPD extemsions for different PPD-consuming
> systems (I can make Foomatic understand and generate all CUPS PPD
> extensions, I will not introduce a new Foomatic method for
> multi-language PPDs, if Apple/MS has PPD extensions for certain SNMP
> magic, we should overtake them instead of inventing something new, ...)

Right, but we also need to get the major players to support them, too.

> - The goal should be ONE printer model (defined by unique
> parallel/USB/SNMP IDs) should have ONE PPD file for all paltforms and
> all languages.
 >
> Based on this we could perhaps talk with Adobe people about new PPD
> specs (or define PWG/LSB/FSG-OpenPrinting or whatever PPD specs).

It might pay to also invite someone from Apple (I'll ask them if they
want to participate) and Microsoft (dunno who would be the right person
to ask there) so that we can agree on things, implement them, and
provide them to the printer manufacturers.

-- 
______________________________________________________________________
Michael Sweet, Easy Software Products           mike at easysw dot com
Internet Printing and Publishing Software        http://www.easysw.com



More information about the Printing-summit mailing list