Re: [Gimp-print-devel] Gutenprint

[Matt B. <wal...@ma...>]

> On Oct 24, 2020, at 11:13 AM, Ken Moffat via Gimp-print-devel <gim...@li...> wrote:
> 
> On Fri, Oct 23, 2020 at 09:00:28PM -0400, Robert Krawitz wrote:
>> On 10/23/20 7:00 PM, Ken Moffat via Gimp-print-devel wrote:
>>> On Fri, Oct 23, 2020 at 05:47:39PM -0400, James Frederick wrote:
>>>> Hello~
>>>> I was recently forced to upgrade to Mac OS Catalina, due to the death of my
>>>> old SSD. One week after doing so, my workhorse HP Laserjet 4200 stopped
>>>> working. I get a "filter failure" message. This sounds like a drive issue,
>>>> but HP support is pretty much MIA. I am wondering if Gutenprint might
>>>> provide an alternative/workaround, so that I can get my printer back.
>>>> 
>>>> I have been connecting the HP via serial-to-usb. One reference I saw stated
>>>> that Catalina does not recognize serial connections.
>>>> 
>>>> I saw on your site that there were some issues with Catalina and
>>>> Gutenprint, and I am wondering if those have been resolved. The reference I
>>>> saw was about a year old.
>>>> 
>>>> If not, are there any other options you can think of? Thank you in advance!
>>> 
>>> Looking at a few linux bug reports, generally old, the 'filter
>>> failed' message on some of them was associated with a full disk (or
>>> full partition, e.g. in /var/spool - no idea where that translates
>>> to in OSX).
>> 
>> It's a very generic error message; one would need to look at the logs to try to diagnose it.  An out
>> of disk condition could cause it, but so could a lot of other things and in this case I'm inclined
>> to suspect it's something else.  Unfortunately, I'm not familiar with how to access logs on OS X.
>> 
> Just looked at theregister, not sure if this article about HP
> printers failing because a certificate was revoked is relevant ?
> https://www.theregister.com/2020/10/23/hp_printer_macos/ <https://www.theregister.com/2020/10/23/hp_printer_macos/>
> 
> ĸen

Sorry I a bit late to the game on this one.  I thought that HP's drivers have run afoul of some security measures.  HP has always been way behind the curve on getting their printers to work and keeping them working.  Even before Mac OS X. The thing I was having a problem with is why did it work for a couple of weeks and then just stop.  The date on the article you cited says a lot and seems to fit the timeline. I believe,  Apple has a nasty habit of late of just installing updates in the background without your knowledge or permission. Hopefully they still left the option to allow you to decide when you want to do an update.  Look in the Software Update System Preference for options.

Unfortunately, Gutenprint does not currently have a package that will install on Catalina.  I think you should be able to set up your printer as a Generic Laser Printer in the Printer and Scanner System Preference.  It won't be full featured, but at least you should be able to get it to work and get some toner on paper

Matt
wal...@ma...