IT professionals are often responsible for adding and updating printer drivers and settings. This may occur when a printer is added to a network, moved to a new location, or there is a software update. Along with updating drivers and settings on printers, IT may also be responsible for adding network printers to employee computers. Correct printer configuration saves time, supplies, and effort. This reading covers printing languages, basic printer configuration settings, printer sharing, printer security, and network scan services.
When choosing a print driver or troubleshooting issues with one, it is important to know which printing language the printer and computer operating system are using. Printing languages describe images on a screen to a printing device, so the printed output matches what is on screen. Printing languages are also called page description languages. Two of the most common printing languages are Printer Control Language and PostScript.
Printing languages can be either device-dependent or device-independent. Device-dependent means both the printer and computer are responsible for creating parts of the printed data. Device-independent means that the computer is solely responsible for creating the printed data. It is helpful for IT to know if the printing languages used are device-dependent or independent as it can help them troubleshoot whether printing errors are occurring because of the driver on the computer or the printer’s hardware.
Printer Control Language (PCL) is a printing language created by Hewlett-Packard that is used by many printer brands and computer operating systems. PCL is printing device-dependent because both the printer and computer are responsible for creating parts of the printed data. Because PCL is device-dependent, the output may not be the same on every printing device.
PostScript was created by Adobe and is a printing language used by many printer brands but most commonly used in Macintosh systems. Unlike PCL, PostScript does not use the printer to create data. PostScript is device-independent, and the output is the same on any printer. If an error arises when PostScript is used, then it is usually an error with the driver on the computer.
Configuration settings tell a printer how to complete a print job including the size, type of paper, number of sides, and use of color. IT professionals help employees change and select the correct settings for their document. The following are basic configuration settings that can be adjusted using printer settings.
For more information on how to update printer settings for high-quality printing see the article in the reference section below.
Printers can be shared on a network allowing multiple computers to access one printer across the network instead of having to be wired to the computer directly. IT professionals maintain and set up networks that include shared printers. For more information on sharing printers on your network read the article in the reference section below.
Network scan services allow a printer with scanning capabilities to create a file of a scanned image and upload or send it to a location on the network or in the cloud, or attach the file to an email and send it. Employees often need IT support for ways to use this type of technology. The following network scan services can be used for fast file uploads or attachments.