Re: Problems switching to debian
>
> 1) printing is completely dead. It's as though I didn't have a printer.
> Nothing I do has any affect on it. This has nothing to do with any changes I
> made to my system. It's dead from the moment I install.
>
> I have a WinBook XL (which runs linux great in general by the way) and a
> DeskJet 500, as well as a parallel port iomega zip drive.
>
> I don't think it's the zip drive, because I tried installing from scratch
> without it, and it didn't help.
>
> The only unusual thing I can think of is that when I got the printer cable,
> I needed one with pins sticking out of both ends (instead of with one male
> and one female connector) because that's just the way the ports are
> built. The salesperson was surprised at this, but I figure the cord plugs in
> so that can't be the problem.
>
> I've recompiled both a 2.0.34 and a 2.1.126 kernel several times, with no
> luck. I've looked through the Printing HOWTO, and just generally poked
> around in /etc with no luck. I'm desperate.
>
Have you looked at the modules that you have installed?
I had a similar problem when I started using Debian, and it
turned out that a module I didn't even need (PLIP ?) was grabbing
the parallel port. Look at the output of lsmod ( and send it to the
list) and see if anything seems extraneous. If there are modules
you think you might not need, remove them one by one using rmmod. As
you remove each extraneous module, also remove and then reinstall
(using insmod) the printing module (lp, I think). Watch for
any error messages.
You could also try taking a look at the output of dmesg |more and see
if there are any messages mentioning a module grabbing the parallel
port (lp?).
If it turns out that it is a module problem, edit /etc/modules
to reflect the modules you need. I am not sure how the parallel
port Zip drive will work with parallel printing, though I am
sure someone on this list knows.
--
Jim Crumley |
crumley@belka.space.umn.edu |
Work: 612 624-6804 or -1335 |
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