[TAG] lpr works for user not root in Basiclinux 2.1

[Sindi Keesan]

On Fri, 26 Jan 2007, Benjamin A. Okopnik wrote:

> On Thu, Jan 25, 2007 at 11:38:55PM -0500, Sindi Keesan wrote:
>> The author of Basiclinux suggested making a script ps-print and filling it
>> in as 'printer program' in Opera instead of using 'lp' or another filter
>> used by printcap, and printing with gs but without lpr (or su, or user, or
>> adduser, or changes in permissions).  It works.
>>
>> gs -q -dSAFER -sDEVICE=deskjet -r300x300 -sPAPERSIZE=letter -sOutputFile=-
>> - > /dev/lp0


> This may handle printing from Opera, but I doubt that it will handle the
> general problem of printing as root. E.g., printing an image or a PDF
> isn't going to work with the above method.

It printed a PDF file with xpdf when I entered ps-print as the printer 
command (rather than lp).  Should work with Abiword similarly because 
Abiword converts to ps to print.

I print images with netpbm's pbmtolj after converting to pbm format.  (I 
print color photos at the store on rare occasions.)  But xv probably also 
converts to ps so would work with this script.

I just compiled convertors for Excel and Powerpoint formats to HTML and 
Opera can print HTML (via ps).  Abiword can display/print RTF.  To print 
WORD files I used pdfonline (via lynx at the shell account where I get 
mail) to convert to pdf first, and then downloaded the pdf files from my 
shell account, after Antiword could not handle complex formatting that I 
was required to preserve.

Antiword does a perfect job with other character sets in WORD, which WORD 
cannot export properly to text.

Who needs OpenOffice?

Someone will send me some format I cannot handle, I am sure.

> * Ben Okopnik * Editor-in-Chief, Linux Gazette * http://LinuxGazette.NET *
>

Sindi Keesan