Hewlett-Packard's Linux Imaging and Printing software (HPLIP) is used for driving HP Printers and Scanners in Linux. HPLIP software which supports 1,952 HP printers. Most of the Linux Distributions includes HPLIP.Only need to upgrade.

The Linux Foundation (LF), the nonprofit organization dedicated to accelerating the growth of Linux, today announced the availability of the Linux Standard Base Driver Development Kit (LSB DDK) for print drivers.

I've always liked CUPS, the Common Unix Printing System that is the standard printing subsystem for Linux... The main gripe I have about it is even though are reams of documentation, it's still hard to dig up answers. But I still like it, and more printer vendors are joining the Linux parade and supporting GPL printer drivers, and even nice software control panels.

A multifunctional printer is capable of doing various task, namely printing, photocopying, printing. Sometimes these printers can be used as a fax machine and you can take direct photo prints from your digital cameras. There are two types of printer. One is inkjet and the other is laser printer.

The Common UNIX Printing SystemTM, or CUPS, is the software you use to print from applications like the web browser you are using to read this page. It converts the page descriptions produced by your application (put a paragraph here, draw a line there, and so forth) into something your printer can understand and then sends the information to the printer for printing.

The Linux Foundation last week announced the free availability of the Linux Standard Base Driver Development Kit for print drivers. The DDK provides the tools and resources for printing manufacturers to easily support all Linux distributions with one driver package, greatly reducing the time and effort needed to support Linux, a foundation spokesperson said.

So you have one of those sophisticated office printer models with adjustable guides that allow you to use any weird media size (with some sensible min/max value for width and height)? And you don't know how to tell CUPS to use that size when printing? (Ah... you don't have such a printer, and you are about to skip this article?

Thanks to the OpenPrinting Database and the Common Unix Printing System (CUPS), printer support on GNU/Linux is much easier than it was at the turn of the millennium. However, one area in which support still lags is in the detection of ink levels in inkjet printers.

When Seiko Instruments said it is now offering Linux drivers for its Smart Label Printer 450 and offered to send me one to test, I was happy to hear it, because it seemed like an example of how Linux is being recognized for even non-mass-market hardware devices. While the printer does work as advertised, it is clear that Linux support is a work in progress.