An old tiger and a new printer
October 6, 2016 12:33 PM Subscribe
Google-able information about this problem appears to be fragmented and riddled with wise-guyage and pop-ups, so here I am: Which new-to-be-bought printer would work seamlessly with OS X 10.4 Tiger? Emphasis on "seamless" because
Many years, my mom has been happily using an iBook with OS X 10.4 Tiger, and at 86, maybe we don't want her to change anything too drastically, do we...
Her inkjet printer (one or another Canon) of some years developed a nice little error message that tells her to have a Canon service person replace the ink-sponge-thingy. The internet tells me it's largely a software re-set problem, and that there are workarounds that are supposed to re-set the machine and get rid of this planned-obsolescence-type of problem; well, I tried a bunch of them and they didn't work so well. Soo.
The store, obviously, wasted no time and tried to sell her a new printer, which - also obviously - didn't work with her OS and was duly returned (I should say that I'm living in another country and had to monitor this per telephone, otherwise I'd been there to prevent stuff).
I just pulled my old HP deskjet out of the attic and re-equipped it with new cartridges, but I found that some of the plastic-clippage inside has irreparably self-destructed, and also the print quality is abysmal because of general gunk, so I'll not give her my printer.
The question, then, is: does anyone have personal expoerience of a positive kind with a printer of a kind that's being sold now but that will work with OS X 10.4?
Many years, my mom has been happily using an iBook with OS X 10.4 Tiger, and at 86, maybe we don't want her to change anything too drastically, do we...
Her inkjet printer (one or another Canon) of some years developed a nice little error message that tells her to have a Canon service person replace the ink-sponge-thingy. The internet tells me it's largely a software re-set problem, and that there are workarounds that are supposed to re-set the machine and get rid of this planned-obsolescence-type of problem; well, I tried a bunch of them and they didn't work so well. Soo.
The store, obviously, wasted no time and tried to sell her a new printer, which - also obviously - didn't work with her OS and was duly returned (I should say that I'm living in another country and had to monitor this per telephone, otherwise I'd been there to prevent stuff).
I just pulled my old HP deskjet out of the attic and re-equipped it with new cartridges, but I found that some of the plastic-clippage inside has irreparably self-destructed, and also the print quality is abysmal because of general gunk, so I'll not give her my printer.
The question, then, is: does anyone have personal expoerience of a positive kind with a printer of a kind that's being sold now but that will work with OS X 10.4?
More not-direct advice, but the Gutenprint drivers (version 5.2.9 supports Tiger) should expand support beyond the ones provided with the OS. You'll probably want to set up a screen-share if possible to do the install.
posted by holgate at 1:10 PM on October 6, 2016
posted by holgate at 1:10 PM on October 6, 2016
I don't have a specific recommendation, but I think any printer that supports PCL or PostScript would be compatible. Printers really haven't changed much in the last 20 years. Laser printers are probably a good bet, since they're typically aimed at the business market (which often needs older hardware support) instead of the consumer market (which has a bigger emphasis on bells and whistles, which won't work without some fancy software, which you won't be able to install).
For example, the HP LaserJet series supports both PS and PCL. You may have to fudge it a bit by using the driver for a similar printer model. (The Apple drivers that come with OS X, I mean -- you're highly unlikely to find a current model with Tiger-compatible drivers.)
You'll also probably have better luck with a network printer, since then you won't have to deal with USB nonsense.
posted by neckro23 at 1:31 PM on October 6, 2016
For example, the HP LaserJet series supports both PS and PCL. You may have to fudge it a bit by using the driver for a similar printer model. (The Apple drivers that come with OS X, I mean -- you're highly unlikely to find a current model with Tiger-compatible drivers.)
You'll also probably have better luck with a network printer, since then you won't have to deal with USB nonsense.
posted by neckro23 at 1:31 PM on October 6, 2016
I spent a few minutes looking for new printers that support 10.4, but didn't find any from the major brands. Several supported 10.5.
With many printers on the Mac you can just select "Generic PostScript Printer" and it will fine. Some features like duplex, might not work, but that's probably ok.
This printer says that it supports PostScript. It'll probably work, but I can't promise anything.
posted by gregr at 1:33 PM on October 6, 2016
With many printers on the Mac you can just select "Generic PostScript Printer" and it will fine. Some features like duplex, might not work, but that's probably ok.
This printer says that it supports PostScript. It'll probably work, but I can't promise anything.
posted by gregr at 1:33 PM on October 6, 2016
Best answer: I have two Brother HL-2270DW laser printers and they've both worked flawlessly for years on every Mac and Windows computer I've used, including Tiger 10.4. Great printer and since it's a laser printer, it's very economical. I use it for about 85% of my printing needs these days and fire up a large format, more ink-thirsty color printer for photos and color posters.
The only tricky thing with this printer is you'll need a USB cable (which it doesn't usually come with) to first hook it up; then, you can set it up to run wirelessly.
posted by LuckySeven~ at 1:47 PM on October 6, 2016
The only tricky thing with this printer is you'll need a USB cable (which it doesn't usually come with) to first hook it up; then, you can set it up to run wirelessly.
posted by LuckySeven~ at 1:47 PM on October 6, 2016
Best answer: HP Laserjet 1020 should work fine with the built-in Tiger drivers for the HP 1010/1012.
posted by infinitewindow at 9:20 PM on October 6, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by infinitewindow at 9:20 PM on October 6, 2016 [2 favorites]
Response by poster: Thanks all for the answers. I'll ask around and see if I can get an older Brother or HP laser printer, probably my best bet in this specific situation.
posted by Namlit at 1:29 PM on October 18, 2016
posted by Namlit at 1:29 PM on October 18, 2016
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by adamrice at 12:52 PM on October 6, 2016 [1 favorite]