[comp.sys.mac] Printing Questions - LaserW NT, backgrounding w/ multifinder, more

pa1743@sdcc13.ucsd.edu (Jethro Bodean) (03/27/90)

Howdy - doo!  I have a couple a questions, but first the requisite
set - up info...
=
Mac II (no chaser), LaserW NT, 5 meg, 100meg hd, single 800K, no
PMMU (more on this later), 19" Radius color monitor (8 bit card)
=

	I've recently started running multifinder and have some
questions about background printing.  I have backgrounder in my SYS
folder and it seems to background SOME - but I still have to wait
while it processes - which TIFF files in Pagemaker is a long time.
Is this avoidable at all?!?  I hear there are spoolers that return
control faster to you...any recommendations?? (I don't care how long
it takes to print out - as long as I don't have to wait to use my
mac....)
	I've also run into files that my NT won't print out.  They
are Pagemaker files with scanned in grayscale pics inserted - it
processes for half and hour and I get zippo.. I think my print
driver is 5.2 is there a 6.0? Does it fix this or am I SOL w/o and
NTX + megs?  Is there anything less expensive than the NTX upgrade
that will help? (For gods sake the HP laserjet 3 is less than the
upgrade and it rotates and scales type to .001 increemnts...)

	Answers to any or all of these would greatly appreciatted!!!
		thanks in advance...
			-Tod Kuykendall  pa1743%sdcc13@ucsd.edu

PS I'm new to laserwriting (obviously) any place where this info is
laid out that I should look into???????

casseres@apple.com (David Casseres) (03/29/90)

In article <9324@sdcc6.ucsd.edu> pa1743@sdcc13.ucsd.edu (Jethro Bodean) 
writes:
>         I've recently started running multifinder and have some
> questions about background printing.  I have backgrounder in my SYS
> folder and it seems to background SOME - but I still have to wait
> while it processes - which TIFF files in Pagemaker is a long time.
> Is this avoidable at all?!?

Well, when a print job is spooled to be run in the background, the 
application has to do all the imaging, which goes into a spool file 
instead of to the printer.  This happens in the foreground and takes some 
time -- more for a complex imaging job, such as a TIFF file.  No free 
lunch, I'm afraid.

>         I've also run into files that my NT won't print out.  They
> are Pagemaker files with scanned in grayscale pics inserted - it
> processes for half and hour and I get zippo.. I think my print
> driver is 5.2 is there a 6.0?

Yes, the 6.0 LaserWriter software will print greyscale images (assuming 
Pagemaker does the right thing, which it probably does).

David Casseres
     Exclaimer:  Hey!