Snow Leopard take the PRINTER UTILITY - Epson R280 photo printer

Looks like Apple ships an Epson driver for your printer:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3669

If you open the Desktop printer (That thing in your dock with you print), you should find a menu item that allows you to run the new Epson utility.

And you can also run it from /Library/Printers/EPSON. The rest of the path will vary depending on what type of printer you have. The utility for my inkjet is here:
InkjetPrinter2/Utility/UTL

A caveat is that the utility for USB printers won't work wirelessly, the printer needs to be connected to the machine.

Hope this helps.

The only problem now is that when I click on the "supply levels" tab it says "information not available". The printer is on, and I know I have one tank running low (printer has a yellow flashing light), but I cannot tell which tank it is.

Use the utility to check the supply levels.

Ken Rutherford wrote:
How is that possible? On my utility tab, the only options are to "print test page" and "clean print heads."

I don't have this specific printer, but the inkjet utility I checked has a nozzle check, head cleaning, and a panel for ink levels.

There is a separate tab for supply levels but it is non-functioning on mine. Like I stated above, when I click that it says "no information available". Printer is on.

That means that Epson didn't write the "hook" to enable this feature.

If there is a way to do it under the utility tab I cannot see it.

It looks like for this printer that you have to run the Epson Status Monitor:

http://www.ehow.com/how2006875ink-level-epson.html

Also here, though these are instructions for 10.5:

http://www.epson.com/cgi-bin/Store/support/supDetail.jsp?BV_UseBVCookie=yes&info Type=FAQ&oid=89901&prodoid=63069504&foid=101448&cat=30942&subcat=30929

Ken, the Utility is a separate application from the print queue/monitor app, although the Utility app might have the same functions as the Utility tab in the monitor app.

Just like you, I can't get Supply Levels from within the monitor app either -- it says "Information not available". I found the Utility app and it works fine with my Epson CX9400Fax, reporting ink levels accurately; I found it here:

/Library/Printers/EPSON/InkjetPrinter2/Utility/UTL/Epson Printer Utility Lite.app

(Note that's in the Library folder at the top level of your boot drive, not the one in your home folder, where the Monitor app is installed.)

I don't know why these two apps aren't "connected" any more, in Leopard I used to be able to launch the one from the other.

Ken Rutherford wrote:
Ahh, I found the separate utility and it shows the ink level, yaaay. Thanks for pointing out where it was located.

check my post from two days ago, same thing.

Ken Rutherford wrote:
Funny thing is that I had done a search for Epson on my Mac and it did not locate this utility.

Did you use Spotlight? It's just about worthless for finding system files (even if you enable that criteria). I use the command-line "find" in Terminal when I need to find stuff in the system domain or in app packages, etc.

Here's what you have to do to have system files included in the search list in a Spotlight window:

Click the plus button (next to "Save") at the far right of the gray bar under the toolbar. A new bar appears just below. In the first popup button, choose "System files"; if that isn't in the list you'll have to choose "Other..." and find it. Then the next popup button will say "aren't included". Switch that to "are included" and the search list should show matching files from the system folders.

It actually worked pretty well when I did a search just now on "epson". But still I prefer to use Terminal when hunting down system files.

My wireless HP ink levels are shown in the System Preferences/PrintFax menu.

I understand being flustered, and thank you for your response. I am glad that you got it working.

And another "find" alternative, one with a usable UI, is EasyFind:

http://www.devon-technologies.com/products/freeware/index.html

Thanks Ken, john