Lexmark C500 Printer & Snow Leopard

Got some bad news guys.. I just had a little chat with the Lexmark support and this is what i got as an asnwer :

"[Jennifer] I just finished speaking to our Product Specialist. They advised that there would no longer be print drivers created for the C500n models, as well as X500n, since Host-Based printers are not supported by the MAC 10.6 system.
[Jennifer] Basically, there is a compatibility issue with the software of the printer and the computer. "

This is BS. Lexmark is just being lazy by choosing to not develop drivers compatible with 10.6.

In other words, unless the Gutenprint guys will pull a rabbit out of their hat at one point in the future, we should sell our c500 printers and bad mouth and boycott Lexmark for the future. In the meantime, i'll just use VMware to do my printing.. :s

Adi

Well, I managed to get this beast to work. A combination of setting the driver directory to being owned by root:admin and using the HPdirect socket option seemed to do the trick. Thanks to all of those here who struggled to find answers. Hopefully this works for someone other than me.

Here's the log of my tcsh session to set the directory ownership, BTW:

--begin tcsh log --
Last login: Sun Oct 18 19:47:55 on console
new-host:~ brian$ sudo tcsh

WARNING: Improper use of the sudo command could lead to data loss
or the deletion of important system files. Please double-check your
typing when using sudo. Type "man sudo" for more information.

To proceed, enter your password, or type Ctrl-C to abort.

Password:
[new-host:~] root# cd /Library/Printers
[new-host:/Library/Printers] root# ls
.DS_Store EPSON PPDs
Brother InstalledPrinters.plist Samsung
Canon Lexmark hp
[new-host:/Library/Printers] root# cd Lexmark
[new-host:/Library/Printers/Lexmark] root# ls
.DS_Store LexmarkAIO.bundle
C500(CUPS) LexmarkUSBClassDriver.bundle
Drivers PDEs
Frameworks Printer Icons
LexCommandFilterEngine.bundle Profiles
Lexmark.bundle filter
[new-host:/Library/Printers/Lexmark] root# chown -R root:admin C500(CUPS)
Badly placed ()'s.
[new-host:/Library/Printers/Lexmark] root# chown -R root:admin "C500(CUPS)"
[new-host:/Library/Printers/Lexmark] root# exit
--end tcsh log--

Hi brian-m,

Thanks for sharing your workaround/find. Unfortunatly, i don't have the C500(CUPS) folder present in my /Library/Printers/Lexmark path.. any clues ?

Adi

That directory showed up when I installed the printer driver from Lexmark.

Although the solution does not appear to be holding up over time. It seems to be stuck in 'pause' mode now.

Okay, here we go with attempt #2, which actually did work.

How brave are you? 😉

Follow the directions on this page: http://foo2zjs.rkkda.com/INSTALL.osx

Warning: it involves installing developer tools and compiling some stuff. But I did in fact end up with a Lexmark c500 that prints images.

Hi,

I've been following this thread closely. I decided to email Lexmark directly and got this reply:


Dear xxx,

Here is your Service Request # 1-2472270161

We would like to apologize but the C500 driver is no longer supported on MAC OS 10.6 Snow Leopard. This has been agreed on the management level.

If you have any more questions or concerns, please contact me at your convenience and I will be happy to assist you. (If I am not available, another representative may reply to your request.)


If you are like me and are using this printer and find this unacceptable, please contact Lexmark directly and express your frustration. Maybe they'll reconsider if they hear from enough of us.

It might also be nice if Apple contacted them directly...

Paulsyd - did you ever get a resolution? My business partners just install 10.6 and can no longer access the C500. Hate to get a new printer because of that.

Understood. Thanks for the update. We'll support your unofficial Lexmark boycott 🙂

I solved the problem for myself on OS X 10.6.2:

1. install the driver for OS10.5 from the Lexmark downloads
2. open terminal and navigate to /Library/Printers/Lexmark
3. sudo chown -R root:admin C500\(CUPS\)/
4. delete any existing printer using this c500 driver
5. create a new printer using the HP jetdirct - Socket protocol, correct IP and a queuename "port1"

That's it - working fine with my C500n over the network.

THIS WORKS!!!!

THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!

You should get a job at Lexmark, they are incompetent there and need people like you...

Wolfgang9a wrote:
I solved the problem for myself on OS X 10.6.2:

1. install the driver for OS10.5 from the Lexmark downloads
2. open terminal and navigate to /Library/Printers/Lexmark
3. sudo chown -R root:admin C500\(CUPS\)/
4. delete any existing printer using this c500 driver
5. create a new printer using the HP jetdirct - Socket protocol, correct IP and a queuename "port1"

That's it - working fine with my C500n over the network.

These instructions work perfectly! I didn't understand all of them, especially all the "/"s and "\"s in the chown command, but I copied and pasted in and it worked.

I am going to email these instructions to Lexmark and maybe those ungrateful SOBs will post it on their own site. I paid a lot of money for this lousy printer and it looks like I wold have been better off staying in OS9 if I wanted to use it.

However, thanks for very smart and helpful users like Wolfgang, use lonely C500 users can go back to using our printers and buying expensive toner for it. 😀

Eriamjh wrote:

However, thanks for very smart and helpful users like Wolfgang, use lonely C500 users can go back to using our printers and buying expensive toner for it. 😀

Don't buy your toner from them. You can refill it yourself, and it costs only a fraction of the price!
If you are from the UK, sites like ProPrint sell you the toner to refill them. It costs about 30 pounds for the equivalent of two refills. So for 3 colours and one black, 120 pounds max for two refills of each cartridge! They also sell a kit to do it (though I did not need it personally, as I had the tools at home), for £7-£8. It really is easy to do.

Hope this helps, though not on topic...

Eddy V. wrote:

Don't buy your toner from them.

Oh, I don't. I think 2 if not 3 of my starter toner cartridges are defective. They streak (missing areas of color). Searching online tends to point to a defective drum inside the cartridge. I purchased some refurbed carts on eBay and will be trying to restore full functionality to the printer for the first time in two years (I just stopped using it).

I covered all the ports on the cartridges so it doesn't report them as low. I've shaken them, etc. and the printer always says they are low even though I can see TONS of toner through their little port-hole. The black is spectacular, crisp, and sharp. The color has always been flaky. A photo printer it isn't, but I just want to print maps and such in color.

This Snow Leopard fix was just the ticket. It shows that Lexmark is just sitting on their @sses when is comes to support.

This thread should be set to solved.