Since Snow Leopard, my Canon iP4000R won't recognize if a 1 page doc!

Question

Since Snow Leopard, my Canon iP4000R won't recognize if a 1 page doc!

I just upgraded from Mac Leopard to Mac Snow Leopard. I upgraded the drivers for my Canon iP4000R Pixma printer which I love!! But now when I have a setting to print front-and-back sides, if the document is 2 pages it does fine; but if it is just 1 page it still goes to the second page (prints nothing) and then prints the first page.

Before (like yesterday with Leopard) it detected if it was just a 1 page document and just printed the 1 page - even when set for duplex printing. Is there a fix for this or another print driver I can use or setting? Really slows things down! Thanks.

And I think I need to find a short course or some Apple or other web site so that I can learn a bit more about setting-up printers; print drivers - which version is which (my 2 printers, a 12 year old Apple LaserWriter 12/640PS and my Canon iP4000R both say they are version 6.3 when I do a get info - is this a coincidence or ???)

Thanks!

Steve
Sunday 25 April 2010

MacBook 2GHz (2006) PBG4-12" G4733 eMac (2005), Mac OS X (10.6.3), MacOnly from 1989 (Still have my Mac SE on 6.0.4)

Posted on Apr 25, 2010 9:03 AM

Reply

Answer 1

PAHU

Level 6

16,723 points

Apr 25, 2010 8:16 PM in response to Stephen Schulte2

Hello Steve,

In checking your symptom to my iP5200R using the Canon driver (which is now a version 10.30.3.0 after the recent Canon v2.3 Update), the Duplex Printing & Margin menu has an Automatic Duplex Printing checkbox. With this enabled, only the printed side is feed through the printer. This was using the About Stacks.pdf included with Snow Leopard and printing from Preview.

I then tested again, after changing my printer queue to use the Gutenprint driver for the iP5200 (Canon PIXMA iP5200 - Gutenprint v5.2.3). But again, with only the Layout - Two Sided option selected, the document only printed on one side without the second side being loaded.

For your jobs to be feeding the reverse (blank) side first and then flipping to print the front side, it does sound like you have an additional setting enabled or you are using the wrong driver or an application which performs this function. If this symptom occurs from all applications, then you can concentrate on it being a driver issue. Note also that if you are using a preset from Leopard, I would stop using it and just use the menus in the driver until you get this resolved. Then you can create a new preset for your duplex printing.

With regards to your printer driver, certainly your Get Info showing 6.3 does not sound correct, but I wonder if you are looking elsewhere to the norm to check this. To check the printer driver version, if you open Print & Fax and select the printer in the list, you can then press the Options & Supplies button and select the General tab. This will show the driver version for the iP4000, which at a minimum would be v10.19 which was included with Snow Leopard 10.6.0.

So, if you are using the Canon driver but it is using something less than v10.30, then I suggest you download and install the v2.3 Canon update above and try printing just using the Canon menus.

Pahu

Message was edited by: PAHU

Reply

Answer 2

Apr 25, 2010 11:23 PM in response to PAHU

Pahu,

What a nice reply! It is addressing exactly my problem - but the problem is not with just one program - printing from MAIL or PREVIEW gives the same result with the 10.30.3.0 driver. Let me update you:

1. I checked and indeed the driver I was using was the 10.30.3.0 (after the Canon 2.3 update). (I checked it like you said, so forget that info about 6.3 - that was something else totally different). I like this Canon driver because I can set "pre-sets" for quality 1 through 4, front print or 2-side print for each quality, so I have presets indicating Q1, Q1-2-side (the fastest, draft setting); Q2, Q2-2-side; Q3, Q3-2-side and Q4, Q4 2-side (the highest quality is not possible with "plain" paper, but "Q5" as I call it is possible to set for "Photo" paper. Previously (with Leopard and the earlier, but similar driver)

2. With that driver installed, if I print from any program with a document that has 2 OR MORE pages; but I select (for example) Q3-2-side, but I only choose to print 1 page (say page 1), then the page first passes to the back side and reverses, then the correct page prints. (same if I choose print pages 3 to 3 - it passes the backside through first)

3. OK so when I selected the Canon PIXMA iP4000 - Gutenprint v5.2.3 driver, then when I choose "page 1 to 1" with a 2 page or longer document, the printer JUST PRINTS IMMEDIATELY THE ONE PAGE without inserting and turning-over the paper. BUT this print driver only gives me 2 standard qualities of print quality - and while I use level 3 the most; I like to have the choice! Just tested this with MAIL and PREVIEW and it goes directly to the page I chose for printing and prints. BUT as said, the quality choices are not there.

WAIT: With the Canon PIXMA iP4000 - Gutenprint v5.2.3 driver I don't even get the choice to print 2 side! Where are you finding an option to print 2 sides with your gutenprint driver? - OK I just found the choice - the LAYOUT setup - but it is GREYED-OUT and I cannot access it - Why?

As to "Presets from Leopard" - yes, they remained; but when I created a NEW preset, i.e. started from standard and modified for duplex printing; then chose just page 1 on a 2 page or longer document, it still ran the paper through the back side first and then correctly printed the chosen page.

So in summary:
A. Of course I can print - that's great!
B. I am UNable to print front-and-back with a 2 page document using the Canon PIXMA iP4000 - Gutenprint v5.2.3 driver. Just front page printing. They Layout choice "Two-Side" is greyed-out and the greyed-out choice is OFF.
C. I am still having the problem of the Canon 10.30.3.0 driver sending the backside through first when only a single page is requested to be printed on a 2 or more page document.
D. One more test: My wifes 2005 vintage eMac running Tiger 10.4.11: I just sent a 2 page document to print just page 1 (using the driver on her computer, not the "shared" driver) and it worked like previously-- I said just print page 2 and just page 2 printed-- the first side did NOT load and turn-over, it went directly to page 2. So I really think there is a Canon Print Drive issue here-- however you don't seem to have the problem that I'm having or?

I hope this helps and let me know what you think I need to do next.

Best regards,

Steve Schulte
Monday 26 April 2010

Reply

Answer 3

Apr 25, 2010 11:40 PM in response to Stephen Schulte2

NOTE: I re-reloaded the Gutenprint iP4000 driver and now I get that to print 2-side. However still not the quality choices (1, 2, 3, 4 etc) that I want with that driver. (Why it didn't give me the 2-side option, then it did... not sure...)

And with the Gutenprint, if I send just 1 page of a 2 or longer page document, it just prints that 1 page without turning the paper over etc.

So close, but still can't get direct printing of 1 page with the Canon 10.30.3.0 driver when I choose (for example) to just print page 3 of a 4 page document (any program).

Thanks!

Best regards,

Steve Schulte
Monday 26 April 2010

Reply

Answer 4

PAHU

Level 6

16,723 points

Apr 26, 2010 12:54 AM in response to Stephen Schulte2

Hi Steve,

Thanks for the detailed reply. Based on your information I can also recreate the symptom. Because I was only using a single page document previously, I did not get the re-feeding of the document. But when I changed to using a multipage document and when only selecting to print one page, with the Duplex option selected, I would get the reverse blank side feeding out and then back in so that the front side could be printed on.

So, there is something with this driver that appears to remember that the original document consists of more than a single page, and therefore does this flip so that the page is delivered in order, face down. By contrast, a single page document is delivered face up, meaning that there is no flipping of the page.

Hoping that I could stop this from happening, I then opened the Paper Handling > Page Order and changed it from Automatic to Normal. When I printed the single page of a multiple page document again, this time the document started to be print straight away - no blank feed first. I thought all was good until the page fed back into the printer and was turned over.

So I can concur that the Canon v10.30.3.0 driver (and the previous v10.26 driver) have this symptom and there does not appear to be a way around it. It appears that Canon have coded the driver to function this way, which at some level is understandable and probably forced upon them if they really are making more use of the core printing system - CUPS. For your sake it would have been nice if they could have got it working like the older driver, which btw is totally different, but I doubt that you or I will ever find the real reason behind the decision to make it work this way. Thinking about it more I believe our Canon imageRUNNER office copiers do a similar thing. If I think of it I will check this tomorrow at work...

Pahu

Reply

Answer 5

Apr 26, 2010 1:15 AM in response to PAHU

OK so it seems to be a driver thing with this updated Canon Driver for OS 10.6.x - IS THERE ANYTHING we can do i.e. write to Canon and make them aware of the change etc.??

A 2-page document prints correctly, the back side (page 2) first, then the first page. But why would they make the software run a blank page first? I mean if I sent a 12 page document but only wanted to print pages 1 & 2 - for 2-side printing - would it send pages 6 thru 2 first and then print page 1 front and back? (No - I just tried that, and it just prints page 2 on side 2, then page 1 on side 1 i.e. all is fine!

Let me know if you think we can pursue this-- and you say at work tomorrow -- where's that? I'm here in Belgium and at work as I try to solve this one!

Best regards,

Steve Schulte
Monday 26 April 2010
10:14 - Belgium!

Reply

Answer 6

PAHU

Level 6

16,723 points

Apr 26, 2010 8:34 PM in response to Stephen Schulte2

Hello Steve,

Just completed some testing in my lab. With a multiple page pdf open in Preview, I printed a single page to our Canon imageRUNNER with the two sided setting enabled. Like the new inkjet driver, the blank reverse side was fed out partially first and then fed back into the copier so that the front side could be printed. Of course, if you set the finishing menu to single sided, the document only traveled once through the copier.

I then tested what Windows did and found exactly the same process occurs as Mac.

So I don't know if you will get anywhere with escalating this to Canon. They usually don't respond to 'repairing' something that is working as they intended. The fact that you have selected two sided, even though only one page is selected to print, means that the printer is still receiving a duplex command and thus it is feeding the paper through twice. To me, the printer is behaving as it is instructed. If you don't want the double feed, then change your preset to single sided and the problem is solved.

If you are not satisfied with this, then you could check the Canon Europa web site to see if there is an means to escalate your issue.

Regards,

Pahu

Reply

Answer 7

Apr 26, 2010 10:50 PM in response to PAHU

OK I see you are from Sydney ! Was there in 86 and 88, did SCUBA both times - once in Sydney Harbor!

As to this 2-side issue with the new Canon Driver. You wrote:

...So I don't know if you will get anywhere with escalating this to Canon. They usually don't respond to 'repairing' something that is working as they intended. The fact that you have selected two sided, even though only one page is selected to print, means that the printer is still receiving a duplex command and thus it is feeding the paper through twice. To me, the printer is behaving as it is instructed. If you don't want the double feed, then change your preset to single sided and the problem is solved.

The key thing for me is that they've CHANGED something. I can send a 5 page document to print just page 3 from my wife's 5 year old eMac connected to this network printer and it just directly prints page 3 - no paper turning. But the new driver is dumbed-down a bit - it has lost the ability to recognize that just one page has to be printed.

*OR is this a feature?* Print this page 3 by choosing single page printing and it comes out top first; choose duplex printing and it comes out top last (i.e. you can look over at the printer and read the document).

I've likely spent too much time on this already - but I will send something to Canon - do you have a contact eM address or something? I'll explore their vast web site!

Appreciate all the work here! *I wonder if Canon knows they've done this - they may not!*

Best regards,

Steve Schulte
Tuesday 27 April 2010

Reply

Answer 8

May 21, 2010 6:32 AM in response to PAHU

My iP4000R died after 5 years, and for less than the price of a repair, I got a new Canon Pixma MP640 yesterday - GREAT (need a PhD in something to operate all the functions - we'll see how far I get...) - but just to note - it does the same thing with a 1 page document that you send to print with "print 2 sides" setting -

Is there a Canon discussion site or an eM address for Canon so I can ask some questions? - I've got a short list now...

Thanks,

Steve

Reply

Answer 9

PAHU

Level 6

16,723 points

May 21, 2010 3:56 PM in response to Stephen Schulte2

Good to read you got the MP640. I'm pretty sure you will work out how to use the functions before too long...

Checking the Canon Europe web site there appears to be an email link via the following Support page.

http://www.canon-europe.com/Support/Consumer_Products/index.aspx

Maybe you could start the ball rolling via here?

Personally I don't know if you will get a resolution to this. It appears to be a design function, probably due to them using more CUPS components in these new drivers compared to their older incarnations, which is what your wife's eMac will be using. Still, you won't know unless you ask.

Good luck.

Reply