Q: Printing via Airprint and Airport Express

Thanks. Yes, that might work, but I'm thinking of the kind of windows users who can barely install regular software--they'd have a stroke at the thought of hacking anything.

After all, there are a lot people to whom the iPad appeals precisely because it's not technically challenging. I just wish I had a simple solution for them.

I'm in the same boat HP PSC 1600 on the local WiFi via AirPort Express. Not a supported printer. I didn't realize this was going to be AirTwelveRecentHPModelsPrint. I've never had much issue with the lack of printing on my iPhone. It was, though, the main reason I was eager to see the 4.2.1 update. Ah well.

Wow! Printopia just took care of that! It's not going to help me at the office (all PCs). But, at home, printing from Safari to the HP PSC 1600 via the Airport Express worked perfectly. I'm trying out the demo (7 days). Looks definitely worth the $10.

http://www.ecamm.com/mac/printopia/instructions.html

I found another app for the computer that also enables AirPrinting to work. It's called Fingerprint and is only $7.99 (http://www.collobos.com). You get a 6 day trial period to see if it works with your printers before having to purchase. It sees all the printers on my home network and I can print from my iPhone & iPad.

I am not going to spend a lot time complaining about it not working with all printers. I found a way to make it work for me and that is good enough. I am just thrilled to have folders to organize all my apps and to be able to multi-task. It's like having a brand new iPad.

Thanks. Yes, that might work, but I'm thinking of the kind of windows users who can barely install regular software--they'd have a stroke at the thought of hacking anything.

After all, there are a lot people to whom the iPad appeals precisely because it's not technically challenging. I just wish I had a simple solution for them.

Barbara,

It's true that it takes an effort to install software . However, upgrading the iPad requires a computer to be attached to it and done through iTunes. iPad can not upgrade its own OS by itself. And besides, you NEED a computer to sync the iPad for the very first time you took it out of the box. iPad needs a computer to be initialized; this Apple already knows. I think you're just creating some excuses and impossible scenarios that people who own iPads somehow got theirs to work out of the box and updating to iOS 4.2 without even connecting to a single computer. If anyone can show me how it is done wirelessly so that I can sync iTunes via WIFI, please let me know. Otherwise, Apple already assumed you have a computer in place and when you do, you have a printer attached. All the available software solution turns the PC/Mac/Pogoplug into a print server that's all.

Now, now. Did you look at that video? It's about creating and installing hackware. I myself would be dubious about doing such a thing on my windows boxes.

How can you possibly say it's "creating an impossible scenario" to ask for suggestions for legit software that a typical not too techy windows user can install that will allow the ipad to see and communicate with printers on a LAN, the way printopia does? It does not require the use of the cloud, hacking software, installs as easily as any other program, and yet you say this is an "impossible" thing.

There is an app called *Print Central for iPad*. You can print anything wirelessly from your iPad with this app.

Coolmax you are far from being cool with Barbara, that funny to read you both though
Take it easy, Baraba just need a simple solution, and Apple is certainly in the right direction, but they are not there yet.
Conceptually you are 100% right coolmax but to me the answer for Barbara might be: it's too soon... unfortunately

Coolmax, you said, "All the available software solution turns the PC/Mac/Pogoplug into a print server"...

Several Mac options have been discussed, but what are the solutions for the PC/Vista? I am most interested in printing from Safari or iWorks apps without intermediate steps involving screen captures and/or e-mailing myself. Is that even going to be possible?

Bottom line - so misleading. I've bought different apps that "supposedly" allow printing from iPad...much to my chagrin.
This one bit me in the butt. I'll learn.

Are your settings correct that you are on 10.6.3? If yes, upgrade to 10.6.5 then go here:

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2658720&tstart=0

Ozzyfr,

Barbara is just picking on things that assumed an iPad is a computer replacement, while she insisted that it is. Read her posts carefully. She wants an iPad that prints directly to a printer like a regular computer. Even if Apple allow an iPad to print to any printer, does the A4 chip has the processor power to do Postcript RIP or any other complex pages which can be done easily with a normal Dual Core or Quad Core computer? I suspect not.

The concept of AirPrint is for an iPad to print to a printer wirelessly that understands AirPrint. HP did this once with the Infrared printing on the older Laserjet IIP by releasing software for PDA then (Windows CE and Palm OS) to print to HP printers only. So this thing isn't really really new. Not sure where was Barbara then, but what's new now is the fact we are using WIFI. That time, people like today complained like kids -- why didn't all PDAs print to all printers? Why does PDA has to tether to a computer to print stuff?

The practical application of AirPrint comes into play where you bring an iPad say to a hotel, motel or convention center and you need to print some stuff there and then. How do you go about printing your documents to a printer if you have to search through a database of thousands and thousands of printer drivers to find one that works. I work in many sanctioned professional events and we constantly have to get tech people to figure out drivers for Macs and PCs. Time wasted for absolutely nothing productive. With AirPrint, it's just 1 driver. Brilliant. That's what the iPad does -- a portable media consumption device not a personal computer.

Hope this helps. Cool.

Coolmax, you said, "All the available software solution turns the PC/Mac/Pogoplug into a print server"...

Several Mac options have been discussed, but what are the solutions for the PC/Vista? I am most interested in printing from Safari or iWorks apps without intermediate steps involving screen captures and/or e-mailing myself. Is that even going to be possible?

DeWeitzel,

I think Apple is trying to promote AirPrint as the printing standard and I will not be surprised that it will be eventually incorporated into future releases of the MAC OSX (perhaps Lion?!?). There are few ways that you can do to allow printing on PCs. I have a Vista 64 computer myself and followed some instructions available on the web and am able to print to our HP 8700 wide format printer networked on a wireless router. And so is my Macbook. Having said that, I wish there is an equivalent software on the PC like Printopia to make life easier. Pogoplug works almost like ePrint, so it's not a direct method like AirPrint. But nothing is direct on the iPad anyhow. How do you load Pages and Numbers document from outside the iPad? You either Sync to iTunes or access a local WebDAV server. None of this is as direct as sticking a USB stick into the USB slot of a netbook or computer. The iPad obviously does not operate like a normal computer and yet, too many people treat it as such. Steve Jobs never said that this is a computer replacement. But what you are implying here that it is?

"That's what the iPad does -- a portable media consumption device not a personal computer"

It really depends upon what sorts of creation you do, and what sorts of apps, including web apps, are necessary to support it. Besides the iWork apps, which are available for iPad, there are a slew of note taking/text creation apps (Simplenote being my favorite), as well as apps for sketching (Adobe Ideas, Brushes), music creation (SoundGrid, and Everyday Looper, ThumbJam), and project/task management (OmniFocus, Things), just to name a few. Plus, you can do Remote Desktop with it.

Is it limited compared to a MacBook Pro or MacBook Air? Of course it is. Does that mean it's just a really sleek and portable television? Not at all.

I agree some people like myself use the iPad for creation purposes. But I gather the numbers to be in a very small minority. With the new MacBook Air 11inch being out now, the number gets smaller and smaller. The problem I see with the iPad is that it does not have a powerful enough processor for anything resembling remotely productive in the long run. Secondly, it needs a mothership. You can get by without one by syncing to a WebDAV server, FTP or a cloud storage service. I suspect however that is beyond what most people who bought iPads are comfortable in setting up as shown in many past posts. Unless there is a way to store and load files to the iPad and immediately share it with you friends via a USB stick like most people can with normal computers. It's a hinderance. People always gravitate towards the path of least resistance. The iPad is not what you can call it easy to share and load foreign video and music files by itself.