I hope this is the correct newsgroup to post my question:
We bought a Lexmark colour laser C530dn. This printer is sold as an office
printer which has a network card installed inside.
After printing errors we were told by Lexmark support that any file that is
probably more than 8MB will not print properly because it is too large for
the printer's internal memory (128MB) because it automatically multiplies
the file by 10 (can't remember why), and with the memory already taking up
other resources.
I find this amazing especially as it is being sold as an office printer
because I thought you could throw lots of things at it and it will handle
it. We might has well bought a printer that use a PC's memory OR one that
CAN use it.
What I don't understand is that we use to have an Epson C1100N that also has
128MB but I'm sure we never had this problem before. Am I missing something
that should be in the Printers 101 Classroom?
We have a pdf file that is 75MB that we would like to print. Does it mean we
now have to break into little pieces or is Lexmark support wrong?
Many thanks for your attention and any advice you can give us.
SBO <sbo@sbo.com> wrote:
>
> We bought a Lexmark colour laser C530dn. This printer is sold as an office
> printer which has a network card installed inside.
>
> After printing errors
Vague, unspecified errors are impossible to diagnose.
> we were told by Lexmark support that any file that is
> probably more than 8MB will not print properly because it is too large for
> the printer's internal memory (128MB) because it automatically multiplies
> the file by 10 (can't remember why),
Let's be charitable and say this is an oversimplification used by
Lexmark tech support to help non-technical customers understand that a
print job might take more memory in the printer than just the size of
the print file.
> and with the memory already taking up other resources.
That's reasonable. The printer probably has some overhead, so the full
128M isn't available for print jobs. Some printers might have extreme
overhead, and you'd be expected to add more memory to the base unit.
Whether that's a fair deal or sleazy sales tactics varies.
> I find this amazing especially as it is being sold as an office printer
> because I thought you could throw lots of things at it and it will handle
> it.
There could be any number of exceptions in the fine print: "Extra RAM
required if letters X, Y, or Z are used in printed documents."
> We might has well bought a printer that use a PC's memory OR one that
> CAN use it.
I wouldn't go that far. "Host-based" printers come with a bunch of
disadvantages of their own.
> What I don't understand is that we use to have an Epson C1100N that also has
> 128MB but I'm sure we never had this problem before. Am I missing something
> that should be in the Printers 101 Classroom?
Maybe different resolutions (check your driver settings), different
RIPs, different PDLs, different everything. Maybe Lexmark really does
require 10x RAM to force you to buy more memory.
> We have a pdf file that is 75MB that we would like to print. Does it mean we
> now have to break into little pieces or is Lexmark support wrong?
Could be either or both. I'd suggest having Lexmark walk you through
printing that document, including getting detailed error messages and
exact explanations of the problem. If they can't make it work, return
the printer and buy a different brand.
> After printing errors we were told by Lexmark support that any file that
is
> probably more than 8MB will not print properly because it is too large for
> the printer's internal memory (128MB) because it automatically multiplies
> the file by 10 (can't remember why), and with the memory already taking up
> other resources.
Well, to be nice about it, I don't think you should believe that for a
second. Your computer most likely has a print "spooler" that gradually feeds
the job to the printer as it is ready for more data. This is usually a
question of the printer's processor speed more than anything else.
It would help to know what kind of errors you are getting. Are things
missing from your printouts? Does the software produce errors? Or does the
printer put up an error/lock up?
Laser printers usually "think" a page at a time. That is to say that the
onboard processor has to take the data it receives and prepare it until one
page is ready. Then the engine and the printing process can start. There has
to be enough memory to complete that process, and 128MB should be more than
enough.
Personally, I would try downloading the latest version of the software for
your printer from the Lexmark web site. I would also try it on another
computer.
I'm with William on this one, and what he stated is pretty much what I
was going to reply with as well.
The printer should not need more than one page of spooler data at a time
to print. With the amount of memory in that printer it should be able
to hold quite a few pages at a time, and as they are printed, space is
made to allow the download of more pages.
I'm not sure that 10x the memory space should be required. Yes
rasterizing and spooling the image does increase the size of the printer
file, but 10 x seems a bit steep.
Something else is likely going on here. Possibly the driver and printer
are timing out waiting for the next notification that more data is
required. If so, there are setting on how long the computer should keep
the communication link open before hearing back from the printer for
more data and you may need to increase that time, so the handshake isn't
lost in the midst of a document.
Art
If you are interested in issues surrounding e-waste,
I invite you to enter the discussion at my blog:
William R. Walsh wrote:
> Hi!
>
>> After printing errors we were told by Lexmark support that any file that
> is
>> probably more than 8MB will not print properly because it is too large for
>> the printer's internal memory (128MB) because it automatically multiplies
>> the file by 10 (can't remember why), and with the memory already taking up
>> other resources.
>
> Well, to be nice about it, I don't think you should believe that for a
> second. Your computer most likely has a print "spooler" that gradually feeds
> the job to the printer as it is ready for more data. This is usually a
> question of the printer's processor speed more than anything else.
>
> It would help to know what kind of errors you are getting. Are things
> missing from your printouts? Does the software produce errors? Or does the
> printer put up an error/lock up?
>
> Laser printers usually "think" a page at a time. That is to say that the
> onboard processor has to take the data it receives and prepare it until one
> page is ready. Then the engine and the printing process can start. There has
> to be enough memory to complete that process, and 128MB should be more than
> enough.
>
> Personally, I would try downloading the latest version of the software for
> your printer from the Lexmark web site. I would also try it on another
> computer.
>
> William
>
>
Hi and thanks to all who have given me advice over this matter, I really
appreciate it.
Just to let you know, it seems to be sorted now and the problem seems to
have been .... the driver.
After many conflicting opinions regarding the problem, from the fact that
our PCs run with XP Home and not Pro to simply not having enough memory,
Lexmark gave us a new "emulation" driver that seems to have done the trick.
Hopefully I shouldn't have any more problems now!
Thanks very much again,
David
"SBO" <sbo@sbo.com> wrote in message
news:N-WdneR8Ps_IGeHVnZ2dnUVZ8qTinZ2d@bt.com...
> Hi
>
> I hope this is the correct newsgroup to post my question:
>
> We bought a Lexmark colour laser C530dn. This printer is sold as an office
> printer which has a network card installed inside.
>
> After printing errors we were told by Lexmark support that any file that
> is probably more than 8MB will not print properly because it is too large
> for the printer's internal memory (128MB) because it automatically
> multiplies the file by 10 (can't remember why), and with the memory
> already taking up other resources.
>
> I find this amazing especially as it is being sold as an office printer
> because I thought you could throw lots of things at it and it will handle
> it. We might has well bought a printer that use a PC's memory OR one that
> CAN use it.
>
> What I don't understand is that we use to have an Epson C1100N that also
> has 128MB but I'm sure we never had this problem before. Am I missing
> something that should be in the Printers 101 Classroom?
>
> We have a pdf file that is 75MB that we would like to print. Does it mean
> we now have to break into little pieces or is Lexmark support wrong?
>
> Many thanks for your attention and any advice you can give us.
>
> David
>
Not enough memory? 
Linear Mode
