[Linux-Anyway] So, then why is MS #1?
- From: Scott Robbins <scottro@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: linux-anyway@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 5 Sep 2002 23:22:42 -0500
Ok, today we've had our MS bashing. However, tonight, I'm in the mood
to say there are some things, besides marketing, that they do far better
than Unix.
Printing. Set up a printer in Win2k or XP. If it's directly connected,
it will probably be detected and automatically installed. If it's on a
network, connected to a server, MS will browse the network and find it.
Linux. One can try cups (which in Gentoo at least is closely related to
samba to the point where samba may not work properly if cups isn't
installed. I believe the PS in cups refers to piece and a vulgar word
for fecal matter.
Set it up--it seems fine. The test page prints. Try to print something.
Nothing happens. Helpful error message--job cancelled. Try to restart
job--client-error or some such. Look at their included
documentation--no section on troubleshooting. Go to their web
site--nothing. Go to deja and google--LOTS of things. Ok, it's not just
me. Lots of it in foreign languages. :) Most common suggestion is to
downgrade to the previous version. No joy. Some other more complex
fixes. Nope, no good.
MS, if it doesn't work. Go to help--it's actually helpful in Win2k and
XP--not to mention that their set up instructions don't go on for
several pages about what it takes to create a printing setup that works.
Do 1, 2 3 4. If it doesn't work, try this. (We'll ignore their
troubleshooting wizards, those are for the AOL users).
Still a problem.
www.microsoft.com/technet
Search knowledge base--with the least bit of intelligent searching, you
quickly get 3 or 4 articles, one of which will have the solution.
Imagine finding that at ldp. :) Even the larger vendors' knowledge
bases are not as good at this as technet.
One begins to realize the validity of MS' talk of TCO. Several hours
later, I still can't print--oh, sorry, I can. I can boot up Windows 2k
which, although cups will not work on the Linux box, it will work with
Samba so that the Windows box can print.
Seriously, had this been in production--and again, lots of hits on deja,
so this problem isn't just my incompetence--and some of them sound like
fairly sophisticated *nix users--I would have been wishing my bosses had
spent the money for MS. :) (At work we actually use both as print
servers).
So, I've got to say--it works fine as a print server for an MS box.
The fault, in my mind, is in large part that of the people who write
cups documentation--either they're leaving out some important steps
because they're so busy explaining why they made this, what issues have
to be solved and other things that I might read, if I had leisure time,
instead of spending it trying to get their product working, or, they're
simply ignoring the fact that many people have problems with their
software--even the cups howto is horrible, it simply spends most of its
time assuming it'll work and if it doesn't work, giving you all the
steps to gather information to post to a mailing list. Yes, that's what
I want to do to print a simple letter.
Not to mention that if you install a printer in MS, then just about all
applications, including 3rd party ones, will use it without further
configuration. In *nix, you then have to configure Star Office, etc.
(Although on my other Gentoo install, where it's working properly, gimp
and mutt both print to it without problem.)
Thanks--I feel better now, and tomorrow will go back to bashing MS.
However, they are superior in printing and in available documentation.
--
Scott
PGP keyID EB3467D6 (1B48 077d 66F6 9DB0 FDC2 A409 FA54 D575 EB34 67D6 )
gpg --keyserver pgp.mit.edu --recv-keys EB3467D6
Spike (watching, from a distance, a conversation between
Angel and a woman he just rescued):How can I thank you, you
mysterious black-clad-hunk-of-a-knight-thing?
No need little lady. Your tears of gratitude are enough for me. You
see, I was once a bad-ass vampire. But love, and a pesky curse,
defanged me. And now, I'm just a *big* fluffy puppy with bad teeth.
No! Not the hair! Never the hair.
But there must be some way I can show my appreciation.
No, helping those in need's my job. And working up a load of sexual
tension and prancing away like a magnificent poof is truly thanks
enough.
I understand. I have a nephew who's gay, so...
Say no more. Evil's still afoot. And I'm almost out of that Nancy-boy
hair gel I like so much. Quickly! To the Angel-mobile! Away!
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