Aron Smetana: Installing Printer Drivers in Mac OS X

Mac Guru Lounge Installing Printer Drivers in Mac OS X

Problem: You've tried to add a printer using the Print & Scan system preference, but your Mac can't tell what kind of printer you have. When you click on the printer in the "Add Printer" window, the "Print Using" pop-up window wants to use the "Auto Select," "Generic PCL Printer," or "Generic PostScript Printer" drivers, or perhaps, no driver at all. How can you get your Mac to use the right driver for your printer?

Solution: Mac OS X Lion is great at figuring out what kind of printer you have, but only if it already knows that your printer model exists. And it only knows that your printer model exists if a software driver for that model is already on your Mac. Lion ships with printer drivers for thousands of printers, and Apple updates the drivers and adds new ones through the built-in Mac OS X Software Update. This means you usually don't need to install a driver. In your case, however, your Mac can't figure out what printer you have, so your printer may be that very special exception. Here's how to figure it out:

If you are unsure whether Mac OS X Lion supports your printer automatically, check for your model number in this support article on Apple's website: http://support.apple.com/kb/ht3669. If your model is listed, Apple supplies your driver. If it's not listed, you need to get it from the manufacturer's website.
Remember that printer drivers may work with one specific printer or a series of printers. So, there might be a driver specifically for an Epson CX 5420, or your driver may be listed as the 5400 series or even 5000 series.
If you do not see your model listed in the above Apple support article, be sure you read the section on "Gutenprint" drivers. These drivers support many older printers (that may be 5-10 years old or older). If your printer is on the Gutenprint list, skip this section and read the next section in this chapter called "Using Older or Unsupported Printers."
If your printer is listed in Apple's support article but you still cannot add your printer with anything more than a generic driver, you may need to manually download Apple's package of printer drivers for your printer's manufacturer. You can first run Software Update from the Apple menu or System Preferences to see if your computer finds a driver package to download. If it doesn't, go to Apple's software download page: http://support.apple.com/downloads/. From here, do a search with your printer manufacturer's name and the word "printers." For Canon printers, simply search for "Canon printers." Download and install the newest version of the printer drivers from your device's manufacturer.

If your Mac still doesn't correctly identify your printer after downloading and installing the correct driver, try disconnecting and reconnecting the printer or restarting your computer.

Using Older or Unsupported Printers

Problem: Your printer is old. Not the came-out-before-Time-Cook-took-over kind of old, but the I-was-printing-books-before-Harry-Potter kind of old. The manufacturer doesn't make a driver for Mac OS X Lion (and may never have made one for any version of Mac OS X). Is it possible to use the ancient beast with your svelte new Mac?

Solution: Maybe. Although Apple provides printer driver packages that support roughly 3500 printers in Lion, many of these drivers (about 1400) are not "official" drivers that the printer manufacturers have created. Instead, they come from an open-source project called Gutenprint (also known as Gimp-Print). Gutenprint has roughly 40 developers who work to keep drivers updated and add new ones. Because this is an independent project, Gutenprint drivers may not have all the features a manufacturer's driver has (for example, an Epson driver might support two-sided printing, but the Gutenprint driver may not have this feature).

If you want to see a list of printers Gutenprint supports, you can visit the Apple kBase article listed in the previous section. For the most up-to-date list, visit this page on the Gutenprint website:

http://gimp-print.sourceforge.net/p_Supported_Printers.php

Apple has been shipping the same Gutenprint drivers for years, but newer drivers provide support for additional older printers. To download the latest version of Gutenprint drivers, visit this page:

http://gimp-print.sourceforge.net/MacOSX.php

You generally do not need to use a Gutenprint driver for printers that have been released during the last 2-4 years, but if you have a USB or network printer from the 1990's, it is unlikely the manufacturer is continuing to update its driver to work in Lion. To use a Gutenprint driver, apply the following steps:

Open System Preferences and then select the Print & Scan system preference.
Click the + button. (If necessary, select "Add Other Printer or Scanner.")
Select your printer from the "Default" tab and then choose "Select Printer Software" from the "Print Using" pop-up menu.
A new window appears, allowing you to select the exact printer driver you want to use. Select the appropriate one for your printer and press OK to use the printer driver.

A Few Notes About Gutenprint Drivers

You can easily identify a Gutenprint driver because the driver has the word "Gutenprint" in its name. You can also use "CUPS" drivers (also in the printer driver list) if appropriate.

Printer manufacturers often release several printer models that are nearly identical. For example, HP released the OffieJet 7110. If they had also released the OfficeJet 7150 or the OfficeJet 7115, it is likely these models could all use the same driver. Thus, if you cannot find a driver for your exact printer model, you could experiment with different Gutenprint drivers designed for models similar to your own.