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mcmalburg
28 Posts |
 Posted - 27 Jul 2009 : 10:44:58
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I've seen that according to topic 761 that USB printers should be supported - so, silly me, I plugged in a USB printer to try it.
I'm greeted with a dialog box (underneath my application - so I had to close my app to see it) that says "Unidentified USB Device", "Enter the name of the driver for this USB device:"
My printer is a PCL compatible printer so I'd like a simple PCL printer driver. However, I do not know what the driver names are. I tried some that I thought were logical "PCL Printer", "USB Printer" etc, however (and as I expected) none of these were valid and they gave the resulting message: "Error installing USB driver XXX".
Is there some list of "installed driver names" that I should be able to find?
Better yet, what is the "right way" to hook up a printer on a BitsyXb running CE 5.0 using a simple PCL driver?
- Mark |
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akidder
1519 Posts |
Posted - 27 Jul 2009 : 18:11:13
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Thanks, Mark. Check the CE.BIB file for your build to see if CE_MODULES_PCL is set to 1. It is in the 5.00.44 Pro build I took a look at. That flag tells Platform Builder to include pcl.dll in the build along with the necessary registry keys.
If the dll is in the build, things might get just a little more complicated. CE 5.0's USB drivers are picker than CE 4.2 about additional, product-specific endpoints that the printers may define. These endpoints may support specific functions for that printer beyond the PCL spec, or they might support add-on functions like USB/SD/CF readers or flatbed scanners included in many consumer printers. The good news is that we've dealt with this issue before, and may have a solution that ignores those endpoints.
Let us know if the build you're using includes the PCL driver. We can figure out where to go next from there. |
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mcmalburg
28 Posts |
Posted - 27 Jul 2009 : 18:26:29
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I don't have a CE.BIB file of my own. I'm using build 5.00.32 Pro from Topic 2100. I'd like to be using your latest builds, but....
Later builds are hanging up the operating with repeated SmartIO/DigitalIO calls. I'm working with someone on this issue already. Email or call me directly and I can fill you in on the details.
The CE.bib file for 5.00.32 (as downloaded from 2100) doesn't appear to set CE_MODULES_PCL
HELP!!!
- Mark
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mcmalburg
28 Posts |
Posted - 27 Jul 2009 : 18:28:13
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OK - I looked a little deeper ceconfig.h does indeed have the line:
#define CE_MODULES_PCL 1
Where you asking about CE_MODULES_PCL being present in ceconfig.h or in ce.bib?
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Edited by - mcmalburg on 27 Jul 2009 18:28:55 |
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ctacke
877 Posts |
Posted - 27 Jul 2009 : 19:13:51
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| Also be aware that many printers are composite USB devices (printer plus scanner, printer plus fax, printer plus espresso machine, etc). When you plug the printer in, the CE device then tries to enumerate all devices exposed, so if your printer is a composite, it will attempt to find a driver for not just the printer, but any other device as well. These additional functions may also present the "Unidentified USB Device" dialog. To see if the printer is a composite device, plug it into a PC and check the Device Manager to see if it appears as multiple devices. |
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mcmalburg
28 Posts |
Posted - 27 Jul 2009 : 19:52:38
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Thanks Chris. I already fell into that trap and verified that I'm just using a printer.
It would be cool, however, if CE 5.0 would just install the "printer" functionality on a multi-function device.
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ctacke
877 Posts |
Posted - 28 Jul 2009 : 11:07:05
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| The USB driver could be changed to do that (sort of anyway) by just never displaying the "Unidentified USB Device" dialog. The problem there is that it would, obviously, never show the dialog, even for other unsupported devices. This may or may not be a desired behavior depending on usage, so I imagine Eurotech wouldn't want to do it for all CE images. You can probably get a custom configuration from them, though, that does (or it could be a registry option that defaults to off and you could turn it on). |
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akidder
1519 Posts |
Posted - 28 Jul 2009 : 11:09:43
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Thanks, Chris. We've got a USB solution that takes care of specific, unwanted endpoints.
If it turns out to be the issue, we'll be providing that solution to mcmarlburg. |
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mcmalburg
28 Posts |
Posted - 30 Jul 2009 : 21:12:10
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OK, on my BitsyXb I've
1. Re-installed CE 5.00.32 Pro Hive
It includes Microsoft Word so I can test the printer.
2. Hooked up a Brother HL-2170w It is a PCL6 Compatible, Single-Function, black and white, laser printer. I cannot guarantee the my customers will have this same printer, but I can probably force them to use a PCL, single-function printer.
As soon as I plug the USB cable into my BitsyXb I get:
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Unidentified USB Device
Enter the name of the driver for this USB device:
Driver Name: _
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At this point I'm stuck.
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Edited by - mcmalburg on 30 Jul 2009 21:13:42 |
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mcmalburg
28 Posts |
Posted - 08 Oct 2009 : 16:59:14
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OK. I'm back on the printer task. I recently found from someplace online that CE 5.0 only likes PCL versions earlier than PCL 6. So I did a WalMart run and picked up a cheap, single function HP DeskJet D2660 which is PCL 3.
I plugged it into my BitsyXb running CE 5.00.51 (Pro Hive) and I'm still greeted with the dialog box:
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Unidentified USB Device
Enter the name of the driver for this USB device:
Driver Name: _
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What am I doing wrong?
Is there any printer out there that has actually worked with BitsyXb?
- Mark
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beitman
63 Posts |
Posted - 12 Oct 2009 : 09:19:59
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Mark has a printer working now. We worked together on this and found that the HP OfficeJet 6000 does work with the Windows CE PCL printer driver. The HP OfficeJet 6000 Wireless also works but it is a multifunction device, so the driver dialog still appears.
Bruce |
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