Printing with Your Mac mini


For more information on the topics in this section, see Chapter 6.

How do I share a printer between my Mac mini and my Windows PC?

AirPort Express is my preferred means of printer sharingthat is, if you don't want to have to swap USB cables whenever you want to print on the "other" machine. Yes, I did break down and buy a USB switch (IOGEAR again), and it is an option if you'd rather not reach behind your Mac mini so much. Most PCs now have USB ports on both their front and back sides.

I also have a printer with both an old-style Centronics connector running to the PC and a USB cable running to the Mac. Chapter 6 contains a handful of printer sharing ideas and alternatives.

Will all printers work with the Mac mini?

No, though most will. The Mac mini comes with 250 sets of printer drivers installed, covering most of the major brands. You can check the list on the Apple Web site (the link is in Chapter 4 or can be found at www.peachpit.com/coursey along with all the other links in this book).

If you are buying a printer, make sure it has Mac OS X drivers. Usually there will be a Mac logo on the box, but you can also check either the Apple list or the printer manufacturer's Web site.

The major brands (Epson, Canon, and Hewlett-Packard for example) all have Mac drivers for almost all their desktop printers, but some smaller manufacturers don't. I've yet to get my Konica/Minolta/QMS color laser printer to work with any Mac, for example.

What are Rendezvous and Bonjour?

In Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger, the technology formerly called Rendezvous became the equally dopey-named Bonjour. Because of this, you will see the two names used together for a while. And it may be a while before Rendezvous for Windows becomes Bonjour for Windows.

Rendezvous/Bonjour is technology that allows devices (such as printers), applications (instant messaging, for example), and computers to find one another and automatically create connections over an office or home network. It's very cool, but not as widely used as it deserves to be. Apple has written a version for Windows, especially useful for connecting to a shared Rendezvous/Bonjour printer connected to an AirPort Express Base Station.



The Mac mini Guidebook A practical, hands-on book for everyoneincluding Windows usersmoving to Apple's compact computer
The Mac mini Guidebook A practical, hands-on book for everyoneincluding Windows usersmoving to Apple's compact computer
ISBN: N/A
EAN: N/A
Year: 2004
Pages: 146

flylib.com © 2008-2017.
If you may any questions please contact us: flylib@qtcs.net