Setting Up the Printer Hardware
Connecting printers to a Unix system is no one's favorite activity because it can quickly become a time-consuming task. Many printers are on the market, each with a unique interface.
When connecting a printer locally to a Sun system, you have four options:
Use an Ethernet connection. Use a parallel connection. Use a serial connection. Use a universal serial bus (USB) connection.
The type of connection depends on the connectivity options available on the printer. Most modern printers have either an Ethernet or USB connection. If Ethernet or USB connectivity is not an option, a parallel connection is the preferred method. If no parallel option exists, the final choice is a serial connection.
Ethernet Connections
Most modern printers provide an option to add an Ethernet interface. A printer with an Ethernet connection is referred to as a network printer. A network printer is a hardware device that provides printing services to print clients without being directly cabled to a print server. It is a print server with its own system name and IP address, and it is connected directly to the network. The Ethernet interface might be internal or external to the printer. Using an Ethernet interface to install a printer is recommended in particular because of its speed (10Mbps or 100Mbps).
Parallel Connections
Most printers, with a few rare exceptions, have parallel interfaces. A parallel interface has a speed advantage over a serial interface, especially if it uses a Centronics interface.
If your system has a parallel port, you simply connect the printer to the Sun system by using a Centronics parallel cable. Some Sun systems do not have parallel interfaces at all, so you might have to add a parallel interface by purchasing a parallel interface from Sun.
Serial Connections
Some printers support both parallel and serial connections. Sometimes a printer is connected via the serial interface because the Sun system does not have an available parallel interface. Connecting a device by using a serial interface requires a thorough understanding of serial transmission. This method of connecting a printer is the most difficult because of the complexity in establishing the proper communications settings between the computer and the printer. It is also slower than other methods.
USB Connections
Most modern printers support USB connection, but some older Sun systems do not. If your Sun system has a USB port, this option provides a plug-n-play interface that is also hotswappable, which allows devices to be plugged in and unplugged without the system being turned off. USB is intended to replace serial and parallel ports.
USB 1.0 has a maximum bandwidth of 12Mbps (which is equivalent to 1.5MBps) and up to 127 devices can be attached.
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