usb-> parallel adapter how to set up

[David Johnson]

> System: debian linux (squeeze), kernel 2.6.26, x86 machine
>
> CUPS version: 1.3.10
>
> Printer:  HP 5000
>
> I just got this printer -- free.  But my computer does not have a parallel port, so I got a usb>parallel (female) connector to connect to an ordinary parallel cable thence to the printer.  It's an old printer, with no JetDirect connection, no usb, only parallel and serial.  I had guessed the usb -> parallel would be the better route.
>
> But, despite searching the net, I have yet to see how to set up cups to handle this.  The printer is not recognized by cups, and I don't quite have a correct manual configuration.  One guy said to modify the /etc/cups/printers.conf file to set Device ID = parallel:/dev/usb/lp1  --- but this version of cups does not have a "Device ID" line, and when I mess with "DeviceURI" it doesn't work.  To be specific, DeviceURI parallel:/dev/usb/lp1  does not work.
>
I tried many variants on that, using usb://..., or other choices, and changing the designation to that given by lshal for the printer as well.  Nothing worked.

> Currently when I set (within the web interface) DeviceURI usb://dev/usb/lp1, CUPS thinks things are fine, and it claims to process and get things to 23% complete when printing a test page.  Never further.

Still the situation.

So, I dumped cups and installed the old-fashioned BSD print spooler.  Now the printer works fine as long as it is sent postscript.  The only problem is that gnome-centric apps like iceweasel and gnumeric don't see the printer, so only print to file.  I can live with that, as long as lpr,dvips, etc., work correctly, and LyX prints correctly, which it does.

But it would be nice, now, to know how to convince gnome (I use most of the gnome desktop) to send print jobs to lpd, instead of cups --- or, can they really coexist?  I don't mean the cups-lpr versions, but cups living with lpr which is configured in /etc/printcap  to send output to /dev/usb/lp0 (I removed the old printer).

Any help would again be appreciated.