[cups] Why is my default printer wrong?

[Todd And Margo Chester]

On 11/6/23 00:08, ToddAndMargo wrote:
> On 10/31/23 01:07, Johannes Meixner wrote:
>>
>> Hello,
>>
>> On 2023-10-31 08:26, Todd And Margo Chester wrote:
>>>> Hi All,
>>>>
>>>> Fedora 38
>>>> cups-2.4.7-1.fc38.x86_64
>>>>
>>>> Why do all my programs default to "Cups-PDF" and not
>>>> "HLL2300D".  All Wine and native Linux programs.
>>>> And changing it in my programs does not stick.
>>>>
>>>> Many thanks,
>>>> -T
>>>>
>>>> /etc/cups/printers.conf
>>>>
>>>> <Printer Cups-PDF>
>>>> ...
>>>> </Printer>
>>>>
>>>> <DefaultPrinter HLL2300D>
>>>> ,,,
>>>> </DefaultPrinter>
>>>
>>> Figured it out.  CUPS forgets to update /etc/cups/lpoptions
>>> Changing B4350 to HLL2300D fixed the issue
>>>
>>> vi /etc/cups/lpoptions
>>> Default HLL2300D
>>>
>>>
>>> I reported the bug over on Fedora's bugzilla:
>>>
>>> CUPS fails to update the efault printer in /etc/cups/lpoptions (edit)
>>> https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2247186
>>
>> I don't know how current CUPS 2.4 behaves
>> but a longer time ago I made
>> https://en.opensuse.org/SDB:Print_Settings_with_CUPS
>> which describes my findings at that time
>> in particular that
>> "There is no such thing as "THE" default print queue."
>>
>> Kind Regards
>> Johannes Meixner
> 
> Hi Johannes,
> 
> Now that was a well written link.  I saved
> a copy of the link in my "keepers" documentation
> for CUPS.  Thank you!
> 
> Looking at the results of
> 
> CUPS UI (631) fails to update the default printer in /etc/cups/lpoptions
> https://github.com/OpenPrinting/cups/issues/818
> 
> It indeed transpires that the WebUI's "default" is the "server
> default" and not the local (client) machines default.
> and that it is done that way on purpose.
> 
> I did ask on the bug report if they would included some
> declaration on the Web UI's page that this was the server's
> default and not the local machine's default.
> 
>      "..it is not intuitively obvious to the lay user. It
>      took me two years to figure it out. Would you consider
>      removing the confusion for lay people by adding some
>      wording to the Web UI to the affect that "This is
>      the service side default printer. For your local
>      computer, set the default printer with lpoptions:
>      lpoptions -d printer-name.
> 
>      Okay, and I know I may be pushing it here, but it would
>      be capitol if you added a client side setting for
>      default printer to the  Web UI too."
> 
> I have not heard back from them, but it has not been that
> long yet.
> 
> Knowing the difference with whose default is whose, need
> not be developer level knowledge.  It need to be intuitive
> to the user as well.
> 
> Also, not to beat a dead horse, but what actual purpose
> does the "server default" serve?  Is it even possible to
> send a job to the CUPS server without specifying which
> print it should go to?
> 
> Now this is weird.
> 
> $ lpoptions -d Cups-PDF
> ...
> ipp://localhost/printers/Cups-PDF
> 
> $ lpstat -d
> system default destination: Cups-PDF
> 
> That is the local user default, not the system default
> 
> $ cat /etc/cups/lpoptions
> Default HLL2300D
> 
> $ cat ~/.cups/lpoptions
> Default Cups-PDF
> 
> I reported it under:
>     lpstat gives incorrect wording for the default printer
>     https://github.com/OpenPrinting/cups/issues/819
> 
> -T
>