Margins on Samsung printer [ advice is no help (8-( ]

[Jonathan Ryshpan]

I wrote:
> I use a Samsung ML-4500 printer under Fedora Core 2 Linux using Cups. 
> As far as I can tell, the printer is configured correctly --
> nevertheless the printer cannot print the whole page submitted to it; it
> cuts off about 0.3 in. at each margin.  As a consequence pages formatted
> by Mozilla don't show the header or footer when printed.
> 
> Ghostscript includes a *.ps file -- align.ps -- which gives instructions
> on how to generate a small file to be prepended to whatever is being
> printed so as to correct this problem.  I have printed this file, and
> followed the instructions, getting the small file to be prepended,
> namely:
>         <<
>           /.HWMargins [9.36 8.64 10.08 12.24]
>           /Margins [-84.0 -126.0]
>         >>
>         setpagedevice
> 
> Now my questions:
> 
> (1) The Margins command seems to work as described in the Ghostscript
> documentation, but the .HWMargins command doesn't seem to do anything. 
> Is .HWMargins being overwritten somewhere farther down the chain of
> filters?  If so, where?
> 
> (2) Assuming I can find out what are the correct values to put into this
> little file, what is the approved standard way to incorporate it or
> something like it into the Cups print system?


James Wilkinson <james at westexe.demon.co.uk> replied:
> This doesn't happen for me. The headers print fine.
> 
> If you run system-config-printer as root, edit the queue, and click on
> Queue Options, what does it say under Imageable Area? Are all the
> margins 36 pt?

 
Jason L Tibbitts <tibbs at math.uh.edu> replied:
> One thing you can try is editing the PPD file.  I had an HP Laserjet
> 4050 with the same problem, fixed by editing the PPD and changing
> ImageableArea entries as appropriate to get things to fit.
> 
> The PPD that cups is currently using should be in /etc/cups/ppd.


Thanks to you both.  Unfortunately

(1) Changing the margins using system-config-printer->queue->Queue Options
    doesn't change the ppd file /etc/cups/ppd/lp0.ppd (which I believe is 
    cups control file for this printer).  The margins were set to 36 point
    when I started looking at them: I changed them to up to 144 points (which
    seems to be the max allowed) without any effect on printing or on lp0.ppd.
    Then I set them back to 36 pts.

(2) Editing the ppd file /etc/cups/ppd/lp0.ppd doesn't change printer
    behavion.  I rebooted the system just for good measure.  Here is the
    relevant change:

	$ diff -c /etc/cups/ppd/Samsung-ML-4500-gdi.ppd /etc/cups/ppd/lp0.ppd
	*** /etc/cups/ppd/Samsung-ML-4500-gdi.ppd   Thu Aug 26 22:46:09 2004
	--- /etc/cups/ppd/lp0.ppd                   Sun Aug 29 14:53:48 2004
	***************
	*** 143,147 ****
	  *DefaultImageableArea: Letter
	! *ImageableArea Letter/Letter: "0 0 612 792"
	  *ImageableArea A4/A4: "0 0 595 842"
	  *ImageableArea A5/A5: "0 0 420 595"
	  *ImageableArea A6/A6: "0 0 297 420"
	--- 143,147 ----
	  *DefaultImageableArea: Letter
	! *ImageableArea Letter/Letter: "10 9 592 771"
	  *ImageableArea A4/A4: "0 0 595 842"
	  *ImageableArea A5/A5: "0 0 420 595"
	  *ImageableArea A6/A6: "0 0 297 420"
    
Is /etc/cups/ppd/lp0.ppd the right file to look at?  Any other suggestions?

Thanks - jon