The old Xerox printer at 6531 (not the copier) — xrn4025p.ppd.zip

• setting A3 paper size: lpoptions -p xerox6531 -o PageRegion=A3 -o InputSlot=Tray2

HP Color Laser outside 6505 — hpcolor.ppd.zip

You might already know the http://localhost:631 web configuration interface, but there are also command line tools. Let's install the old Xerox printer located in the copy room 6531.

Get root. Go get the PPD file and save it somewhere:

xrn4025p.ppd.zip

Unpack zip file and install the printer with command:

 lpadmin -p xerox6531 -v socket://157.24.24.70:9100/ -D "the old xerox" -L "mail room 6531" -P Xrn4025p.ppd

You can check your available printers as a user with:

lpstat -t

If it says your new printer is rejecting jobs and/or disabled, the following commands should be of help (as root):

/usr/bin/enable xerox6531
accept xerox6531

The enable command is with full path because enable is also a Bash builtin command. In newer installations of CUPS the command may be named cupsenable.

To see what kind of options your new printer may offer, try:

lpoptions -p xerox6531 -l

Find and install package psutils to get psnup.

psnup -2 docu.ps new_docu.ps

At least the Xerox in the mail room can print duplex. For the “normal” way:

lpr -Pxerox6531 -o sides=two-sided-long-edge file.ps

For the other way:

lpr -Pxerox6531 -o sides=two-sided-short-edge file.ps

NOTE: It has been noticed that some Postscript files refuse to print as duplex and running through ps2ps seems to help. It is recommended to run everything, that is not produced through Ghostscript, through ps2ps.

You have a PDF where you want to nicely print selected pages. Open the PDF in Acrobat reader and print the wanted pages into a Postscript file. The file will likely “compress” if you run it through ps2ps>

ps2ps file.ps file2.ps

Then, reorganize the pages to form a book:

psbook -q file2.ps file3.ps

Let's put two pages on one sheet, that is, make an A5 book:

psnup -2 file3.ps file4.ps

Print the file in duplex:

lpr -Pxerox6531 -o sides=two-sided-short-edge file4.ps

If you put the following Bash script snippet into your e.g. ~/.bashrc, you get the command m2ps, that makes PostScript from your text (code) files.

function m2ps {
        while [ "$1" ]; do
                enscript --ps-level=1 -r --word-wrap -2 -C -G -j "$1" -o "$1.ps"
                shift
        done
}

The print is landscape, two-column, with line numbers, long lines word-wrapped, fancy header and borders drawn. The command can handle multiple files at one invocation and output file name is input file name appended with .ps.