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Google Launches Cloud Printer Service For Windows
An anonymous reader writes "Google today announced it is bringing its Cloud Print project to Windows. The company has launched both a driver and a service, both of which are available for download now from Google Tools. For those who don't know, Google Cloud Print connects Cloud Print-aware applications (across the Web, desktop, and mobile) to any printer. It integrates with the mobile versions of Gmail and Google Docs, and is also listed as a printer option in the Print Preview page of Chrome."
One of the things that annoys me about Android: having to print through the Cloud (tm) when I have an Internet Printing Protocol CUPS server on the same network as my phone connected to a printer ten feet from me. It wouldn't be so bad if the Google Cloud Print libraries weren't proprietary and did something like IPP proxying instead of using a similarly proprietary API.
Will the advertisements be in the middle of your print jobs or printed to the side?
Google supported existing open APIs instead of pulling a Microsoft and inventing their own for everything and dropping support for open APIs?
Whats next to be replaced by some Google specific protocol for Google users? SMTP?
Persistent Volume manager for Kubernetes - https://github.com/dwimsey/openshift-pvmanager
Would it be possible for alternative Android rom makers like CyanogenMod to replace or augment Google's cloud-printing service with printing directly to your IPP-capable printer or CUPS print server when connected to your home network?
It seems like it should be possible for someone to make a custom rom set that eliminates a lot of the Google spyware stuff and makes Android closer to just plain Linux-on-your-phone, while still being compatible with all the Android apps.
You're 1 of 2 people who can get CUPS a) setup and b) working well enough to not just spew ink with a real printer.
Says the person who apparently hasn't used Linux since 1993.
Back on topic, presumably Google won't support CUPS, because the NSA wants a copy of everything we print as well as everything we email.
Every Mac user on the planet who prints ... does it through CUPs.
I.E. there are more CUPS users than Linux users.
Want to try again?
Persistent Volume manager for Kubernetes - https://github.com/dwimsey/openshift-pvmanager
One of the things that annoys me about Android: having to print through the Cloud ... to a printer ten feet from me
Sure it would be lovely to have easy printing built into Android, but honestly I've found that PrinterShare works just fine.
Three Squirrels
"One of the things that annoys me about Android: having to print through the Cloud"
A networked Samsung printer can print on your local network from an Android device via Samsung's print app.
which the NSA can get by taping Google's ISP without Google's consent....Try paying attention.
How exactly are they going to tap my printing if it goes over my local LAN to a CUPS printer?
Try paying attention to the discusion.
Only because Apple made it work properly and added a GUI instead of text files that bomb with a misplaced comma or tab.
Wow - you really haven't used linux in the last decade or so, have you?
Find a computer with an install of any of the major linux distributions, fire up a web browser, and point it to http://localhost:631/
You'll find local and network printer search and configuration, default paper and printer settings, print queues, pretty much everything you need, all in a nice pretty gui.
You can never know everything, and part of what you do know will always be wrong. Perhaps even the most important part.
Only because Apple made it work properly and added a GUI instead of text files that bomb with a misplaced comma or tab.
Wow - you really haven't used linux in the last decade or so, have you?
Find a computer with an install of any of the major linux distributions, fire up a web browser, and point it to http://localhost:631/
Are you serious? How on earth would a normal person figure out that printing is on port 631? I use Linux eight hours a day at work, and for programming I wouldn't use anything else, but even I use a mac when I need things to work. A web server running on a port I would never find is not a reasonable place for a UI most users need to discover.
"Find a computer with an install of any of the major linux distributions, fire up a web browser, and point it to http://localhost:631/"
In the main, that works. However, it should be noted that support for CUPS-HTTP-ADMIN varies from distribution to distribution, and even from version to version.
What I find (seriously) annoying is that if CUPS-HTTP-ADMIN is enabled, it's always defaulted to localhost only. That may be fine for a desktop... but in case no one ever told the CUPS folks (and the folks creating server linux distros), sometimes linux is used on servers.
To that end, here is my own cheat-sheet on getting CUPS-HTTP-ADMIN on the LAN:
Yes, it's in shorthand. No, it's not super-duper-secure. Because I have yet to see CUPS-HTTP-ADMIN be an actual attack vector. No, this is obviously not for a public facing linux box.
PS, don't forget to open up TCP 631 on whatever firewall is on your linux machine.
/dev/random
I think most newbies just use the hand dandy printer wizard. I set up Ultimate Linux for one guy and he later bought a printer. He called me about what to do with the cd that came with it and I told him to pull the pdf off of it and then throw it away. I explained to look for the picture of the printer on the settings menu and about 2 minutes later he was happily printing away. Even I don't use cups page anymore. I will say that if you own a canon printer it prints about 3 times faster on a mac than on linux. I love the printer but I'm starting to hate canon. Next printer will be from HP. Canon can suck my dick.
Web Interface is Disabled
The web interface is currently disabled. Run "cupsctl WebInterface=yes" to enable it.
For those who don't know, Google Cloud Print connects Cloud Print-aware applications (across the Web, desktop, and mobile) to any printer
So if I want to print my document to a printer in Bulgaria, no problem! That's just flat out daft. Cloud storage, processing and applications provide ubiquitous accessibility. Cloud printing provides ubiquitous inaccessibility.
Actually, I find cloud print to be very convenient. I print to my home printer while I'm at work and printers at work (my office and remote offices) from home, I have printed to my mom's printer and my father-in-law's printer from another state (easier than sending them a document and helping them print it). It's also zero setup when I get a new computer... as soon as I'm logged into Chrome I can print and it just works. No fiddling with drivers because that was already done once.
Surely there's still somebody with common sense working for Google?!?
Bah. Common sense is usually neither common nor very sensible. But what do I know? I work for Google :P
Note to ACs: I usually delete AC replies without reading them. If you want to talk to me, log in.
But what do I know? I work for Google :P
Well blow me down with a feather! Someone working for Google who thinks Google's ideas are good.
Who would have seen that coming?
As someone who's been trying to use Cloud Print since it launched, I had assumed that the project was abandoned long ago. It has always been extremely flakey, it never "just works", etc. When it works, it's great. When it doesn't, you are left staring at a screen identical to when it does, with no diagnostics, and no sign of potential progress.
There are also some rather insane missing features, like the inability to rename printers (eg: if two of your friends have an HP DeskJet 1050a, and they both left it with the default name, have fun trying to decide which one to print on. Or if they both renamed their printers, but gave them sensible names like "HP (Upstairs)")
CloudPrint was a nice idea which Google has given zero attention. I do not expect things to suddenly work now that Windows is in the mix.
-- 'The' Lord and Master Bitman On High, Master Of All
How on earth would a normal person figure out that printing is on port 631?
One of two ways:
Seriously, your complaint makes as much sense as asking 'How on earth would a normal person figure out that you browse the web by running iexplore.exe?'
I am TheRaven on Soylent News
Only because Apple made it work properly and added a GUI instead of text files that bomb with a misplaced comma or tab.
Wow - you really haven't used linux in the last decade or so, have you?
Find a computer with an install of any of the major linux distributions, fire up a web browser, and point it to http://localhost:631/
You exaggerate the difficulties of setting up a printer using CUPS and a modern Linux distribution. ;-)
I just did a little experiment. I'm sitting in a holiday house borrowed from friends, using my trusty Lenovo laptop running Debian Squeeze. Next to me on the bench is a printer - I've never used it before and it's been covered with a cloth up until the start of the experiment.
I removed the cloth, powered up the printer, and then plugged the USB lead into my laptop. About 10 seconds later a dialogue box appeared on my desktop saying, "A new printer has come into existence. Do you want to use this driver?". I answered yes. It then said, "Do you want to print a test page?" Again I said yes, and shortly afterwards there appeared a perfectly formatted colour test page.
I'm not sure it can be made much easier than this.
John