Hands on: iPad printing with 4.2 and AirPrint, a limited menu

If AirPlay’s first-generation limitations have disappointed a lot of would-be iPhone video mavens who had dreamed of quickly sharing their clips to the big screen, you can just imagine how irate everyone is about AirPrint.

The universal shared printer solution for iPhone and iPad was kneecapped in late builds of Mac OS X 10.6.5 for reasons yet to be revealed, and the result is that a big-ticket feature has shipped with very little real-world applicability — at least, out of the box.

Fortunately, if you’re willing to do a little bit of finagling or lay out a small amount of cash, you can quickly gain back the AirPrint functionality you were promised, and more. Let’s take a quick look at what’s in the ‘vanilla’ version of AirPrint, then move on to the expanded remix edition.

Continue reading Hands on: iPad printing with 4.2 and AirPrint, a limited menu

Hands on: iPad printing with 4.2 and AirPrint, a limited menu originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 23 Nov 2010 17:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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AirPrint: how to make it work for shared printers

Mac OS X 10.6.5 was released yesterday, and one of the features it was expected to bring to the table was support for AirPrint, a new feature in iOS 4.2 that was supposed to enable wireless printing from an iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch. Unfortunately, whether it’s because of technical problems or patent trolling, Apple pulled support for this feature at the last minute. In its current incarnation, AirPrint in iOS 4.2 will now only work with specific printers that come with AirPrint functionality built-in… and you probably don’t own one of those.

iOS 4.2 hasn’t been officially released yet, but some enterprising developers, Steven Troughton-Smith and Patrick McCarron, have already found a way to re-enable AirPrint functionality in Mac OS X 10.6.5. Apparently, three files from earlier developer builds of 10.6.5 were removed or altered for the final public release, and it’s these files that are essential to restoring full AirPrint functionality. Click “Read More” for a walkthrough on how to enable AirPrint.

The usual caveat: This procedure involves a moderate degree of peril, and TUAW cannot help you if you mess up your system. Proceed at your own risk.

Continue reading AirPrint: how to make it work for shared printers

AirPrint: how to make it work for shared printers originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 11 Nov 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Macworld dishes on AirPrint iOS printing

Today’s release of the iOS 4.2 beta has given developers their first hands-on look at AirPrint, which will allow wireless printing from iOS devices. Macworld has published some details.

Dan Moren reports that users will be able to print text, photos and graphics to networked printers without having to fiddle with drivers, special software or network configurations. Also, it seems like the list of compatible printers is long, though details are still sketchy. Moren says that AirPrint will support printers shared via a Mac or a PC, from low-cost inkjets up to office laser printers. Additionally, HP will soon release a new line of printers with their “ePrint” feature that will offer, among other things, support for AirPrint.

Users have been waiting for an official print solution from Apple, and in the meantime several 3rd-party apps have appeared in the App Store. I’m eager to try it out myself, and am looking forward to the official release of iOS 4.2 in November.

TUAWMacworld dishes on AirPrint iOS printing originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 15 Sep 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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