[Printing-architecture] Bi-di plug-in functionarities
Michael Sweet
mike at easysw.com
Mon Dec 9 06:19:36 PST 2002
Yasumasa TORATANI wrote:
> ...
> The dataflow is as following;
>
> [CUPS filters]-->[CUPS standard backend]<-->[bi-di plug-in]<-->[prt]
>
> or
> +----[bi-di plug-in]--------+
> | |
> V |
> [CUPS filters]-->[CUPS standard backend]---->[prt]
>
> Furthermore, if we make the bi-di plug-in API generic, everyone will
> be able to reuse these modules for any other printing system if they
> want.
As I've posted before, the CUPS 1.2 dataflow will include a
pipe going from the backend to the filters, so the backend can
send the backchannel data to a printer-specific printer driver
for processing (so the intelligence would be in the printer driver
and not in the backend). Your implementation is basically making
the CUPS backend a printer driver which talks with a separate
daemon/process to communicate with the device. This is certainly
doable, but limits the use of your driver to interfaces that the
bi-di plug-in API (instead of all devices); we wouldn't do that
for regular consumer devices, but if you have a custom interface
already (high-speed serial card/whatever) to the device, this isn't
so much of an issue...
--
______________________________________________________________________
Michael Sweet, Easy Software Products mike at easysw.com
Printing Software for UNIX http://www.easysw.com
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