From owner-freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG  Wed Sep 14 07:59:12 2005
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Date: Wed, 14 Sep 2005 03:58:43 -0400
From: WOB <wayofbsd@verizon.net>
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Subject: Deep in printer hell.
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When JFK said, "We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the 
other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard..", I 
always wondered what exactly "the other things" were.  Apparently, one 
of them is printer configuration under FreeBSD.

If I am using a HP Deskjet 940 connected via parallel cable,  is there 
not some simple way of configuring this printer?

Is it really necessary to follow all the steps in the handbook - just to 
print?  The "Basic Setup" instructions are 15 pages printed.  Assuming 
you can print them.

I got this printer working 6 months ago under FreeBSD, and apparently my 
many notes on it are too many.  Now I'm starting from scratch, to 
redocument it, and it just seems like there should be a simpler way. 

I'm using 5.4, Fluxbox, Abiword, and Firefox - that's it.

Eventually I will figure it out again, I just wanted to know if there 
was some simple script I could run, or "preferred short-cut" for setting 
up desktop printer.  I realize the handbook is written to be precise and 
server-centric, but I just want to print Yahoo driving directions, and 
other such things.

thanks