Discussion:
[darktable-user] Printing
Anders Lund
2018-09-12 06:53:09 UTC
Permalink
Hello,

I just tried the printing functionality in dt.

First, I did not get presented with printer settings, so I had to set the
printer defaults (using kde systemsettings and system-config-printer in my
case).

The paper size list in the printing section of dt is not matching the list of
papers supported by the printer, and the very common (at least in europe) size
13*18cm is missing.

I wanted to apply a style, and selected one in the list - but it was not
applied.

My printer is an Epson 1500w, and the driver is the one provided by epson (and
recommended by openprinting).

Anyone knows if this part of dt is being worked on?

Kindly,
Anders
Michael Below
2018-09-12 07:08:02 UTC
Permalink
Hi,
I just got an Epson printer, and found the printer module to be working fine:

I am using Turboprint, including the printer setup tool, with one of their paper profiles. The colours are fine. Don't know about 13*18, though.

I am wondering if it is possible to print multiple images onto one page. This would be nice to e.g. quickly compare different processing variants of one image.

Cheers
Michael
Post by Anders Lund
Hello,
I just tried the printing functionality in dt.
First, I did not get presented with printer settings, so I had to set the
printer defaults (using kde systemsettings and system-config-printer in my
case).
The paper size list in the printing section of dt is not matching the list of
papers supported by the printer, and the very common (at least in europe) size
13*18cm is missing.
I wanted to apply a style, and selected one in the list - but it was not
applied.
My printer is an Epson 1500w, and the driver is the one provided by epson (and
recommended by openprinting).
Anyone knows if this part of dt is being worked on?
Kindly,
Anders
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Anders Lund
2018-09-12 07:25:38 UTC
Permalink
Hi Michael,
Post by Michael Below
Hi,
Which printer? And which driver? Is it a turpoprint provided one?
Post by Michael Below
I am using Turboprint, including the printer setup tool, with one of their
paper profiles. The colours are fine. Don't know about 13*18, though.
I don't have problems with printer/color quality. The stylus 1500W is a
"proconsumer" grade printer, and there is not direct access to using .icc
files, I believe it handles that internally based on paper choice.

The 13x18 paper can probably be achieved by using a custom paper size.
Post by Michael Below
I am wondering if it is possible to print multiple images onto one page.
This would be nice to e.g. quickly compare different processing variants of
one image.
That is supported by the digikam printing tool, but not tested by me yet, and
not really useful for the described scenario, unless you export your photo
multiple times)

Kindly,
Anders
Post by Michael Below
Cheers
Michael
Post by Anders Lund
Hello,
I just tried the printing functionality in dt.
First, I did not get presented with printer settings, so I had to set the
printer defaults (using kde systemsettings and system-config-printer in my
case).
The paper size list in the printing section of dt is not matching the list of
papers supported by the printer, and the very common (at least in europe) size
13*18cm is missing.
I wanted to apply a style, and selected one in the list - but it was not
applied.
My printer is an Epson 1500w, and the driver is the one provided by epson (and
recommended by openprinting).
Anyone knows if this part of dt is being worked on?
Kindly,
Anders
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Michael Below
2018-09-12 07:59:11 UTC
Permalink
Hi,

it's the xp15000, with the Turboprint driver.
I will try digikam to print multiple images - of course it would be easier to just clone an image in darktable and make it e.g. half a stop lighter, but exporting is not so much more effort.

Cheers
Michael
Post by Anders Lund
Hi Michael,
Post by Michael Below
Hi,
I just got an Epson printer, and found the printer module to be
working
Which printer? And which driver? Is it a turpoprint provided one?
Post by Michael Below
I am using Turboprint, including the printer setup tool, with one of
their
Post by Michael Below
paper profiles. The colours are fine. Don't know about 13*18, though.
I don't have problems with printer/color quality. The stylus 1500W is a
"proconsumer" grade printer, and there is not direct access to using .icc
files, I believe it handles that internally based on paper choice.
The 13x18 paper can probably be achieved by using a custom paper size.
Post by Michael Below
I am wondering if it is possible to print multiple images onto one
page.
Post by Michael Below
This would be nice to e.g. quickly compare different processing
variants of
Post by Michael Below
one image.
That is supported by the digikam printing tool, but not tested by me yet, and
not really useful for the described scenario, unless you export your photo
multiple times)
Kindly,
Anders
Post by Michael Below
Cheers
Michael
Am 12. September 2018 08:53:09 MESZ schrieb Anders Lund
Post by Anders Lund
Hello,
I just tried the printing functionality in dt.
First, I did not get presented with printer settings, so I had to
set
Post by Michael Below
Post by Anders Lund
the
printer defaults (using kde systemsettings and system-config-printer
in
Post by Michael Below
Post by Anders Lund
my
case).
The paper size list in the printing section of dt is not matching
the
Post by Michael Below
Post by Anders Lund
list of
papers supported by the printer, and the very common (at least in europe) size
13*18cm is missing.
I wanted to apply a style, and selected one in the list - but it was not
applied.
My printer is an Epson 1500w, and the driver is the one provided by epson (and
recommended by openprinting).
Anyone knows if this part of dt is being worked on?
Kindly,
Anders
___________________________________________________________________________
Post by Anders Lund
_ darktable user mailing list
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Post by Michael Below
darktable user mailing list
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Anders Lund
2018-09-12 07:27:26 UTC
Permalink
More: I find that the dt printing tool handles margins correctly, as opposed
to the digikam printing tool. That is, with dt I can have a white border on my
prints using margin, I have not been able to achieve that using digikam yet.

Kindly,
Anders
Post by Anders Lund
Hello,
I just tried the printing functionality in dt.
First, I did not get presented with printer settings, so I had to set the
printer defaults (using kde systemsettings and system-config-printer in my
case).
The paper size list in the printing section of dt is not matching the list
of papers supported by the printer, and the very common (at least in
europe) size 13*18cm is missing.
I wanted to apply a style, and selected one in the list - but it was not
applied.
My printer is an Epson 1500w, and the driver is the one provided by epson
(and recommended by openprinting).
Anyone knows if this part of dt is being worked on?
Kindly,
Anders
____________________________________________________________________________
darktable user mailing list
Timur Irikovich Davletshin
2018-09-12 08:14:54 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
Hello,
I just tried the printing functionality in dt.
First, I did not get presented with printer settings, so I had to set
the 
printer defaults (using kde systemsettings and system-config-printer
in my 
case).
The paper size list in the printing section of dt is not matching the
list of 
papers supported by the printer, and the very common (at least in
europe) size 
13*18cm is missing.
I wanted to apply a style, and selected one in the list - but it was
not 
applied.
My printer is an Epson 1500w, and the driver is the one provided by
epson (and 
recommended by openprinting).
Anyone knows if this part of dt is being worked on?
Kindly,
Anders
As far as I know this is still impossible. This question has been
adressed couple times already, you can search mailing list for "printer
settings" and "printer colors". In my case (Turboprint drivers) I have
to set required settings (like paper type, color profiles) as default
and print from darktable with default settings. Or, which is more
convinient, from Turboprint's Gimp plugin.

Timur.
Anders Lund
2018-09-12 08:44:11 UTC
Permalink
Post by Timur Irikovich Davletshin
Post by Anders Lund
Hello,
I just tried the printing functionality in dt.
First, I did not get presented with printer settings, so I had to set the
printer defaults (using kde systemsettings and system-config-printer in my
case).
The paper size list in the printing section of dt is not matching the list of
papers supported by the printer, and the very common (at least in europe) size
13*18cm is missing.
I wanted to apply a style, and selected one in the list - but it was not
applied.
My printer is an Epson 1500w, and the driver is the one provided by epson (and
recommended by openprinting).
Anyone knows if this part of dt is being worked on?
Kindly,
Anders
As far as I know this is still impossible. This question has been
adressed couple times already, you can search mailing list for "printer
settings" and "printer colors". In my case (Turboprint drivers) I have
to set required settings (like paper type, color profiles) as default
and print from darktable with default settings. Or, which is more
convinient, from Turboprint's Gimp plugin.
Couldn't dt use the system printing dialog? (that could be a gtk one, if such
a thing exists?)

In digikams print creation tool, a dialog is displayed that includes the
printer specific options, using kde/qt ui.

Kindly,
Anders
Timur Irikovich Davletshin
2018-09-12 09:25:14 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
Couldn't dt use the system printing dialog? (that could be a gtk one,
if such 
a thing exists?)
In digikams print creation tool, a dialog is displayed that includes
the 
printer specific options, using kde/qt ui.
Kindly,
Anders
It's better to address this issue to developers, e.g. Pascal Obry.

Timur.
Pascal Obry
2018-09-12 16:20:00 UTC
Permalink
Le mercredi 12 septembre 2018 à 12:25 +0300, Timur Irikovich Davletshin
Post by Timur Irikovich Davletshin
It's better to address this issue to developers, e.g. Pascal Obry.
If you're using TurboPrint then yes there is a dialog displayed where
you can select all options.

Now this is not done for the standard Gtk+ dialog because it is not
possible to get good results if you change random values in the printer
driver like Gutenprint. Currently the color management in CUPS is
disabled (by dt) so all the jobs must be done before. When using
TurboPrint you'll see a message in printer ICC saying:

"color management in printer driver"

So for now I would highly recommend using TurboPrint to get high
quality print with darktable.
--
Pascal Obry / Magny Les Hameaux (78)

The best way to travel is by means of imagination

http://www.obry.net

gpg --keyserver keys.gnupg.net --recv-key F949BD3B
Anders Lund
2018-09-12 19:37:00 UTC
Permalink
Le mercredi 12 septembre 2018 à 12:25 +0300, Timur Irikovich Davletshin
Post by Timur Irikovich Davletshin
It's better to address this issue to developers, e.g. Pascal Obry.
If you're using TurboPrint then yes there is a dialog displayed where
you can select all options.
Now this is not done for the standard Gtk+ dialog because it is not
possible to get good results if you change random values in the printer
driver like Gutenprint. Currently the color management in CUPS is
disabled (by dt) so all the jobs must be done before. When using
"color management in printer driver"
So for now I would highly recommend using TurboPrint to get high
quality print with darktable.
I'm not looking for color management, but for the ability to select
- print quality
- paper type
- boarderless on/off
- safe paper size selection (which is also likely simpler than the present
list)

I currently mostly prints with digikam print creator, since that is the
closest. I export my file using ProPhotoRGB profile from dt, and the printer
(or printer driver) handles the color management, likely based on paper type
selection.

I never tried using turboprint, but cups works with the driver provided by
epson, which is producing very good results.

I don't understand why using cups is a problem for dt, since other
applications use it without problems.

Kindly,
Anders
Pascal Obry
2018-09-12 19:49:42 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
I'm not looking for color management,
You should as we are speaking about printing pictures :)
Post by Anders Lund
I don't understand why using cups is a problem for dt, since other
applications use it without problems.
Maybe you are a lucky one with a perfect CUPS Gutenprint driver. But
this is very very rare and printing without color management with CUPS
is generally giving very bad (and yes I do mean very bad) results when
it comes to color rendered on paper.

And this is NOT only a GNU/Linux issue. I know nobody printing pictures
without a profile on Photoshop or Lightroom on Windows. Color
management is not an option when you want good quality. Now the
situation is a bit better on Windows where the drivers are more
neutral.

Best,
--
Pascal Obry / Magny Les Hameaux (78)

The best way to travel is by means of imagination

http://www.obry.net

gpg --keyserver keys.gnupg.net --recv-key F949BD3B
Ben Oliver
2018-09-12 19:57:28 UTC
Permalink
Post by Pascal Obry
Maybe you are a lucky one with a perfect CUPS Gutenprint driver. But
this is very very rare and printing without color management with CUPS
is generally giving very bad (and yes I do mean very bad) results when
it comes to color rendered on paper.
I must confess that these days I tend to just send stuff off to the
print shop...
Anders Lund
2018-09-12 20:23:13 UTC
Permalink
Post by Pascal Obry
Maybe you are a lucky one with a perfect CUPS Gutenprint driver. But
this is very very rare and printing without color management with CUPS
is generally giving very bad (and yes I do mean very bad) results when
it comes to color rendered on paper.
Manufacturer provided drivers of good quality is one of the reasons for
getting an Epson printer. :)
Pascal Obry
2018-09-12 20:40:28 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
Manufacturer provided drivers of good quality is one of the reasons for
getting an Epson printer. :)
Sadly if you are speaking about https://epson.com/Support/wa00821 then
Epson is not providing drivers for Stylus Pro 3880 on GNU/Linux for
example :) So they are not covering all printers, I don't really know
what is the status of those drivers BTW.

If you are not speaking about this Web site, then Epson is nowhere in
the loop, CUPS and Gutenprint are Open Source and fully indépendant
from Epson. And not a single paper manufacturer are providing ICC for
CUPS Linux drivers.

A sad story, but that's the current state of things!
--
Pascal Obry / Magny Les Hameaux (78)

The best way to travel is by means of imagination

http://www.obry.net

gpg --keyserver keys.gnupg.net --recv-key F949BD3B
Timur Irikovich Davletshin
2018-09-12 20:53:31 UTC
Permalink
Post by Pascal Obry
Sadly if you are speaking about https://epson.com/Support/wa00821 then
Epson is not providing drivers for Stylus Pro 3880 on GNU/Linux for
example :) So they are not covering all printers, I don't really know
what is the status of those drivers BTW.
If you are not speaking about this Web site, then Epson is nowhere in
the loop, CUPS and Gutenprint are Open Source and fully indépendant
from Epson. And not a single paper manufacturer are providing ICC for
CUPS Linux drivers.
A sad story, but that's the current state of things!
http://www.turboprint.info/printer_Epson_StylusPro3880.html — have you
tried it? I'm using Turboprint for ~3 years and I'm satisfied with it.

Timur.
Pascal Obry
2018-09-12 20:59:24 UTC
Permalink
Le mercredi 12 septembre 2018 à 23:53 +0300, Timur Irikovich
Post by Timur Irikovich Davletshin
http://www.turboprint.info/printer_Epson_StylusPro3880.html — have you
tried it? I'm using Turboprint for ~3 years and I'm satisfied with it.
Yes, that's what I'm using too. I was speaking about CUPS+Gutenprint in
my previous message.

As I said I have implemented the TurboPrint dialog in darktable as
that's what we have the best on GNU/Linux at this stage.

Best,
--
Pascal Obry / Magny Les Hameaux (78)

The best way to travel is by means of imagination

http://www.obry.net

gpg --keyserver keys.gnupg.net --recv-key F949BD3B
Robert Krawitz
2018-09-12 22:39:29 UTC
Permalink
Le mercredi 12 septembre 2018 =C3 23:53 +0300, Timur Irikovich
http://www.turboprint.info/printer_Epson_StylusPro3880.html =E2=80" have you
tried it? I'm using Turboprint for ~3 years and I'm satisfied with it.
Yes, that's what I'm using too. I was speaking about CUPS+Gutenprint in
my previous message.
As I said I have implemented the TurboPrint dialog in darktable as
that's what we have the best on GNU/Linux at this stage.
I would be happy to discuss what's needed to implement a Gutenprint
driver for Darktable.
--
Robert Krawitz <***@alum.mit.edu>

*** MIT Engineers A Proud Tradition http://mitathletics.com ***
Member of the League for Programming Freedom -- http://ProgFree.org
Project lead for Gutenprint -- http://gimp-print.sourceforge.net

"Linux doesn't dictate how I work, I dictate how Linux works."
--Eric Crampton
Pascal Obry
2018-09-13 05:45:39 UTC
Permalink
Post by Robert Krawitz
I would be happy to discuss what's needed to implement a Gutenprint
driver for Darktable.
There is a Gutenprint driver for GNU/Linux (this is not dt specific).
The issue is the color rendering and management not the driver itself.
You can print on almost any printer with CUPS+Gutenprint.

Now the color management is a VERY hard issue and not something we can
do ourself. As I said the paper manufacturer are providing ICC profile
for all theirs papers for Windows and Mac drivers, but not for
GNU/Linux one.

That's why TurboPrint is a good solution, they come with a driver and
color management with a good set of paper.

Hope this clarifies the situation, sorry if I was not clear before.

Best,
--
Pascal Obry / Magny Les Hameaux (78)

The best way to travel is by means of imagination

http://www.obry.net

gpg --keyserver keys.gnupg.net --recv-key F949BD3B
Michael Below
2018-09-13 06:27:22 UTC
Permalink
Hi,

I think the icc profiles could be collected in an online database like dt styles or film development recipes. Probably there will be a need for some quality feedback mechanisms, like user reviews or something, but to my impression there are a quite a number of people out there with profiling hardware that may share their icc profiles.

In my view, the issue is hardware support. E. G. Gutenprint supports only one printer in the current xp range of Epson photo printers. That is understandable, but in this instance turboprint has better support.

Cheers
Michael
Post by Pascal Obry
Post by Robert Krawitz
I would be happy to discuss what's needed to implement a Gutenprint
driver for Darktable.
There is a Gutenprint driver for GNU/Linux (this is not dt specific).
The issue is the color rendering and management not the driver itself.
You can print on almost any printer with CUPS+Gutenprint.
Now the color management is a VERY hard issue and not something we can
do ourself. As I said the paper manufacturer are providing ICC profile
for all theirs papers for Windows and Mac drivers, but not for
GNU/Linux one.
That's why TurboPrint is a good solution, they come with a driver and
color management with a good set of paper.
Hope this clarifies the situation, sorry if I was not clear before.
Best,
Anders Lund
2018-09-13 06:34:24 UTC
Permalink
Post by Pascal Obry
As I said the paper manufacturer are providing ICC profile
for all theirs papers for Windows and Mac drivers, but not for
GNU/Linux one.
Wouldn't those icc profiles be the same on linux systems?

Anders
Timur Irikovich Davletshin
2018-09-13 06:39:46 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
Wouldn't those icc profiles be the same on linux systems?
Anders
ICC profiles are driver and paper dependent, so I doubt.

Timur.
Pascal Obry
2018-09-13 07:02:07 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
Wouldn't those icc profiles be the same on linux systems?
No, and that's the whole issue. An ICC profile depends on the paper, the
printer and the driver. That's why the WIndows and Mac ICC are not the
same. And until the paper manufacturer see GNU/Linux as a market there is
no luck.
--
Pascal Obry / Magny Les Hameaux (78)

The best way to travel is by means of imagination

http://photos.obry.net
http://www.obry.net

gpg --keyserver keys.gnupg.net --recv-key F949BD3B
Robert Krawitz
2018-09-13 12:01:45 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
Post by Pascal Obry
As I said the paper manufacturer are providing ICC profile
for all theirs papers for Windows and Mac drivers, but not for
GNU/Linux one.
Wouldn't those icc profiles be the same on linux systems?
Not if the drivers differ.
--
Robert Krawitz <***@alum.mit.edu>

*** MIT Engineers A Proud Tradition http://mitathletics.com ***
Member of the League for Programming Freedom -- http://ProgFree.org
Project lead for Gutenprint -- http://gimp-print.sourceforge.net

"Linux doesn't dictate how I work, I dictate how Linux works."
--Eric Crampton
Timur Irikovich Davletshin
2018-09-12 20:46:19 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
Manufacturer provided drivers of good quality is one of the reasons
for 
getting an Epson printer. :)
Linux drivers from Epson have mediocre quality often with lower
resolution and no advanced features like color management. Works for
office job, but this is not why we buy Epson printers...

Timur.
Anders Lund
2018-09-13 05:42:04 UTC
Permalink
Post by Timur Irikovich Davletshin
Post by Anders Lund
Manufacturer provided drivers of good quality is one of the reasons for
getting an Epson printer. :)
Linux drivers from Epson have mediocre quality often with lower
resolution and no advanced features like color management. Works for
office job, but this is not why we buy Epson printers...
Timur.
I'll be trying out turboprint, then :)
Timur Irikovich Davletshin
2018-09-13 06:09:58 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
I'll be trying out turboprint, then :)
My older Epson was lucky to have native Linux driver (P50) and that was
a very sad story. AFAIR, it was not actually developed by Epson but
rather subcontractor hired by Epson. It lacked ICC color management,
just paper presets (sure, only for Epson paper), maximum resolution
(available in Windows) was not available and many other marketing
limitations. Though it was capable of decent quality but was never
satisfied with it. Sure, you better try it yourself. If you print more
than 50-100 picture a year it totally worth it, IMO.

Timur.
Anders Lund
2018-09-13 06:31:02 UTC
Permalink
Post by Timur Irikovich Davletshin
Post by Anders Lund
I'll be trying out turboprint, then :)
My older Epson was lucky to have native Linux driver (P50) and that was
a very sad story. AFAIR, it was not actually developed by Epson but
rather subcontractor hired by Epson. It lacked ICC color management,
just paper presets (sure, only for Epson paper), maximum resolution
(available in Windows) was not available and many other marketing
limitations. Though it was capable of decent quality but was never
satisfied with it. Sure, you better try it yourself. If you print more
than 50-100 picture a year it totally worth it, IMO.
AFAICT the epson inkjet driver for my printer is on par with the windows one.
No feature mentioned in the printer documentation is missing, although an
extra application is required for checking ink levels, and initiating cleaning
and nozzle check from the PC. icc support is not available in windows/mac
drivers either, but that is of course a problem if using non-epson papers and/
or inks. However, it does produce nice prints, to my limited understanding.

Anders
Timur Irikovich Davletshin
2018-09-13 06:37:42 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
AFAICT the epson inkjet driver for my printer is on par with the
windows one. 
No feature mentioned in the printer documentation is missing,
although an 
extra application is required for checking ink levels, and initiating
cleaning 
and nozzle check from the PC. icc support is not available in
windows/mac 
drivers either, but that is of course a problem if using non-epson papers and/
or inks. However, it does produce nice prints, to my limited
understanding.
Anders
Then I wonder how you used Photo RGB and Adobe RGB, official drivers
for consumer printers are sRGB calibrated by default and Adobe RGB
option is available only for selected models. Sure it will print
something, but I doubt that color reproduction will be right.

Timur.
Anders Lund
2018-09-13 09:26:27 UTC
Permalink
Post by Timur Irikovich Davletshin
Then I wonder how you used Photo RGB and Adobe RGB, official drivers
for consumer printers are sRGB calibrated by default and Adobe RGB
option is available only for selected models. Sure it will print
something, but I doubt that color reproduction will be right.
My current workflow is exporting from dt. I set the output profile to adobeRGB
or ProPhotoRGB colorspace. There is visible difference in the result.

Kindly,
Anders
Timur Irikovich Davletshin
2018-09-13 10:30:12 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
My current workflow is exporting from dt. I set the output profile to
adobeRGB 
or ProPhotoRGB colorspace. There is visible difference in the result.
Kindly,
Anders
Problem is that (as far as I understand) prorpietary Epson driver
expects printed picture to come in sRGB (unless you are lucky to have
AdobeRGB option in you driver) and if you feed it with AdobeRGB it will
give nothing but a bit desaturated colors. With ProPhoto RGB effect
probably will be more pronounced. Maybe you will find this effect more
pleasing (let's say more "natural" colors), but it has nothing todo
with correct reproduction.

Timur.
Anders Lund
2018-09-13 10:50:00 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
I'll be trying out turboprint, then :)
So I installed Turboprint, and got the daemon running. I can now select a
turboprint version of my epson printer in dt.

Turboprint does not provide a paperclass for my semigloss paper, they suggest
glossy, but recommends a specific profile, that they will sell (which is fine,
when I get decide on some media to work on).

Bu I still do not get to configure printer settings, like quality and optional
borderless printing in digikam, I have to do it in the turboprint ui.
Something to check for each print or set of prints. It would be nice if the
settings dialog were displayed by dt prior to actually printing. Another
benefit of this would be the preview the dialog provides, it would for example
show the nagware logo.

This setup apparently does not provide any means for controlling crop, but my
2:3 photos needs to be cropped to actually fille a DIN A4 paper, so to produce
a print filling the paper, I first need to use the crop and rotate module.
Given a margin, this would require math skills applied and a custom crop, so
it would be nice if the print view could provide a cropping tool.

Turbo

So I did this:
Selected a photo for printing
Crop to DINA aspect for printing on A4
Margins set to 0
An additional style selected, append mode.
Enabled borderless in Turboprint control for the printer
Selected "Glossy" paper type in turboprint control.
Selected high quality in the turboprint control.

I printed on a Epson premium semigloss paper.

Result:
Turboprint is faster than the epson driver printing in "Photo Best" quality.
Very nice quality print, good, clear colors and no problems with ink :-)
Style was not applied. (I use style in a similar way in export presets, for
example for adding watermarks, there it works.)
A BIG, UGLY turboprint logo on the print, even their docs says it will appear
AFTER the 30 day free trial period, only if you don't buy a licence. I
installed from aur (archlinux user repository), which may differ from the
trial package one can download from turboprint.info.

Conclusion:
I'd really like to try printing without the nagware logo before buying a
licence, althoug the price isn't a problem.

Good support in dt is missing, as in the printing options are not made
available prior to printing. It is really not better than using the epson cups
driver in this respect. Not sure about the quality yet.

Kindly,
Anders
Timur Irikovich Davletshin
2018-09-13 10:56:35 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
Post by Anders Lund
I'll be trying out turboprint, then :)
So I installed Turboprint, and got the daemon running. I can now
select a 
turboprint version of my epson printer in dt.
Turboprint does not provide a paperclass for my semigloss paper, they
suggest 
glossy, but recommends a specific profile, that they will sell (which
is fine, 
when I get decide on some media to work on).
Bu I still do not get to configure printer settings, like quality and
optional 
borderless printing in digikam, I have to do it in the turboprint
ui. 
Something to check for each print or set of prints. It would be nice
if the 
settings dialog were displayed by dt prior to actually printing.
Another 
benefit of this would be the preview the dialog provides, it would
for example 
show the nagware logo.
This setup apparently does not provide any means for controlling
crop, but my 
2:3 photos needs to be cropped to actually fille a DIN A4 paper, so
to produce 
a print filling the paper, I first need to use the crop and rotate
module. 
Given a margin, this would require math skills applied and a custom
crop, so 
it would be nice if the print view could provide a cropping tool.
Turbo
So I did this: 
Selected a photo for printing
Crop to DINA aspect for printing on A4
Margins set to 0
An additional style selected, append mode.
Enabled borderless in Turboprint control for the printer
Selected "Glossy" paper type in turboprint control.
Selected high quality in the turboprint control.
I printed on a Epson premium semigloss paper.
Turboprint is faster than the epson driver printing in "Photo Best" 
quality.
Very nice quality print, good, clear colors and no problems with
ink  :-)
Style was not applied. (I use style in a similar way in export
presets, for 
example for adding watermarks, there it works.)
A BIG, UGLY turboprint logo on the print, even their docs says it
will appear 
AFTER the 30 day free trial period, only if you don't buy a licence.

installed from aur (archlinux user repository), which may differ from
the 
trial package one can download from turboprint.info.
I'd really like to try printing without the nagware logo before
buying a 
licence, althoug the price isn't a problem.
Good support in dt is missing, as in the printing options are not
made 
available prior to printing. It is really not better than using the
epson cups 
driver in this respect. Not sure about the quality yet. 
Kindly,
Anders
It does provide things you mentioned via TurboPrint Control panel or
via standard https://localhost:631/admin/ web interface.

Timur.
Anders Lund
2018-09-13 11:08:03 UTC
Permalink
Post by Timur Irikovich Davletshin
It does provide things you mentioned via TurboPrint Control panel or
via standard https://localhost:631/admin/ web interface.
Yes, the control center ot monitor is what I use. I just have to try and
remember each time :)

Kindly,
Anders
Timur Irikovich Davletshin
2018-09-13 11:01:28 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
Post by Anders Lund
I'll be trying out turboprint, then :)
So I installed Turboprint, and got the daemon running. I can now
select a 
turboprint version of my epson printer in dt.
Turboprint does not provide a paperclass for my semigloss paper, they
suggest 
glossy, but recommends a specific profile, that they will sell (which
is fine, 
when I get decide on some media to work on).
Bu I still do not get to configure printer settings, like quality and
optional 
borderless printing in digikam, I have to do it in the turboprint
ui. 
Something to check for each print or set of prints. It would be nice
if the 
settings dialog were displayed by dt prior to actually printing.
Another 
benefit of this would be the preview the dialog provides, it would
for example 
show the nagware logo.
This setup apparently does not provide any means for controlling
crop, but my 
2:3 photos needs to be cropped to actually fille a DIN A4 paper, so
to produce 
a print filling the paper, I first need to use the crop and rotate
module. 
Given a margin, this would require math skills applied and a custom
crop, so 
it would be nice if the print view could provide a cropping tool.
Turbo
So I did this: 
Selected a photo for printing
Crop to DINA aspect for printing on A4
Margins set to 0
An additional style selected, append mode.
Enabled borderless in Turboprint control for the printer
Selected "Glossy" paper type in turboprint control.
Selected high quality in the turboprint control.
I printed on a Epson premium semigloss paper.
Turboprint is faster than the epson driver printing in "Photo Best" 
quality.
Very nice quality print, good, clear colors and no problems with
ink  :-)
Style was not applied. (I use style in a similar way in export
presets, for 
example for adding watermarks, there it works.)
A BIG, UGLY turboprint logo on the print, even their docs says it
will appear 
AFTER the 30 day free trial period, only if you don't buy a licence.
I 
installed from aur (archlinux user repository), which may differ from
the 
trial package one can download from turboprint.info.
I'd really like to try printing without the nagware logo before
buying a 
licence, althoug the price isn't a problem.
Good support in dt is missing, as in the printing options are not
made 
available prior to printing. It is really not better than using the
epson cups 
driver in this respect. Not sure about the quality yet. 
Kindly,
Anders
 
_____________________________________________________________________
_______
darktable user mailing list
ble.org
TurboPrint comes with nice Gimp plugin (File → TurboPrint). All options
are available there.

Timur.
Anders Lund
2018-09-13 11:06:47 UTC
Permalink
TurboPrint comes with nice Gimp plugin (File → TurboPrint). All options
are available there.
I appreciate that, but I haven't even GIMP installed here. :)

Kindly,
Anders
Pascal Obry
2018-09-13 11:38:12 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
Bu I still do not get to configure printer settings, like quality and optional
borderless printing...
Ah indeed, I have done this early 2018 and the work was merged on 2018 Jan
10th.

So starting with next major release (2.6) you'll see the TurboPrint dialog.

Best,
--
Pascal Obry / Magny Les Hameaux (78)

The best way to travel is by means of imagination

http://photos.obry.net
http://www.obry.net

gpg --keyserver keys.gnupg.net --recv-key F949BD3B
Anders Lund
2018-09-13 12:06:22 UTC
Permalink
Post by Pascal Obry
Post by Anders Lund
Bu I still do not get to configure printer settings, like quality and optional
borderless printing...
Ah indeed, I have done this early 2018 and the work was merged on 2018 Jan
10th.
So starting with next major release (2.6) you'll see the TurboPrint dialog.
That sounds very good, I'll look forward to that! :)

---
Kindly,
Anders
Robert Krawitz
2018-09-13 12:31:03 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
Post by Pascal Obry
Post by Anders Lund
Bu I still do not get to configure printer settings, like quality and optional
borderless printing...
Ah indeed, I have done this early 2018 and the work was merged on 2018 Jan
10th.
So starting with next major release (2.6) you'll see the TurboPrint dialog.
That sounds very good, I'll look forward to that! :)
So what's the solution for people who don't want to purchase
TurboPrint?
--
Robert Krawitz <***@alum.mit.edu>

*** MIT Engineers A Proud Tradition http://mitathletics.com ***
Member of the League for Programming Freedom -- http://ProgFree.org
Project lead for Gutenprint -- http://gimp-print.sourceforge.net

"Linux doesn't dictate how I work, I dictate how Linux works."
--Eric Crampton
Pascal Obry
2018-09-13 12:43:33 UTC
Permalink
Post by Robert Krawitz
So what's the solution for people who don't want to purchase
TurboPrint?
As already explained here : none less costly

Or just print as-is but don't expect exhibition like quality.

You may also want to create your own profile:
https://encrypted.pcode.nl/blog/2018/06/18/practical-printer-profiling-with-gutenprint/

I had done so, and wrote also so article about this. But at some point the
rendering was broken and I didn't have the energy to recreate for the 3rd
time my profiles. Also not the energy to create a profile for all my
papers. At the end of the day TurboPrint is far less costly and works very
nicely.
--
Pascal Obry / Magny Les Hameaux (78)

The best way to travel is by means of imagination

http://photos.obry.net
http://www.obry.net

gpg --keyserver keys.gnupg.net --recv-key F949BD3B
Remco Viëtor
2018-09-13 13:28:33 UTC
Permalink
Post by Robert Krawitz
Post by Anders Lund
Post by Pascal Obry
Post by Anders Lund
Bu I still do not get to configure printer settings, like quality and optional
borderless printing...
Ah indeed, I have done this early 2018 and the work was merged on 2018 Jan
10th.
So starting with next major release (2.6) you'll see the TurboPrint dialog.
That sounds very good, I'll look forward to that! :)
So what's the solution for people who don't want to purchase
TurboPrint?
And it sounds like a good print shop is the best solution for "occasional"
prints (not cheap, but neither is printing for yourself, apparently)

Remco.
Michael Below
2018-09-13 13:43:05 UTC
Permalink
Definitely true, but printing by yourself offers more choice of paper and a quicker processing of test prints.
Post by Anders Lund
Post by Robert Krawitz
Post by Anders Lund
Post by Pascal Obry
Post by Anders Lund
Bu I still do not get to configure printer settings, like
quality and
Post by Robert Krawitz
Post by Anders Lund
Post by Pascal Obry
Post by Anders Lund
optional
borderless printing...
Ah indeed, I have done this early 2018 and the work was merged on
2018
Post by Robert Krawitz
Post by Anders Lund
Post by Pascal Obry
Jan
10th.
So starting with next major release (2.6) you'll see the
TurboPrint
Post by Robert Krawitz
Post by Anders Lund
Post by Pascal Obry
dialog.
That sounds very good, I'll look forward to that! :)
So what's the solution for people who don't want to purchase
TurboPrint?
And it sounds like a good print shop is the best solution for
"occasional"
prints (not cheap, but neither is printing for yourself, apparently)
Remco.
____________________________________________________________________________
darktable user mailing list
to unsubscribe send a mail to
Anders Lund
2018-09-13 14:50:32 UTC
Permalink
Post by Remco Viëtor
And it sounds like a good print shop is the best solution for "occasional"
prints (not cheap, but neither is printing for yourself, apparently)
If you can get the settings right, printing for yourself is cheaper, I
believe. Plus it is instant, and more versatile.

Kindly,
Anders
Anders Lund
2018-09-13 14:27:39 UTC
Permalink
Post by Timur Irikovich Davletshin
Post by Anders Lund
Manufacturer provided drivers of good quality is one of the reasons for
getting an Epson printer. :)
Linux drivers from Epson have mediocre quality often with lower
resolution and no advanced features like color management. Works for
office job, but this is not why we buy Epson printers...
http://nc.alweb.dk/index.php/s/WEI1JVN4Af7lfnm

Here is a (mobile) photo of two prints of the same image, the turboprint
result on the right have a grenish tint, compared the the result of the epson
driver. Of cause this may be fixed by fiddeling with the color controls in the
turboprint driver settings, but it does not appear an easy task! Alternative
could be to buy a profile from zedonet. The turboprint print also have better
contrast in the shadows (the trees in the background, the wawes and dark
clothing)

Both prints are printed on epson semigloss paper in best quality (as provided
by each driver).

The epson driver print looks much more like what is on my screen, and both the
exported jpeg (srgb) and the digikam darkroom and print view display of the
photo.

I did a test more, trying to compensate for the green tint on the turboprint
print, with some degree of succes. However, I can't seem to get it to print
borderless from dt. This is a key issue for me, does that work for you out
there?

Kindly,
Anders
Timur Irikovich Davletshin
2018-09-13 14:39:52 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
Post by Timur Irikovich Davletshin
Post by Anders Lund
Manufacturer provided drivers of good quality is one of the reasons
for 
getting an Epson printer. :)
Linux drivers from Epson have mediocre quality often with lower
resolution and no advanced features like color management. Works for
office job, but this is not why we buy Epson printers...
http://nc.alweb.dk/index.php/s/WEI1JVN4Af7lfnm
Here is a (mobile) photo of two prints of the same image, the
turboprint 
result on the right have a grenish tint, compared the the  result of
the epson 
driver. Of cause this may be fixed by fiddeling with the color
controls in the 
turboprint driver settings, but it does not appear an easy task!
Alternative 
could be to buy a profile from zedonet. The turboprint print also
have better 
contrast in the shadows (the trees in the background, the wawes and
dark 
clothing)
Both prints are printed on epson semigloss paper in best quality (as
provided 
by each driver).
The epson driver print looks much more like what is on my screen, and
both the 
exported jpeg (srgb) and the digikam darkroom and print view display
of the 
photo.
I did a test more, trying to compensate for the green tint on the
turboprint 
print, with some degree of succes. However, I can't seem to get it to
print 
borderless from dt. This is a key issue for me, does that work for
you out 
there?
Kindly,
Anders
I know nothing about printing from dt, I just don't use it. Regarding
your green tint problem: it would be nice to see original digital
picture for fair judgement. Comparing display with prints gives little
information if your display is not color calibrated. In my case the
only thing I play with is brightness — I increase it a bit for pictures
with lots of dark shades before printing.

Timur.
Anders Lund
2018-09-13 14:52:22 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
However, I can't seem to get it to print
borderless from dt. This is a key issue for me, does that work for you out
there?
Not from withing digikam either. :\
Timur Irikovich Davletshin
2018-09-13 15:16:51 UTC
Permalink
 However, I can't seem to get it to print
borderless from dt. This is a key issue for me, does that work for you out
there?
Not from withing digikam either.  :\
Have you tried to set "borderless" in driver settings (e.g via link I
sent before) before printing?

Timur.
Anders Lund
2018-09-13 15:37:36 UTC
Permalink
Post by Timur Irikovich Davletshin
Post by Anders Lund
Post by Anders Lund
However, I can't seem to get it to print
borderless from dt. This is a key issue for me, does that work for you out
there?
Not from withing digikam either. :\
Have you tried to set "borderless" in driver settings (e.g via link I
sent before) before printing?
Timur.
Yes. In the turboprint control, in the layout tab, A4 is selected and
Borderless checkbox checked. This is also displayed as expected in the printer
properties dialog in digikam print creator, as the page size is shown as "A4
Borderless". Judging from the docs, this is how it works in tp, if you want to
create a custom page size, you have to decide if it is for borderless or not.

I wrote zedonet and asked if this is a nagware issue, because actually I'm in
doubt, but no answer so far.

---
Kindly,
Anders
Timur Irikovich Davletshin
2018-09-13 15:49:41 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
Post by Timur Irikovich Davletshin
 However, I can't seem to get it to print
borderless from dt. This is a key issue for me, does that work
for
you out
there?
Not from withing digikam either.  :\
Have you tried to set "borderless" in driver settings (e.g via link I
sent before) before printing?
Timur.
Yes. In the turboprint control, in the layout tab, A4 is selected
and 
Borderless checkbox checked. This is also displayed as expected in
the printer 
properties dialog in digikam print creator, as the page size is shown
as "A4 
Borderless". Judging from the docs, this is how it works in tp, if
you want to 
create a custom page size, you have to decide if it is for borderless or not.
I wrote zedonet and asked if this is a nagware issue, because
actually I'm in 
doubt, but no answer so far.
---
Kindly,
Anders
Never tried custom paper sizes, but regular sizes works for me. Just
double checked both border and borderless modes from Gimp Turboprint
plugin (version 2.46).

Timur.

Anders Lund
2018-09-12 08:49:55 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
Hello,
[...]
Post by Anders Lund
Anyone knows if this part of dt is being worked on?
A good reason for working on this: Printing from digikam, without having to
export a jpg first, yelds significantly better results here, when exporting
sRGB jpeg. Colors are simply not as good after the jpeg step.

I'm yet to try exporting using adobeRGB and/or prophoto colorspaces, which may
help a bit.

Kindly,
Anders
Anders Lund
2018-09-12 09:39:57 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
Post by Anders Lund
Hello,
[...]
Post by Anders Lund
Anyone knows if this part of dt is being worked on?
A good reason for working on this: Printing from digikam, without having to
export a jpg first, yelds significantly better results here, when exporting
sRGB jpeg. Colors are simply not as good after the jpeg step.
I'm yet to try exporting using adobeRGB and/or prophoto colorspaces, which
may help a bit.
Now tried, and there is a huge difference. As expected, ProPhotoRGB > AdobeRGB
Post by Anders Lund
sRGB, and that is clearly visible in the prints, while on my laptop display
(very poor) the difference is very small. Probably, exporting to high quality
tiff or png is also better than using jpeg.

If you have digikam installed, you can
cp /usr/share/digikam/profiles/prophoto.icm ~/.config/darktable/color/out/
and restart dt to use the ProPhotoRGB colorspace in the color/output color
profile module. (you probably need to create ~/.config/darktable/color/out
first).
The similar paths for windows/mac are unknown to me.

Kindly,
Anders
Timur Irikovich Davletshin
2018-09-12 09:41:37 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
A good reason for working on this: Printing from digikam, without
having to 
export a jpg first, yelds significantly better results here, when
exporting 
sRGB jpeg. Colors are simply not as good after the jpeg step. 
I'm yet to try exporting using adobeRGB and/or prophoto colorspaces,
which may 
help a bit.
Kindly,
Anders
In my own opinion Adobe RGB give much better results regardless bit
depth of file (8 or 16 bit). Exporting to TIFF is not a problem in dt.
Difference between JPG and TIFF (both in Adobe RGB, 8 bit) is
negligible on small formats like A4-A3. But you better make your own
tests with something like this — https://drive.google.com/open?id=1wXnh
8dNmtzbPylFD5Ezjcv4uQ_aBP0LH

Timur.
Anton Aylward
2018-09-12 14:08:56 UTC
Permalink
Post by Anders Lund
Hello,
I just tried the printing functionality in dt.
I tried it some while ago and was both impressed (with the work that had been
done) and frustrated )in that it seemed to suffer from tunnel vision).
Post by Anders Lund
First, I did not get presented with printer settings,
I did, and that was the problem.
I have a B&W laser; a very nice one, but it is B&W.

If I want colour I have to ship the images off to one of the on-line services.
This isn't too bad. I can make custom seasonal greeting cards that way for
around $0.15 each, which is actually better than store bought ones. (perhaps
they have to recover the cost of copyright on the tacky image and the tacky
verse inside whereas I can supply my own tacky image and my own tacky verse.)

The downside is that these services are hung up on traditional sizes that photo
shops have been dealing with for more than a century now, and that doesn't quite
correspond to the size of the images that I generate. But the DT print module
does supply those constraints :-)

I have an inkjet printer in the basement, a discard. I found it was more
trouble than it was worth for the use I made of it. I don't need colour
printing in my day to day work flow, only occasionally, and then in batches, and
that type of printer is not suited to batches. That's why I use the print
services. A fast (aka laser) colour printer is beyond my budget.

So my problem is that while the DT print tool is very nice, it outputs to the
printer and not a JPG or TIFF that I can send off to the print service.
I have to work out the rations by hand and do a regular export.

Or is there an export function in the print module that I missed?
--
The obvious mathematical breakthrough would be development of an easy
way to factor large prime numbers. -- Bill Gates, _The Road Ahead_
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