Re: RFC: Definitions of Workgroup, Enterprise, and Production Printers

Michael Sweet via ipp <[email protected]> Mon, 17 Jan 2022 09:32:58 -0500
Newsgroups	gmane.ietf.ipp
Message-ID	<[email protected]>
Bill, thanks.  Responses inline below...

> On Jan 15, 2022, at 3:24 PM, William Wagner <[email protected]> wrote:
> 
> Thank you Mike. I have a few comments/questions.
> 	• I suggest adding ‘hardcopy” to “output” in all cases, just so it is clear what is being output.

Agreed.

> 	• It has, I believe, been  the position that “Printer” refers to a service and not necessarily an output device, and may not even include a output device (although this may not be consistent with  common usage.) Here, the definitions clearly define these printers as output devices (i.e.., excluding ‘logical’ printers?) And  is this likely to cause confusion?

We already have:

    Output Device: a single Logical or Physical Device

but I can reword to specify "Logical or Physical Device" if you think it will help.

> 	• I tend to think of a workgroup printer as being in a work environment and serving a group of people. What would one call my printer at home? Or the printers attached to specific workstations (e.g., receptionists) or printers in medical exam rooms (used for prescriptions, or information on problems for parents.

I went with the notion that any small (SOHO) network printer is a "workgroup" printer, but we could add a separate category for printers that are exclusively marketed as home printers.  Or we could use the SOHO acronym to clarify what we mean by workgroup?

> 	• For  Workgroup printer and Production , the type of hardcopy output is listed. For  Enterprise Printer, a group  of ancillary services are listed. It might be desirable to list the types of primary hardcopy outputs and then indicate the other support services.

After thinking about it, I'm wondering if I should just pull the type of hardcopy output from the Workgroup Printer - only production is focused on a particular kind/volume of output while the others handle "regular" output.

> 	• I think  we should distinguish between a Production Printer and what I would  call a printing press. (I go back to printing reports on an offset press using typed mats for plates) But perhaps  the definition is intended to include high volume newspaper and magazine presses? I though we were more concerned with “light’ production printing.

Most of the current definition comes from the introduction to PPX, which in turn came from the original (5100.3).  I'm not aware of any printing presses that support IPP, but as long as you can send a digital document to the press and get output there is no reason why it couldn't use IPP.  At the same time I don't want to cause undue confusion...

If you have suggestions for how to clarify this definition, I'm open to them.

________________________
Michael Sweet

_______________________________________________
ipp mailing list
[email protected]
https://www.pwg.org/mailman/listinfo/ipp
signature.asc (application/pgp-signature, 833 B)