IPDS is a printer protocol that harkens back to the day when printer memory and printer intelligence were very expensive. Intelligent Printer Data Stream was a protocol for computers to talk to "intelligent" printers, as opposed to "stupid" printers that were prevalent at the time IPDS was invented. Any more any cheap printer comes with far more intelligence and memory than the intelligent printers of those times. MO:DCA and IPDS are IBM's equivalent of HP's PCL and PJL.
IPDS is a very busy protocol with lots of messages going back and forth from the printer to the computer. For instance, if a printer discovers that it doesn't have a font described in the print text it just received, it will request the host download the font. Most printers nowadays are loaded up with scalable fonts and never need a download. If the printer jams, it will notify the host so the host can display the fault and restart if necessary. Modern printer control protocols do the same thing.
You can do very well these days using Host Print Transform (HPT) to transform your AFP spool files into whatever page description language your printer supports and then use IPP (Internet Print Protocol) to get the stream to the printer. Besides IPP, i5OS supports PJL, SNMP and several other common printer control protocols. All these protocols support page fault detection and restart.
If you're using one of IBM's mammoth print factories that do page insertion and envelope stuffing, you may still need IPDS. Otherwise, I'd look to replace IPDS with a more minimal protocol.
-----Original Message-----
From: midrange-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:midrange-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Sam_L
Sent: Monday, August 20, 2012 8:17 PM
To: midrange-l@xxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: InfoPrint IPDS Alternatives
We have a lot of InfoPrint IPDS laser printers of various models, large and small. We have smaller models in the warehouse and in the manufacturing building. We have some bigger ones as departmental printer, shared with Windows printing. All are TCP/IP attached; no twinax.
They have been very reliable workhorses but some are now over 10 years old and we are thinking about replacements.
Hardware is not my expertise and I have inherited the responsibility, so I could use a little help...
- Are there any IPDS printers that are replacements for InfoPrints [IBM/Lexmark doesn't seem to make them any more as far as I can tell from Google.]
- Why do I need IPDS and what does it buy me?
[We print a few overlay forms (e.g., Invoices, though most are EDI these
days) and we print some barcodes on internal picking documents. Most of our barcoded labels are done on Zebras driven by TL Ashford software thru remote OUTQs.]
Any input appreciated.
Thanks,
Sam
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