HP DesignJet 488CA
NDPS Name: \\ae\plotter.elec.ae
Location: EM405
Due to the high cost of printing on this plotter and potential for costly resources to be wasted if not used correctly, access to the plotter is granted only as required. A few guidelines and tips in how to use the plotter are listed below.
Firstly, while the physical printer should normally be loaded up with the roll ready to print, in the event that the paper is not loaded correctly, the correct procedure is included here. Loading the paper can be a little tricky and the plotter is particularly fussy about the alignment of the paper. While you can always put in a support request, you may be able to save some time if you can fix some simple problems yourself, particularly in that rare instance when you want to print late at night the evening you need the print for a presentation.
- First check paper type is set correctly
- In the event that the paper is merely load loaded and has clean cut:
- Insert roll - lower paper release to push in far enough, align with holes, raise release, press load paper button
- If the paper not aligned correctly as indicated by light:
- Lift cover - lower paper release - align with holes - raise release - put cover back
- If paper is not loaded and does not have a clean edge:
- Lift cover -Insert roll - lower paper release and push paper right through - lift paper guides and push paper under and pull out to meet roll- align with holes, raise release, lower cover press load paper button
- Note ensure printer is on before trying to load paper, otherwise it will just spit the paper back out when you turn it on.
Printing from PC:
To print from PC, you must have the printer set up on your PC. The Printer is called bigplot.elec.ae.
Ensure you check ALL the printer properties before printing.
Ones to Note:
Application page size - sets the window that will be printed - if you specify the wrong size it will only print part of the page or print a lot of white. If you have this set to small, but use scaling, you could end up scaling part of the image to use a full A0 sheet!
Sizes A1 = landscape full width A0= portrait full width.
Paper type - only change if paper is changed
Quality - select according to requirement
Auto-rotate and "inked area" should normally be left checked to save paper.
Sharpen Lines, this you may want to change if you are printing images
Do not disable auto cutter
Unix printing
Only does postscript -not text
Before actually printing, check that the quality setting light is as you wish on actual printer.
The actual command is lwbigplot filename.ps
Ensure that there is enough space in the /tmp directory for the system you will be printing on (ie df -lk gives /tmp space >> size of your file)
Cancelling
First cancel the job where it was printed, then press cancel on plotter
The computer support group are available to assist you should you require it, but hopefully this will help you in making the most of this resource.