No, the default printer is set up in Windows.
Bob
Thanks Bob…that answers that. I still think it would be a good idea to allow the user to direct PS to a special photo printer…makes sense to me. Oh well, life will go on.
There are several free utilities that run in the system tray (Next to the time) that allow you to quickly change the default printer without having to go into the printer settings each time.
start> settings> printers. right click. select default. OR just select the printer from the print dialog. why would anyone want to run another memory hogging hack to save 4 seconds once a week? If you do it more than that it SHOULD be set as default.
dave, two of us use the computer, but only one uses PS. The printer for PS isn’t the one she uses, so I thought that the tray icon could be helpful.
Didn’t mean to offend your sensibilities! 😉
Dave,
I keep my tray apps to a minimum and don’t use a print changer. However most of our users at work have print changers. We use multi tray printers with different paper in each tray. We find it is easier to configure each tray as a different printer. Some users change which tray they print more than a hundred times a day. Sometimes it is well worth the resource overhead especially when it is well written 30K program that doesn’t even need an installer.
Lawrence,
This isn’t the one we use but it looks like a good one. They also have a Pro version if you want shortcut keys and a few more perks.
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http://www.usysware.com/wprinter.htm>
I’ve never tried and I’m not where I can try out the idea, but is the Print command actionable? Also, would creating an action with the desired printer actually specify the printer in the details of the action’s step? If so, then perhaps that would provide a viable solution. I suspect it would still remain desirable to have the Print dialog displayed during execution of the action. However, I’m betting that once the print dialog is open, the selected options are more governed by the printer driver than by Photshop, and they probably aren’t saved in the action. Still, it might be worth exploring.
Daryl
Right, Daryl. Actions only go so far in Print, not far enough to be viable.
Didn’t mean to offend your sensibilities!
moi? naw. maybe that came out harsher than I meant it. sorry! 🙂
ok larry, here’s another solution. you have 2k right? you have 2 users right? simply set up another user. easy peasy lemon squeezy. each user assigns his or her favorite printer as default. (if you had xp, you could do fast user switching and you wouldn’t even have to "log-off" when you get up and she sits down and versa-vicey!)
Dave,
You don’t want to use the resources it takes for a small tray app, but you would suggest XP user switching 🙂
Sorry Dave I just had to give you a hard time.
Another option would be to write a small app that switches to your printer of choice then opens Photoshop.
Photo Help: Dave has it right, that’s what the user settings are for and with XP it takes all of five seconds to switch users. Why waste time writing an app when this can be accomplished so easily.
You’re just jealous of his new computer.
ID,
It takes seconds because it keeps both users memory resident. Lets compare 30K app (Faster and easier than logging off) vs. 40 MB+ user settings hanging in memory. Hmmm… your right it is a tough call 🙂
I think user profiles are fine if used correctly. If applications are left open and the system is always on I have to disagree with user switching. It is designed for home use where small files and applications may be left open, but when you are using a program like Photoshop that needs all the memory and processor cycles it can get the story is much different.
You’re just jealous of his new computer.
LOL. Good one ID. 🙂
the trade off problem is why I don’t use fast user switching. but then I’m not looking to share my system… : )
besides, you’re just jealous of my new system! 🙂
What I came up with is to assign the PS preference as the default, and teach my SO to remember to switch printers. No log on, off or app writings, nothing more in the system tray. You can pick the printer on the way to print. One extra mouse click.
Lawrence,
That would be the preferred way to do it. The reason we needed to install print changers for our users is that we have apps that always print to the default printer and give no option to change.
Dave,
Nope, not jealous, I just got a new one at work about 2 weeks ago too. What kind of system did you get\build?
I thought I would give the Dell 360 Precision workstation a try. We usually use Dimensions but I wanted to see how well the workstations performed. It is only 2.26 Ghz with 1GB DDR memory, but I think it should do well for what I use it for at work.
Nope, not jealous, I just got a new one at work about 2 weeks ago too. What kind of system did you get\build?
heh. seems to be a running joke. i was just playing along. I got a barebones system from googlegear. p4 2.8 hyperthreaded. intel d865perl mobo w/800mhz fsb (actually it’s quad parallel 200mhz busses). 1 gig (2-512’s) pc3200 400mhz ram. 160 gig seagate serial ata. added an ati aiw 9700 pro 8x agp after that. it’s very sweet. thanks for asking! 🙂
