If you upgrade the memory in a HP 1100 laserjet then do you HAVE to
tell each computer using it on the network?  On the windows machines
there is a setting in the driver properties to specify the installed
memory on the printer; if this is not set will the new memory not be
used?  On some unix machines I really do not have a way to change any
settings; will the extra memory be taken advantage of?

You do need to change the windows printer driver to recognize the new
memory.  Here is a link to Microsofts comments on doing this.

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/home/using/productdoc/en/default.asp?url=/windowsxp/home/using/productdoc/en/print_pdevice_memory.asp

####################################################
Your printer has memory chips for storing information that is sent to
it. When you install a printer, Windows reads the amount of printer
memory so the printer and Windows work properly together. When you
install additional memory into your printer, you need to change the
printer memory setting in Windows so that the two match. If Windows is
set to expect more or less memory than actually resides in your
printer, Windows may display a memory message.
####################################################

If you are using a Windows server that is sharing the printer with the
clients then you would only need to change it on the server's share. 
If each workstation is printing directly across the network to printer
then you will need to make this change on each workstation.

Windows print jobs will not utilize the expanded memory (on purpose)
without doing this.  If you print large jobs and experience pauses
between printing pages this should help.  If you are adding memory
because you were experiencing problems, then adding the memory may
cause the problems to stop, but Windows still isn't utilizing the
memory fully.

Unix printing shouldn't need the expanded memory in the first place. 
If there is a print job that large from Unix it will use the expanded
memory.  If it didn't know how much memory there was to start with,
before you expanded it, then it shouldn't care now that you have added
more.

Happy Printing!

---

Request for Answer Clarification by zilla1126-ga on 31 Mar 2005 08:32 PST

I guess my primary question should have been for linux printing; any info on that?

---

Clarification of Answer by gregaw-ga on 01 Apr 2005 07:08 PST

Here is a very informative page on printing from Linix/Unix.

http://linuxfinances.info/info/printing.html#AEN28478

This paragraph was the most informative to your issue:

####################################################
Major Problem #2 - Real Time Requirements 

WinPrinters often require printer "drivers" that satisfy strict timing
requirements for the transmission of data to the printer, and the
manufacturers refuse to release those requirements.

In order to save the little bit of money that you saved on the
printer, they have reduced the buffers that normally can store half a
page or more of data to a mere one or two raster lines. (They have
omitted what probably represents $5 worth of circuitry.) As a result,
printer "drivers" have to supply data at exactly the rate that the
printer requires. Under Linux, printed output gets streamed to the
/dev/lp device with the presumption that the device is smart enough to
buffer it, and respond appropriately to indicate when the buffer is
full. And that if data is delayed, the printer will wait for more
data. WinPrinters have so little memory that they don't handle this
very well.
##########################################################

What I gained from this was that Unix is going to send as much data as
the printer's buffer can handle.  The printer's buffer size is going
to be determined by how much memory you have installed in the printer.
 When the printer runs out of memory it is going to ask the computer
sending the print job to, "Please refrain from sending more data until
I ask for it".

This means that your Unix machines should utilize that extra memory
because the printer will now have a larger buffer and be able to
handle that extra data in the print job if it needed.

One other article that seemed to substantiate this is concerning
printing large files to a plotter(a very large printer) from Unix. 
Here it is said that they are formatting the job differently so it
doesn't over flow the printer's memory.  Again Unix will use as much
memory as the printer allows and then either wait for another request
for data, or with some printers that are not smart enough to respond
correctly (like the plotter in this article), the print job will fail.

http://www.gis.usu.edu/unix/howtos/printing.shtml

I hope that this is the information that you are looking for.  Let me
know if there is anything else you need.

Thanks,

Gregaw

Thanks for your help.

I will get you some more info on the Unix side of things. I hope to
have time either this evening or tomorrow to research it for you. 
Thanks for your patients!  Gregaw