Lexmark Trying To Help Users Print Less When They Print The Web
from the makes-sense dept
Last year, HP announced a special button that could be put on blogs to let users more easily print blog posts, without all the extraneous stuff on the website. At the time, we didn't see the value at all, but plenty of folks responded in the comments that it seemed like a good idea. It wasn't long before the folks at HP contacted us about trying the button out ourselves, so we put it on the page. It gets some use, though not an overwhelming amount. It appears that some people do actually print stuff out -- and they appreciate the simpler version.Now, it appears that HP printer rival Lexmark is taking that idea much further by making it easier for users to eliminate a bunch of the junk on websites before printing them out -- so you only print out the stuff you really want. Unlike the HP initiative, this doesn't require the companies hosting the content to do anything, it takes care of it on the client side. Given the insane costs of ink, it's no surprise that printer companies have been a bit slow to adopt solutions that get people to use less ink -- but it's good to see them finally starting to recognize that it's probably for the best. Giving your customers reasons to like you, rather than hate you, tends to be a good long-term business strategy.
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Filed Under: formatting, print less, printing
Companies: hp, lexmark
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Stylesheets?
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Re: Stylesheets?
The media="print" stylesheet is an AWESOME solution. but it requires website designers to do it.
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Hello Stupid?
OH what? I should use their button? Oh wait! What's this "print selection" button I have here when I print? Print the text only? Oh dears, I'm too lazy to do that!
I need a button now!
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Re: Hello Stupid?
You must have missed the oodles of websites that include graphics/ads in the middle of the text that make it harder to select. And it would be good if you commented on what the actual post was. Oh wait, you were busy figuring out how to select crap.
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Re: Hello Stupid?
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Re: Re: Hello Stupid?
still its a good feature, but making it "web" based instead of client based kind of misses the point.
why should the site, Printer Co as well as the user all have to "work together" to print a blog?
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Wait for it
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Cannon Easy Web Print
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Understandable but stupid
However, when I'm forced to use IE, I usually just highlight the text and "print selection" or copy/paste into a text document. That way I don't get anything I don't want and I don't have to deal w/ IE's tendency to cut off the edge of the page.
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Is this the biggest issue thay have to deal with?
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An easier way to do it...
I use it to remove advertisements and such before printing - works like a charm.
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Spirit of Truth
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Re: An easier way to do it...
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LexMark are liars anyway. Their color cartridges claim you can print something like 50+ color sheets, but that's based on printing things like this blog with limited use of color. Start printing photos and you get closer to 25 sheets before one of the colors runs out.
Not to mention that their software sucks. Want to scan something at a high resolution? Better have plenty of space on C: (30GB+) because there's no way to tell it to use any other drive, no matter how much space they have available on them. Change any scan setting and everything reverts back to the default low-res settings.
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Another great Firefox tool does the same thing:
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Don't Assume Benevolence
Au contraire, they are trying to get people to use MORE ink, by increasing the value of the printed product to users. Anything they can do to make printing easier, fewer clicks (for the "selected" guy above), and easier to read, will inevitably drive more printing. More printing means more ink.
No harm in this, of course. If it's good for the consumer, the consumer will adopt it, and everyone wins. That's not charity, it's just good business.
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cutting stuff out on print jobs
--Glenn
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falling demand for printers
Result: falling demand for printers and ink, and increasing desperation by printer vendors.
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Your no account printer
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Lexmark trying to help
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