The print order of pages printed

[Qqmike]

I just can't find it. Example: Let's say you are printing a 2-page Writer document, and printing it all at once (i.e., not one page at a time).
How do you configure things so it prints the first page first, and the second page second?

This is an HP 2742e, btw, and there is no HPLIP installed.

[claydoh]

Libreoffice print settings? I am in the wrong OS to double check, but LO has its own settings, and these may not match to what the driver's default settings are. It should have a "reverse order" setting iirc.
All I can say is I printed a 10 page doc last weekend, and my canon printed them in the expected order.

But peek at the word processor's print settings, if that isn't where you are looking already.

[Qqmike]

If I am in LO Writer, with a 2-page document open, and then press File > Print, I get this menu:


Notice that option: Print in reverse order. It is unchecked. And it prints in this order: page 2 then page 1 = the reverse order!!
Now if I check that box (next to Print in reverse order), it prints in the "right" order: page 1 then page 2.

Is that what you mean? If so, what a strange way for LO Writer to present things. IOW, to get the "right" order (page 1 then page 2), you use a double negative: Print [the reverse order] in reverse order? Btw, this 'double negative' DID work. Also, btw, I have to check that box each time I print a document to make the printing go in the 'right' order. I am unable to locate a global setting like that.

[claydoh]

It may be your specific printer/driver, I imagine. A bug or something. I only suggested looking at it, to see what it might have been set to there. Sometimes ya jest gotta find what works.

I printed my 10 pages mentioned previously, and I most definitely did not have to edit any settings in either System Settings or LibreOffice, other than the default paper size when I first used it.
To be honest, in my set ways, I never considered that there is a setting for reverse order till tonight. I had to manually re-order my 10 pages, as they print face-up, so page one is at the bottom.

No idea why LO doesn't have a permanent setting for this. Maybe it expects the OS driver to have this sort of setting, and my 40 dollar (full price) printer simply doesn't have many settings at all. Even on Windows.

I spy random reports here and there and going back some years of some people having similar ordering problems on HPs (I didn't look for other brands)

[Qqmike]

I also checked System Settings (in the K-menu), and nothing there. Nothing global at Libre Office or Libre Office Writer.

One thing you learn in mathematics: definitions are arbitrary.
So we can define "order" to be human-reverse-order, and then select reverse order to work with that definition!
But ... I sure can't find a global setting for it.
NBD, this is what I call "monkey motions." You can quickly get used to anything.

This printer, btw, is also a $39 HP 2742e. Works like a charm.

Thanks for checking.

[Snowhog]

Qqmike See https://ask.libreoffice.org/t/always...age-order/7483 This may contain the solution you desire?

[Qqmike]

Thanks, Snowhog. Interesting, and I learned something: I'm the weirdo!

Well, most normal people want to print their pages starting with the last page first because then the job is collated when printing is finished.
So "normal" order, would be last page prints first ... first page prints last. I have always done it in reverse of the normal order.
In my print menu, the option to print in reverse order is actually printing backwards! -- i.e., page 1 prints 1st, then page 2, etc. ... but then you must manually collate the finished job.

Also, their GNOME Printer Settings menus are different from mine, although I do have a "Configure" button (that doesn't include any print order options).

As one guy there said, this could be a function of the printer and drivers, which it clearly is, IMO.

And, for me, it could be that enabling HPLIP might help here, but after what I've been through with HP printers lately, I will not do that! I will stick with whatever the driverless / IPP Everywhere gives me for now.

Not a real big deal for me these days. I can simply set that reverse-reverse option on each job manually, or just let it print "last page first" order.

One of my work-study jobs in college was to help out the secretaries when they did large mailings. I got real good at old fashion secretarial work, like manually collating really big jobs! No big deal! (if you don't mind a few paper cuts on your fingers)

Thanks, again, Snowhog.

[claydoh]

this could be a function of the printer and drivers, which it clearly is, IMO.

If the driver doesn't provide the option, there is little one can do there.

And, for me, it could be that enabling HPLIP might help here

Forget HPLIP (the GUI part). But if you are using the 'driverless' protocol, you *could* try switching it to the HP driver, which possibly offers more options, perhaps? Maybe?

I will use my wifi connected and autodetected bargain-bin canon as an example below, though switching to Canon drivers offers zero extra settings:

Then see if you are offered more options.

To go back, one can either switch back to the Driverless selection (it may be buried somewhere in the very long list), or delete the printer and re-add it


if you are connected over wifi, and feeling adventurous, you can try adding a new printer, let it discover things, and you may be offered multiple choices for the same device, like I am:


Select the one not marked as driverless, and go through the same process to select the HP driver. Give it a unique name so you can tell which one is the original.
Then you can try both and see what you have , and delete the printer you don't want to use. This is exactly what I did on my previous 20 dollar printer


If connected via USB, this is where you might consider removing ipp-usb, and then trying to selecting the appropriate HP driver'


As you can see, none of this will involve HPLIP graphical stuff, just your normal settings options. The drivers themselves are normally installed by default. The package will be called printer-driver-hpcups. It does list your model, with the driver shown three four times of course. (My canon has the same driver listed twice, fwiw)

[Qqmike]

Your screenshots are very familiar to me (although with my HP's instead of Cannon).
I am on automatic, driverless/IPP wireless now. I could not get a workable USB, non-wireless connection:
(1) With HPLIP, I got that 5012 Error (Device Communication) because HPLIP does not play well with driverless/IPP (which blocks that USB port). (2) Without HPLIP, CUPS only offers me older Foomatic drivers, BUT, although I get no errors when trying to print, they don't print, for the HP models I tested! and they will soon be deprecated, so CUPS says.

Thinking of your post, the best option would be to set up a new printer (using my workable existing physical printer), with HPLIP installed, and see if HP offers a USB driver that would actually print.

Probably something would work IF hplip doesn't throw that 5012 error.

I'm not really sure how important the reverse/reverse-reverse printing option is to me now. But I'm tempted to play with the printer setup as you did. So ... maybe.

Thanks for looking at this.

Edit: And to get USB, I think you are right -- I'd have to remove ipp-usb.

[Qqmike]

I didn't document all the details, but generally speaking ...
I didn't install HPLIP. I didn't remove ipp-usb. I did turn off wireless on my printer.
Then tried to get an HP legacy driver (through CUPS, as you show in your screen shots).
It doesn't look good here. That problem I had with 8x10 paper size reappeared! Also, no new printer options appeared in settings.
Somehow, although I ONLY deleted this test printer, I also lost my existing default printer (even in CUPS hostname:631 it showed 'no printers').
NBD. Turn on wireless on the printer, turn printer off, unplug the printer, plug it back in, turn it on, and good wireless/driverless options appeared.

One thing I have noticed though with HP: It groups ALL the 27xx printers together as the HP 2700 Series. Ouch! I tested 4 of those 2700 models, and I wouldn't give you a nickel for 3 of them. The only one that seems to play the game is the 2742e. So, generally speaking, I think this has a lot to do with the printer firmware and clearly the drivers that will work with that firmware.

In theory, I possibly could uninstall ipp-usb and get other results, but I kind of would like to get on-board with the newer game of driverless/IPP Everywhere/etc.

Again, many thanks.