OpenPrinting / OpenPrinting/libcupsfilters

Support for blank MFG in device ID needed, such printers exist

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Dominant language
C
Stars
17
Forks
71
Avg merge
2d 17h
Merged PRs (30d)
13

Description

On system-config-printer we have a bug report about printers with empty MFG field in their device ID not getting assigned a PPD, https://github.com/OpenPrinting/system-config-printer/issues/445. In this bug report such an empty MFG field is observed on some cheaper label printers, according to the poster of the issue.

Blank MFG fields are common on inexpensive thermal label printers.
Real-world example, a Phomemo PM-241-BT (USB ID 2e3c:5750):

MFG: ;CMD:XPP,XL;MDL:PM-241-BT;CLS:PRINTER;DES:PM-241-BT;

Therefore, our fix for issue #214, the pull request #223 with which device IDs with empty MFG just get rejected is not the best solution. We need to consider handling the blank MFG.

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

First steps

  1. Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
  2. Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
  3. Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
  4. Open a pull request that references the issue number.

Research direction

Start by reading issue #214 and pull request #223 to understand why blank MFG fields are currently rejected, then compare that behavior with the system-config-printer report #445 and the Phomemo example. Done means defining and implementing handling for an empty MFG so the device can receive an appropriate PPD, with regression coverage for the shown device ID.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
c
Domain
backend
Issue type
Bug
Difficulty
4/5
Estimated time
3-5 days
Activity status
Active
Clarity
Mostly clear
Newbie friendliness
45/100

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