Columnist Steve Cassidy discusses how network printing has “barely been upgraded since the 1990s”.
In an article on technology website PC Pro, Cassidy highlights how 
network printing has not had a substantial overhaul since the 1990s, and has resulted in problems that need to be resolved.
For example, Cassidy points out that “You still glance around someone’s unsecured Network Neighborhood, courtesy of code largely unaltered since the days of LAN Manager (well before 1995), because the printing subsystem in Windows has never been properly upgraded”.
He adds that while efforts were made in the mid to late 1990s to alleviate network printing problems, such as the introduction of “LPR/LPD (Line Printer Remote protocol/Line Printer Daemon protocol) structures from Unix and Linux”, there are still issues that need to be addressed.
An example Cassidy gives is “follow-me” printing, which involves sending your print job to a central queue, walking to the printer, logging in and then printing the document(s). He points out that, although in theory it is a “staggeringly simple idea”, complications in user rights such as restrictions set up by administrators can arise, with some users being left unable to change default printing options such as whether to print in colour or black and white.
The subject of The Cloud is also approached by Cassidy, which he believes leads to more businesses opting for “follow me” printing systems rather than local point-to-point connected network printers.
Cassidy concludes the article with a call for more network printing solutions, stating: “It’s about time someone found this topic worthy of a little 21st-century attention”.