Some really dumb printer configuration questions?

[William Case]

Hi all;

Here I am screwing around with printers again.  I have a couple of
points I would like to make in case anyone is reading this.

First, perhaps a bit defensively, I am not a complete newbie, and in
fact, in my 2-3 years using Linux I have accomplished quiet a lot and
learnt quiet a lot.  However, printers have been the bane of my
existence over the last few years.  I have spent time in Linuxprinting,
have read all the CUPS manuals and several RedHat/Fedora installation
guides and I still get baffled; so here goes:

FC5 has both their own printer-config gui and supplies the CUPS
http://name/631/ thingy.  Which takes prescedence? If I am playing
around trying to get a printer configured which do I use?  If temptation
gets the better of me and I play with both which config dominates?

I got the bit about hpijs being a driver for some HP's and contained
within HPLIP but why does CUPS have HPLIP - fax (how fax gets into it I
don't know) and the Fedora printer-config only has hpijs?  One set of
instructions said that HPLIP can get things like cartridge levels which
is a feature of my HP PSC 1315 and shows them in my 'device manager'.
What is my device manager?.  Why does the config-printer-daemon keep
screwing up my settings and giving me a completely new set of queue
paths that have nothing to do with my computer and a printer name (of
its own choosing) that is longer than 18 characters -- the supposed name
length restriction?

How am I supposed to choose between installed locally? and a set of
network choices that might be construed as at least half true for my
setup? I really can go on and on about the ambiguity and confusion that
I have experienced with printers; HPs, Ebsons and Canons.  If anyone who
can effect change is interested I'll take the time to document all of my
various misunderstandings and confusions.  

As for now, I will try and get my printer working.  It quit this
morning; I posted to the list asking for help.  It started printing
again this afternoon (why?); posted this list cancelling my post.  Went
out this evening and now it doesn't work again.  Haven't touched it.  

It works without a burp in Windows???

-- 
Regards Bill