Unable to print from Photoshop CS4 in an iMac OS 10.6.3 to large format printer Epson 11880

Question

Hi there! I was wondering if you could help me with this case.
Old computer: Mac G4  (purchased in 2002)
Old OS: OS 10.4.11  (Tiger)
CPU: Dual 1.25 GHz
Memory: 2 RAM
Software: Photoshop 7
Hardware: Large format printer: Epson 11880 (64” wide monster). Prints large posters, banners, etc.
As you can see, it is time for an upgrade...
New computer: iMac
New OS: OS 10.6.3  (Snow Leopard)
Processor Name: Intel Core i7
Processor Speed: 2.8 GHz
Number Of Processors: 1
Total Number Of Cores: 4
Memory: 16 GB
Software: Photoshop CS4
Hardware: Large format printer: Epson 11880
Situation: We hooked up everything and managed to print on the 11880 printer 2 times and printed two large format prints. On the third attempt, we encountered a serious problem...
Problem: After opening a file in Photoshop and sending it out for printing in the large format Epson printer, the file goes to the printer queue and stays there for 6 seconds, and then it disappears. It does not print. :-(
What we have done so far:
We made sure we downloaded the latest printer driver for this printer from Epson’s website.
The printer driver is correct. The computer talks to the printer and we are able to execute all the commands from the printer utilities panel. (i.e. check ink levels, clean heads, etc.)
And yes, the printer is okay, because we have been using it with the old G4 machine for about a year.
This problem got so frustrating, that we thought that something we transferred during the computer installation might be the culprit. So at one point we erased the hard drive on the new computer and reinstalled the operating system, and have not put any files from any old computers into this machine. The computer has nothing else in it. Except: The operating systems, and the Mac applications that come when the Mac comes out of the box. The only other program installed in it is Photoshop CS4 and the printer driver.
We were wondering if this was just a printing problem, period. So we added a small printer to the computer - and old Epson 2200 we have. We sent a file to this printer and there is not problem.
Perhaps, the file size might have been an issue? It does not matter. We can send a large 60 MB file to the printer or a small photograph measuring only 8 x 10, and these will linger in the queue for 6 seconds, and disappear never to be printed.
Temporary relief came when we got rid of Adobe Photoshop’s Preferences file. After getting rid of the file and allowing Photoshop to reconstruct it, we managed to print two large files on the printer. Then it failed again. Tried getting rid of the preferences again, and the trick did not work anymore. :-(
Another temporary relief came when we created another user in the computer. On the new user account it printed again a couple of times only to fail later.
And yes, the printer WILL print from other Mac programs. If for instance, we open a file on Preview, and send it to the printer and the file will be printed. And yes, we have managed to print very large files with this method.
In the last couple of days, we have spent 3 hours on the phone with the guys at Epson. They verified the driver and because the computer seems to be communicating with the printer and printing from other Mac applications, they suspected that the problem is with Adobe.
We called Adobe once, and spent 30 minutes with an Indian fellow who concluded that the problem was with how the computer handles the spooling. According to him, Photoshop sends the file to the computer and the computer seems to get rid of it. So he passed the buck and told us that the problem was with Apple.
We called Apple and spoke for 30 minutes with a friendly technician, who transferred us to a higher level techno-geek. I spent 1 more hour on the phone with Apple, and we tried everything. We went through Adobe’s knowledgebase and tried every suggested solution (see Adobe’s KB406452). It was with him that we found a temporary fix of removing the Preferences file, but the solution was short lived. He finally thought the problem was with Adobe as the printer is able to print from all applications EXCEPT Adobe Photoshop.
We called Adobe for the second time...and after waiting on hold from 1 entire hour, we got an Indian technician, that bless his heart, had a very thick accent and had no expertise, in my opinion. He was good at collecting data and he even made me share my computer screen so that he could troubleshoot the problem. After being constantly put on hold by him (because he had to consult with someone else), he passed the buck and said that it was Apple’s problem. I just told him that it was not as likely because all programs print EXCEPT Photoshop. After trying what I would consider a “hail Mary” of DELETING all the printers from my Library folder, and not replacing them, he recorded a case number for another Adobe technician to call us in a few days.
Because the above technician completely blew the Library, I just erased and reinstalled the OS. This time, I did not allow the OS to be updated - from 10.6.2 (that comes in the box), to 10.6.3. We tried printing using the 10.6.2 and had the same problem. :-(
Conclusion: I think it is a problem of Adobe CS4 not getting along with Apple’s new operating system. The Epson printer is doing fine, because it has been a product that has been in the market for almost 3 years. What is disappointing is that none of the companies wants to man up and say that it is a problem and that they are willing to work on it. Instead they pass the buck to the next company.
I can’t believe I am the only person experiencing this. Has anyone had this problem, and have you found a solution or workaround for it?

Answer 1

Dear Doyle, John and Gator Soup,
Thank you for your kind replies to my problem.
PS is assigned 70% RAM. In fact, I have never had so much RAM in my life. Files open at lightning fast speed! :-)  We have never considered a RIP as we do not have an intense workload. In fact all the files we have tried to print print well on our old G4 with Tiger and Photoshop 7, which at the moment has saved our butt. However it would be nice to get the new faster machine with Photoshop CS4 to talk to the Epson 11880.
Yes, we are printing directly to the printer. We have hooked up the computer via a 6 ft USB cable to the unit.
The specs and pixel dimensions of a typical file we print are:
Type of file: tif  (in this case it is an RGB file) // However, we avoid any color management from the computer or the printer when printing it at this time.
File size: 60 MB
Pixel size: 6796 x 3100
Print size: 34" x 16" @ 200 dpi
I have not tried saving it as a pdf yet. Will try that next.
I did go to the Console on the Mac though, and recorded its activity between 5:14 pm - 5:19 pm when I tried to print a file.
Remember, the symptoms are:  We send a file to the printer...The file goes to the printer queue, and it lingers there for 6 seconds. The file then disappears.
Although there is a cryptic message of "invalid colorspace" in the log, I don't believe that the file is corrupt. First because we have tried several files, second because smaller versions of these can be printed in another Epson 2200 printer, and third because the large format images can still be printed using our old G4 machine with Tiger and Photoshop 7.
This might provide me with extra ammunition for when I call both Adobe and Apple on Monday. Apple has been quite good on customer support - particularly when they upgrade you to higher level geeks. ;-)   Do you have any idea I what time I should call Adobe so that I can get people on the western hemisphere to answer the phone? It seems that after a certain time they start speaking with an Indian accent over there.
Enclosed, for whatever is worth, is the Console's log:
5/15/10 5:14:46 PM System Preferences[2947] Error loading /Library/ScriptingAdditions/Adobe Unit Types.osax/Contents/MacOS/Adobe Unit Types:  dlopen(/Library/ScriptingAdditions/Adobe Unit Types.osax/Contents/MacOS/Adobe Unit Types, 262): no suitable image found.  Did find:
/Library/ScriptingAdditions/Adobe Unit Types.osax/Contents/MacOS/Adobe Unit Types: no matching architecture in universal wrapper
5/15/10 5:14:46 PM [0x0-0xf00f0].com.apple.systempreferences[2947] System Preferences: OpenScripting.framework - scripting addition "/Library/ScriptingAdditions/Adobe Unit Types.osax" declares no loadable handlers.
5/15/10 5:14:46 PM System Preferences[2947] .scriptSuite warning for result type of command 'timedLoad' in suite 'SystemPreferences': the type NSNumber ('long') doesn't match the result Apple event code ('doub').
5/15/10 5:17:06 PM [0x0-0xf60f6].com.adobe.Photoshop[2991] Adobe Photoshop CS4(2991,0xa0818500) malloc: *** error for object 0x4b00880: Non-aligned pointer being freed (2)
5/15/10 5:17:06 PM [0x0-0xf60f6].com.adobe.Photoshop[2991] *** set a breakpoint in malloc_error_break to debug
5/15/10 5:17:06 PM [0x0-0xf60f6].com.adobe.Photoshop[2991] Adobe Photoshop CS4(2991,0xa0818500) malloc: *** error for object 0x4e14390: Non-aligned pointer being freed (2)
5/15/10 5:17:06 PM [0x0-0xf60f6].com.adobe.Photoshop[2991] *** set a breakpoint in malloc_error_break to debug
5/15/10 5:17:06 PM [0x0-0xf60f6].com.adobe.Photoshop[2991] Adobe Photoshop CS4(2991,0xa0818500) malloc: *** error for object 0x4e14410: Non-aligned pointer being freed (2)
5/15/10 5:17:06 PM [0x0-0xf60f6].com.adobe.Photoshop[2991] *** set a breakpoint in malloc_error_break to debug
5/15/10 5:17:06 PM [0x0-0xf60f6].com.adobe.Photoshop[2991] Adobe Photoshop CS4(2991,0xa0818500) malloc: *** error for object 0x4e14490: Non-aligned pointer being freed (2)
5/15/10 5:17:06 PM [0x0-0xf60f6].com.adobe.Photoshop[2991] *** set a breakpoint in malloc_error_break to debug
5/15/10 5:17:08 PM [0x0-0xf60f6].com.adobe.Photoshop[2991] file://localhost/Applications/Adobe                   P
5/15/10 5:19:34 PM [0x0-0xf60f6].com.adobe.Photoshop[2991] Sat May 15 17:19:34 Norm-Nielsens-iMac.local Adobe Photoshop CS4[2991] <Error>: CGImageCreate: invalid image colorspace: NULL.