Patent ID: 7312886
Filing Date: 2007-12-25
Classification: G06F,Y10S

Abstract:
1. A printer management method comprising: a registering step of registering a virtual printer as a group printer which causes a plurality of real printers to execute printing as member printers; an obtaining step of obtaining status information, including error or warning information, about the member printers from the corresponding printers via a network; a determining step of determining virtual status of the virtual printer registered in said registering step by executing logical processing on the status information of the member printers obtained in said obtaining step; a printer list managing step of managing and displaying a printer list which includes identifications of the registered virtual printer and the plurality of real printers, wherein the identifications reflect the virtual status of the virtual printer determined in said determining step and the status information about the member printers obtained in said obtaining step; a judging step of judging whether the virtual printer or one of the member printers is selected by an instruction given to the displayed printer list; and a display control step of displaying, if said judging step judges that the virtual printer is selected, the status information about the member printers associated with the virtual printer obtained in said obtaining step, and displaying, if said judging step judges that one of the member printers is selected, the status information about the selected member printer.