Patent ID: 6867873

Claim:
A method for controlling the order of print operations for a printer, comprising the steps of: determining whether a printer engine is performing a print operation if print operation information has been received from one or more computers that are connected to a network; storing the print operation information in a memory if the printer engine is performing the print operation; requesting a computer that has transmitted said print operation information to transmit print data if the printer engine is not performing the print operation, and initializing a counter for counting a print time period if the print data is received from the computer; counting a print time period while the print data received from the computer is being printed, and determining whether the counted time period exceeds a predetermined print time period; detecting print operation information, which satisfies a predetermined condition, from print operation information stored in said memory if a counted time period exceeds a predetermined print time period; stopping temporarily the printing operation for the print data transmitted from the computer if the print operation information which satisfies a predetermined condition is detected, and receiving print data from the computer that transmitted the print operation information and printing the print data; and receiving continuously print data from the computer and resuming the temporarily stopped print operation, if the print operation is completed.