Epson's support is useless...

They may make the best large format printheads in the industry but their support is bass-ackwards!

I discovered the other day that one of the colours wasn't firing on our GS6000 printer after doing a nozzle-test... so I do all the usual front-end operator-level troubleshooting - restarting, cleaning, flushing etc to see if it was a blocked nozzles problem, which it wasn't.

This prompted me (with a small amount of trepidation) to contact Epson Support despite the fact that I had seen this problem before and knew that, back then, it resulted in a new printhead! I guess part of me wanted this problem to just go away and, as such, believed that by getting an Epson Support Rep to 'wiggle it' some, said problem would indeed, go away.

I was wrong... so, so wrong.

I decided to use the online chat feature so I could multitask...

Got connected with a Rep, explained the problem, sent him/her/it (could've been a bot) all the required info, answered questions - yes I've cleaned it, yes I've flushed, yes I've visually inspected the printhead and confirmed no blockages... yes I've ran several nozzle tests etc etc. Eventually it came down to an attempt to update the firmware because, apparently, the version my printer has is not the latest one and doing a firmware update seems to be the standard Epson 'Fuck it, try it anyway" fixall solution, even if it's already the latest version.

So anyway the Rep gives me a download link to some software - called LFP Remote - for me to install and run so I can do the update, he also gives me a link to the supposed 'latest' firmware. I try to install it and it doesn't run because it's a PowerPC version and my Mac is running OSX10.10. Now, this really fucking annoys me, because it clearly lists OSX10.10 in the supported OS list next to the download link!

As I had disconnected the chat session I had re-connect and start the chat again, fortunately I was re-connected to the same Rep (at least, it appeared that way, I could have been talking fucking Sanjay in New Delhi for all I knew). I explained the problem, saying that I'm getting an error stating it's a PowerPC version and he asks if I could restart the Mac and try again as it IS compatible. 'Fucks sake' I think to myself, 'It's fucking MacOS, restarting to install software went out with OS's at the turn of the fucking Century!' I didn't want to restart for two reasons: 1. No amount of rebooting will fix a PowerPC compatible app attempting to be ran on a system higher than OSX10.5 and, 2. Restarting would've meant that we'd have lost the chat session (which, in hindsight, probably meant that he was fed-up with me and it seemed like a cool way to fuck off the conversation).

So I tell him that I'd already tried that and it still doesn't work... I then ask him to send me download link for a version of LFP monitor that works with Windows 7, which he does with an additional comment of: "Don't worry about it being listed for another model of printer, it works with them all...". So I go to my Windows 7 PC and use the URL he sent me... nothing happens, just a blank page. I try it on another PC AND my Mac, same problem. Fortunately the chat window is still open so I tell him this, after 5 minutes he comes back and says that he is having the same problem so it must be a problem with the server at Epson's end... cue another sigh and "FFS" audible statement from me! Rep then says: "Send me your e-mail address, then bear with me and I'll find a working server you can download LFP monitor from and I forward the link for it to you", "Great" I say in response... we then end the chat.

The Rep sends me nothing.

Bollocks.

"Okay" I think, "Fuck you Epson, I'll do it myself"... so I start doing some browsing, looking for a version of LFP monitor that will work with Windows 7. As we have another model of Epson printer - a SureColor 70600 - I download the one listed under that model, and hey, it downloads AND installs!... But then NOOO! It only lists the 70600 and not the GS6000 printers... bugger! So much for the Rep stating earlier that LFP monitor works with ALL Epson printers!

After more browsing I end up on another Epson site (that's working) and find a page (that's working) for GS6000 downloads... listed on that page is a Windows XP version of LFP monitor.

I install it on a Windows XP PC, configure the comms driver, point it at the printer's IP address, launch LFP monitor and pray. Initially my prayer is answered, LFP monitor connects to the printer and shows it's status, "Finally" I say to myself. So I then go get the firmware file...

LFP Monitor lists the printer's firmware as: T003C2, it lists the file version as: T004B3 and says it is too old to install! Cue my umpteenth "FFS!" audible statement of the day. This is the firmware file the Rep swears is the MOST up-to-date version... I even had him repeat that statement to confirm it!

I go back to Epson's chat support... surprisingly I get the same guy (that he's talking from Telford in Shropshire is still questionable) I explain that LFP monitor is stating the downloaded firmware file is older in comparison to the one currently in the printer. I state that "I really, really don't like updating firmware unless it is absolutely necessary and when I see a red flag like this I get nervous".

Rep responds: "I would advise you go ahead anyway, it'll be okay..." So I reply: "Well it's coming up to the end of the day and I don't want to deal with a potentially bricked printer..." we end the chat session.

Cue the next day, I come in, bright and early and after getting settled I load LFP monitor, check I'm connected to the right printer, load the firmware and, oh! The 'Update' button is greyed out! Which is something I failed to notice the previous afternoon. Although it kinda makes sense as the software is detecting that the version in the printer is more recent so it prevents you from writing over a good firmware with an inferior version. However, in this situation it really doesn't help me!

I wait until 9am-ish then go to Epson Support Chat... I connect with a different Rep so I have to explain it all again... cue another sigh then audible "FFS!" I give him the printer model, operating system etc... Then after what seems like an age, where, probably, the Rep went off and made himself his first coffee of the day he responds with an apology and that he 'is looking into this issue for me'.

I go do other stuff as it seems like he's off round the world looking for answers... roughly 20 minutes later he comes back, again, apologises and states that 'I can confirm your printer already has the latest firmware installed' and that 'he was sorry for the confusion caused by the firmware version numbers' and finally 'it's not necessary but an engineer can manually install it for you if you wish'.

I lose my shit.

So I'm given firmware to replace one that is the same version but with a different filename, using software that doesn't work on my Mac, despite it saying it does... I'm given conflicting information from different reps and sent on a jolly through various sections of Epson's domain parts of which didn't work or looked like a throwback to nineties chic websites.

After a tirade of rants I prematurely ended the chat session, signing it off with a statement of "looks like I'm on my own with this problem" ... I came close to swearing but managed to hold onto my professionalism.

I don't know which is worse - either Epson don't care because, in their eyes the GS6000 is an old, obsolete model so, because of that, any information they give is scratchy and outdated. Or are too stupid despite that fact that the GS6000 has been around long enough for them to accumulate plenty of experience that they should use to help.

...and I'm stuck with a broken GS6000.

Epson, you fail.

Anamorphic Images

I've been playing with anamorphic images recently, for the uninitiated it's a technique that 'distorts' a 2D  image to make it look more realistic in 3D when viewed from a certain angle of perspective. Street artists have been doing it for years and the overall principle has been experimented with amongst artists for centuries.

Probably the most obvious examples are the sponsor logos that are seen on sports grass pitches on TV, they're distorted in such a way that when the camera points at them they look like they're 'standing-up'.

So now it's arrived at my little corner of the web... for this test I decided to use the Wasps Rugby logo and, basing it on the popular Rubic's Cube image example, I distorted it using grid templates I drew in Adobe Illustrator, printed it from a laser printer, and then cut part of it out on our Zund plotter, the result is this video:


It's not great, the problem is the Wasp graphic's antenna created a shadow that almost ruins the effect and the paper I used is too thin and light to stay down against the Zund's bed vacuum suction but, despite that, the effect does work! Placing a shadow effect below the logo helps enhance it...

The OCD graphic designer in me wants to improve this video because the angle at which I filmed it makes the Wasps logo look too fat on the height, the original logo is much thinner.

Photography #101

Haven't posted any pics from my photography collection for a while, these two are from my trip to the Scilly Isles last autumn...

I love doing heavily silhouetted landscapes

This was taken using macro-mode and zoomed in.
Great detail of the grains of sand around the shell :)

Hot damn I'm awesome at photography :p

Note to self... and others

Note to self - never, whilst sitting at home alone and on the evening of your birthday, watch two episodes of Black Mirror.

A superb series but it's depressing enough celebrating a birthday on your own at this time of the year without adding to it!