A print control server that controls printing through an SNS includes a registration section configured to register, in association with each other, a first account that is an account of a user of the SNS and print setting information including designation information of a printer to be used for printing. The registration section issues a first password when accepting a designation of the first account and a designation of a second account that is an account of a user of the SNS and that is to be a share destination of a print setting, notifies the first account of the first password through the SNS, and registers, when a password posted on the SNS by the second account coincides with the first password, the print setting information registered in association with the first account also in association with the second account.

A printing apparatus includes a receiving unit which receives print data, an operating unit which receives a print instruction from a user, a display unit which displays a password entry screen for receiving a password entry from a user, and a printing unit which receives a print instruction from a user through the operating unit and prints print data without accepting a password through a password entry screen if a password added to the print data is matched with a fixed password and print data to be printed if a print instruction from a user is received through the operating unit, if the password added to the print data is matched with the fixed password, and if the password received through a password entry screen is matched with the password added to the print data.

In response to receiving an instruction operation in a receiving process, a processor executes an apparatus-side preparing process including an issuance requesting process of transmitting issuance requesting information to a server through a communicator, the issuance requesting information being information for requesting issuance of authentication information indicative of authority to perform data communication with a service providing apparatus, the instruction operation being a user operation of instructing execution of a preparing process for connecting the image forming apparatus to the service providing apparatus, a storage-instruction receiving process of receiving storage instructing information from the server through the communicator, the storage instructing information being information including the authentication information issued by the service providing apparatus, and a first near-field transmitting process of, in response to approach of the card to the first near-field communicator, transmitting the authentication information included in the storage instructing information to a card through a near-field communicator.

An image forming apparatus according to the present invention causes an image forming portion to perform image forming processing based on a security job issued by an output-permitted user, in a case where an outsider-use-possibility calculated by an outsider-use-possibility calculation portion becomes equal to or smaller than a predetermined threshold value on the basis of information of a movement trajectory of the output-permitted user and also the output-permitted user has been detected in an output-process-start area. Accordingly, it is possible to enhance the convenience for the output-permitted user while ensuring the security of the output product based on the security job issued by the user.

Information apparatus and application software supporting printing over air or network are herein disclosed and enabled. The information apparatus may include one or more software components that include (1) a discovery component to discover a supported printer in a local area network (LAN) and to receive device information related to the printer (e.g., capability, language or format supported, identification) from the printer, and (2) a printing component to generate or obtain print data based on the device information received and to transmit the print data to the discovered printer. After establishing the connection to the LAN, application software (e.g., Internet browser, email, photos, documents) in the information apparatus may print digital content by using the discovery component to discover the printer in the LAN, and may use the printing component to obtain and transmit print data in a form that is acceptable to the printer for printing the digital content.

Provided is a consumable chip and a communication method thereof. The method is adopted for a consumable chip including a first consumable MCU unit, a verification cryptographic operation unit and a second consumable MCU unit; the method includes: when the first consumable MCU unit is incompatible with the printer, the first consumable MCU unit activating the second consumable MCU unit to execute a second consumable chip core processing flow, and calling the verification cryptographic algorithm function program of the verification cryptographic operation unit to calculate a new verification password; after the first consumable MCU unit inquires that the second consumable MCU unit has completed the second consumable chip core processing flow, the first consumable MCU unit reading the new verification password and sending to the printer, the new verification password is received by the printer to achieve compatibility between the first consumable MCU unit and the printer.

A terminal device may obtain a public key and target identification information from a communication device, search for the communication device via a wireless interface of the terminal device, based on the target identification information and a result of the search for the communication device, determine whether the communication device is to establish a wireless connection with an external device or with the terminal device, in a case where it is determined that the communication device is to establish the wireless connection with the external device, send first connection information to the communication device, in a case where it is determined that the communication device is to establish the wireless connection with the terminal device, send second connection information different from the first connection information to the communication device, establish the wireless connection with the communication device via the wireless interface by using the second connection information.

An image forming apparatus that is capable of wireless communication with an operation device and that can be operated by the operation device via the wireless communication, the image forming apparatus comprising: an image forming unit configured to perform image formation on a sheet based on a print execution instruction sent from the operation device via the wireless communication; a reading unit configured to perform reading of an image formed on the sheet based on a scan execution instruction sent from the operation device via the wireless communication; and a controller that, during a period of time from the time one user logs in the image forming apparatus until the user logs out, (1) is configured to prohibit the print execution instruction using an operation device by other user who has logged in using the operation device, and (2) is configured to permit the scan execution instruction using the operation device.

A printer includes a controller, a memory, and a user interface. The printer has a first mode and a second mode. The controller disables the first mode when enabling the second mode and disables the second mode when enabling the first mode. The controller executes a first printing process while the first mode is enabled. In the first printing process, the controller receives a print job from a client device, stores the received print job in the memory, and performs printing based on the stored print job upon receiving a storage print command. The controller executes a second printing process and restricts the first printing process while the second mode is enabled. In the second printing process, the controller receives a print job from a server in response to receiving a prescribed input operation via the user interface, and performs printing based on the received print job from the server.

The illustrative embodiments described herein provide systems and methods for notifying a user when a set of characters are identified in a media file. In one embodiment, a method includes receiving a set of characters inputted by the user of a computing device, playing the media file, transcribing the media file to form a transcription, and determining whether the transcription of the media file includes the set of characters. The method also includes initiating a notification prompt on a graphical user interface of the computing device in response to determining that the media file includes the set of characters.