Abstract: A print medium is fed through a printer along a print path that can include one or more devices and a print engine. A plurality of path identifiers are used to identify the different print paths through the printer. According to one embodiment of the invention, a path identifier defines a print path from an input device through the print engine and possibly through an output device. According to another embodiment of the invention, path identifiers are separated into input paths and output paths. An input path identifier defines a print path from an input device to the print engine, while an output path identifier defines a print path from the print engine to an output device.

Abstract: Finishing operations on media processing jobs, such as from laser printer or photocopier devices, are performed in an intermediate output bin and subsequently transferred to a final output bin. One or more finishing mechanisms are disposed to cooperate with the intermediate output bin for performing finishing operations on the media in sequential order. A transfer mechanism operates to move the media from finishing operation to finishing operation in the intermediate output bin, and subsequently to the final output bin once the finishing operations are complete. The final output bin is thus capable of storing multiple finished jobs. The finishing operations may be a registration (alignment) process, a binding process, a hole punching process, and the like.