Backgrounder

Backgrounder is a file in the System Folder to handle Background Printing in System 4.2 to 6.

Description
Before the existence of Background Printing, the simple function of printing would monopolize a Macintosh, rendering it unable to conduct most other tasks until the print job was finished. Backgrounder was developed by Apple Computer to enable Background Printing under the cooperative multitasking of classic Mac OS. When a print job was started with MultiFinder enabled, Backgrounder would launch PrintMonitor to begin "spooling" the print file to the printer in the "background", while another application in the "foreground" application could continue to be accessed by the user.

With the release of System 7, the functionality of Backgrounder was merged into the Finder. An updater was provided for users of System 6.0.7 or later, which included the print drivers from System 7 along with an updated Backgrounder to ensure AppleTalk compatibility with networked printers being accessed simultaneously by users of both operating systems.