Printing in LaTeX mode under SuSE Linux 8.1

[pro-nto@gmx.de (Hartmut)]

As long as I used SuSE Linux 6.2 as my operating system, printing via
the print command button in LaTeX mode went smoothly all the time, for
paper versions as well as for .ps files. Recently I installed SuSE
Linux 8.1 and the gnu-emacs version from that distribution. The
following happens :

1)  After Command --> Print --> Local, it takes ages until the printer
starts. (Initially I thought it did not work at all and switched off
the printer after some time. The revenge of the printer was to produce
a number of rubbish pages when I turned it on later.) With more
patience then, the first page coming out is simply white, completely
untouched. Afterwards, the printed document is nice as expected. Why
does the printing process always begin with an empty page?

2) After Command --> Print --> ps, the minibuffer says "done", but no
.ps file is produced. If I want a .ps file, I must apply the dvips
command separately, i.e. not from emacs. How can I tell emacs to
transform a .tex (or .dvi) file into a .ps file (as it should)?

(Unlike in the past, the printing process in SuSE Linux 8.1 is now
managed by the program cups. But that should not imply that it works
worse than before, should it?)

Regards, Hartmut