On a fresh openSUSE-12.1 install (with a fresh /home/user) some text from KDE4 won’t print (most noticeable within a browser (firefox, chrome, konqueror all have same behaviour).
For example, when firefox prints a table, often black-and-white text will not print, but coloured text will print (from web pages, and also from some other PDF apps such as occular). But if I print 1st to a PDF file, and then print the PDF file from acroread then the text will print. My mother’s effective work around here is to run her WinXP virtual box session (client under the openSUSE server) and print from firefox in WinXP which works fine (and hence no need for an intermediary print to file) ! Go figure.
So I have had print problems before with KDE 4.7, I can’t say they were like these exactly, but not recently since switching to KDE 4.8 and I wonder if it might not be a fix for your other icon problems as well?
I note openSUSE-12.1 has KDE-4.7.2 release-5. … This is my 86-year old mother’s PC (here in Canada) and I will be maintaining it remotely from Germany. I confess I’m not motivated to maintain it remotely with KDE-4.8 as I am not a believer in the installation of a non-stock KDE version (especially with remote maintenance being needed). My mother can live with these off colour icons and the ugly printing (no B&W text) as she has a work around for each.
Her work around for the print problem is to launch winXP in Virtual Box, and it prints fine from there. … Now me being a GNU/Linux user, its an ugly solution thou, even though my mother does not mind WinXP. The PC being the AMD equivalent of a Core-i7, it means winXP runs reasonably fast in Virtual Box.
I feel the only solution is a work around as she already and wisely found or a major KDE desktop upgrade, cause your not going to get a fix any other way until openSUSE 12.2 comes out and another openSUSE version upgrade might require more effort than a desktop upgrade. Also, the KDE 4.8 upgrade has worked better than previously used ones for me anyway. What is really odd is knowing what triggers these oddities that do not exist on every system, but I have not come to a better understand on that point.
I have not had any trouble really, but a friend deleted the printer from Yast. Opened up CUPS in a browser and setup the printer there, solved his double sided issue too.