Printer FAQs – Expert’s Guide


By Arindam Roy

How to clear printer queue?

  • Open the printer queue in the control panel by clicking on “devices and printers” on the taskbar. If nothing shows up, go to start -> control panel -> devices and printers.
  • Find your printer in these windows, right click it, select “view printer queue,” then right click again on any entry that’s chosen to print or duplex copy (the default is one sided)
  • If there are no entries selected for printing or duplex copy, or if you want to clear all entries from the queue (to cancel any job that may be printing), click “clear document” or “clear all documents.”

Also read: How To Install A Printer – Step By Step Guide

How to clean printer heads?

Inkjet printers require regular maintenance to function at optimum performance. One of the most important things you can do to keep your inkjet printer in good working order is to clean the print head. This article will outline how you can clean your inkjet printer’s print head.

The first thing that you want to do is turn off and unplug the power cord from the back of your inkjet printer while it’s still on. Next, open up the cartridge access door that’s located on the bottom region of your machine by lifting it up and pulling it towards you. Next, carefully remove your inkjet cartridge by bending it gently back and forth to help get the prongs up. If you are not sure where the access door is on your printer, check the manual or ask one of your other friends, a relative or classmate to help you out.

Next, open up the cartridge access door and remove all of the inkjet cartridges that you have in your printer. If at anytime during this process you hear a hissing sound, start over and make sure that the cartridges are properly clicked into place before removing them from their designated slot. Once all of the cartridges have been removed from their slots then open up your empty printhead tray by pulling down on it until it clicks into place.

Now that you have opened up your empty printhead tray then clean it using a small toothbrush and plain water. Once the printhead is dry then you can fill it with ink. If at any point during this process your printer begins to make a strange popping sound, begin over one more time and make sure that all of the cartridges are properly clicked into place before proceeding with cleaning the open slots.

Once this step has been completed then you will want to wash off the printhead using a clean cotton swab moistened with isopropyl alcohol (available at most drug stores in plastic bottles. This step is very important because it helps to remove any dirt or dust that may be on your printhead. Also, make sure that you are using an alcohol solution that will not harm the plastic and other components in your printer. The last thing you want to do is damage your printer by using the wrong cleaning solution!

Once the cleaning process has been finished then close up the cartridge access door. Next, pull down on the empty printhead tray and click it into place. Finally, turn on your printer and wait for it to come back online before re-installing any of your inkjet cartridges.

Read more: How To Reset Printer – A Quick Guide

What is a thermal printer

A thermal printer is a type of printer that uses heat to transfer ink onto paper. It is also known as an electrothermal, dry-ink, or hot-melt printer. Thermal printers are widely used in the retail industry at places such as cash registers because they can print receipts and other text quickly without the need for ink ribbon. The use of these printers has been contentious due to the high cost per printed page.

Like all types of printers, thermal printers have to be able to store data in some form, usually temporarily. Thermal printers are capable of printing small quantities of information very quickly. The main benefit of thermal printers is that they print low cost per copy because they do not need to use inks or ribbons.

The advantage of a thermal printer is that it prints at high rates of speed, so it can be a great productivity tool when used with inventory information terminals, check out stands and cash registers. Common applications for thermal printers include POS (Point Of Sale) systems, such as cash registers and check-out stations. Thermal printers have also been used in kiosk applications for preparing receipts and displaying messages, for the purpose of customer interaction.

The main disadvantage of thermal printers is that having a large inventory or large volume orders can require a high quantity of print-outs. Another disadvantage is that they are generally expensive compared to the alternatives, such as inkjet printers.

Built in thermal printers are usually installed as full-line replacements for standalone or networked desktop and portable laser printers.

The chief advantages of thermal printers over direct digital printing are low power usage and high speeds. In order to maintain good speed, it is necessary to keep the heat from the print head at a constant temperature, which typically requires a power source.

Relevant reading: How To Setup Wireless Printer

Why is printer ink so expensive

Printer ink is costly for a number of reasons. One of the primary reasons has to do with the fact that printer ink is composed of a variety of different substances. These substances include water, polymers, dyes and solvents. In addition to these substances, printer ink contains metals such as titanium oxide and iron in order to color it. All these components lead up to high-cost printer ink cartridges that you need when your own printer runs out of its initial supply.

find printer ip address

When you want to print something from your desktop, you will have to find the printer IP address. This is a necessary step because how else would the computer know where to send that file? The article will be going over how you can find the printer IP address on any windows machine.

Open your command prompt and type in “ipconfig” (without quotes) and hit enter. You should then see all of the information about your network connection pop up. You will want to look for the IP address under the network adapter. In this case, we will be looking for printer ip address 192.168.0.1, but your’s may vary depending on your setup (e.g., if you have a router or modem). Write down that address and open up the windows explorer (desktop). Right click on the “network” icon in the toolbar and go to “Open Network and Sharing Center” from the drop down menu that appears. This will bring you to a Microsoft network window. On the left side of this window, you should see the name of your computer.

Click on that, and then type in “Manage Sharing” in the search box on the right. This should bring up a new menu with many different options on it. Scroll down to “Network and Sharing Center” which is under “Change adapter settings”. Once there, you want to click on “Change advanced sharing settings” in the section labeled “Sharing options for this network location”. This should bring you to a window where all the information for this computer is listed. This will include port sharing, which is what we are interested in. If you do not see port sharing, you may have to select “Change advanced sharing settings” which brings up another window. Once there, click on “Port-sharing” in the left hand corner and then hit “Add” in the right hand corner.

In the space that pops up, put in your printer IP address (192.168.0.1) and a description of what it does (printer).

Related article: Top Printer Brands – You Should Know Before Buying

How to add printer to mac

This article is about how to add printer to mac – brief and to the point, for people who are looking for this information. It starts with choosing a printer, then downloading software and connecting it.

The first step is to choose a printer from the list of printers in the Printer Preferences dialog box:

You can also click Show Printers Online if you’re connected via Web or Airport. Choose your desired printer from the list that appears:

If a printer doesn’t appear in the list that’s because it’s not compatible with Mac OS X 10.3 or later.

Then you need to download the software for your suitable printer. You can do this by clicking one of the following options:

Download Software & Driver Packages : if your printer was selected in the Printer Preferences dialog box, or if it appears on the Show Printers Online list (if you’re connected via Web or Airport). If you choose this option a dialog box opens prompting you to choose a location to save the installer file.

TIP! Your printer is automatically added to Printer Preferences when software and driver packages are downloaded. However, some drivers come as separate installers that just need installing to add your printer. On Mac OS 10.3, installation starts immediately after choosing one of these options; on Mac OS 10.2 or earlier you’ll be prompted to either open the installer now (on Mac OS 10.3) or save it until later (on Mac OS 10.2 or earlier).

TIP! If your printer is in Apple’s compatible printers list, you can download the drivers by clicking Download to download the driver package from Apple’s website. There are advantages to downloading from Apple’s website as it offers more up-to-date drivers and software than what you get from installing printer driver packages supplied by your scanner/printer manufacturer. Often these driver packages are outdated and don’t contain important updates such as support for new printing features.

Read here: Printer Problems & Troubleshooting

How to connect a printer to computer

You’d be surprised to learn how many people still have no idea how to connect a printer to their computer. That’s why we’ve put together this post all about connecting printers. We hope it will clear up any confusion and help you set up your new printer in no time!

Hardware Requirements: These are the requirements for installing a printer on a Windows-based system, but the principle is similar for Mac OSX users. You will need two USB ports, one of them with an OTG (On The Go) adapter or some other connectivity type such as Bluetooth or Ethernet. Depending on what kind of printer you buy, you may also need another port like Parallel or Serial port.

Steps for Installing a Printer:

  • 1. Remove your printer from its box and plug the power cord into an outlet.
  • 2. Connect the printer to your computer with the USB cable that comes with the printer.
  • 3. Run software installation program from CD (Windows) or diskette (Macintosh).
  • 4. Select “Yes” when it asks to connect USB cable to port 1 (or whichever numbered port matches that on which you have connected your printer).
  • 5. Windows users can print a test page.
  • 6. Mac OSX users should click on Print Test Page and follow instructions on screen (specifically, select Apply button).
  • 7. Windows and Mac users can install drivers for their printer. For Windows, do this by clicking on Print Test Page again to scan for printers again (including the name of your printer). Make sure to select your printer and click Install.
  • 8. After installation is completed, you will need to open Select software in the printer’s control panel. 9. And then select Notepad and run it as an application. You should be able to see a window that says “Open Printer Driver” at the top of it, which will give you access to install drivers for your particular printer (you’ll find this option under “Windows Features”).

Related post: How To Recycle Printer Cartridges

Steps for Configuring a Printer:

  • 1. How you configure your printer depends on the type of printer that you have.
  • 2. If your operating system is Windows, click on Start > Settings > Control Panel.
  • 3. Click on Printers to access the printer’s control panel, where you can make changes to print quality, speed, and other options depending on your needs (specifically the Print Device).
  • 4. If your operating system is Mac OSX, click on “System Preferences” and then click “Print & Fax” in the System Preferences window that appears (this is in place of the Control Panel).
  • 5. Click on the plus sign to install a printer.
  • 6. Windows users will see options for the port that your printer is connected to and can select it here. Mac OSX users will be prompted to install drivers if they haven’t already.
  • 7. Windows users will then be prompted to enter “Printer Name” and may also be prompted for “Location” and “Device Type” depending on your printer. Mac OSX users can fill in this information as well using similar boxes (under “Printer Info”).
  • 8. Windows users will finally be asked to enter “Printer Name” and may also be prompted for “Location” and “Device Type” depending on your printer. Mac OSX users can fill in this information as well using similar boxes (under “Printer Info”).
  • 9. From here, you can choose print quality, speed, input bin, and other options depending on your printer.
  • 10. In case of a Linux operating system, you will not be presented with any printer configuration options. 11. Linux users can choose “Add Printer” in the CUPS (Common Unix Printing System) interface, and select driver (DynaComware will be the one for many printers). Then follow instructions on screen to choose appropriate name and location.

You may also like: Top Printers Below 5000 Rs in India

How to print from android phone to network printer

This tutorial will show you how to print from an android phone, tablet or other device to a network printer.

  • First, make sure that your printer is connected to the same wireless network as your android device.
  • Next, open any application on your android device that you want to print from.
  • Tap the “Share” button in the top right corner of the screen and select “Print”.
  • If prompted with a list of printers, tap on “Select Printer” and select the one associated with your printer. If not prompted then tap on “Choose Pringle”.
  • If your printer is not listed then tap on “New Printer” and follow the steps from there.
  • Once your printer is selected then tap the back arrow and tap “Print”.
  • Tap this button if you want to use 2-sided printing

You can now view your print job and wait for it to finish printing. When done, you can view it in the Android Gallery application under the “Downloads” tab!

If a print job fails or is not created then follow these steps:

  • Make sure that your printer is connected to the same wireless network as your android device.
  • Make sure that both devices are connected to the same Internet connection (e.g., Wired/Wireless LAN, WIFI, etc.).
  • Other things to check:
  • Does your Android device have enough free memory?
  • Is the printer turned on?

 

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