 | Printer Errors |
I receive error messages when I try to print. What's wrong? When an error occurs during a print job, Windows tries to determine the cause. If the printer is out of paper, you might see a Paper Out message in the status area. At other times, the message is ambiguous, and the word Error might appear in the status area. Add paper; make sure that the printer is turned on, online, and correctly connected; and make sure that the settings (particularly the driver) are correct for that printer. Nothing Happens I try to print, but nothing happens. How do I proceed? If your print jobs never make it out the other end of the printer, work through this checklist: First, ask yourself whether you printed to the correct printer. Check to see whether your default printer is the one from which you are expecting output. If you're on a LAN, you can easily switch default printers and then forget that you made the switch. Check the settings in the Print dialog box carefully before you print. Is there something to print? Do you have to select some portion of your document first? Next, check to see whether the printer you've chosen is actually powered up, online, and ready to roll. If you're using a network printer, is the station serving the printer powered up and ready to serve print jobs? Then check the cabling. Is it tight? Does the printer need ink, toner, or paper? Are any error lights or other indicators on the printer itself flashing or otherwise indicating an error, such as a paper jam? Are you printing from a DOS application? You may need to use the net use command to redirect an LPT port to your Windows printer. See "Printing from DOS Applications" earlier in this chapter for more information.
Printer Produces Garbled Text When I print, the printout contains a lot of garbled text. If you're getting garbage characters in your printouts, check the following: You might have the wrong driver installed. Run the print test page and see whether it works. Open the Printers and Faxes folder (by choosing Start, Control Panel, Printers and Other Hardware, Printers and Faxes), open the printer's Properties sheet, and print a test page. If that works, then you're halfway home. If it doesn't, try removing the printer and reinstalling it. Right-click the printer icon in the Printers and Faxes folder, and choose Delete. Then add the printer again, and try printing. If the printer uses plug-in font cartridges, you also might have the wrong font cartridge installed in the printer, or your text might be formatted with the wrong font. Some printers have emulation modes that might conflict with one another. Check the manual. You may think you're printing to a PostScript printer, but the printer could be in an HP emulation mode; in this case, your driver is sending PostScript, and the printer is expecting PCL.
Only Half of the Page Prints Correctly My printer prints about half of a page, and then it starts printing garbage. This problem is a rare occurrence nowadays, but it's still possible if you're running a printer off a serial port. If your printer regularly prints about the same amount of text or graphics and then flips out, suspect a buffer-related problem. On serial printers, buffer problems can often be traced to cables that do not have all the serial-port conductors (wires), or they're not in the correct order. Make sure the cable is the correct kind for the printer. Fax Printer Can't Be Added I can't add a fax printer. If you are unable to add a fax printer, you might not have sufficient user rights. See your system or fax server administrator. Also, be sure that your modem is fax-capable. Cannot Receive a Fax My system can't receive a fax. What's wrong with it? Here's a quick checklist of common stumbling blocks: Have you plugged in the phone line properly? Is your modem installed and working properly? Is it a true fax modem, not just a data modem? Did you enable fax reception via the Fax Configuration Wizard (the default setting is off)? Is another device (for example, an answering machine) picking up the phone before your fax modem is? Check the ring settings for the fax modem and/or answering machines. Consider using the option that lets you screen for a fax first and then activate it manually (see the faxing section earlier in the chapter). If your computer goes into standby mode and doesn't wake up to receive incoming faxes, you might need to turn on an option in the computer's BIOS to "wake on ring." This option wakes up the computer any time it senses the ringer voltage on the phone line. If a fax is coming in, it takes the call. If it's not a fax, the computer goes back to sleep.
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