Clemente Tech News – Printer Solutions

[May 29, 2020: In the April 2003 issue of Clemente Tech News, there is a reference to a “Printer Solutions” guide aimed at walking teachers through some basic troubleshooting tips to resolve printing problems in their classrooms. The guide was to cover both networked and stand-alone (non-networked printers), and the stand-alone portion of the guide was never completed. Following are the guides provided for networked printers.]

I have problems printing from:

Network computers: These computers are connected to the Internet and require users to log in from the Macintosh Manager login screen for access to the school’s network.

Stand-alone computers: These computers are not connected to the Internet and require users to log in from the At Ease login screen for access to work saved directly on the computer.

Plugging the printer in and turning it on

Be sure to check your printer’s power connection before determining other problems with it. Make sure the power is plugged into an electrical outlet in your room and that the printer is turned on. A light near the printer’s power button will indicate that the printer is turned on and ready for use. If it is blinking, the printer is on, but is processing a print command or is not ready to accept new print commands. If this occurs, turn the printer off and wait 10 seconds before turning it back on. Then try to print again.

Setting the chooser

For most printing problems, the solution is to set the chooser. For all printers, access the Chooser under the Apple Menu in the upper left corner of the computer screen. When the Chooser dialog window opens, select your printer type in the left pane and the appropriate port in the right pane.

Make sure background printing is turned OFF and that AppleTalk is ACTIVE. If these settings are not correct, they may cause other problems in connecting your computer to the network as well.*

For Hewlett-Packard DeskWriter 560C printers, select DW 6.0.3 Series (not DW 6.0.3 Series AT) in the left pane of the chooser and the modem (phone) port in the right pane. Then close the chooser.

For Hewlett-Packard DeskWriter 600 printers, select DW600 (not DW600 AT) in the left pane of the chooser and the modem (phone) port in the right pane. Then close the chooser.

For Epson 740 printers, select SC740 in the left pane and the USB port in the right pane if you are using the Epson with an iMac or eMac. For non-USB computers, select the SC740 icon and the modem port.

For Epson Stylus C80 printers, select C80 in the left pane and the USB port in the right pane. This printer ONLY works with the iMac and eMac computers, so only the USB option is available.

For Lexmark Z33 printers, select Z33 in the left pane and the USB port in the right pane. This printer ONLY works with the iMac and eMac computers, so only the USB option is available.

*NOTE: On Lexmark Z33 printers, users must set background printing options from the print dialog box. Go to File, Print from any program. Select “Background Printing” from the list of options. Make sure “Foreground” is selected. Then click “Save Settings.”

Checking all connections

Please do not change the way the print cables have been connected to the computers in your room. After a tech assistant has correctly configured and tested your computers and printer, the cables and other equipment, including switch boxes, should not be moved or changed. If cables are incorrectly plugged in or not plugged in at all, you will continue to experience printing problems.

iMac and eMac computers will only connect from the USB port on the computer to the USB port on the Epson SC740, Epson Stylus C80 and Lexmark Z33 printers. A flat end of the USB cable plugs into the computer and the square end plugs into the printer. There is no other configuration for this type of connection.

PowerPC computers, including 5200 series, 5300, 5400 and 5500, must connect to a printer via the modem port (indicated by the telephone icon). Do not attempt to print by connecting these computers to the printer from the printer port on the computer. Doing so could alter vital settings that will disallow full funcitonality on our network.

PowerPC computers connect to the serial port (a small, round port with 8 pinholes) on the DeskWriter 560C, DeskWriter 600 series and Epson SC740 printers.* They will not work with the Epson Stylus C80 or Lexmark Z33 printers.

*NOTE: In some classrooms, both an iMac and PowerPC computer are connected to an Epson SC740. This is our only classroom printer that allows both serial and USB connections. In this case, the iMac plugs into the USB port, and the PowerPC plugs into the serial port. If these are the only computers connected to the printer, there is no need to switch between the computers for printing, as with a switch box. (See Using a Switch Box)

Using a switch box

Rooms equipped with an A-B switch box are special cases. Users must make sure the box is switched to the computer from which they wish to print. For example, most rooms are set up so that the left computer is “A” and the right computer is “B.” So when printing from the left computer, users must ensure that the box is switched to “A.” The box must also be correctly switched in order to set the chooser.

Cleaning the ink cartridges

Just as a reminder: If you experience faint or light print from your printer with new or hardly used cartridges, a new replacement cartridge might not be the solution. Try using the printer’s print head cleaning utilities first.

DeskWriter 500 and 600 series: With the printer on, open a blank AppleWorks document. Go to the File menu, and select Page Setup. Then click on the “Service” button to access the printer’s head cleaning utility.

Epson 740 and C80: With the printer turned on, open a blank AppleWorks document. Go to the File menu, and select Print. Then click on the “Services” icon in the upper right corner of the print dialog box. (This icon has a picture of some small tools on it.) Use the head cleaning utility in the resulting window.

Lexmark Z33: With the printer turned on, open a blank AppleWorks document. Go to the File menu, and select Print. Then click on…

You may also perform the same task without use of the computer for the Epson printers. Simply press and hold the ink button, indicated by the ink droplets, for three to five seconds. The printer will then begin to perform the head cleaning.

When all else fails, and the printer is absolutely out of ink, simply fill out the Computer Problem Complaint Form to request a new cartridge. Be sure to specify your printer model. This name and model number can be found right on the front or top (lid) of your printer.

Replacing the ink cartridges

If you experience declining print quality, and you have already tried aligning and cleaning the print heads, it might be time for a new cartridge. Some printers let you know that you need new ink with an ink cartridge light. DeskWriter printers do not have this feature. You will know when you need new ink for those printers when cleaning fails and your print continues to decline. Epson SC740 and Stylus C80 printers have ink lights to let you know when to change the cartridges.

Epson SC740 printers have two ink lights. One is for the black ink cartridge, and the other is for the color ink cartridge. If either of these lights is blinking, you know that the ink level is getting low. It might be time to request a replacement cartridge by filling out a Computer Problem Complaint Form and indicating your printer model number. When either of the ink lights is steady, you might not be able to print because the printer is letting you know that one of the cartridges is empty. You must replace the cartridge to continue printing.

Epson Stylus C80 priners have only one ink light. However, using the printers Utilities menu from the Print dialog box, users can check the ink level for each of the four cartridges: black, cyan, magenta and yellow. As with the SC740, the ink light will blink when one of the ink cartridges is very low. Use the Utility to determine which cartridge is running low. When the light is steady, an ink cartridge is empty and must be replaced for printing to resume.

Ron Walker, Webmaster, Clemente School Internet Website
Bruce Stern, Webmaster, School Intranet Website
T Martin, Editor, Clemente Tech News

CWASP