If your printer is disconnected, you can still queue up documents for printing. You might want to do this while traveling, for instance, if you have a laptop and don’t want to drag a 50-pound laser printer along in your carry-on luggage. (It’s hard to get them through security.)
If you try this, however, you’ll quickly find that the Print Manager will beep, pop up messages to tell you about the missing printer, and otherwise make your life miserable. To silence it, Open the Devices and Printers window. Right-click the printer icon and select See What’s Printing. Then, in the queue window’s menu, click Printer, Use Printer Offline. The printer’s icon will turn a light-gray color to show that it’s been set for offline use, and Windows will now quietly and compliantly queue up anything you “print.”
Just don’t forget that you’ve done this or nothing will print even when you’ve reconnected your printer. You’ll end up yelling at your unresponsive printer, when it’s only doing what it was told. When you’ve reconnected the printer, repeat those steps and uncheck Use Printer Offline. This is a nifty feature, but available only for local printers, not printers shared by other computers.
Source of Information : QUE Microsoft Windows in Depth
Windows 7 Printing Troubleshooting
No Output from Printer
If your print jobs never make it out the other end of the printer, open the Devices and Printers window and 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.
• Right-click the printer icon and see whether the option Use Printer Online appears. If it does, select this item.
• 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, check whether the station serving the printer is 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 an MS-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.
• If all else fails, restart Windows. It’s sad that we have to suggest this, but it sometimes does bring a zombie printer back to life.
Printer Produces Garbled Text
If your printed pages contain a lot of garbled text or weird symbols, check the following:
• You might have the wrong driver installed. Run the print test page and see whether it works. Open the Devices and Printers window (by choosing Start, Devices and Printers), open the printer’s Properties dialog box, and print a test page. If that works, you’re halfway home. If it doesn’t, try removing the printer and reinstalling it. Right-click the printer icon in the Devices and Printers window 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.
Source of Information : QUE Microsoft Windows in Depth
If your print jobs never make it out the other end of the printer, open the Devices and Printers window and 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.
• Right-click the printer icon and see whether the option Use Printer Online appears. If it does, select this item.
• 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, check whether the station serving the printer is 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 an MS-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.
• If all else fails, restart Windows. It’s sad that we have to suggest this, but it sometimes does bring a zombie printer back to life.
Printer Produces Garbled Text
If your printed pages contain a lot of garbled text or weird symbols, check the following:
• You might have the wrong driver installed. Run the print test page and see whether it works. Open the Devices and Printers window (by choosing Start, Devices and Printers), open the printer’s Properties dialog box, and print a test page. If that works, you’re halfway home. If it doesn’t, try removing the printer and reinstalling it. Right-click the printer icon in the Devices and Printers window 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.
Source of Information : QUE Microsoft Windows in Depth
Windows 7 - Removing a Printer
You might want to remove a printer setup for several reasons:
• The physical printer has been removed from service.
• You don’t want to use a particular network printer anymore.
• You had several definitions of a physical printer using different default settings, and you want to remove one of them.
• You have a nonfunctioning or improperly functioning printer setup and want to remove it and start over by running the Add Printer Wizard.
In any of these cases, the approach is the same:
1. Be sure you are logged on with Administrator privileges.
2. Open the Devices and Printers window.
3. Be sure nothing is in the printer’s queue. You have to cancel all jobs in the printer’s queue before deleting the printer. If you don’t, Windows will try to delete all jobs in the queue for you, but it unfortunately isn’t always successful.
4. Right-click the printer icon you want to kill, and choose Remove Device.
5. Windows will ask you to confirm that you want to delete the printer. Click Yes. The printer icon or window disappears from the Devices and Printers window.
The removal process removes only the printer icon in the Devices and Printers window. The related driver files and font files are not deleted from your hard disk. Therefore, if you ever want to re-create the printer, you don’t have to insert disks or respond to prompts for the location of driver files. On the other hand, if you are having problems with the driver, deleting the icon and then reinstalling the printer won’t delete the bad driver. Use the New Driver tool on the Advanced tab of the Properties dialog box to solve the problem in this case.
Source of Information : QUE Microsoft Windows in Depth
• The physical printer has been removed from service.
• You don’t want to use a particular network printer anymore.
• You had several definitions of a physical printer using different default settings, and you want to remove one of them.
• You have a nonfunctioning or improperly functioning printer setup and want to remove it and start over by running the Add Printer Wizard.
In any of these cases, the approach is the same:
1. Be sure you are logged on with Administrator privileges.
2. Open the Devices and Printers window.
3. Be sure nothing is in the printer’s queue. You have to cancel all jobs in the printer’s queue before deleting the printer. If you don’t, Windows will try to delete all jobs in the queue for you, but it unfortunately isn’t always successful.
4. Right-click the printer icon you want to kill, and choose Remove Device.
5. Windows will ask you to confirm that you want to delete the printer. Click Yes. The printer icon or window disappears from the Devices and Printers window.
The removal process removes only the printer icon in the Devices and Printers window. The related driver files and font files are not deleted from your hard disk. Therefore, if you ever want to re-create the printer, you don’t have to insert disks or respond to prompts for the location of driver files. On the other hand, if you are having problems with the driver, deleting the icon and then reinstalling the printer won’t delete the bad driver. Use the New Driver tool on the Advanced tab of the Properties dialog box to solve the problem in this case.
Source of Information : QUE Microsoft Windows in Depth
Windows 7 - Printer Properties
To make changes to a printer driver or its physical connection to your computer, or to define some of the default settings that will be supplied to every user, click Start, Devices and Printers. Rightclick the printer icon and select Printer Properties. (That’s Printer Properties, not just plain Properties.)
Each time you add a printer, Windows creates an icon for it in the Devices and Printers window. Although each is called a printer, it is actually just a “pointer” to the printer, much the way a shortcut represents a document or application on the Windows desktop. A given physical printer can have multiple icons, each with different default settings. For example, one could be set to print in landscape orientation on legal-size paper, whereas another printer could default to portrait orientation with letter-size paper. Of course, you can always adjust these settings when you go to print a document, but that can get tedious. If you create multiple printer icons for the same printer, with different, descriptive names, you can choose a setup just by selecting the appropriate printer icon.
Printer Properties Tabs
General
This tab lists the name, location, model number, and features of the printer. From this tab, you can print a test page. You also can click the Preferences button to change your personal printing preferences (the same settings described in the previous section) Some color printers may have settings for paper quality and color control and buttons for maintenance functions on this tab.
Sharing
On this tab, you can alter whether the printer is shared with other network users and what the share name is.
Ports On this tab, you can select the printer’s connection port, add and delete ports, and in some cases configure the physical connection itself. This tab also lets you set up additional ports for network-connected printers.
Advanced
This tab controls time availability, printer priority, driver file changes, spooling options, and advanced printing features such as booklet printing and page ordering. The first two settings are pertinent to larger networks and should be handled by a server administrator.
Booklet printing is worth looking into if you do lots of desktop publishing. Using this option, you can print pages laid out for stapling together small pamphlets. The New Driver button on the Advanced tab lets you replace the current driver with a better one, should this be necessary. The Printing Defaults button lets you set the default printing properties supplied to each user. They can then customize them as described in the previous section.
Color Management
On this tab, you can set optional color profiles on color printers, if this capability is supported.
Security
This tab let you control who has access to print, manage printers, or manage documents from this printer.
Device Settings
The settings on this tab vary greatly among printers. For example, you can set paper size in each tray, tell Windows how much RAM is installed in the printer, and substitute fonts.
About
Lists the printer’s driver components.
Utilities
This tab, if present, might contain options for inkjet nozzle cleaning, head cleaning, head alignment, and so on.
Bluetooth
This tab, if present, contains information about your Bluetooth printer and connection in case you need to troubleshoot connection problems.
Source of Information : QUE Microsoft Windows in Depth
Each time you add a printer, Windows creates an icon for it in the Devices and Printers window. Although each is called a printer, it is actually just a “pointer” to the printer, much the way a shortcut represents a document or application on the Windows desktop. A given physical printer can have multiple icons, each with different default settings. For example, one could be set to print in landscape orientation on legal-size paper, whereas another printer could default to portrait orientation with letter-size paper. Of course, you can always adjust these settings when you go to print a document, but that can get tedious. If you create multiple printer icons for the same printer, with different, descriptive names, you can choose a setup just by selecting the appropriate printer icon.
Printer Properties Tabs
General
This tab lists the name, location, model number, and features of the printer. From this tab, you can print a test page. You also can click the Preferences button to change your personal printing preferences (the same settings described in the previous section) Some color printers may have settings for paper quality and color control and buttons for maintenance functions on this tab.
Sharing
On this tab, you can alter whether the printer is shared with other network users and what the share name is.
Ports On this tab, you can select the printer’s connection port, add and delete ports, and in some cases configure the physical connection itself. This tab also lets you set up additional ports for network-connected printers.
Advanced
This tab controls time availability, printer priority, driver file changes, spooling options, and advanced printing features such as booklet printing and page ordering. The first two settings are pertinent to larger networks and should be handled by a server administrator.
Booklet printing is worth looking into if you do lots of desktop publishing. Using this option, you can print pages laid out for stapling together small pamphlets. The New Driver button on the Advanced tab lets you replace the current driver with a better one, should this be necessary. The Printing Defaults button lets you set the default printing properties supplied to each user. They can then customize them as described in the previous section.
Color Management
On this tab, you can set optional color profiles on color printers, if this capability is supported.
Security
This tab let you control who has access to print, manage printers, or manage documents from this printer.
Device Settings
The settings on this tab vary greatly among printers. For example, you can set paper size in each tray, tell Windows how much RAM is installed in the printer, and substitute fonts.
About
Lists the printer’s driver components.
Utilities
This tab, if present, might contain options for inkjet nozzle cleaning, head cleaning, head alignment, and so on.
Bluetooth
This tab, if present, contains information about your Bluetooth printer and connection in case you need to troubleshoot connection problems.
Source of Information : QUE Microsoft Windows in Depth
Windows 7 - Changing a Printer’s Properties
When you add a printer, the wizard adds an icon for it in the Devices and Printers window, and it’s ready to go. At that point, you can start using it, or you can adjust its preferences and properties to suit your taste. Each printer driver several sets of preference and properties dialogs, each with enough settings to choke a horse.
Different printers have different features, and your printer’s driver will dictate the particular set of options that will be available. Because of the variations possible, the following sections describe only the most general and common options. (In other words, your fancy new printer may have options we’ve never even heard of.) As I mentioned, there are several sets of printer properties and preferences, each of which serves a different purpose:
• Printing Preferences—These are the default settings that each application will start with when you use the application’s Print function. These include paper size, page orientation, and paper source. Although many applications have a Print Setup command that lets you make changes for an individual document, each application starts with the selections made in the printer’s Printing Preferences. Preferences are per-user settings. Each computer user can set his or her own printing preferences.
• Printer Properties—These are settings that apply to the printer itself, most of which tell Windows how to communicate with the printer, what capabilities and optional features it has, and so on. Printer properties also include settings that determine the initial printing preferences for each user.
• Print Server Properties—These are settings that apply to all printers used by the computer. They include paper size and form definitions.
Each printer has also a Properties dialog box, but on Windows 7, it’s of no use because of how the new Devices and Printers window is organized. (The Properties dialog is useful for most other devices.) It takes a little getting used to, because in all previous versions of Windows, to configure a printer you would rightclick its icon and select Properties.
In Windows 7, you must use the other three choices that I just mentioned.
If the Layout tab is not present, you should be able to set the default page orientation on the Paper/Quality or Effects tabs. If your printer’s preferences dialog looks like the one, as it does on at least some Hewlett-Packard laser printers, you must click on an icon to change the orientation. I have no idea why they’d make such an important setting so unobvious.
Source of Information : QUE Microsoft Windows in Depth
Different printers have different features, and your printer’s driver will dictate the particular set of options that will be available. Because of the variations possible, the following sections describe only the most general and common options. (In other words, your fancy new printer may have options we’ve never even heard of.) As I mentioned, there are several sets of printer properties and preferences, each of which serves a different purpose:
• Printing Preferences—These are the default settings that each application will start with when you use the application’s Print function. These include paper size, page orientation, and paper source. Although many applications have a Print Setup command that lets you make changes for an individual document, each application starts with the selections made in the printer’s Printing Preferences. Preferences are per-user settings. Each computer user can set his or her own printing preferences.
• Printer Properties—These are settings that apply to the printer itself, most of which tell Windows how to communicate with the printer, what capabilities and optional features it has, and so on. Printer properties also include settings that determine the initial printing preferences for each user.
• Print Server Properties—These are settings that apply to all printers used by the computer. They include paper size and form definitions.
Each printer has also a Properties dialog box, but on Windows 7, it’s of no use because of how the new Devices and Printers window is organized. (The Properties dialog is useful for most other devices.) It takes a little getting used to, because in all previous versions of Windows, to configure a printer you would rightclick its icon and select Properties.
In Windows 7, you must use the other three choices that I just mentioned.
If the Layout tab is not present, you should be able to set the default page orientation on the Paper/Quality or Effects tabs. If your printer’s preferences dialog looks like the one, as it does on at least some Hewlett-Packard laser printers, you must click on an icon to change the orientation. I have no idea why they’d make such an important setting so unobvious.
Source of Information : QUE Microsoft Windows in Depth
Windows 7 - What to Do If Your Printer Isn’t Listed
If your printer isn’t detected with Plug and Play and isn’t listed in the printer manufacturer and model selection list discussed in the previous section, you’ll have to find a driver elsewhere. First, your printer probably came with a CD-ROM containing driver software. In the printer manufacturer selection dialog box, click Have Disk, and then click Browse to find the Windows 7 driver files for your printer. Select the appropriate INF file and click OK. If you can’t find the disk or if it doesn’t contain a Windows 7 driver, don’t worry; there’s still hope. Windows Vista, XP, and Windows 2000 drivers are compatible, and your disk most likely has drivers for these OSs.
Virtually all printers manufactured since the late 1990s have Windows XP– or Windows 2000–compatible drivers, and many earlier printers are supported as well. The Windows Update button lets Windows download additional printer drivers from Microsoft, and this may well obtain the correct driver for you. If Windows Update doesn’t help, your next step should be to visit the printer manufacturer’s website. Check out their Product Support section, and look for a way to locate and download drivers. If you can find an appropriate driver, follow the manufacturer’s instructions for downloading it. It will probably come as a compressed or executable file that has to be expanded or run, and this will put the installation files into a folder on your hard drive. You can then use the “Have Disk” feature discussed earlier to point Windows to this folder.
If neither Microsoft nor the manufacturer provides a driver, hope is fading. Still, some off-brand printers or models are designed to be compatible with one of the popular printer types, such as the Apple LaserWriters, HP LaserJets, or one of the Epson series. Also, many printer models are very similar and can use the same driver (with mostly correct results). Check the product manual or manufacturer’s website to see if your printer supports an emulation mode. This might help you identify an alternative printer model, and you can try its driver. Assuming that you have obtained a printer driver, follow these instructions to install it:
1. If you obtained a driver by downloading it from the Internet, run the downloaded file. This will either install the drivers directly or “expand” or “unzip” a set of files into a location on your hard disk. Take note of the location.
2. Follow steps 1 through 4 in the preceding section.
3. Click the Have Disk button.
4. You’re now prompted to insert a disk. Click the Browse button. If you downloaded the driver, locate the folder in which the driver files were expanded or unzipped. If you have a CD, insert the CD, wait a few moments, then browse to the driver files on the CD.
The wizard is looking for a file with an .inf extension, which is the standard file extension the installer setup file provided with all drivers. You may have to hunt around a bit to find a folder with drivers for Windows 7, Vista, or XP.
5. When you have located the folder with INF files, click OK. You might have to choose a printer model from a list if multiple options exist.
6. Continue through the wizard dialog boxes as explained in the previous section.
Use the Internet to see if other people have run into the same problem and have found a solution. For instance, you might use Google to search for “Windows 7 printer driver manufacturer model”, substituting in the manufacturer’s name and model number. However, don’t download a driver from some random site: It could be infected with a virus. Download drivers only from a credible corporate or institutional website.
Source of Information : QUE Microsoft Windows in Depth
Virtually all printers manufactured since the late 1990s have Windows XP– or Windows 2000–compatible drivers, and many earlier printers are supported as well. The Windows Update button lets Windows download additional printer drivers from Microsoft, and this may well obtain the correct driver for you. If Windows Update doesn’t help, your next step should be to visit the printer manufacturer’s website. Check out their Product Support section, and look for a way to locate and download drivers. If you can find an appropriate driver, follow the manufacturer’s instructions for downloading it. It will probably come as a compressed or executable file that has to be expanded or run, and this will put the installation files into a folder on your hard drive. You can then use the “Have Disk” feature discussed earlier to point Windows to this folder.
If neither Microsoft nor the manufacturer provides a driver, hope is fading. Still, some off-brand printers or models are designed to be compatible with one of the popular printer types, such as the Apple LaserWriters, HP LaserJets, or one of the Epson series. Also, many printer models are very similar and can use the same driver (with mostly correct results). Check the product manual or manufacturer’s website to see if your printer supports an emulation mode. This might help you identify an alternative printer model, and you can try its driver. Assuming that you have obtained a printer driver, follow these instructions to install it:
1. If you obtained a driver by downloading it from the Internet, run the downloaded file. This will either install the drivers directly or “expand” or “unzip” a set of files into a location on your hard disk. Take note of the location.
2. Follow steps 1 through 4 in the preceding section.
3. Click the Have Disk button.
4. You’re now prompted to insert a disk. Click the Browse button. If you downloaded the driver, locate the folder in which the driver files were expanded or unzipped. If you have a CD, insert the CD, wait a few moments, then browse to the driver files on the CD.
The wizard is looking for a file with an .inf extension, which is the standard file extension the installer setup file provided with all drivers. You may have to hunt around a bit to find a folder with drivers for Windows 7, Vista, or XP.
5. When you have located the folder with INF files, click OK. You might have to choose a printer model from a list if multiple options exist.
6. Continue through the wizard dialog boxes as explained in the previous section.
Use the Internet to see if other people have run into the same problem and have found a solution. For instance, you might use Google to search for “Windows 7 printer driver manufacturer model”, substituting in the manufacturer’s name and model number. However, don’t download a driver from some random site: It could be infected with a virus. Download drivers only from a credible corporate or institutional website.
Source of Information : QUE Microsoft Windows in Depth
Windows 7 - If the Printer Isn’t Found
If your printer isn’t found automatically using the options in the preceding section, you have to fake out Plug and Play and go the manual route. To do so, follow these steps:
1. Open the Devices and Printers window by clicking Start, Devices and Printers. At the top of the Devices and Printers window, select Add a Printer.
2. Select Add a Local Printer.
3. Select the port to which the printer is connected. The choices are as follows:
• LPT1:, LPT2:, LPT3:—These are parallel port connections. Most computers have only one parallel port connection, LPT1. The higher-numbered ports will still appear in the list even if your computer doesn’t have them—be careful.
• COM1: through COM4:—If you know your printer is of the serial variety, it’s probably connected to COM1 or COM2. If COM1 is tied up for use with some other device, such as a modem, use COM2.
• File—If you select this port, when you subsequently print a document, you will be prompted for the name of a file into which the printer commands will be stored. The main use for this option is with a PostScript printer driver, to create a file for submission to a print shop.
• BTH001—This is for printing to a wireless Bluetooth printer if you have one connected to your computer.
• XPS—The XPS port provides another “save to file” function. This port directs print output to an XPS sharable document format file.
• Create a New Port—This is used to make connections to printers that are directly connected to your LAN and are to be controlled by your computer.
After selecting the correct port, click Next.
4. Select the manufacturer and model of your printer in the next dialog box, You can quickly jump to a manufacturer’s name by pressing the first letter of the name, such as H for HP. Then use the up- and down-arrow keys to home in on the correct one.
If you can’t find the appropriate model, you have three choices:
• If you have an Internet connection, click Windows Update to see if Microsoft has a driver available. This might well work.
• Get the manufacturer’s driver on a floppy disk or CD-ROM or download it via the Internet, open or run the downloaded file to expand its files, and then click Have Disk. Locate the driver (look for an INF file, the standard type for driver setup programs) and click OK.
• Choose a similar, compatible model and risk getting less-than-perfect output. This option can often be successful with dot-matrix printers and older inkjet and laser printers, but is less likely to work with modern cheap inkjet or laser printers that have no internal “smarts.”
If the wizard finds that the appropriate driver is already installed on your machine, you can elect to keep it or replace it. It’s up to you. If you think the replacement will be better, go for it. By contrast, if no driver is listed on the machine, you may be prompted to install it or insert a disk from the vendor. On the whole, manufacturer-provided drivers tend to be newer and better than the default ones provided with Windows.
When you have selected a printer manufacturer and model, click Next.
5. By default, the printer will be named using its full model name. You can change or shorten this if you wish. Then, click Next.
6. By default, the printer will be shared on your network. The default share name is the printer’s name as set in the previous step, but you can modify or shorten the share name if you wish. Some computers have trouble with names longer than 31 characters, so if you intend to share the printer, keep the name short and sweet. To help other users identify the printer, you can also type in a location and a comment. If you do not want to share the printer, click Do Not Share This Printer. Then, click Next.
7. If you want this printer to be your default (primary) printer, check Set As the Default Printer. Click Next. A User Account Control prompt may appear, confirming that you want to install the driver.
8. If you want be sure the printer is working, click Print a Test Page; otherwise, click Finish. When you’re finished, the icon for the printer appears in your Devices and Printers window.
If you have just set up a printer that’s connected to a serial (COM) port, right-click the printer’s icon and select Properties. View the Ports tab, highlight the correct COM port line (which should be checked), and click Configure Port. Select the proper data transfer rate in bits per second (baud rate), data bits, parity, stop bits, and flow control. For most serial printers, these settings should be 9600, 8, None, 1, and Xon/Xoff, respectively. Finally, click OK to save the changes.
If your printer is set up and working now, you can skip ahead to the section “Changing a Printer’s Properties.”
If the driver software isn’t “signed” with digital proof that it came from the manufacturer that it says it came from, Windows may warn you. Permit the software to be installed only if you know that it came directly from a reputable manufacturer. If it came from a website other than the manufacturer’s, you probably do not want to trust it. On a corporate network you may be prevented from installing any unsigned drivers.
Source of Information : QUE Microsoft Windows in Depth
1. Open the Devices and Printers window by clicking Start, Devices and Printers. At the top of the Devices and Printers window, select Add a Printer.
2. Select Add a Local Printer.
3. Select the port to which the printer is connected. The choices are as follows:
• LPT1:, LPT2:, LPT3:—These are parallel port connections. Most computers have only one parallel port connection, LPT1. The higher-numbered ports will still appear in the list even if your computer doesn’t have them—be careful.
• COM1: through COM4:—If you know your printer is of the serial variety, it’s probably connected to COM1 or COM2. If COM1 is tied up for use with some other device, such as a modem, use COM2.
• File—If you select this port, when you subsequently print a document, you will be prompted for the name of a file into which the printer commands will be stored. The main use for this option is with a PostScript printer driver, to create a file for submission to a print shop.
• BTH001—This is for printing to a wireless Bluetooth printer if you have one connected to your computer.
• XPS—The XPS port provides another “save to file” function. This port directs print output to an XPS sharable document format file.
• Create a New Port—This is used to make connections to printers that are directly connected to your LAN and are to be controlled by your computer.
After selecting the correct port, click Next.
4. Select the manufacturer and model of your printer in the next dialog box, You can quickly jump to a manufacturer’s name by pressing the first letter of the name, such as H for HP. Then use the up- and down-arrow keys to home in on the correct one.
If you can’t find the appropriate model, you have three choices:
• If you have an Internet connection, click Windows Update to see if Microsoft has a driver available. This might well work.
• Get the manufacturer’s driver on a floppy disk or CD-ROM or download it via the Internet, open or run the downloaded file to expand its files, and then click Have Disk. Locate the driver (look for an INF file, the standard type for driver setup programs) and click OK.
• Choose a similar, compatible model and risk getting less-than-perfect output. This option can often be successful with dot-matrix printers and older inkjet and laser printers, but is less likely to work with modern cheap inkjet or laser printers that have no internal “smarts.”
If the wizard finds that the appropriate driver is already installed on your machine, you can elect to keep it or replace it. It’s up to you. If you think the replacement will be better, go for it. By contrast, if no driver is listed on the machine, you may be prompted to install it or insert a disk from the vendor. On the whole, manufacturer-provided drivers tend to be newer and better than the default ones provided with Windows.
When you have selected a printer manufacturer and model, click Next.
5. By default, the printer will be named using its full model name. You can change or shorten this if you wish. Then, click Next.
6. By default, the printer will be shared on your network. The default share name is the printer’s name as set in the previous step, but you can modify or shorten the share name if you wish. Some computers have trouble with names longer than 31 characters, so if you intend to share the printer, keep the name short and sweet. To help other users identify the printer, you can also type in a location and a comment. If you do not want to share the printer, click Do Not Share This Printer. Then, click Next.
7. If you want this printer to be your default (primary) printer, check Set As the Default Printer. Click Next. A User Account Control prompt may appear, confirming that you want to install the driver.
8. If you want be sure the printer is working, click Print a Test Page; otherwise, click Finish. When you’re finished, the icon for the printer appears in your Devices and Printers window.
If you have just set up a printer that’s connected to a serial (COM) port, right-click the printer’s icon and select Properties. View the Ports tab, highlight the correct COM port line (which should be checked), and click Configure Port. Select the proper data transfer rate in bits per second (baud rate), data bits, parity, stop bits, and flow control. For most serial printers, these settings should be 9600, 8, None, 1, and Xon/Xoff, respectively. Finally, click OK to save the changes.
If your printer is set up and working now, you can skip ahead to the section “Changing a Printer’s Properties.”
If the driver software isn’t “signed” with digital proof that it came from the manufacturer that it says it came from, Windows may warn you. Permit the software to be installed only if you know that it came directly from a reputable manufacturer. If it came from a website other than the manufacturer’s, you probably do not want to trust it. On a corporate network you may be prevented from installing any unsigned drivers.
Source of Information : QUE Microsoft Windows in Depth
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