Why printers dont work

Printers have been my enemy ever since I can remember. My first office job involved an evil printer that suffered daily paper jams. Tasked with fixing it, I suffered frequent burns and paper cuts. It had a door you had to close just so, or it would immediately break again with the dreaded phantom paper jam. It tormented me for months, completely indifferent to my cries. Subscriptions help fund the work we do every day. Manufacturers tempt with unbelievably cheap deals on printers and then nail you on expensive ink.

To make sure they get their pound of flesh, they focus an inordinate effort on making sure printers only work with proprietary ink cartridges.

This step printer plan is an effective recipe for high blood pressure. She earned a B. What Causes Printers Not to Work? Stuck Print Spooler When you print a document, the file is stored temporarily on your computer.

Driver Issue A device driver is software that facilitates communication between the operating system and the device. Overuse All printers have a monthly recommended page volume. The printer you plugged in to a USB hub on a system with too many peripherals to accommodate a direct connection may refuse to work that way. Even if your configuration seems to be set up correctly, substituting a new cable or reconnecting your printer to a port on your computer may solve the problem.

Wireless systems are also potentially problematic. Shut down the printer and restart to reset on the printer end.

If that is not the issue, check the connection at your wireless router and reset the router as well. Many printers enter offline mode when they run out of paper, ink or toner. As with most computer problems, you should begin with the easiest solutions before moving on to more advanced troubleshooting steps.

First, make sure the printer is on and has paper in the tray. You may also want to check that it has ink if you are using an inkjet printer. Next, check to make sure the printer cable is properly connected to both the computer and the printer.

Go to Start, Printers and Faxes.