Printer Troubleshooter

Hi . I have a problem with my new printer. The printer has been checked and is O.K. When I ask it to print something it will print after a short period then if I ask for a second document it takes up to 15 or 20 mins before it prints again. Any ideas appreciated Eileen

 

Hi, demyhill2. Welcome to WindowsBBS.

If you can provide us with a few more details, we might be able to offer better help.

What make and model is your printer?

Is it a USB printer or parallel port printer?

Did you carefully follow the installation instructions that came with your printer? (Some USB printers are picky about when you're supposed to attach the USB cable during installation.)

Have you tried a cold-reboot of your computer (shutting down and then turning it back on)?

Sometimes printer problems can be solved by installing the latest available drivers from the manufacturer's web site. Have you tried installing the latest available drivers? (If you can't find the latest available drivers at the manufacturer's website, then someone here might be able to provide you with a link once you provide the make and model of your printer.)

Are you running Windows XP Home or Pro?

What program (and version) are you trying to print from?

Do you have the same problem regardless of which program you try to print from? (i.e., Notepad, your web browser, Microsoft Word, Wordpad, etc.)

By the way, if this problem is not a Windows XP problem, then a forum moderator might move this thread to the Hardware forum, Other Software forum, or some other forum depending on what your answers to my questions are.

 

Thanks for your reply. Details of Printer as follows;
Canon - Pixma iP4200
Usb Port
I have tried the re boot and nothing is changed.
It does not seem to matter what I am trying to print from it is always the same result.
I will try to find the drivers as you suggested.
Thanks Eileen

 

Looks like the latest version for your printer's model number is version 1.90b

I think this link will get you going in the right direction for your printer driver.

If you have Windows XP Home or Windows XP Professional, choose the first listed driver.

If you have the 64-bit edition of Windows XP Professional, choose the third listed driver.

 

Ip4200 Problem

Demyhill,

I have the identical problem with my iP4200. First document prints immediately and subsequent documents print after a 10 minute or longer wait. This is true for text only, images, text with images, or even the printer's own test page, when printed via the computer. However, if I print a test page from the printer, without using the computer, the documents print normally. (This is done, for example, by pressing the Alarm button until the Power button flashes twice to get a printing pattern test page.)

I am running XP Pro and the printer is USB. I have plenty of RAM and the disk is defragged, I have tried rebooting, updating drivers, uninstalling and reinstalling the printer, changing USB ports, deleting and respooling documents, running with minimal services and programs running, and printing in Safe Mode. I have anti-spyware and anti-virus software and use them religiously. Canon tech support has so far been unable to help, although I give them credit for trying.

I am running a Canon i9100, a Canoscan 5000 flatbed scanner, and a Dimage Dualscan IV film scanner on the same system, with no problems.

So, needless to say, I have a real interest in following this thread!

Randy

 

Hi Randy T. I have not had any results with setting up my printer but I will let you know if and when I do

 

Hi Demyhill2,

Worth checking these points.
>Control panel
>Rt click your printer icon
>Properties - advanced tab
Select - Spool docs- Start printing immediately -Print spooled docs first

>Ports tab
Select - Enable bi-directional printing.

This may help, but I don't have the same model Canon so the selections may be a bit different.

Roger:

 

I don't know about demyhill, but both of these options are checked on my system.

I did find out that my USB 2.0 drivers need updating, though. If I can find new ones, I'll try them and let you know if that helps.

R

 

Canon iP4200 problem

Updating the USB 2.0 drivers did actually seem to work. Just go to Device Manager, click on Update Drivers for each of your USB 2.0 listings (since I don't know which one did the trick) and let Windows search automatically for new drivers. When I did that, several drivers downloaded and installed, and after a restart the printer worked just fine.

Hope it works for you as well.

Randy

 

Hi Randy T. Thanks so much for your advice. I have updated my Usb Drivers and it seems to have worked. demyhill

 

Thanks for posting back with your solution Randy. A lot of people wouldn't bother but it's a necessary thing for these boards to be effective. It may well help somebody else in the future. Thanks again!