Trouble setting up fax on winxp

I have a desk top windows xp, about 8yrs. old that I bought new, along with an HP psc 2210 all-in-one printer/copier/scanner/fax machine. I've had 2 pc 'crashes' during those 8yr, the last one being about 2yr. ago. The cd rom drawer only works the odd time,mostly never, but I was able to reinstall the HP unit. Now I cannot figure out the fax set up. When everything was new, the fax worked perfectly. Now, no matter what I do, the fax isn't working. When I plug the phone part into the wall jack, of course the fax answers on the first ring so that no one can call me on the phone...when plugged into the back of the tower.....there are 2 areas.....either one, it won't work. I managed to send out one fax a week ago, but now I can't....????? I'm sure it's the way I have the wiring/plugging done.... When the pc crashed, the program for this HP unit was gone from the files, and I hadn't been able to download it again, because of the sticky cd rom, until last week! I have the unit plugged in and the usb all connected and in the 'director' program, everything is done and checked, up until I get to the area, 'print out test page' to see if everything is installed properly...........it doesn't print out. sorry for the lengthy post, just trying to anticipate questions that may be asked.
Jay:confused :

 

Have you checked 'Printers' in 'Control Panel' to make sure the HP unit is set as the default printer?

 

Maybe the CD works but won't open? Take a paper clip and open the tray by putting the clip in the hole and push it in. Do this easy. That or go to your CD rom in My Computer and right click on it and tell it to eject and it will open it up. Just a thought.

Have you looked in Device Manager and made sure there were no yellow ? or ! there? Have you tried to Delete/uninstall the device in Device Manager and then reboot and let windows find it?

 

Thanks Mark, yes the HP is my default printer. And thanks to Mr.Bill, the cd drawer opens after pushing the button 2 or 3 times....gently of course, it's just that when the cd is in there and the drawer closed, nothing happens, no humming and the green light flashes for a bit, then stays solid green, the goes off. In the device manager, there are no yellow ? or !....I know what you mean by those things! They were there for the HP unit, until finally the cd rom worked for a bit. As for uninstall/reinstall the cd rom????? I'm afraid to do that!! I thought of uninstalling the driver, but allowed it to search for 'hardware changes'. I noticed that when I clicked on 'find new driver' it wanted me to put in the cd entitled 'windows xp home service pack 3' which I don't have. The service pack 3 was automatically installed on this computer in the auto update feature, online.

 

Well, it sounds as if you have checked everything so I am close to concluding that your printer/fax machine is defective. Just one last thing, when you try to print a document does a small picture of a printer (an icon) appear in the bottom right corner of the screen, in the tool bar. If that is not happening we have to look a bit deeper.

Do you have access to another computer that you can set up and test your printer on. This would be a quick way to confirm if the printer is defective or if it is a 'set up' issue on your computer.

Have you tried running a lens cleaner through the CD rom, it sounds as if it is having trouble reading discs. The mechanical problem opening and closing is just old age and a slipping drive belt. I have had a few do that but they always read the disc OK.

The next thing that may be worth a try is to reinstall the drivers but not from the disc, they are availale on line.

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/...=en&cc=uk&dlc=en&sw_lang=&product=79499#N3259

First disconnect the printer from your PC. The online guide tells you to do this but does not tell you when to plug it back in, I would guess that when you start, or during installation of the drivers, it will tell you when to make the connection again.

First download the one marked 'Utility' and use it to uninstall the drivers. Then download the 'Driver' and install it. Then try the printer again.

 

You are using XP, so why not use the built in FAX that it has. I have used it many times before.

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/306657

 

Mark, in reading my prev. posts, I see I failed to mention that the copier/scanner/printer part of the unit is working, I just need to replace the cartridges. The unit sat unused for a few months, so the ink is too dry & the page either comes out blank or a trace of printing on it. Also, I'm not sure when you're talking about the HP unit with fax and when you're referring to the cd rom...lol I guess I'm just a bit less than intermediate. How do I run a 'lens cleaner' through the rom, maybe that is all it needs, something like the old cassette head cleaner thing?? Is there a special disk to buy?? or do I put some lens cleaner onto a 'lint-free' cloth & wipe the inside of the drawer?? Personally I think it's something those young guys at the 'fix-it' shop did to it. They had called to ask if I needed the floppy disk drive, because some virus got into it & they would have to disconnect it.....I didn't know viruses got into that area??? I wont' be bringing any of my pc's there anymore. I had called them about the cd rom not working & they said they didn't know, it should be working ok. TSK!! I mentioned this as it may give you some clues to the puzzle?
MrBill, I wasn't aware that xp had a built-in fax...lol I have a new windows 7 laptop that does, although I'm not sure how it works, I'll follow that link though.
I want to thank both you gentlemen for your help, I feel as though an answer is just around the corner, please stretch your patience a bit more eh? thank you
Jay

 

Your welcome Jay we enjoy helping.

First the lens cleaner should be easy to obtain. It is a cd with a tiny brush attached to it so that it will clear any dirt from the laser. I am sure most music stores and Hi-Fi departments will have these in stock.

This is what a lens cleaner looks like.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Maxell-190048-Cd-Lens-Cleaner/dp/B000001OM5


Now, those guys at the fix-it shop, clearly never to be trusted again after telling you there was a virus in the floppy drive. On a floppy disc is possible but not in the drive itself. Even if it had some kind of memory that could save a virus there would be a way to get rid of it, disposing of the drive would not have been the solution.


Now back to the Fax. I had misunderstood a little. The fact still remains though, that there may be some doubt concerning the functionality of the drivers and software as these have been installed with a suspect CD drive. I would persue my suggestion above in post No5 to download and reinstall the software and drivers and then you will know for sure that these will be free of any errors. Then you can concentrate on figuring out what is wrong with the machine.

 

MrBill, I went to 'add or remove' > windows components and put a check in the box beside fax, like the link you sent me, told me to, but a screen came up wanting me to put in the cd 'windows xp home edition service pack 3' which I don't have. So I couldn't get any further. The instructions from the link tells me to check that fax box in the componentsl. I'm going to be picking up a cd lens cleaner this week to try & get the rom running anyway. The windows service pack 3 was auto downloaded in the windows updates online. The only cd I have pertaining to this winxp is the reboot disk and the microsoft works disk, nothing else. Any way around that? Thanks
Jay

 

A borrowed 'Windows XP' disc will do the job, you just have to make sure it is the same version as the one you have on your system.

I'm looking forward to hearing how things go with the CD drive, if the cleaner does not improve things it may be time to consider a new one.

 

well Mark, I have talked in-depth to the fellow at Walmart, who seems to know his stuff and he thinks it would be a waste of money to get the cd cleaner, since the cd rom doesn't work anyway, it wouldn't 'hum' with the cleaner cd in it either. He suggested like you did, maybe time for a new rom...he did say that sometimes the drawer isn't sitting 'just so' and that maybe at some point while repairs were being done, it was knocked a bit. I think I will look into getting a dvd rom/drawer instead of just a cd, BUT I'll have to find someone who will put it in for me, can you come over?....lol
Anyway, I did as suggested in post #5, the site uninstalled the hp unit with the 'scrubber' ok, but when it came time to install the 'driver 1', it installed ....sort of, at the very end of the installation though it said 'fatal error 2343 during installation'. I looked it up & did what they suggested step by step, even though on the last step, the batch file they told me to click on to open.....wasn't there. OH DEAR, so now I have no HP psc 2210 installed on my pc and I can't reinstall it through the site either! I feel helpless now? I can try and reinstall it using the cd, hoping and praying that it will work just one more time??, but it's a longshot. If it works & I can reinstall the prog. at least I'll have a printer/copier/scanner, just no fax usage. Thanks for all your help though, I appreciate your time spent.

 

Your welcome.

Not sure what could be causing the problem with the driver installation. Maybe when you have your new CDrom installed it will work OK from the disc. Before you do this I would suggest using the remover utility again.

Let us know how you get on and if there is further problems with the driver we may have to look a little deeper into the problem.