Printer invisible to Mac after years of no problems

[mmerlinn]

Mac LCIII
System 7.5.3 with 2.0 update
HP Deskwriter 520

After many years of no problems the printer won't print.

Printer activity lights are on as they should be.

Have re-installed the DW 520 software.
Have unconnected and reconnected all connections
Have tried using modem port vs printer port
Have used Chooser to select DW printer

When trying to print, message comes up that the Print Monitor cannot find the printer named "" (Empty string) even though "DeskWriter 520" is shown in the print preview as the destination printer.

Checked AppleTalk and get the message 'No Zones Available'

Can't find documentation that came with printer so don't know how to troubleshoot this problem.

It appears to me that for some reason the PrintMonitor cannot 'see' the printer.

Can someone point me to any resources that I can use to pinpoint and solve this problem?


mmerlinn

"Political correctness is the BADGE of a COWARD!"

 

[pentode]

Do you have another cable you can try?

See if the printer has a self-test mode and make sure it is functional.

System 7.5.3??? You really need to think about a new system. It's nice to stick with something that is working, but unless there is something special about this system, you're really trying to run up the DOWN escalator to keep this system running.

 

[mmerlinn]

Will try another cable which will be easy since any tele cord will work.

Printer has self-test but haven't used it in about ten years and can't find documentation to review to find out how to work it.

This is the oldest system in daily use. Have several newer systems also in daily use including this G series I am typing this with. Also have another 20 or so spare systems not in daily use, most of which are PPC or G series, but also have a couple of spare LC IIIs just in case I need to replace this one.

This old system is being used because the accounting program on it won't run on newer machines and updates are not available from the now non-existant maker. As long as it works there is no reason to spend thousands of dollars to update and convert everything to a newer/better system, not to say anything about the unknown number of hours to convert and relearn. In other words, it is cheaper to maintain this machine than to upgrade. Expected life of the business that uses the accounting program is about another 5 years, definitely not long enough to justify doing anything other than race up the down escalator.t


mmerlinn

"Political correctness is the BADGE of a COWARD!"

 

[jmgalvin]

You might try trashing the driver for the printer, turning off all Extensions/Control panels and then installing the driver again. Reboot and see if the printer works.

Back with 7X control panel/extension problems after an install were always possible.

Using OSX 10.3.9 on a G4

 

[mmerlinn]

Problem solved.

Battery went dead yesterday. Replaced it and printer now works again. I assume that the battery charge was too low to save the printer file and therefore the printer could not be found.






mmerlinn

"Political correctness is the BADGE of a COWARD!"