Common Issues People have with Printing

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Printers can present a maddening range of problems to consumers. They run through ink too fast, their output quality may be flawed, they may print at a snail’s pace, paper may regularly jam. Sometimes, they’ll just refuse to print at all, and just sit there while you fume. Let’s take a look at some of the most common issues people have with printers:

  1. My printer won’t print.
    If there are no error messages pointing you to the problem, check to be sure that the printer is still connected, via USB or Ethernet cable or—if a wireless model—that the Wi-Fi is enabled and that you’re connected to the right network. The printer driver and software needs to be installed on the computer you want to print from. It’s possible that the driver has become corrupted; it should be reinstalled; check the manufacturer’s download page for the latest version.
  2. Error Messages
    “Printer not Supported.” “Cannot Connect to Printer.” “Communication Failure.” Or just “Error Message 1517.” None of these provide you with a proper description of how to fix the issue.
  3. My printer’s too slow.
    Some printers are cheetahs and some are sloths, but you may be able to get even a slow printer to speed up a bit. Unless you need high-quality output for a formal report or the like, print in draft mode (or whatever the lowest-quality setting is). Avoid duplex (two-sided) printing, as the printer has to flip the document over to print on both sides, which can significantly slow it down. If you can choose between printer drivers, print from a host-based or PCL driver; although PostScript drivers can print photos at higher quality, it may come at the expense of speed.
  4. I get a lot of paper jams.
    Fortunately, paper jams are far less common than even a decade ago, but they still can happen. By far the most common cause of paper jams is paper misalignment. Be sure to square off the stack of paper before inserting it in the tray, be sure that the guides are flush with the paper, and avoid over-filling the tray.

Eco Ink & Toner can take you from start to finish with every aspect of your home or business printing, just give us a call if you’re having issues with your printer and we will help!