Problem with printer

I have a really old Xerox DocuPrint P8 laser B&W printer that worked for on XP for a very long time up until recently.

The last thing I remember before the issue was a 36 page document that I printed. After that for some reason when I try to print anything, it would say "printer off or preoccupied". I know that is not the case because it's ON and nothing is printer or on the queue list. This printer is only used by me and not a network printer.

Funny thing was, it worked once after the issue happened and then since then it hasn't work again. I tried their website, google-ing for answers with no luck. I even tried switching cables and printers (I have two of the same kind). No luck. Please help.

Grumble Grumble Grumble

You might want to check your Printer Control panel to see if there is any duplicate printer definitions for your printer. (My Samsung printer is always trying to do this if I turn it on after XP has already booted) Also try booting with the Printer on and initialized before booting up XP...

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by LenMiyata

Grumble Grumble Grumble

You might want to check your Printer Control panel to see if there is any duplicate printer definitions for your printer. (My Samsung printer is always trying to do this if I turn it on after XP has already booted) Also try booting with the Printer on and initialized before booting up XP...

---

The only two that's there are Microsoft Office Document Image Viewer and Xerox DocuPrint P8. I also leave it on, never really turn it off.

Grumble Grumble Grumble

Have you tried power cycling that printer???

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by LenMiyata

Grumble Grumble Grumble

Have you tried power cycling that printer???

---

Is that the one where you leave it off for an amount of time?? If not how do I go about doing it and if it is how long should i leave it off?

EDIT: No luck, even after 5 mins.

This is the answer from the Xerox webstie.

Online Support ErrorMessage | Xerox Worldwide)

Hope that works for ya.

It would appear that the Xerox website works with sessions, so the link I previously gave you will no longer work. I took the liberty of copying and pasting the query result below.

Solutions for How To Resolve a Printer Off or Preoccupied Error Message
Make Printable E-mail this page
Solutions ranked by relevance:

1. Verify the Xerox Device is Plugged Into a Grounded Wall Outlet

2. Recycle the Power

3. Restart the Computer

4. Set Your Xerox Printer as the Windows Default

5. Verify That You are Using the IEEE-1284 Compliant Parallel Cable that Came with the Xerox Printer

6. Disconnect and Reconnect the Printer Cable, Removing Peripheral Devices

7. Switch Parallel Ports on the Back of the Printer

8. Discharge Static from the Parallel Cable

9. Verify the Printer Driver Is Set For the Correct Printer Port

10. Check LPT1 for Error Conditions

11. Identify and Uninstall Conflicting Software

12. Close Background Programs

13. Uninstall the Printer Driver

14. Install the Printer Driver From Diskette

15. Download and Install the Printer Driver From the Internet

16. Try a Different Parallel Cable

17. Verify the Parallel Port Mode in Device Manager (All Windows versions except NT)

18. Change the Parallel Port Mode to Standard Bi-directional

Thanks know1, but I already seen those directions before and had tried them. It would seem the problem does not lie with my printer but rather my motherboard/windows.

Ok here's something you can try, remove the printer completely from your system. If your using a parallel printer cable then you pretty much outta luck if it's on your motherboard, but if you using a usb cable then you'll be perfectly fine. Change the usb slot that you have been using, this way if it is a bad slot then the next slot that you use will hopefully be a good slot.
Now don't use the disc that came with the printer, but rather go to the manufactures website, (it should be located on the bottom of the printer) an download the new drivers for the system and install, the drivers should come with some instructions on how to install them. If not then boot ur system with the printer hooked into the new port, wait for it to load, and when it tries to install, search for the dirver yourself and select it from where you stored it on ur computer. This should hopefully fix your problem.