PC Support & RepairChapter 7Fundamental Printers & Scanners

Objectives• After completing this chapter, you will meet these

objectives:▫Describe the types of printers currently available. ▫Describe the installation and configuration process for

printers. ▫Describe the types of scanners currently available. ▫Describe the installation and configuration process for

scanners. ▫ Identify and apply common preventive maintenance

techniques for printers and scanners. ▫Troubleshoot printers and scanners.

Printers•Customers will ask

you for help with:▫Selecting a printer

▫Installing and configuring a printer

▫Troubleshooting a printer

Describe Printers Available•Describe characteristics and capabilities of printers. •Describe printer-to-computer interfaces. •Describe laser printers. •Describe impact printers. •Describe inkjet printers. •Describe solid-ink printers. •Describe other printer types.

Printers•What are the two main types of printers bought

today?

▫Laser▫Inkjet

•What do you look for in a printer?

Printer Features•Speed: Pages Per Minute (ppm)▫Inkjet may be slower than laser

•Color or B&W▫Uses CMYK▫Inkjet combines colors for a dot

•Quality: dpi▫More dpi= higher resolution▫High-quality ink/toner & paper

Printer Features• Reliability▫ Warranty & what is covered▫ Scheduled servicing after so long▫ Mean time between failures (MTBF) – average length of time the

printer works without failing• TCO▫ Initial purchase price ▫ Cost of supplies, such as paper and ink ▫ Price per page ▫ Maintenance costs ▫ Warranty costs ▫ When calculating the TCO, you should also consider the amount of

material printed and the expected lifetime of the printer.

Basic TCO Over 3 years•HP LaserJet P2035n▫Cost of printer: ▫Monthly duty cycle:▫Cost of Toner:▫How many pages for toner:▫Output in class: 1000 pages/month

▫TCO Over 3 years:

Printer to Computer Interfaces•Serial OLD▫1 bit at a time▫Dot matrix

•Parallel▫Multiple bits, wider path than serial▫IEEE 1284 standard

EPP* & ECP operation modes for communication Bi-directional data path

Printer to Computer Interfaces•SCSI▫Parallel communication that’s faster▫Copier, high speed printer

•USB▫PnP

•Firewire▫IEEE 1394 (iLink)▫Up to 63 devices▫High-speed up to 400Mbps▫Hot-swap

Printer to Computer Interfaces•Ethernet▫For network access

•Wireless▫Infrared

Both must have, line of sight, 12ft▫Bluetooth

Short range▫Wi-Fi

IEEE 802.11b,g,n 11Mbps, 54Mbps, 108Mbps

Review•What are the three popular IEEE Wi-Fi standards?▫802.11b,g,n

•A printer’s image quality is measured in what?▫Dpi

•What is the IEEE standard for the old parallel ports?▫IEEE 1284

•What are the two IEEE 1284 bidirectional modes?▫EPP & ECP

Review•What is the IEEE standard for Firewire?▫IEEE 1394

•Up to how many devices can Firewire have plugged into a single port?▫63

•What is another name for Firewire?▫ iLink

• If you wanted a network printer, what two port/features would you look for?▫Ethernet or wireless

Laser Printers•See Handout

Impact Printer•Print head strikes inked ribbon•Dot matrix▫Print head with pins

•Daisy wheel▫Wheel with characters

•A: Cheap ribbon, continuous feed paper, can print on carbon copy paper

•D: Noisy, low-resolution, slow

Inkjet Printers• Ink cartridges spray liquid ink onto paper through

nozzles▫Thermal- steam forces ink out▫Piezoelectric- vibration controls ink flow

• Let ink dry for 15 seconds

•A: low cost, high res, quick to print

•D: nozzles can clog, ink $$, ink wet after print

Thermal Printer• Receipt printer, old fax machines•Waxy paper▫Turns black when heated

• A: Small, few moving parts, longer life

• D: Paper $$, paper storage issues (temp & life), poor graphics

Dye-Sublimation Printers•High-quality photos•Sheets of ink

Solid Ink Printers•High quality images•Solid sticks of ink (no waste)▫Ink melts▫Sprayed through nozzles to a drum▫Drum transfers to paper

•A: Vibrant color prints , easy to use, many paper types, faster than inkjet

•D: Printer & ink are $$$, slow to warm up

Printer ComparisonDot Matrix Inkjet Solid Ink Laser

Ink Type

Handling of Ink

Waste Produced

Cost Per Page

Review•Which printer can you use carbon-copy paper in?▫ Impact

•Which printer can print photo quality pictures and is inexpensive?▫ Inkjet

•Which printer has the most inexpensive consumable?▫ Impact

•Which printer has vivid color prints, but is expensive & warms up slowly?▫ Solid ink

Review•A drum, fuser, and toner are in what printer?▫Laser

•What printer takes liquid ink cartridges?▫Inkjet

•Which printer most environmentally friendly?▫Solid ink

•Which printer has nozzle that can get clogged?▫Inkjet

Printer Installation & Configuration•Describe how to set up a printer. •Explain how to power and connect the device using a

local or network port. •Describe how to install and update the device driver,

firmware, and RAM. • Identify configuration options and default settings. •Describe how to optimize printer performance. •Describe how to print a test page. •Describe how to share a printer

Unpacking•Make sure everything is in the box•Remove all packing from inside printer•Prepare ink/toner•Place in area where it won’t overheat•Put in paper•Read instructions

Connect•To computer, network, or print server▫Local Printer- USB, parallel, serial

Can be shared over network▫Network- wired or wireless▫Use correct cable

•Then connect power▫DO NOT plug into UPS▫Printer surge (when turned on) can damage UPS

Install•OS may detect & install driver▫Driver in box may be newer▫Driver allows communication & options▫Driver updates from mfgr

Download, save, run, test•Firmware Update▫Controls how printer operates▫Can download like a driver

•RAM upgrade

Drivers Page

Configuration Options• Paper type – standard, draft, gloss, or

photo • Print quality – draft, normal, photo,

or automatic • Color printing, Black-and-white

printing, Grayscale printing• Paper size – standard paper sizes or

envelopes and business cards • Paper orientation – landscape or

portrait • Print layout – normal, banner,

booklet, or poster • Duplex – normal or two-sided

printing

Test Page•Print one after install

•From Printers in OS•From application like

Word•From Printer’s panel•From command

prompt *LAB*

Share a Printer•Printer connected to one PC shared with others on

network▫How is this different than network printer?

•Click Share under Printer Properties

Review•Which printer would a store use for receipts?▫Thermal

•What software, in the printer itself, controls how the printer operates and can be upgraded?▫Firmware

•What could be included in an all-in-one device?▫Printer, scanner, copier, fax

•Where would you get an updated driver for your printer?▫The printer manufacturer’s website

Review•What standard is for parallel ports?▫IEEE 1284

•What are the parallel port’s bidirectional modes?▫EPP, ECP

•What is the standard for Firewire?▫IEEE 1394

•You typed up & saved a file called printertest.txt. What would you type in the command prompt to send that document to the printer?▫Print printertest.txt

Scanners

•Describe scanner types, resolution, and interfaces. •Describe all-in-one devices. •Describe flatbed scanners. •Describe handheld scanners. •Describe drum scanners. •Compare costs of different types of scanners.

Scanners•What do they do?

•Create an image•Create text doc using OCR

•Resolution measured in dpi

Types of Scanners•All-In-One▫Print, scan, copy, fax▫Low cost, one cable▫If breaks, you lose all▫Not for heavy use

•Flatbed▫Some may have

sheet feeders

Types of Scanners•Handheld scanners

•Drum scanners▫Used for high-end

reproductions▫For archiving in museums

Installing Scanners

•Explain how to power and connect a scanner. •Describe how to install and update the device driver. • Identify configuration options and default settings.

Setup & Install Scanner•Plug in AC & USB•PnP should detect & install driver▫Install software with printer▫Update driver from web

• LAB▫Install printer

Scanner Configuration & Settings•Usually comes with software▫Editing photos▫Scanning text (OCR)

Allows text to be manipulated▫Other: Color, resolution, one-touch▫Calibration

For color matching

Preventive Maintenance for Printers & Scanners

•Describe printer maintenance. •Describe scanner maintenance.

Printer Maintenance•Need lots•Unplug 1st!▫Clean print head/nozzles, align heads

•What helps?▫Choose the right paper

Load right side, use right type▫Ink selection

Wrong type might get poor quality prints Do not refill…may leak

Scanner Maintenance•Keep glass clean▫Apply cleaner on cloth, NOT

glass▫Can clean inside

•Keep lid closed•Don’t put stuff on top of

scanner

Troubleshooting Process

Problem-Solution

Quiz- 10 Questions

PC Support & RepairChapter 7Fundamental Printers & Scanners