Installing a network printer question

[M Skabialka]

If a printer is installed on a server, what is the difference between
installing on local PCs it by putting this at the command prompt:
\\servername\printersharename
or going through the add printer wizard and selecting the network printer by
the same name?
Or is there no difference as far as drivers, etc go? Neither asks for a
location of printer drivers.

Mich

 

[Cari \(MS-MVP\)]

No difference.

 

[Steve Behman]

Dear Cari (MS-MVP),

Given the resources you yourself possess, those of others in your group and
my desperation, I beg that you address the problem I submitted in this forum
today under the title "Access Denied."

 

[Cari \(MS-MVP\)]

Well I have no knowledge of centronics and at this point in time, no printer
attached by LPT port, I'm either all USB or Ethernet depending on which
printer I want/need to print to..

Have you worked your way through Bruce Sanderson's excellent article called
Printing from DOS at:
http://members.shaw.ca/bsanders/printfromdos.htm

Does "Everyone" have permissions for Windows\System32\Spool ?

 

[Steve Behman]

Cari,

First, let me thank you for pointing me at Bruce Sanderson's article. While
it didn't address my specific problem, it set me off looking in the right
direction! The problem and its solution are quite arcane so I won't go into
them here. Vouchsafe to say the problem is solved!

For your information: the Centronics connector was the standard connector on
a printer which, in turn, connected to a parallel port (DB25 connector).
These cables large and unwieldy. They quickly fell into disuse with the
advent of the USB cable.

Again thanks very much for the help.

Sincerely,

 

[Cari \(MS-MVP\)]

Excellent news! Happy Printing! I know my first printer was back in DOS
3.2 days and it may have used Centronics, I can remember it was a Panasonic
dot matrix. KXP=1123 perhaps? I guess it came with one single floppy for
installation.... and then later Windows 3.0, but my memory is fading.
Actually no, the first printer attached to a Sinclair Spectrum and was
thermal, using silvered paper, rather like a POS printer. Drivers were
included in the Spectrum, because the Spectrum printer only worked with that
particular device. I think it had a minijack or similar! I don't think I
ever did have Centronics! The Panasonic had dip switches!!! But so did my
first Canon. How did we ever manager to get PC to talk to Printer, let
alone other PCs and other printers?!!!!!

 

[M Skabialka]

As it turned out there was a problem - neither method installed the PS
drivers properly. I had to add a local printer on LPT1, select the
downloaded PS drivers, then go back and add a port using the IP Address. I
guess I was asking the wrong question!
Mich

 

[Chuck]

Congratulations! You have independently re discovered an old but proven
"when all else fails" technique that has it roots in the old DOS & Win
3.1days!
This (LPT1) also sometimes worked to resolve another problem between older
text based programs and printer that only worked through the windows
drivers!