Installing a printer - nightmare!

Corpse Cruncher · 16th September 2006, 07:23 AM

I have tried to install a printer, well re-install having broken the last one and had none for an age. It won't have it. By it XP home won't have it. I have tried by using add printer, by disk, by download from Printers (HP) home site.

The old printer is not on, I removed it.(Lexmark- utter rubbish)

Still it is not playing.

Errors I get say print spooler service not on. Error 1068- dependency something or other off.

I have gone into, unfamiliar terrain for me, to administrative - service, and looked for print spooler. It is on. Second error no idea what to do. I pushed the start, nothing. Hey I was proud I of myself even if it did not work.

I looked on Microsoft and did what they said, no still not playing ball.

Oh how do I install my printer?

I am in dreadful need.

RayG · 16th September 2006, 10:52 AM

What type of connection? USB, serial/parallel port...?

If possible, try using USB to see if that makes any difference.

RayG

DickK · 16th September 2006, 12:38 PM

Hi Corpse Cruncher,

This page says "If the Print Spooler service fails when printing, when Windows starts or it can not be restarted, the usual reason is that one or more printer drivers is defective. If the Print Spooler service is not running, the Printers and Faxes folder will be empty and you can not use it to remove (or add) printers or printer drivers. If you have a Lexmark printer, see special information about Lexmark printer drivers."

Could be that you need to clean the old Lexmark driver off of your system. If this is what you meant by "I looked on Microsoft and did what they said", then apologies. If not, then I'd bear with it and grind through that page, looks like the guy knows what it's talking about.

Hope you get it worked out. Printers are the sort of thing you can do without, right up to the point where you need one.

Kopji · 16th September 2006, 10:38 PM

Might try installing the printer as an LPT port printer first, even if you aren't using it that way. After the LPT drivers are installed, install the USB ones.

Mongrel · 17th September 2006, 02:36 AM

Also if it's a USB printer, after following the suggestions from DickK and Kopji, make sure the drivers are installed before the printer is plugged in. If the driver install asks you to connect it - follow those instructions

KarlQuigley · 17th September 2006, 03:25 AM

When you say XP Home won't have it. Do you mean that the install disk supplied with HP printer will not work? The HP install disks are usually pretty good and if this fails to install in the first place, you have a problem that is beyond a physical printer installation. Further discussion needed if so.
Just to emphasise procedure, assuming the HP disk does work.
1. Remove all Lexmark software using Add/Remove programs in Control panel.
2. If you have managed to install HP software remove it as above.
3. Restart the computer.
4. Insert HP disk and only connect printer to the computer when it asks you. You should see the indication that the printer is being installed. The HP install should then continue.

If this seems to go OK but printing fails. I can offer some help now but you may need to be more descriptive about the problem.

For this to help, you must have had a problem printing. Go into Control Panel and then into Adminstrative Tools and then into Event Viewer. From the left hand panel, click into System and Application and locate the error (list on right hand side) to do with printer error. You will need to double-click these errors to find more info. The more info might give you a clue to the problem or there will be a link to click that will take you to a Microsoft web page which may help.
Of course, you could always contact HP.

Regards Karl Quigley

Corpse Cruncher · 17th September 2006, 10:31 PM

It's serial linked, the printer is that old it doesn't have USB.

As for the XP won't have it. I mean XP says no and won't install, due to the spooler thing. It just keeps telling me it isn't on. Switch it on and its says the next error - dependacies. Nothing works to restart it?

I have even tried installing the printer by just hooking it up but the same problems arises. The spooler and then the dependacies. Install disk same result, download latest driver- same messages.

All the lexmark stuff is gone, I did a search and nothing shows up. I did remove it by add remove programs when I un-installed it.

Oleron · 18th September 2006, 03:56 AM

Lexmark printers add an entry in the registry.

Do this:

Start, run, 'Regedit'

Navigate to the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Servic es\Spooler registry subkey and find an entry with the name DEPENDSonService. Backup this entry so you can restore it if other problems arise. After backing it up, delete the entry (value). Restart the machine and all should be well.

KarlQuigley · 20th September 2006, 02:23 AM

I think that you're making life difficult for yourself. Printers that old aren't usually worth the trouble. Have you a reason for wanting to keep this printer? Good printers are so cheap now.

Just wondered karl quigley

Oleron · 20th September 2006, 03:08 AM

Originally Posted by KarlQuigley

I think that you're making life difficult for yourself. Printers that old aren't usually worth the trouble. Have you a reason for wanting to keep this printer? Good printers are so cheap now.

Just wondered karl quigley

Agreed but to install ANY printer now will be tricky after having had an old Lexmark previously installed.

Also, when CorpseCruncher says that the printer she is trying to install is a 'serial' printer, I would guess that she means it is a parallel printer.

Unless she is trying to install a line printer, which is almost certainly not the case.
I hope...

Corpse Cruncher · 20th September 2006, 10:20 PM

Originally Posted by Oleron

Lexmark printers add an entry in the registry.

Do this:

Start, run, 'Regedit'

Navigate to the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Servic es\Spooler registry subkey and find an entry with the name DEPENDSonService. Backup this entry so you can restore it if other problems arise. After backing it up, delete the entry (value). Restart the machine and all should be well.

Hugs x infinity.

It worked I can add a printer and print. Oh I am so happy I'm off to bake cakes.

Corpse Cruncher · 20th September 2006, 10:31 PM

Originally Posted by KarlQuigley

I think that you're making life difficult for yourself. Printers that old aren't usually worth the trouble. Have you a reason for wanting to keep this printer? Good printers are so cheap now.

Just wondered karl quigley

Good grief! Such a throwaway society.

It maybe old but it is reliable and it works. Inks are not a problem, they are avaiblable and it is good on ink as well as cost effective. I am reluctant to throw anything away that still works. It might be old but it suits my needs. It might be just plain parallel ported linked, instead of the new fangled usb, it works the way it is and I have a free usb port.

I made the mistake of buying a cheap printer, the Lexmark, it prints less, is less cost efficient, lousy print quality and broke within 7 months. According to Lexmark that is the lifespan of these so called cheap printers. The inks cost more than buying new printer each time. False economy and leaves you with a headache of adding a new printer. Thank you but no thanks.

So thanks for the help, I finally can add a printer, any printer at last.

But I'll stick to the old and faithful until it gives up and flies off to HP heaven.

I can print, oh the joy!

Oleron · 21st September 2006, 12:14 AM

Originally Posted by Corpse Cruncher

Hugs x infinity.

It worked I can add a printer and print. Oh I am so happy I'm off to bake cakes.

Just doin' my job, ma'am.

(Any chance of a cake?)

Corpse Cruncher · 21st September 2006, 10:34 PM

Originally Posted by Oleron

Just doin' my job, ma'am.

(Any chance of a cake?)

For you yes, what kind would you like? How would you like it delivered, eaten, partially eaten or lost in snail-mail until mouldy?

Oleron · 22nd September 2006, 12:12 AM

Meh, I'm not fussy.

Just as long as there's no bits of crunchy corpse in it....

16th September 2006, 07:23 AM	#1
Corpse Cruncher Guest Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: In the great cooking pot in the sky. Posts: 3,811	Installing a printer - nightmare! I have tried to install a printer, well re-install having broken the last one and had none for an age. It won't have it. By it XP home won't have it. I have tried by using add printer, by disk, by download from Printers (HP) home site. The old printer is not on, I removed it.(Lexmark- utter rubbish) Still it is not playing. Errors I get say print spooler service not on. Error 1068- dependency something or other off. I have gone into, unfamiliar terrain for me, to administrative - service, and looked for print spooler. It is on. Second error no idea what to do. I pushed the start, nothing. Hey I was proud I of myself even if it did not work. I looked on Microsoft and did what they said, no still not playing ball. Oh how do I install my printer? I am in dreadful need.

16th September 2006, 10:52 AM	#2
RayG Master Poster Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Somewhere in Ontario, Canada Posts: 2,326	What type of connection? USB, serial/parallel port...? If possible, try using USB to see if that makes any difference. RayG
	__________________ Tell ya what. I'll hold my tongue as long as you stick to facts. -------------------- Scrutatio Et Quaestio

17th September 2006, 02:36 AM	#5
Mongrel Begging for Scraps Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: 20 minutes in the future Posts: 1,640	Also if it's a USB printer, after following the suggestions from DickK and Kopji, make sure the drivers are installed before the printer is plugged in. If the driver install asks you to connect it - follow those instructions
	__________________ “Ignorance more frequently begets confidence than does knowledge: it is those who know little, and not those who know much, who so positively assert that this or that problem will never be solved by science.” - Charles Darwin ...like so many contemporary philosophers he especially enjoyed giving helpful advice to people who were happier than he was. - Tom Lehrer

18th September 2006, 03:56 AM	#8
Oleron Muse Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Belfast, NI. Posts: 948	Lexmark printers add an entry in the registry. Do this: Start, run, 'Regedit' Navigate to the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Servic es\Spooler registry subkey and find an entry with the name DEPENDSonService. Backup this entry so you can restore it if other problems arise. After backing it up, delete the entry (value). Restart the machine and all should be well.
	__________________ Buggrit.

20th September 2006, 03:08 AM	#10
Oleron Muse Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Belfast, NI. Posts: 948	Originally Posted by KarlQuigley I think that you're making life difficult for yourself. Printers that old aren't usually worth the trouble. Have you a reason for wanting to keep this printer? Good printers are so cheap now. Just wondered karl quigley Agreed but to install ANY printer now will be tricky after having had an old Lexmark previously installed. Also, when CorpseCruncher says that the printer she is trying to install is a 'serial' printer, I would guess that she means it is a parallel printer. Unless she is trying to install a line printer, which is almost certainly not the case. I hope...
	__________________ Buggrit.

16th September 2006, 12:38 PM	#3
DickK Graduate Poster Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: London Posts: 1,053	Hi Corpse Cruncher, This page says "If the Print Spooler service fails when printing, when Windows starts or it can not be restarted, the usual reason is that one or more printer drivers is defective. If the Print Spooler service is not running, the Printers and Faxes folder will be empty and you can not use it to remove (or add) printers or printer drivers. If you have a Lexmark printer, see special information about Lexmark printer drivers." Could be that you need to clean the old Lexmark driver off of your system. If this is what you meant by "I looked on Microsoft and did what they said", then apologies. If not, then I'd bear with it and grind through that page, looks like the guy knows what it's talking about. Hope you get it worked out. Printers are the sort of thing you can do without, right up to the point where you need one.

16th September 2006, 10:38 PM	#4
Kopji Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Mogollon Rim Posts: 7,697	Might try installing the printer as an LPT port printer first, even if you aren't using it that way. After the LPT drivers are installed, install the USB ones.

17th September 2006, 03:25 AM	#6
KarlQuigley Thinker Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: England Posts: 141	When you say XP Home won't have it. Do you mean that the install disk supplied with HP printer will not work? The HP install disks are usually pretty good and if this fails to install in the first place, you have a problem that is beyond a physical printer installation. Further discussion needed if so. Just to emphasise procedure, assuming the HP disk does work. 1. Remove all Lexmark software using Add/Remove programs in Control panel. 2. If you have managed to install HP software remove it as above. 3. Restart the computer. 4. Insert HP disk and only connect printer to the computer when it asks you. You should see the indication that the printer is being installed. The HP install should then continue. If this seems to go OK but printing fails. I can offer some help now but you may need to be more descriptive about the problem. For this to help, you must have had a problem printing. Go into Control Panel and then into Adminstrative Tools and then into Event Viewer. From the left hand panel, click into System and Application and locate the error (list on right hand side) to do with printer error. You will need to double-click these errors to find more info. The more info might give you a clue to the problem or there will be a link to click that will take you to a Microsoft web page which may help. Of course, you could always contact HP. Regards Karl Quigley

17th September 2006, 10:31 PM	#7
Corpse Cruncher Guest Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: In the great cooking pot in the sky. Posts: 3,811	It's serial linked, the printer is that old it doesn't have USB. As for the XP won't have it. I mean XP says no and won't install, due to the spooler thing. It just keeps telling me it isn't on. Switch it on and its says the next error - dependacies. Nothing works to restart it? I have even tried installing the printer by just hooking it up but the same problems arises. The spooler and then the dependacies. Install disk same result, download latest driver- same messages. All the lexmark stuff is gone, I did a search and nothing shows up. I did remove it by add remove programs when I un-installed it.

20th September 2006, 02:23 AM	#9
KarlQuigley Thinker Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: England Posts: 141	I think that you're making life difficult for yourself. Printers that old aren't usually worth the trouble. Have you a reason for wanting to keep this printer? Good printers are so cheap now. Just wondered karl quigley

20th September 2006, 10:20 PM	#11
Corpse Cruncher Guest Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: In the great cooking pot in the sky. Posts: 3,811	Originally Posted by Oleron Lexmark printers add an entry in the registry. Do this: Start, run, 'Regedit' Navigate to the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Servic es\Spooler registry subkey and find an entry with the name DEPENDSonService. Backup this entry so you can restore it if other problems arise. After backing it up, delete the entry (value). Restart the machine and all should be well. Hugs x infinity. It worked I can add a printer and print. Oh I am so happy I'm off to bake cakes.

20th September 2006, 10:31 PM	#12
Corpse Cruncher Guest Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: In the great cooking pot in the sky. Posts: 3,811	Originally Posted by KarlQuigley I think that you're making life difficult for yourself. Printers that old aren't usually worth the trouble. Have you a reason for wanting to keep this printer? Good printers are so cheap now. Just wondered karl quigley Good grief! Such a throwaway society. It maybe old but it is reliable and it works. Inks are not a problem, they are avaiblable and it is good on ink as well as cost effective. I am reluctant to throw anything away that still works. It might be old but it suits my needs. It might be just plain parallel ported linked, instead of the new fangled usb, it works the way it is and I have a free usb port. I made the mistake of buying a cheap printer, the Lexmark, it prints less, is less cost efficient, lousy print quality and broke within 7 months. According to Lexmark that is the lifespan of these so called cheap printers. The inks cost more than buying new printer each time. False economy and leaves you with a headache of adding a new printer. Thank you but no thanks. So thanks for the help, I finally can add a printer, any printer at last. But I'll stick to the old and faithful until it gives up and flies off to HP heaven. I can print, oh the joy!

21st September 2006, 12:14 AM	#13
Oleron Muse Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Belfast, NI. Posts: 948	Originally Posted by Corpse Cruncher Hugs x infinity. It worked I can add a printer and print. Oh I am so happy I'm off to bake cakes. Just doin' my job, ma'am. (Any chance of a cake?)
	__________________ Buggrit.

21st September 2006, 10:34 PM	#14
Corpse Cruncher Guest Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: In the great cooking pot in the sky. Posts: 3,811	Originally Posted by Oleron Just doin' my job, ma'am. (Any chance of a cake?) For you yes, what kind would you like? How would you like it delivered, eaten, partially eaten or lost in snail-mail until mouldy?

22nd September 2006, 12:12 AM	#15
Oleron Muse Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Belfast, NI. Posts: 948	Meh, I'm not fussy. Just as long as there's no bits of crunchy corpse in it....
	__________________ Buggrit.