PostScript printers

Posted in: Printers, blog by CW on 22 July 2010

I had a customer the other day who was receiving some documents from an employer  and the employer required that she have a PostScript printer installed on her computer. She was not familiar with Post Script printers and had no idea if she had one or not.

First, there’s an easy way to check if your computer has a PostScript printer installed. Most all programs install a PostScript printer to the same place on your computer that any other printer will show. So just navigate to the Start menu in Windows (System Preferences on Mac OS X) and then click on Printers & Faxes (Print & Fax on Mac OS X). In this section you may find virtual printers created by desktop publishing applications like Microsoft Word and PDF printers. This is also where a PostScript printer will show up if one is installed on your system.

For a brief overview of just what a PostScript printer is let me quote from About.com:

Simply put, PostScript is a programming or page description language. It is a way of describing what a page should look like. Another such page description language is PCL (printer control language) found in HP printers. For the differences between PostScript and PCL see PS and PCL Comparisions.

Printers print dots. How these dots (raster images) are arranged on the page determines what you see, how the page looks. A printer uses an interpreter (printer driver) to translate digital documents created by your software into a raster image that the printer can print.

Some types of documents such as those created by graphic designers and desktop publishers, contain an intricate combination of fonts and graphics that are best described using PostScript. The PostScript language and a PostScript printer driver then tell the printer how to print that document. PostScript is generally device-independent, that is, if you create a PostScript file it will print pretty much the same on any PostScript device.

Do you need a PostScript printer? Click on over to About.com and find out.

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Phil O’Sophical

Posted in: Humor, blog by CW on 21 July 2010

SBA Tools for Small Business

Posted in: Business to Business, blog by CW on 20 July 2010

Image via Wikipedia

On their website the Small Business Administration offers five free on-line tools to help you market your business.

“The SBA is primarily known for making loans to small-business owners, but we also offer free tools on our website, www.sba.gov, that entrepreneurs can use to promote their businesses.”

Here are five free online tools from the feds that you can use right now to market your business in a recession.

1. Access Google’s free marketing portal — Did you know that Google has teamed up with the SBA to create a dedicated marketing portal for small-business owners? Called Tools for Online Success, the portal was launched in May. The site (see box for address) features tutorials and tips about how to leverage the Web to build a strong business. With free advice on everything from how to build a website to social media marketing, this site is must visit resource for small business owners.

2. Get free online training — You may not have the time or money to spend on taking marketing courses. Instead, log on to the SBA’s website and take free courses like Strategic Marketing — How to Win Customers in a Slowing Economy and Marketing 101: Guide to Winning Customers.

3. Use SBA’s online small-business planner — You’re trying to navigate through a recession and for your small-business marketing, PR and strategic planning are the keys to success, right? Then use the SBA’s online small business planner and download such white papers as 100+ Marketing Ideas, Marketing Basics and 15 Foolproof Ideas for Promoting Your Company. You’ll also find podcasts, Web chats, resource guides and videos from top experts.

4. Get free online advertising advice — Thinking about advertising your product and service online but now sure how? The SBA, in partnership with the U.S Department of Commerce offers free advice on the rules and regulations governing online advertising and what to do when you’re ready to make your first ad buy.

5. Make use of free templates — Ever wonder how to write a marketing plan? What about a business plan? The SBA has sample plans and an online primer describing exactly how to write essential business documents.

For more information read the article at: http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/07/12/1723818/use-the-governments-free-tools.html#ixzz0uGZSTUfW

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Warning: Heat + Ink Cartridges = A Mess

Posted in: blog, inkjet by CW on 19 July 2010

Better late than never; Summer has finally come to our fair city.

With the arrival of higher temperatures comes a potential issue for those who buy ink cartridges and leave them in their cars while they continue shopping or stop for a bite to eat on the way home.

On a day when the temperature outside is 86 degrees, the temperature inside a car can quickly reach 135 or even 150 degrees! When ink is heated it expands. If you let an ink cartridge heat up to the point the ink expands you’ll get home to find that you have a sealed plastic bag full of loose ink with a cartridge floating around in it.

To prevent this, after purchase keep the cartridge in as cool and shady place as possible. The best possible situation would be to wait until you’re all done with your other stops and buy the cartridge when you’re ready to head home. That minimizes the amount of time the cartridge is subjected to the heat.

So remember, a hot car is no place for a pet, a child or a freshly filled ink cartridge.

(Heat does not affect laser cartridges the same way. Toner is a powder and not subject to expansion from heat. We still advise, though, that all cartridges be kept in the dark and as cool as possible until you’re ready to install them in your printer.)

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Microsoft ends support for XP Service-pack 2

Posted in: Technology, blog by CW on 14 July 2010

According to a Computerworld report, yesterday marked the last day of official support for XPs most significant service pack.

Service-pack 2 made so many improvements in both performance and security to the XP operating system that many considered it an upgrade to the OS rather than an update. It delivered an almost entirely new XP to Microsoft’s customers.

Microsoft XP was first released in August of 2001, making it perhaps the oldest operating system still in widespread use. A lot has changed in computer software and hardware in the last decade, and while Redmond has made an effort to keep XP updated, it has just about run its course.

Microsoft urges XP users to either install Service-pack 3 or upgrade to the most recent release of Windows, the Windows 7 operating system.

Like Vista before it, 7 demands newer hardware and won’t run some software intended for Windows XP and older systems. Microsoft offers an upgrade advisor that will scan your system and let you know if certain components need to be replaced prior to installing 7. If your computer is more than 3 years old I would strongly suggest you run the advisor to avoid any unpleasant surprises when you upgrade. Another consideration before upgrading is whether or not you need to buy the upgrade version of Windows 7 or the full version. Microsoft has a chart you can consult to help you decide.

Perhaps the most cost effective way to upgrade from XP to Windows 7 is to buy a new computer with the OS already installed. Many new computers actually cost the same or less than the parts you might need to buy to make your current computer acceptable to Windows 7.

I used to build custom computers. One time a lady brought me a list of the hardware she wanted installed in a new computer. I priced out the cost of the motherboard, memory, video card and other bits and pieces she wanted from the least expensive source I could find and arrived at a total, just for parts, of around $400. Then I found a store here in town that offered a computer already built with nearly the same components she wanted for only $300. Obviously her best option was to buy the $300 computer. This was near the time I quit building custom computers. These days a very nice and reasonably equipped desktop computer with Windows 7 pre-installed can be found for around that same $300 price-point. That option would make more sense than spending nearly that just for the Windows 7 disk and still having to upgrade various bits of hardware in your current computer.

I haven’t spent any time encouraging current XP users to upgrade to Service-pack 3 for the simple reason that XP itself is quite outdated and support will soon end for SP3 just like it did for SP2. It’s like duct-taping the muffler on to your car to get a few more miles out of it. It’s not worth the effort. Far better to bite the bullet and buy a better car.

By continuing to run and out-of-date and insecure operating system, you leave yourself vulnerable not only to security risks but to hardware failure and data loss. If you are running a hard drive over 5 years old, odds are it will fail sooner than later. When it does, whatever you have stored on it may be lost for good. Of course any hard drive can fail no matter how old. This is why your computer savvy friends are always on you to backup your files. It your data is important to you then backing up your files should be just as important. But while any system or piece of hardware can fail, the older it is the more likely it will fail.

I use and recommend Windows 7. It’s like a modern version of XP. It’s well worth upgrading to 7 if you are still using XP or Vista. That said, you may also want to use this opportunity to consider a computer running Linux or Mac OS X. These two operating systems are more stable and less prone to encounter hardware incompatibility than any modern version of Windows. There is a bit of relearning to undertake in adopting a different operating system, and some new software to get used to, but I’m seeing more and more former Windows devotees considering the switch.

Introducing the CW San Diego B2B Community Forum

Posted in: Business to Business, blog by CW on 13 July 2010

After several months of planning and preparation we are pleased to announce the opening of our B2B Community Forum.

We hope that the forum becomes a hub of information and shared ideas for the San Diego small and home business community. There are literally thousands of small businesses and people working from home who have no central resource from which to get new and better practices, no place to share ideas, no source of productive software.

Our intention is to encourage the free exchange of best practices and the hardware and software that make them possible. We have included a section devoted to computers where those with questions and suggestions can post them. Of course we have also included a section for discussing printers and cartridges. I plan to make use of experience on the Gateway Computers helpdesk and many years on various on-line tech forums to provide support to those with questions. I also worked on the helpdesk for D-Link networking products, and networking questions can be posted to the computer section where I’ll do my best to provide practical answers. This will all be made easier when the membership grows. More members means more input. I’ve met many folks in my years at CW San Diego with much to share about computers, printers and small business. I want to encourage them to join the community and share their expertise.

Forums grow slowly at first. As more people join they recommend the forum to their friends and co-workers. The more content added to the forum by the members, the more value it has to the small business community at large. Though our primary focus is on the San Diego area, we welcome anyone who works from home or in a small business anywhere.

Please click on over to the forum and register. Contribute your questions and/or solutions and help us turn the forum into a valuable resource for us all.

Power Cycling Hardware

Posted in: Tips & Tricks, blog by CW on 12 July 2010

When I worked on help desks we frequently advised people to power cycle their hardware and see if that corrected the particular problem they were experiencing. We offered that advice so often that some folks accused us of using that as “busy work”, a tactic to get people off the phone and out of our hair.

That wasn’t, and isn’t, the case. Power cycling performs a vital function. It clears out errors and corruption that can occur in volatile memory, memory which requires power in order to store data. Once power is shut off to volatile memory the data it is storing is lost.

Examples of volatile memory configurations

Most single-function devices like printers, routers and modems have volatile memory chips. This short-term memory stores information relating to start-up errors, cartridge status and machine readiness.

When a device is power cycled it clears out all the data in volatile memory; a power cycle is similar to a reboot of the operating system.

Occasionally a print job sent by the computer becomes corrupted en route and once stored in the printer’s volatile memory refuses to allow another print job to be completed. The first step in fixing this issue is to open Printers and Faxes in the Control Panel (Windows XP, Vista, 7), select your printer and choose the option that deletes or clears the print queue. All too often this accomplishes nothing.

The next step would be to power cycle the printer. This should clear all the pending print jobs from memory and return the printer to a ready-to-print status.

A power cycle can be accomplished in two ways. You can simply turn the device off with its power switch, wait 15-30 seconds, then turn its power back on. This works in most devices that do not have internal batteries. The more effective way to power cycle any device is to first turn off the power with its switch then unplug the device from its supply of electricity. This cuts off all power to the device so that even things like computers, TVs and some printers that have an internal battery will shut completely down. Wait up to a minute before plugging the device back in and powering it up.

Just as most computer experts will suggest the occasional full reboot of your computer, the occasional power cycle of your electronic devices that run on A/C can help performance and clear out problems with the memory.

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HP 920 update

Posted in: Customer Service, blog by CW on 9 July 2010

Recently I mentioned that we can now offer refilled HP 920 and 920XL ink cartridges. There are conditions specific to these cartridges I need to bring up.

We had hoped that the cartridges would have chips on them we could reset. Evidently those chips are not yet available, so the refills we sell still have the original chip on them. Because of that there are a few models of HP printer that will not print using these cartridges. In addition, the original chip, having been expended, will not reset the page counter inside the printer, thus you will not get an ink level.

This is a common situation with all the major brands these days. The primary function of a chip on a cartridge, and a secondary function of the electronics on a printhead-type cartridge, is to reset the page counter. Printers have no way to determine the actual level of ink in a cartridge. Every time a new cartridge is installed, the chip or electronics resets to zero the page counter function in the printer’s software and memory. The manufacturer has programmed the printer to use an algorithm to determine how much ink is being used each time a sheet of paper passes through the printer. The algorithms are generally based on 5% page coverage. Below is a chart detailing how most printers estimate page coverage.

Page coverage examples

As you can see, printing out an Excel spreadsheet uses 9 times the amount of ink per page than the 5% page coverage standard. This is why some of our customers think that their cartridges don’t last very long. They don’t take into account the 5% rule. Here’s another example of 5% page coverage on a standard 8.5×11″ page:

It’s obvious that much of the general printing we do will exceed 5% page coverage. So why does the industry use such a misleading and unrealistic standard? So that they can advertise their cartridges as providing enough ink to print 200, 400, even 750 pages, when in the real world our results will be far fewer pages per cartridge.

In the case of refilled cartridges that still have the original chip or have electronics that don’t reset the page counter, the only way to know when the cartridges are running out of ink is to judge the quality of the finished print. When you notice a decline in the quality of the printing, bring in your cartridge and we will weigh it to determine if it’s empty or malfunctioning. In most cases we advise our customers to continue printing even after a low-ink warning. We don’t want you to drain a cartridge completely as this can lead to making the cartridge unusable for refilling. But you should continue printing until you see signs that the cartridge is no longer producing a decent image.

The majority of manufacturers set their printers to warn of low ink well before the cartridge is empty, hoping you’ll rush out and buy another cartridge before you actually need one. Since their profits are tied directly to the sale of cartridges they will do anything to get you to buy them as often as possible, even when you don’t really need them.

In the specific case of the HP 920 and 920XL cartridges, your printer may give you warnings when you install them that say the original HP ink is depleted and that a previously used cartridge has been installed. Here are the warnings and what you should do after each is displayed:

Original HP ink depleted. Press [OK].

Previously used ink cartridges(s) installed. Press [OK].

Ink Alert. Replace cartridge(s) or press OK to continue. Press [OK]

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Printing labels and stickers

Posted in: Tips & Tricks, blog by CW on 8 July 2010

Printing labels and stickers on either a laserjet or inkjet printer is, for the most part, a rather straightforward process. However, one aspect of the process can cause irritation for you and potentially expensive damage to your printer if not taken into consideration.

Printing out your own address labels, identifying labels and art stickers has become very popular. Microsoft Word makes the process even easier by including many preset templates for labels and stickers from major companies like Avery. You don’t have to worry about setting margins or dimensions yourself. Just select the item number of the label sheet you’re using and the printer will make all the adjustments for you.

The part of the process that is rarely considered but frequently causes problems is obvious once you conceptualize the printing process on both types of printer.

On an inkjet printer the paper typically feeds in from either a slot on top of the printer or a tray on the lower front. It travels in one direction through the printer past the printheads then makes a sharp turn to finish the paper path and exit. When it makes that sharp turn labels have a tendency to peal off the paper backing and stick to the feed rollers or interior of the printer.

Labels present a different problem when being printed on a laser printer.

See that green square labeled “fuser” that the paper passes right after the toner is deposited? That is essentially a heating element. It’s a hot roller that bonds the toner to the paper. Heat and adhesive don’t usually get along well together. If you’re printing a sheet of labels they tend to curl up when passing the fuser roller. At that point they can easily stick to the fuser. Once they stick to the fuser they are nearly impossible to remove without causing damage to the fuser roller. Either way, once coated with labels the fuser roller is useless. Replacing the fuser assembly can cost $150 or more and often requires a technician to disassemble and reassemble the printer. Because the medium being imprinted must pass the fuser roller in order for the toner to be completely sealed onto it, we don’t generally recommend printing labels or stickers on a laserjet printer.

There’s no heat involved in inkjet printing, so the only issue we need to resolve is that hard turn inside the printer. Thankfully the majority of printer manufacturers have provided a way to print labels and stickers, as well as heavy card stock, without the needing to make the medium you’re using commit that sharp turn.

Look on the back side of your printer and locate a removable panel similar to the ones in these images.

With this panel removed the card stock or label sheet will stay flat passing the printheads and be expelled out the back of the printer. Since it eliminates the need for the paper to make a sharp turn it also eliminates the risk of labels coming loose from the backing sheet. This pass-through also allows you to print on heavy stock without bending it.

To print in this manner doesn’t require any special settings in the printer or computer. All it requires is sufficient space behind your printer for the printed page of labels to feed out the back. Remember, there’s no paper catcher back there, so you’ll need to grab each sheet as it feeds through by hand. A small price to pay for not having to peel stickers off your printer’s rollers or fuser.

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Alternatives to Printing

Posted in: Productivity, blog by CW on

Image via Wikipedia

This may sound strange coming from someone who makes a living from selling printer cartridges, but there are times when printing isn’t the best storage solution. That’s all printing really is, a means of storing text or images on a paper medium by using a device that imprints that data onto paper using either ink or powdered toner.

Printing as a storage medium is among the oldest concepts in computing. The first printers widely adopted were dot matrix printers. Printers haven’t evolved all that much beyond their origins. Printing isn’t much more than writing on paper done by machine.

As a storage medium ink, and to a slightly lesser extent toner, on standard print paper has a short shelf life. Most printed pages start to yellow and fade within a few years. They are subject to damage from exposure to water, the Sun, high humidity, insects and a host of other common factors in our environment.

For the storage of non-vital images and documents this is usually not a major problem. However, for important personal documents, business documents and treasured photos, a more permanent and less vulnerable means of storage is required.

Currently the most popular media for extended storage are compact disk (CD), digital video disk (DVD) and digital tape. Something to keep in mind; advances in technology will most certainly make CDs and DVDs unusable and unreadable within a couple of decades. Can you imagine what it would be like to have all your important business paperwork stored on 8-track tapes or cassettes?

Some printer manufacturers make the claim that their inks and papers will permit images to be preserved up to 100 years, a bold claim that no one has been able to fully substantiate yet. It is acknowledged that printing on acid-free paper with archival inks, then controlling the environment in which the pictures are stored, provides the best chance that images will survive for years and most likely decades.

In light of all this our recommendations would be:

• For everyday printing of non-essential documents and images, standard ink and regular copy paper/photo paper is completely adequate.
• For important pictures, use archival-quality ink and acid-free paper then store the prints in a controlled environment.
• For important personal and business documents, record them to CD, DVD or data tape. Keep two copies, one on-site and the other off-site. As storage media evolve, transfer the documents to the most current medium.
• Revisit your stored media at least once a year to asses its condition. Signs of wear or discoloration may indicate a need to re-record the data to new media.

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