Printer question

[Dan Pick]

I have a Dell P4 computer and a Lexmark Z22 printer.....nothing fancy. When I'm printing a document and online with a DSL connection the computer processes extremely slow. Is there a good reason for this? I'm not a computer wizard by a long shot. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[PEW]

Dan,

What speed is the P4, and how much RAM?

[hj]

You may have the printer's properties set so it prints directly to the printer instead of spooling the document.

[Dan Pick]

PEW,

Its a 2.8 GHz with 512MB DDR SDRAM @ 400MHz

[Dan Pick]

hj,

How can I check to find which way it is currently set up?

[hj]

START > SETTINGS > PRINTERS AND FAXES, right button click on the printer's icon and select PROPERTIES > ADVANCED. Be sure the selection "spool printer documents so printing finishes faster" is selected, and also "start printing immediately".

[Dan Pick]

START > SETTINGS > PRINTERS AND FAXES, right button click on the printer's icon and select PROPERTIES > ADVANCED. Be sure the selection "spool printer documents so printing finishes faster" is selected, and also "start printing immediately".

Thanks HJ

That is exactly the way my printer was set-up:confused: . Whats plan "B"?

[hj]

I am not sure because it appears that the printer, which should operate in the background, (as cycles are available for it), is taking precedence over the DSL connection, which makes it wait for the printing, which by computer terms is extremely slow. You might call the manufacturer or the DSL provider to see if they know how to change its priority. Right click MY COMPUTER and select PROPERTIES > PERFORMANCE > SETTINGS > ADVANCED and make sure the ADJUST FOR BEST PERFORMANCE OF PROGRAMS is selected, not the BACKGROUND option which is what the printer is.

[georgegraz]

I wonder if the problem is when online = less memory available for printing. When your online and trying to print, does your harddrive access led come on frequently? If so, try turning off some of your programs running in the background. Some of the newer printers are cheaper because they don't have very much internal memory and rely on computers memory instead. If your online and maybe have a few explorer windows running, your sucking up your available memory.
George

[Terry]

Are you using a parallel cable for the printer, or a USB cable connector.

When I used the USB connector, my printer worked faster, and the computer let me stay working.

I've since retired that printer and now have a HP OfficeJet Pro K550

It just throws out the sheets of paper at me now.

[PEW]

I have read test reports where they rate the Z22 in minutes per pages for text, not pages per minute.

Read one review where a text page took a minute six seconds to print.

[Terry]

HP's Web site claims that the Officejet Pro K550 Color Printer ($199 direct) is the world's fastest desktop color printer. In reality, it's not. But it's certainly the fastest by far in this price class, at least for business applications—and that's noteworthy enough. Even better, it doesn't sacrifice quality for speed—text and graphics (http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1759,1923244,00.asp#) quality are among the best you'll find in an ink jet printer. PC Mag

The printer is very fast, speedier than any of our recently tested inkjets in two of three tests--and placing second in the third test.
MacWorld 10-page Word test 1:07

I print a lot of directions out with maps. I've been saving a lot of time with this.

[PEW]

Terry,

Sorry for the way my answer looked. I should have been clearer. I was referring to the Lexmark Z22.

IMO it is hard to go wrong with an HP printer, in fact they are the only ones I will use in a business application.

Paul

[Terry]

Pew,
My old hp was an 812C, It sure felt lke that one was minutes per page.
My son kept bugging me to replace the darn thing.

Needless to say, we must be mowing down forests with the new printer.