Configuring the Printer

Configuring the Printer

The printer is one of the most used peripherals. In this unit we will learn how to install and configure a printer.

Installing a Printer

As we have already seen in the unit before, it is very easy to install new hardware, such as printers, since the majority use Plug&Play technology. This allows the operating system to recognize the new printer by simply plugging it in. Nevertheless, in some cases we may need to do the process manually. When we plug a printer into our computer it is necessary to install the appropriate drivers so that our computer will recognize it. Next we will learn to install a printer manually and to customize it to our needs.

Open the Start menu Select the option Printers and Faxes. If you do not have the option Printers and faxes on your Start menu, you can also reach it through the Control Panel, option Printers and other hardware.

A screen like this one will appear. If you select a printer on the contextual panel to the right it will show you the options that you see here: Add a printer, See what is printing, Select printing preferences, etc. These tasks are the ones that are usually needed to handle a printer. Now, click on the icon Add a printer to launch the assistant that will help you install a printer.

The assistant will be asking you questions such as if your printer is connected directly to your computer or if it is on the web, to which port it is connected to, and then a screen like the one shown below will be displayed so that you can choose the manufacturer and the type of printer so that Windows can install the appropriate software. You can also use the disks provided by the manufacturer, if you have them, or search for the drivers through Windows Update. In this unit´s advanced page you have this entire process in detail. lnstalling a printer To add a printer open the Start menu and select the option Printers and fax. Now, click on Add printer and a screen like this one will appear. This is the first screen of the add printer wizard. As we have already mentioned, if you have a Plug&Play printer it will not be necessary to do this process. It will install automatically. Click Next to begin installing the printer. The first thing that the assistant will ask is if the printer is plugged directly to your computer (local printer) or if it is on the web. If it is local you can check the box Automatically detect and install my Plug and Play printer. Click Next. The assistant searches for a new printer. Normally this screen will appear telling us that it has not found anything new. As we have already explained, if the program were Plug&Play the system would have detected it before starting the assistant, once the equipment were connected. Since we want to connect it manually we click Next. On this screen we have to indicate the port through which we want to connect the printer. The port is the way for the printer to communicate with the operating system. Usually, if the printer is physically connected to the computer with a connection like the one shown, it is connected to the port LPT1. Select the port and click Next.