Not communicating or cannot print from DOS
A. Determine if printer is set for AUTO or for HP-PCL. Perform the
following:
1. Press the ON LINE button to take the printer off line.
2. Press and hold down the MENU button until the display on the
printer displays: SYS=AUTO, or SYS=HP-PCL, or SYS=HP-GL/2, or
SYS=POSTSCRIPT.
3. To print text files or perform a shift-PrintScreen on the
computer keyboard, the display on the printer needs to be set
for either SYS=HP-PCL or SYS=AUTO. To change, perform the
following:
a. Press the + key until that message is displayed and then
press the ENTER/RESET button.
b. When the printer has finished processing the change, the
printer will be on line and the printer will display the current
emulation mode followed by the word: READY.
c. Print text files or perform a shift-PrintScreen from the
computer keyboard.
Note: If the data being sent does not have a terminating formfeed
character, the form feed light will remain on until the printer
determines that the data is complete by waiting for a predefined time).
To cause the printer to send the data without
waiting, perform the following:
i. Press the ON LINE button to take the printer off line.
ii. Press the FORM FEED button. The printer will output the current
page.
iii. When the printer completes, press the ON LINE button to set the
printer on-line.
B. If the printer will not print at all, then ensure that the cable is
connected to the port that you are using. Ensure that the connection is
tight at both the printer and the computer.
1. If an attempt is being made to use the Shift-Print Screen feature
on the computer keyboard, then a parallel cable must be connected
from the printer to the LPT1 port on the computer.
2. The LPT ports on the back of the computer are female (i.e., no
pins sticking out).
3. The COM ports on a PC are either 9-pin or 25-pin male (i.e., pins
sticking out). Connecting a 9-to-25-pin adapter (available at a
local computer supply store) is acceptable.
4. Before proceeding, first turn off the printer power and press and
hold the ON LINE button while turning on the printer. When the
display shows: COLD RESET, then release the ON LINE button. When
the printer displays: PCL READY, the printer is ready.
5. If connected to the parallel port, try copying the autoexec.bat
file to the LPT port. IF using LPT1, type the following at the
DOS prompt:
COPY C:\AUTOEXEC.BAT LPT1
If still unsuccessful, check the following:
a. The parallel cable may be defective. Try another parallel
cable. Use a cable 10 ft. or shorter. (CalComp part number
18735-0129).
b. The LPT port on the computer may be defective. Try
outputting from another computer.
c. The port on the printer may be defective. If so, the
printer requires service.
6. If connected to the serial port, the BAUD rate, number of
bits/parity, stop bits, and handshake need to be set up
correctly.
a. If using COM port 1, type the following at the DOS prompt:
MODE COM1:9600,N,8,1,P
If using COM port 2, type the following at the DOS prompt:
MODE COM2:9600,N,8,1,P
b. If using COM port 1, type the following at the DOS prompt:
COPY C:\AUTOEXEC.BAT COM1
If using COM port 2, type the following at the DOS prompt:
COPY C:\AUTOEXEC.BAT COM2
c. If still unsuccessful, check the following:
i. The serial cable may be defective or incorrect. The
printer requires using a null-modem cable, 50 ft. or
less (CalComp part number 17557-0084). A straight-
through cable with a null-modem adapter (available at
a local computer supply store) is acceptable. Try
using another cable.
ii. The COM port on the computer may be defective or
disabled. Try connecting to a different COM port. Try
connecting to a different computer.
7. If still unsuccessful, then the port on the printer may be
defective. If it is defective, the printer requires service.