HPDeskJet 812C printer, can I make 2 direct connections with parallel& USB?

Since nobody has come up with a solution to my Vista printing woes,
I'm wondering about an alternate solution. The printer supports both a
parallel connection and a USB connection. Is it possible to use both
at the same time? Hook the old Win98SE machine up with the parallel
cable it's always used, and hook up the Vista computer to the USB
port? When I print from the Virtual WinXP machine I can continue to
use the Win98SE share, but when I print from Vista I will use the
built-in drivers and print via a direct USB connection instead of a
network share.

Will this solution work, or will I get problems besides the obvious
conflict if I try to print from both machines simultaneously. I have
never done that, and given it's a home environment, with the two
machines so close together situated around a corner with the printer
in between, it's virtually impossible for two people to use the two
computers at the same time; it shouldn't be an issue.

SlickRCBD wrote:
> Since nobody has come up with a solution to my Vista printing woes,
> I'm wondering about an alternate solution. The printer supports both a
> parallel connection and a USB connection. Is it possible to use both
> at the same time? Hook the old Win98SE machine up with the parallel
> cable it's always used, and hook up the Vista computer to the USB
> port? When I print from the Virtual WinXP machine I can continue to
> use the Win98SE share, but when I print from Vista I will use the
> built-in drivers and print via a direct USB connection instead of a
> network share.
>
> Will this solution work, or will I get problems besides the obvious
> conflict if I try to print from both machines simultaneously. I have
> never done that, and given it's a home environment, with the two
> machines so close together situated around a corner with the printer
> in between, it's virtually impossible for two people to use the two
> computers at the same time; it shouldn't be an issue.

The direct answer to your question is: "Sort of". A device with both
parallel and USB ports can usually use only one port at a time. You
would be forced to power down the printer and change the cable connected
each time you wanted to print from a different computer.

Is there some reason why you can't connect the 812C to the Vista
computer and share it from there with the Windows 98SE computer?

I am convinced that the best way to share a printer is through a
network, assuming you have one already for both computers to access the
internet. In that case, you need a print server, a small box connected
to a router or hub via Ethernet, and connected to the printer itself.
Print servers are both wired and wireless, with wired being least
expensive. With your setup, a wired (i.e. Ethenet) print server would
do the job... Ben Myers

On Sep 11, 9:03 pm, Ben Myers <ben_my...@charter.net> wrote:
> SlickRCBD wrote:
> > Since nobody has come up with a solution to my Vista printing woes,
> > I'm wondering about an alternate solution. The printer supports both a
> > parallel connection and a USB connection. Is it possible to use both
> > at the same time? Hook the old Win98SE machine up with the parallel
> > cable it's always used, and hook up the Vista comuter to the USB
> > port? When I print from the Virtual WinXP machine I can continue to
> > use the Win98SE share, but when I print from Vista I will use the
> > built-in drivers and print via a direct USB connection instead of a
> > network share.
>
> > Will this solution work, or will I get problems besides the obvious
> > conflict if I try to print from both machines simultaneously. I have
> > never done that, and given it's a home environment, with the two
> > machines so close together situated around a corner with the printer
> > in between, it's virtually impossible for two people to use the two
> > computers at the same time; it shouldn't be an issue.
>
> The direct answer to your question is: "Sort of". A device with both
> parallel and USB ports can usually use only one port at a time. You
> would be forced to power down the printer and change the cable connected
> each time you wanted to print from a different computer.
>
> Is there some reason why you can't connect the 812C to the Vista
> computer and share it from there with the Windows 98SE computer?
>
> I am convinced that the best way to share a printer is through a
> network, assuming you have one already for both computers to access the
> internet. In that case, you need a print server, a small box connected
> to a router or hub via Ethernet, and connected to the printer itself.
> Print servers are both wired and wireless, with wired being least
> expensive. With your setup, a wired (i.e. Ethenet) print server would
> do the job... Ben Myers

I completely forgot about this post as I made several and forgot to
bookmark this newsgroup I had cross-posted and nobody responded on the
other group. Unlike my old newsreader, Google Groups doesn't seem to
track a cross-posted thread very well. Here's the issue I'm having.
The printer has been connected to the parallel port on the Win98SE
computer since I got it. When I later acquired a Windows XP computer,
I shared it from the Win98SE machine with no problems. I later got a
job at a company and needed to be able to connect to the domain with
XP, so the company subsidized me buying XP pro. That upgrade
surprisingly had no problems at all. The XP computer has since
suffered hardware failure. I replaced it with a brand new Windows
Vista 64-bit Home Premium computer. Now I have problems. The printer
share works the first time I install the printer, but after shutting
everything off for the night, the Vista computer will no longer
recognize the DeskJet as being online and available. No matter what I
do it insists the printer is "offline" and holds the documents I send
to it in queue. Adding another printer using the same port results in
the Vista computer once again being able to print TO THE NEW PRINTER
ONLY, but only until I shut everything down for the night.

The procedure i use in both XP and Vista is to "add a local printer"
and print to the port created when I try and fail to "connect" to the
DeskJet. This works in XP, doesn't work in Vista.

The strange thing is that I installed Virtual PC 2007 on the
computer, and installed Windows XP Pro under Virtual PC. That virtual
machine has no problems whatsoever with the 98SE share even though
it's on the same hardware, and VIsta is running as the host OS.

Hence why I thought maybe I could connect the USB cable to the new
Vista computer and leave the parallel port as is. The printer is
sitting on an old printer stand between the two computers.

I'm not sure if VIsta would be able to share with win98SE as win98SE
does NOT have "HP DeskJet812C" as a built-in option in the list. I
have to install the driver from the CD, and it doesn't have the .inf
file. I have to run an exe to install it.

SlickRCBD wrote:
> On Sep 11, 9:03 pm, Ben Myers <ben_my...@charter.net> wrote:
>> SlickRCBD wrote:
>>> Since nobody has come up with a solution to my Vista printing woes,
>>> I'm wondering about an alternate solution. The printer supports both a
>>> parallel connection and a USB connection. Is it possible to use both
>>> at the same time? Hook the old Win98SE machine up with the parallel
>>> cable it's always used, and hook up the Vista comuter to the USB
>>> port? When I print from the Virtual WinXP machine I can continue to
>>> use the Win98SE share, but when I print from Vista I will use the
>>> built-in drivers and print via a direct USB connection instead of a
>>> network share.
>>> Will this solution work, or will I get problems besides the obvious
>>> conflict if I try to print from both machines simultaneously. I have
>>> never done that, and given it's a home environment, with the two
>>> machines so close together situated around a corner with the printer
>>> in between, it's virtually impossible for two people to use the two
>>> computers at the same time; it shouldn't be an issue.
>> The direct answer to your question is: "Sort of". A device with both
>> parallel and USB ports can usually use only one port at a time. You
>> would be forced to power down the printer and change the cable connected
>> each time you wanted to print from a different computer.
>>
>> Is there some reason why you can't connect the 812C to the Vista
>> computer and share it from there with the Windows 98SE computer?
>>
>> I am convinced that the best way to share a printer is through a
>> network, assuming you have one already for both computers to access the
>> internet. In that case, you need a print server, a small box connected
>> to a router or hub via Ethernet, and connected to the printer itself.
>> Print servers are both wired and wireless, with wired being least
>> expensive. With your setup, a wired (i.e. Ethenet) print server would
>> do the job... Ben Myers
>
> I completely forgot about this post as I made several and forgot to
> bookmark this newsgroup I had cross-posted and nobody responded on the
> other group. Unlike my old newsreader, Google Groups doesn't seem to
> track a cross-posted thread very well. Here's the issue I'm having.
> The printer has been connected to the parallel port on the Win98SE
> computer since I got it. When I later acquired a Windows XP computer,
> I shared it from the Win98SE machine with no problems. I later got a
> job at a company and needed to be able to connect to the domain with
> XP, so the company subsidized me buying XP pro. That upgrade
> surprisingly had no problems at all. The XP computer has since
> suffered hardware failure. I replaced it with a brand new Windows
> Vista 64-bit Home Premium computer. Now I have problems. The printer
> share works the first time I install the printer, but after shutting
> everything off for the night, the Vista computer will no longer
> recognize the DeskJet as being online and available. No matter what I
> do it insists the printer is "offline" and holds the documents I send
> to it in queue. Adding another printer using the same port results in
> the Vista computer once again being able to print TO THE NEW PRINTER
> ONLY, but only until I shut everything down for the night.
>
> The procedure i use in both XP and Vista is to "add a local printer"
> and print to the port created when I try and fail to "connect" to the
> DeskJet. This works in XP, doesn't work in Vista.
>
> The strange thing is that I installed Virtual PC 2007 on the
> computer, and installed Windows XP Pro under Virtual PC. That virtual
> machine has no problems whatsoever with the 98SE share even though
> it's on the same hardware, and VIsta is running as the host OS.
>
> Hence why I thought maybe I could connect the USB cable to the new
> Vista computer and leave the parallel port as is. The printer is
> sitting on an old printer stand between the two computers.
>
> I'm not sure if VIsta would be able to share with win98SE as win98SE
> does NOT have "HP DeskJet812C" as a built-in option in the list. I
> have to install the driver from the CD, and it doesn't have the .inf
> file. I have to run an exe to install it.

Well, it sounds like your best option is to connect the 812C to the
Vista computer, then share it with the Win 98 one.

Your second best and more costly option would be to get a network
printer device (a small device with an Ethernet port and either a USB
port or parallel port), attach the printer to it, and connect the
printer device to a port on the router you must have there. Install the
net printing device, and configure it with an IP address in the range of
your router, e.g. 192.168.1.50. Then install the printer drivers on
both computers and select a TCP/IP port for the printer (again,
192.168.1.50). Print a test page from both computers to make sure it
works. You will end up with a printer that can run all by itself,
independent of either computer. You can then print without having the
other computer powered up... Ben Myers

On Sep 28, 5:50*pm, Ben Myers <ben_my...@charter.net> wrote:
> SlickRCBD wrote:
> > On Sep 11, 9:03 pm, Ben Myers <ben_my...@charter.net> wrote:
> >> SlickRCBD wrote:
> >>> Since nobody has come up with a solution to my Vista printing woes,
> >>> I'm wondering about an alternate solution. The printer supports both a
> >>> parallel connection and a USB connection. Is it possible to use both
> >>> at the same time? Hook the old Win98SE machine up with the parallel
> >>> cable it's always used, and hook up the Vista comuter to the USB
> >>> port? When I print from *the Virtual WinXP machine I can continue to
> >>> use the Win98SE share, but when I print from Vista I will use the
> >>> built-in drivers and print via a direct USB connection instead of a
> >>> network share.
> >>> Will this solution work, or will I get problems besides the obvious
> >>> conflict if I try to print from both machines simultaneously. I have
> >>> never done that, and given it's a home environment, with the two
> >>> machines so close together situated around a corner with the printer
> >>> in between, it's virtually impossible for two people to use the two
> >>> computers at the same time; it shouldn't be an issue.
> >> The direct answer to your question is: "Sort of". *A device with both
> >> parallel and USB ports can usually use only one port at a time. *You
> >> would be forced to power down the printer and change the cable connected
> >> each time you wanted to print from a different computer.
>
> >> Is there some reason why you can't connect the 812C to the Vista
> >> computer and share it from there with the Windows 98SE computer?
>
> >> I am convinced that the best way to share a printer is through a
> >> network, assuming you have one already for both computers to access the
> >> internet. *In that case, you need a print server, a small box connected
> >> to a router or hub via Ethernet, and connected to the printer itself.
> >> Print servers are both wired and wireless, with wired being least
> >> expensive. *With your setup, a wired (i.e. Ethenet) print server would
> >> do the job... Ben Myers
>
> > I completely forgot about this post as I made several and forgot to
> > bookmark this newsgroup I had cross-posted and nobody responded on the
> > other group. Unlike my old newsreader, Google Groups doesn't seem to
> > track a cross-posted thread very well. *Here's the issue I'm having.
> > The printer has been connected to the parallel port on the Win98SE
> > computer since I got it. When I later acquired a Windows XP computer,
> > I shared it from the Win98SE machine with no problems. I later got a
> > job at a company and needed to be able to connect to the domain with
> > XP, so the company subsidized me buying XP pro. That upgrade
> > surprisingly had no problems at all. The XP computer has since
> > suffered hardware failure. I replaced it with a brand new Windows
> > Vista 64-bit Home Premium computer. Now I have problems. The printer
> > share works the first time I install the printer, but after shutting
> > everything off for the night, the Vista computer will no longer
> > recognize the DeskJet as being online and available. No matter what I
> > do it insists the printer is "offline" and holds the documents I send
> > to it in queue. Adding another printer using the same port results in
> > the Vista computer once again being able to print TO THE NEW PRINTER
> > ONLY, but only until I shut everything down for the night.
>
> > The procedure i use in both XP and Vista is to "add a local printer"
> > and print to the port created when I try and fail to "connect" to the
> > DeskJet. *This works in XP, doesn't work in Vista.
>
> > *The strange thing is that I installed Virtual PC 2007 on the
> > computer, and installed Windows XP Pro under Virtual PC. That virtual
> > machine has no problems whatsoever with the 98SE share even though
> > it's on the same hardware, and VIsta is running as the host OS.
>
> > Hence why I thought maybe I could connect the USB cable to the new
> > Vista computer and leave the parallel port as is. The printer is
> > sitting on an old printer stand between the two computers.
>
> > I'm not sure if VIsta would be able to share with win98SE as win98SE
> > does NOT have "HP DeskJet812C" as a built-in option in the list. I
> > have to install the driver from the CD, and it doesn't have the .inf
> > file. I have to run an exe to install it.
>
> Well, it sounds like your best option is to connect the 812C to the
> Vista computer, then share it with the Win 98 one.
>
> Your second best and more costly option would be to get a network
> printer device (a small device with an Ethernet port and either a USB
> port or parallel port), attach the printer to it, and connect the
> printer device to a port on the router you must have there. *Install the
> net printing device, and configure it with an IP address in the range of
> your router, e.g. 192.168.1.50. *Then install the printer drivers on
> both computers and select a TCP/IP port for the printer (again,
> 192.168.1.50). *Print a test page from both computers to make sure it
> works. *You will end up with a printer that can run all by itself,
> independent of either computer. *You can then print without having the
> other computer powered up... Ben Myers

I'm hesitant to do that because the Win98SE computer locks up whenever
I try to access a Vista FILE share. I tried using VirtualPC on the
Vista computer with both Win95 and a copy of the Win98SE computer's
hard drive (complete with OEM Win98SE) and the virtual computers also
locked up. I should note that the XP VPC machine takes at least a
minute the first time I try to get a directory listing from a Vista
share, which may be related. I had a long e-mail session with
Microsoft when I first got the machine (when I was in the free support
period) and they were unable to solve the problem. with the shares.
I'm embarassed to say that I hadn't done any printing on the new
computer in the native OS during that 3 month period, and the XP Pro
virtual machine had NO network problems at all. It's shares worked
fine for both the Win98SE and the Vista computer, and it had no
problems printing to the Win98SE share.
The Vista computer has no problems with the win98SE file shares.

SlickRCBD wrote:
> On Sep 28, 5:50 pm, Ben Myers <ben_my...@charter.net> wrote:
>> SlickRCBD wrote:
>>> On Sep 11, 9:03 pm, Ben Myers <ben_my...@charter.net> wrote:
>>>> SlickRCBD wrote:
>>>>> Since nobody has come up with a solution to my Vista printing woes,
>>>>> I'm wondering about an alternate solution. The printer supports both a
>>>>> parallel connection and a USB connection. Is it possible to use both
>>>>> at the same time? Hook the old Win98SE machine up with the parallel
>>>>> cable it's always used, and hook up the Vista comuter to the USB
>>>>> port? When I print from the Virtual WinXP machine I can continue to
>>>>> use the Win98SE share, but when I print from Vista I will use the
>>>>> built-in drivers and print via a direct USB connection instead of a
>>>>> network share.
>>>>> Will this solution work, or will I get problems besides the obvious
>>>>> conflict if I try to print from both machines simultaneously. I have
>>>>> never done that, and given it's a home environment, with the two
>>>>> machines so close together situated around a corner with the printer
>>>>> in between, it's virtually impossible for two people to use the two
>>>>> computers at the same time; it shouldn't be an issue.
>>>> The direct answer to your question is: "Sort of". A device with both
>>>> parallel and USB ports can usually use only one port at a time. You
>>>> would be forced to power down the printer and change the cable connected
>>>> each time you wanted to print from a different computer.
>>>> Is there some reason why you can't connect the 812C to the Vista
>>>> computer and share it from there with the Windows 98SE computer?
>>>> I am convinced that the best way to share a printer is through a
>>>> network, assuming you have one already for both computers to access the
>>>> internet. In that case, you need a print server, a small box connected
>>>> to a router or hub via Ethernet, and connected to the printer itself.
>>>> Print servers are both wired and wireless, with wired being least
>>>> expensive. With your setup, a wired (i.e. Ethenet) print server would
>>>> do the job... Ben Myers
>>> I completely forgot about this post as I made several and forgot to
>>> bookmark this newsgroup I had cross-posted and nobody responded on the
>>> other group. Unlike my old newsreader, Google Groups doesn't seem to
>>> track a cross-posted thread very well. Here's the issue I'm having.
>>> The printer has been connected to the parallel port on the Win98SE
>>> computer since I got it. When I later acquired a Windows XP computer,
>>> I shared it from the Win98SE machine with no problems. I later got a
>>> job at a company and needed to be able to connect to the domain with
>>> XP, so the company subsidized me buying XP pro. That upgrade
>>> surprisingly had no problems at all. The XP computer has since
>>> suffered hardware failure. I replaced it with a brand new Windows
>>> Vista 64-bit Home Premium computer. Now I have problems. The printer
>>> share works the first time I install the printer, but after shutting
>>> everything off for the night, the Vista computer will no longer
>>> recognize the DeskJet as being online and available. No matter what I
>>> do it insists the printer is "offline" and holds the documents I send
>>> to it in queue. Adding another printer using the same port results in
>>> the Vista computer once again being able to print TO THE NEW PRINTER
>>> ONLY, but only until I shut everything down for the night.
>>> The procedure i use in both XP and Vista is to "add a local printer"
>>> and print to the port created when I try and fail to "connect" to the
>>> DeskJet. This works in XP, doesn't work in Vista.
>>> The strange thing is that I installed Virtual PC 2007 on the
>>> computer, and installed Windows XP Pro under Virtual PC. That virtual
>>> machine has no problems whatsoever with the 98SE share even though
>>> it's on the same hardware, and VIsta is running as the host OS.
>>> Hence why I thought maybe I could connect the USB cable to the new
>>> Vista computer and leave the parallel port as is. The printer is
>>> sitting on an old printer stand between the two computers.
>>> I'm not sure if VIsta would be able to share with win98SE as win98SE
>>> does NOT have "HP DeskJet812C" as a built-in option in the list. I
>>> have to install the driver from the CD, and it doesn't have the .inf
>>> file. I have to run an exe to install it.
>> Well, it sounds like your best option is to connect the 812C to the
>> Vista computer, then share it with the Win 98 one.
>>
>> Your second best and more costly option would be to get a network
>> printer device (a small device with an Ethernet port and either a USB
>> port or parallel port), attach the printer to it, and connect the
>> printer device to a port on the router you must have there. Install the
>> net printing device, and configure it with an IP address in the range of
>> your router, e.g. 192.168.1.50. Then install the printer drivers on
>> both computers and select a TCP/IP port for the printer (again,
>> 192.168.1.50). Print a test page from both computers to make sure it
>> works. You will end up with a printer that can run all by itself,
>> independent of either computer. You can then print without having the
>> other computer powered up... Ben Myers
>
> I'm hesitant to do that because the Win98SE computer locks up whenever
> I try to access a Vista FILE share. I tried using VirtualPC on the
> Vista computer with both Win95 and a copy of the Win98SE computer's
> hard drive (complete with OEM Win98SE) and the virtual computers also
> locked up. I should note that the XP VPC machine takes at least a
> minute the first time I try to get a directory listing from a Vista
> share, which may be related. I had a long e-mail session with
> Microsoft when I first got the machine (when I was in the free support
> period) and they were unable to solve the problem. with the shares.
> I'm embarassed to say that I hadn't done any printing on the new
> computer in the native OS during that 3 month period, and the XP Pro
> virtual machine had NO network problems at all. It's shares worked
> fine for both the Win98SE and the Vista computer, and it had no
> problems printing to the Win98SE share.
> The Vista computer has no problems with the win98SE file shares.

Then spend a couple of bucks and take the second best option. In my own
personal experience with my own printers and supporting the printers of
others, networked printers are the most trouble-free... Ben Myers