Using an old printer with a new computer

Posted in: Tips & Tricks, blog by Jack on 27 January 2009

Do you have a few year old printer, one that you don’t see any need to replace? Have you recently purchased a new computer with Windows Vista pre-installed? Have you noticed that Vista doesn’t like your old printer?

One of the most frequent complaints about Vista is its limited hardware support. Vista ships with compatible drivers for many new peripherals, but it refuses to work with drivers written for XP or older versions of Windows. Many new computers are sold without parallel ports, so the only printers that can be added are those which connect via a USB cable, in other words newer printers.

Male/female parallel ports

Speed is the reason many manufacturers are changing over from parallel connections to USB.

Most computers and printers built in the last couple of years that retain the parallel port have gone from the standard parallel port to the enhanced parallel port (EPP). According to IEEE standard 1284, EPP can provide up to 2 Mbps bandwidth, approximately 15 times the speed achieved with normal parallel-port communication with far less CPU overhead. Then the USB port came along and raised the bar too high for parallel ports to compete.

USB 1.1 could transfer data at 12 Mbps while the current standard, USB 2.0, reaches theoretical speeds of 480 Mbps. Once computers are sold with supporting bus speeds and USB 3.0 becomes a reality (proposed for 2010) we could be looking at maximum data transfer speeds of 5.0 Gbps.

Obviously any operating system that expects to still be in use 5 years from now has to anticipate new technologies and, unfortunately in some cases, abandon old ones. The parallel port architecture is a thing of the past. Moving forward the only connections offered on a new computer will be USB and Firewire.

Still, there is hope for those of you determined to make your older printer work with Vista.

If you have Vista Ultimate (and possibly Business) version installed on your computer, go to Start\Run and enter gpedit.msc to launch the Group Policy Object Editor. Under Computer Configuration, double-click Administrative Templates and select Printers. In the right-hand pane, find the policy named Disallow installation of printers using kernel-mode drivers and double-click it. Set its status to Disabled. By disabling the disallow policy, you enable the use of kernel-mode drivers—twisted! Click OK, close Group Policy Editor, and reboot. The downside of this setting is that a badly written kernel-mode driver can crash your system; that’s what the policy was meant to prevent.

If you have Vista Home Premium installed, it does not include the Group Policy Editor. But we can still make the necessary change to allow Windows to work with an older printer, we just have to do so directly in the Registry. As always, remember to back up your Registry before making any changes, and make sure you follow the directions to the letter. All changes made to the Registry take effect immediate and there is no “undo” or go back option (except to restore a backup copy, which is why it’s essential to make one). Incorrect Registry changes can result in a useless operating system.

Click Start, click Run, enter regedit. Navigate to the key HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows NT\Printers. (Note that it’s the “Windows NT” key in there, not “Windows”). In the right-hand pane look for a value named KMPrintersAreBlocked. If it’s not present, right-click in the right-hand pane, select New | DWORD Value from the pop-up menu, and name the new value KMPrintersAreBlocked. Double-click that value and set its data to 0 (zero). Now reboot.

Cleaning the HP All-in-One

Posted in: Tips & Tricks, blog, inkjet by Jack on 26 January 2009

(Source-HP) For more information on different styles of printer, visit the HP website at that link.

Printer dots raise privacy concerns

Posted in: News, blog, laser by Jack on 23 January 2009

More manufacturers are outfitting greater numbers of laser printers with technology that leaves microscopic yellow dots on each printed page to identify the printer’s serial number — and ultimately, you, says the San Francisco-based Electronic Frontier Foundation, one of the leading watchdogs of electronic privacy.

The technology has been around for years, but the declining price of laser printers and the increasing number of models with this feature is causing renewed concerns.

The dots, invisible to the naked eye, can be seen using a blue LED light and are used by authorities such as the Secret Service to investigate counterfeit bills made with laser printers, says Lorelei Pagano, director of the Central Bank Counterfeit Deterrence Group.

Privacy advocates worry that the little-known technology could ensnare political dissidents, whistle-blowers or anyone who prints materials that authorities want to track.

“There’s nothing about this technology that limits its application to counterfeit investigations,” says Seth Schoen, a computer programmer with the Electronic Frontier Foundation. “Some people who aren’t doing anything wrong may have their privacy threatened.” Schoen’s tests have found the dots produced by 111 color laser printers made by 13 companies including Xerox, Canon, Hewlett-Packard, Epson and Brother.

The dots are produced only on laser devices and not ink-jet printers, which are most commonly used at home. But laser printers, which produce more durable images, are becoming increasingly popular as their price has dropped to as low as $300, says Angele Boyd, a vice president of IDC Research.

The technology began as laser printers were first produced in the mid-1980s and governments and banks feared an explosion of counterfeiting, Xerox spokesman Bill McKee says. “In many cases, it is a requirement to do business internationally that the printers are equipped with this technology,” McKee says.

The dots tell authorities the serial number of a printer that made a document. In some cases, it also tells the time and date it was printed, Pagano says. “The Secret Service is the only U.S. body that has the ability to decode the information,” she says.

Printer makers “cooperate with law enforcement” and will tell authorities where a printer was made and sold, McKee says.

The Secret Service uses the dots only to investigate counterfeiting, agency spokesman Ed Donovan says. (Source-USA Today)

An extensive list of the printers that use this technology can be found on the Electronic Frontier Foundation’s website.

How Laser Printers Work

Posted in: Printers, blog, laser by Jack on 21 January 2009

The Basics: Static Electricity

The primary principle at work in a laser printer is static electricity, the same energy that makes clothes in the dryer stick together or a lightning bolt travel from a thundercloud to the ground. Static electricity is simply an electrical charge built up on an insulated object, such as a balloon or your body. Since oppositely charged atoms are attracted to each other, objects with opposite static electricity fields cling together.

A laser printer uses this phenomenon as a sort of “temporary glue.” The core component of this system is the photoreceptor, typically a revolving drum or cylinder. This drum assembly is made out of highly photoconductive material that is discharged by light photons.

The Basics: Drum

Initially, the drum is given a total positive charge by the charge corona wire, a wire with an electrical current running through it. (Some printers use a charged roller instead of a corona wire, but the principle is the same.) As the drum revolves, the printer shines a tiny laser beam across the surface to discharge certain points. In this way, the laser “draws” the letters and images to be printed as a pattern of electrical charges — an electrostatic image. The system can also work with the charges reversed — that is, a positive electrostatic image on a negative background.

After the pattern is set, the printer coats the drum with positively charged toner — a fine, black powder. Since it has a positive charge, the toner clings to the negative discharged areas of the drum, but not to the positively charged “background.” This is something like writing on a soda can with glue and then rolling it over some flour: The flour only sticks to the glue-coated part of the can, so you end up with a message written in powder.

With the powder pattern affixed, the drum rolls over a sheet of paper, which is moving along a belt below. Before the paper rolls under the drum, it is given a negative charge by the transfer corona wire (charged roller). This charge is stronger than the negative charge of the electrostatic image, so the paper can pull the toner powder away. Since it is moving at the same speed as the drum, the paper picks up the image pattern exactly. To keep the paper from clinging to the drum, it is discharged by the detac corona wire immediately after picking up the toner.

The Basics: Fuser

Finally, the printer passes the paper through the fuser, a pair of heated rollers. As the paper passes through these rollers, the loose toner powder melts, fusing with the fibers in the paper. The fuser rolls the paper to the output tray, and you have your finished page. The fuser also heats up the paper itself, of course, which is why pages are always hot when they come out of a laser printer or photocopier.

So what keeps the paper from burning up? Mainly, speed — the paper passes through the rollers so quickly that it doesn’t get very hot.

After depositing toner on the paper, the drum surface passes the discharge lamp. This bright light exposes the entire photoreceptor surface, erasing the electrical image. The drum surface then passes the charge corona wire, which reapplies the positive charge.

(images and content courtesy of HowStuffWorks)

Paper Made From Elephant Dung and 100% Post Consumer Waste

Posted in: Conservation, Recycling, blog by Jack on 14 January 2009

Eco-printed products company, Pixxlz is thinking of changing their tag line from “We Print Green” to “Our Product Is Crap.” After much research and testing on their various eco-friendly printing presses, Pixxlz has found a paper that is not comprised of one single tree; it’s made from elephant dung. “Not only is it fun to talk about,” says Pixxlz President, Lindsey Burkhardt, “but it looks great too.”

Affectionately dubbed, “Poohper,” Mr. Ellie Pooh is a valued alternative to expensive hand-made papers and prints very well on Pixxlz’ digital and soy ink presses. Currently available in an array of colors in various cover and card stocks, Pixxlz new paper is perfect for invitations, holiday cards and announcements.

There are no toxic chemicals used in the paper-making process, only basic bonding agents such as alum and rosin, along with water soluble salt dyes for coloring. Free of bleach and acids, no alkaline solutions are introduced during manufacturing. These handmade papers are of an ideal pH value for photography preservation: perfect for Pixxlz’ new mini photo books.

Pixxlz also offers paper industry leader Mohawk’s 30%-100% Post Consumer Waste (PCW) on every printed products order.

Made from 100% recycled materials and manufactured with renewable energy, these FSC certified, carbon neutral papers are a welcome addition to the green standards Pixxlz adheres to.(Source-MarketWatch)

Just for the record, Cartridge World San Diego does not employ elephants in its ink and laser remanufacturing processes.

Ink and toner prices increased by OEMs

Posted in: News, OEM, blog by Jack on

Printer.com, the largest proprietary database of printer ink and toner prices, announced their price indices show most major manufacturers are increasing their retail pricing anywhere from 3% to 6%.

This affects not just one or two manufacturers, but appears to affect all manufacturers. As of September 2008, HP increased the list prices on all Mono and Color LaserJet Print Cartridges by 5%, as well as approximately 5-6% on Inkjet Cartridges. Lexmark and Xerox also raised their pricing on printer supplies in November 2008 with 5% across the board for Lexmark and 3% to 6% for Xerox. Brother, Canon and Oki soon followed suit.

Printer.com’s Director of U.S. Operations Bob Crum, says, “Expect the ink and toner cartridge price increases to remain until several months after the recession has been put to bed. No one likes increasing prices, but ink and toner are often very profitable revenue streams for printer manufacturers, and incremental price increases just make business sense for a lot of organizations looking to increase profit margins in tougher financial conditions.”  (Source-PRWeb)

These increases were all enacted last year, before the severity of the economy was fully appreciated. Expect to see further cost increases this year from the major manufacturers as they attempt to keep their revenues consistent with past years.

Cartridge sales are keeping some of these companies solvent. They have to continue to raise prices to keep their profit margin consistent.

Recycling faces glut of aluminum

Posted in: Recycling, San Diego, blog by Jack on 13 January 2009

At current prices, analysts said they figured about 50 to 75 percent of the world’s aluminum producers are operating below their cash costs, forcing many smelters to shut down.
Total global cutbacks so far mean production of the metal, used in autos and aircraft and products like kitchen foil and beverage cans, will be down 15 percent this year from 2008.

Aluminum prices firmed initially on the news, but resumed their downswing when a slew of subsequent news suggested that demand recovery likely would stretch into 2010.
“We need a combination of supply and demand adjustments to get the market back into balance so that market prices more accurately reflect the cost of doing business,” said Liinamaa.
“I don’t think we’re going to get the demand side going for awhile,” he added.
At its all-time peak in July, benchmark aluminum on the London Metal Exchange MAL3> reached $3,375 a tonne. It ended at $1,555, less than half that price, on Thursday.

“The world is awash in aluminum. We’re producing more than we need at the margin,” said Robson, noting that around 4 million tonnes of aluminum sit in exchange warehouses. (Source-The Guardian)

We’ve seen this before. I remember a few years ago when San Diego quit recycling glass because it wasn’t being used fast enough to justify the cost of recycling. When people take an active role in recycling and communities get involved in encouraging citizens to recycle the amount of recycled material rises. At some point the supply exceeds demand.

It’s a shame new uses aren’t being explored for recycled materials. If the price of aluminum continues to drop, pretty soon recycling centers aren’t going to want to pay for a material they already have too much of. Recycling will be discouraged and we’ll see an immediate increase in the amount of once recyclable refuse being dumped in the landfill.

Recycling is like any other business. Its success depends on supply and demand. The ideal situation is when supply stays up with demand. Right now we have an imbalance in that scenario. We have ample supply but demand is lessening. Should demand continue to stay low, the need for recycled aluminum will lessen and the prices paid for it will decrease. That removes the motivation for recycling.

It’s idealistic to suppose that people will recycle without encouragement or reward. The reality is that we have to have some inducement to encourage recycling. We need to find new uses for reclaimed aluminum the way we at Cartridge World have created a use for recycled cartridges. We need to keep the desire to recycle burning.

It’s a challenge to young inventors and engineers across America: find constructive ways to make use of our glut of recycled materials. We can also encourage companies like Apple, who just released a aluminum-cased laptop, to use as much recycled aluminum as possible. If recycling is to continue and grow in popularity, we have to have a use for the materials we recycle.

Tax time is approaching

Posted in: blog by Jack on 12 January 2009

Just a reminder to all our tax preparer and tax paying customers, that time of year is fast approaching.

Before you start printing out forms and copies of your annual paperwork from 2008, check to be sure you have a full cartridges on-hand and a set of backups if you intend to do a fair amount of printing.

This is also back-to-school time for many students. They’ll be printing out assignments and homework and will need a set of backups as well. No one wants to run out of ink in the middle of a job or at 9PM at night.

We recommend keeping a spare set of cartridges on hand, stored in a cool, dark environment (and with low humidity in the case of laser cartridges).

There’s no need to spend the equivalent of the price of a new printer to have backup cartridges. Bring an empty set into our store and save up to 50% on the price of our guaranteed refills compared to the cost of new, OEM cartridges.

The tax man cometh. Be prepared.

CW San Diego pricing

Posted in: Conservation, Recycling, blog by Jack on 9 January 2009

We are able to offer refilled ink, remanufactured toner cartridges and compatibles at anywhere from 30-50% below retail prices for OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) cartridges.

We’re able to do this by recycling the outer cartridge shell, which we refer to as a core.

With the exception of compatible cartridges, when you buy a refilled/remanufactured cartridge from us, the only remaining original part of the cartridge is the core. Ink cartridges have had all the remaining ink flushed out and have been completely refilled to the original levels with ink specially formulated by our own technicians to match, as closely as legally possible, the ink used by the manufacturer. Laser cartridges are dismantled and all the worn interior blades, rollers and drum are replaced with quality third-party parts. All the original toner is cleaned out and replaced with toner which, like the ink we use, performs just as well as the original. All cartridges are then tested before being offered for sale and guaranteed once you purchase them.

By recycling the core, we are also able to keep thousands of empty cartridges from being sent to San Diego landfills. This has no impact on the cost of the cartridge, but has a profound impact on the quality of life in America’s Finest City.

When you purchase a cartridge from us without an exchange, we often have to add an additional fee to the price in order for us to buy another cartridge from a local wholesaler. This fee can run from $1 in the case of most inkjet cartridges to $10 for a few exotic laser cartridges. In some cases we are unable to get cartridges from wholesalers or through the recycling drives we sponsor in local schools, churches and community organizations. (Please contact us if you are interested in earning money for your school or organization by holding a cartridge recycling event.) This is another good reason for you to keep your empty cartridges and bring them with you when you shop with us. We may need to refill your empty cartridge if we don’t have any on hand.

Recently we had to raise the price of several cartridges by a dollar or so to cover increased ink, toner and parts costs. We regret this but the rising costs of goods is hitting all of us. We promise to always provide you with the best possible price while ensuring we make at least enough profit to stay in business.

HP offering money for old tech equipment

Posted in: Recycling, blog by Jack on 6 January 2009

Subtracting the cost of postage from the amount they’re offering, I don’t think this amounts to much of an incentive. But since recycling needs all the incentives people can offer, I’m not going to discourage anyone from considering getting rid of their old tech equipment this way.

This new recycling program does not require people to buy anything to get the money for their old tech equipment, although they are responsible for postage when mailing in the item.

HP calls its new program the HP Consumer Buyback and Planet Partners Recycling Program. The program offers money in exchange for any brand of PC, monitor, printer, digital camera, or smartphone HP determines still has some sort of value. It’s part of HP’s effort to recycle 2 billion pounds of electronic junk by 2010. As of now, the company has recycled over 1 billion pounds.

It’s like Antiques Roadshow for techies only you don’t have to go to the fair to find out what your attic junk is worth.

HP has a quote Web site for the buyback program where consumers can input the specs of their old tech equipment and receive a free instant quote.

If you find the quote worth your time, mail them your stuff (at your expense) and HP will mail you a check. Alternatively, you can opt for a “Premium Service” in which FedEx picks up the item or items at your house. The cost of that service is taken out of your final check from HP.

In testing out the system, I discovered HP offers examples from a drop-down menu, but will also accept items that have been modified and offers a place to put in the modified configuration and evaluate it. For example, I found that an old Dell Inspiron notebook with a 20 GB hard drive, 256 MB of RAM, a Pentium III M 1.0 GHZ processor, and loaded with Windows XP Professional is worth about $60.

If your tech junk is determined by the online tool to have no value, you’re out of luck on the money, but can still opt to mail it to HP for recycling if it’s an HP or Compaq brand product. (Source-Cnet)