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TICKET ARCHIVE -> Printer missing Queue- won't print

ryestarr - Dec 22, 2006 - 9:11 pm

Hey
I just got an old Mac G4 and hooked it up to a printer. It wont print anything. I talked to the the support guy and finally we came to the conclusion that it doesn't have a print queue for it to go to to print. How do I create or get one?

DeltaMac - Dec 22, 2006 - 9:54 pm

I can help you better if you supply some information:
Which Mac do you have?
What OS X version is installed?
Which printer do you have? - be specific with model numbers, please.

The Print Queue is created automatically when the printer is added to the Printer Setup Utility - which is the final step of installing a printer. So, I suspect your printer has not yet been added to the printer list. Just hooking it up to the computer does not usually add the printer in one step. Sometimes the printer software still needs to be installed, If you have a recent version of OS X (10.4.x), then you may need to go to the printer's web site, and download the latest version of the printer drivers, if they exist.

Let me know what you find out.
- Dale

ryestarr - Dec 22, 2006 - 10:47 pm

okay. first thanks for the quick response.
its a mac G4 400 mhz 896 RAM, and its running 10.3. its an old mac i got from my work that was totally wiped out. i believe i tried installing 10.4 but it wouldnt work. so went with 10.3.
The printer is a Lexmark X5470 (5400 series) All in one.
the printer software was installed. then I uninstalled and reinstalled. I unplugged it. pretty much tried everything. the printer shows up in the printer list/setup utility and it is setup as my default printer.
when i talked to the Lexmark support guy he said it was missing the queue...??. hmmmm.
he said all the drivers checked out and everything is current.
any help would be AWESOME. thanks again

DeltaMac - Dec 23, 2006 - 9:04 am

You should be able to double-click on the Lexmark printer from your Printer List window in the Printer Setup Utility to open your printer queue. At least, I think that should work in 10.3 -
Try looking in your user/Library/Printers folder. The only items there will be your printer, by name. Double-click to open your printer's Jobs list. Part of its function is to allow you to stop/start jobs. That, my friend, is your print queue.
I suppose you have tried downloading and installing the latest drivers for your Lexmark from here - http://downloads.lexmark.com/cgi-per...&searchLang=en
Even though Lexmark told you yours is up-to-date, try the download anyway.

Final question - if your printer does not print - what DOES happen?
1. Nothing, no response of any kind.
2. no printer response, but get an error message on the Macs screen (what is the text of the error?)
3. doesn't print anything, but the printer responds with a blank page, but no error message on the computer.
4. the printer makes some noise, but no paper comes out, and no error message on the Mac. Do you get any error code/message on the PRINTER'S display screen?
You see, 'won't print anything' is very generic, and you need to describe, with as much detail as you can, what DOES happen when you try to print....
Let me know what you find out...
= Dale

ryestarr - Dec 23, 2006 - 12:53 pm

whatever kind of document I'm trying to print, I'll do file>print than the printer pops up in the dock, and the printer window/queue says printing, and the progress bar spools and finishes, but nothing is happening with the printer. no noise, no anything. I know the computer is finding the printer, and it is set as my default printer, and I am able to print alignment test prints....
dont get any error messages from the computer or printer.

ryestarr - Dec 23, 2006 - 1:25 pm

whatever kind of document I'm trying to print, I'll do file>print than the printer pops up in the dock, and the printer window/queue says printing, and the progress bar spools and finishes, but nothing is happening with the printer. no noise, no anything. I know the computer is finding the printer, and it is set as my default printer, and I am able to print alignment test prints....
dont get any error messages from the computer or printer.

ryestarr - Dec 24, 2006 - 2:59 pm

I just got a response to an old mac issue i had a long time ago. Please respond to this issue. THanks

DeltaMac - Dec 24, 2006 - 3:47 pm

I try to respond more quickly, but some issues need some research.
note: IMO - Lexmark is not the best Mac printer in the world. Their printer drivers are often corrupted downloads, and on-line support is almost non-existent, but that's just my experience.

Have you downloaded and installed the up-to-date drivers?

Have you tried deleting the printer from Printer Setup Utility, and then re-adding?
Have you tried the Reset Printing System command from the Printer Setup Utility menu? You then must re-add the printer from that utility.

Try this (even if you have done exactly this before) following this hint step-by-step.
1. Reset the Printing System from the menu
2. re-add your printer.
3. Shut Down your Mac (not just a restart)
4. Power-cycle your printer. Make sure your printer is connected directly to the Mac, and not through a USB hub, Make sure the printer power is ON again, and the USB connection has been reset before the next step.
5. Start up your Mac.
6. Check in Printer Setup Util for the presence of the printer in the list.
7. Try to print something from TextEdit as a test. Do not test with anything else.
8. Prints OK, you're done. Still no print - try to borrow some other printer, and try the same process.

DeltaMac - Dec 24, 2006 - 3:52 pm

OK, some of this might not help if you are not using 10.4 Tiger. I don't think the Printer Setup Utility has the reset function in Panther. Basically, everything else should work.

One more thing (for something completely different)
download and install the latest version of CUPS
\http://www.cups.org/software.php?VER...cups-1.2.7.dmg
that's the software that OS X is using, and the version 1.2.7 is the latest available.
Delete, and re-add your printer again after installing CUPS, and try it out again......
Hope this helps you...
- Dale

ryestarr - Dec 25, 2006 - 4:36 pm

so i downloaded and installed the cups 1.2.7, and tried adding the printer again, it finds the printer, but when I try to add it to my printer list it gives me the error:
An error has occured while trying to add the printers "server-error-service-unavailable". what does that mean?
so now i REALLY cant do anything!
any thoughts?

DeltaMac - Dec 25, 2006 - 7:47 pm

Did you download and install the latest version of printer driver?

Open your Applications/Utilities/Disk utility, and Select your drive, then click Repair Disk Permissions. And, restart again.
If you still get the same error when trying to add your printer - create a new admin user account, then login as that user, and try to add your printer again.



If that still doesn't work, download and install your 10.4.8 combo updater.
http://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/30810
After you do that, repair your disk permissions again, and try adding your printer again.
If you still can't add your printer, with the same error, then reinstall OS X, using the Archive & Install option. re-update to 10.4.8, and try again
Hey, I'm going in circles here, - -
This issue can have a lot of causes, and there's a lot of possible fixes, as you can see. I have more to try - but -

I suspect your problem is crappy drivers from Lexmark, more than anything that OS X is causing. I have been able to successfully add Lexmark all-in-ones recently, but some others did not work because I couldn't get a good download from Lexmark, and it's their problem. The only thing that saves Lexmark in my view is - the printers are cheap. Well, maybe that helps Lexmark not support them properly on the Mac.... ?
I hope you have a working printer by now, and I wish you luck.
I'll give you some other suggestions if you still need to try...
- Dale

ryestarr - Dec 26, 2006 - 8:11 am

Okay, i'll try this, but the computer is running on 10.3 not 10.4. Does that matter in this last thing you want me to try? I tried installing 10.4 but it was able (too slow, too little RAM, etc).

DeltaMac - Dec 26, 2006 - 11:13 am

sorry, I missed the 10.3 part. I thought you were using 10.4, which makes much of this easier to sort out.
My experience has been that (with all things being equal) a 10.4 system tends to be better performing than a 10.3 system
You did say in your system profile, that you have 768MB of RAM, If that is correct, you are fine with memory.... If you do not have over 256MB, then that may be your main problem......

ryestarr - Dec 26, 2006 - 1:29 pm

its a G4 running on 10.3 OS, 896 RAM, 400 mhz. It would not allow me to install the 10.4 OS. and the 768 was from my G5. sorry about the confusion. so should I have still installed the cups? and should i still do the above stuff you told me to do or should I try something else?

DeltaMac - Dec 26, 2006 - 8:03 pm

Lets see - you could try downloading and installing the 10.3.9 combined updater.
http://www.apple.com/support/downloa...pdate1039.html
reinstall your lexmark printer, after reinstalling the cups version 1.2.7 - and try to add the printer, (ad nauseum !)
You COULD update to 10.4, by connecting the G5 to the G4 using a FireWire cable. restart the PowerMac G4 in target mode (hold the letter T during a restart, and wait for the floating FireWire icon.) Boot your G5 to the 10.4 installer DVD, and choose the G4, when you are asked to choose the drive to install. That will get you past the balky DVD drive that you probably have in the G4- I do this type of install a couple of times a week on older Macs.
OR, you could look for a brand of printer that works....

TechSupport - Feb 4, 2007 - 9:20 pm

ryestarr - Feb 4, 2007 - 9:22 pm

I tried to install the 10.3.9, but i got an error "this volume does not meet requirements for this update", so I am assuming it wont let me install the 10.4 (which I originally tried installing first). Now what?!
I read the system requirements, and it all checks out ok.
So i thought it was the printer, but then I tried hooking another printer up, and it didnt print. same problem. SO i'm thinking its not the printer, but the print drivers or something in the mac. any thoughts?