Windows 7 Troubleshooting Printing Issues on One Computer with Multiple File Types and Applications

R

ruggb

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I don't know where to ask this -- if there is a better place to post it let me know.

I am having a problem printing CERTAIN files via Word, Wordpad, Excel, Outlook and Adobe Acrobat.
W7
Network printer - set up the same on all computers - problem only on ONE system.

Printing an email from Outlook - I get an error that the printer isn't ready
Printing from Excel I get an error that points to a network issue, a cable issue or driver == basically the printer isn't ready..
Printing from Word, Wordpad or Adobe Acrobat, the job flashes in the print queue for 1/2 sec. and nothing happens. No error message.

I can print graphics via Windows Picture Viewer or MSOffice OIS program. I can also print TXT files.
When a file does print it will stay in the print queue for 2-3 sec.
IF I try to print ONE CERTAIN .doc file it will print via Word. It has CaslonN0540SwaD font.
If I change some/all of the font to something else, IT WON'T PRINT..
I can add to the text or chg formatting and it will still print.


How do I manage to come up with all the weird problems.
I reinstalled MSOffice.
I reinstalled printer drivers 5 times.

HELPPPPP!
 
Solution
F
Outlook tells you the printer isn't ready when it really is? Does that happen always, often, or sometimes?
Excel has a similar problem though not exactly the same? None of your other applications software has that problem?

After Word, Wordpad, and Acrobat jobs flash in the queue, the print jobs just disappear as if they had been printed?

You have a Word document that prints but if you change the font in Word and print again, it doesn't print? If you change it back to the original font, it prints? When it doesn't print, where is the problem (Word won't send it to the printer? It goes to the printer but the printer refuses to print it and it stays in the queue? It goes to the printer and then disappears without being printed?)

When...
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What little Googling I did on your question only convinced me that I don't know the answer to it, but I suspect that for anyone to come up with a solution, they would need more information than you have given...like which version of Office you have, and does the version type match the OS (x32 or x64)? Does your printer appear in Devices And Printers and is set at default? Does restarting the spooler service effect the issue in any way?

When you answer these questions, be prepared for more.
 
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thx for the reply.

#1 it is w7x64 and x64 office == not related to office since 1-i reinstalled and PDF and wordpad doesn't print either.
ptr is in D&V and set as default == otherwise nothing would print
The spooler is running bc I can print that one doc and a min later not and a min later can.
 
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to clarify - print 1 doc with script font - then not print after chg font, then prt again when back to orig.

note changing a format (spacing etc.) does not affect it.
 
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yes - same drvrs installed on other systems that work.
This system prints certain files including DOC file with specific font.
So I think that pretty much rules out connection issues and printer drivers.
IMHO, there must be a registry entry that is messed up, but un-re install of MSO fixes nothing.
It also does not work with Wordpad or Acrobat PDF files, so it must not be directly related to MSO.
 
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Outlook tells you the printer isn't ready when it really is? Does that happen always, often, or sometimes?
Excel has a similar problem though not exactly the same? None of your other applications software has that problem?

After Word, Wordpad, and Acrobat jobs flash in the queue, the print jobs just disappear as if they had been printed?

You have a Word document that prints but if you change the font in Word and print again, it doesn't print? If you change it back to the original font, it prints? When it doesn't print, where is the problem (Word won't send it to the printer? It goes to the printer but the printer refuses to print it and it stays in the queue? It goes to the printer and then disappears without being printed?)

When jobs don't print, do you ever get any kind of error message?

Is your computer the only one on the network that has these problems?

Are the problems affected by other users' traffic on the printer concurrent with yours?

Is the software on all of the computers identical (eg, IT person loads the same package on every computer and does the same updates on every computer?

Have you consulted an exorcist?

Try this test: Download and install one of the free PDF printer drivers (a good one is Cutepdf Writer available free here: http://cutepdf.com/). If you're not familiar with these, they create a phantom printer in your printer list. When you use this printer, the output is a PDF of your document which you then tell it where to save. I have not yet found any kind of output that was not faithfully preserved as if you converted the original document to PDF.

Use this as the "printer" for every application that is giving you problems and every type of document that gives you problems. In the case of the Word file with the font issue, print a version of what does print and what doesn't print. Generate a collection of PDFs that represent documents that are problematic.

First question: are you able to "print" everything that is a problem on the network printer?
Second question: does the PDF output look like what it is supposed to look like?

Then, take a random sample of the PDFs and print them to the network printer using Acrobat. If you can open PDFs with your version of Word, open a few of the PDFs that represent problem documents for Word and print them to the network printer.

Can you print any of the problem documents this way that you can't print when you send the original document directly to the network printer?

Can you reliably print web pages from your browser (on the network printer)?
 
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Solution
A couple more thoughts:
  • If you have a file that won't print, can you copy the file to another computer and print it there from within the application on that computer? Can you put the file in a shared directory (like Public), access it over the network from another computer, and print it from that computer?

  • A better test than the pdf method: create a "problem" document in Word. Make it non-trivial--several pages, maybe include a graphic. When you go to print it (to the network printer), there should be a Print to File checkbox in the print setup window. Select that. Hopefully, the print job will be captured and you will get a window asking where to save it. Pick a location you will remember and give it a name you can use to identify that particular job. If the "default" name has an extension like .prn, leave that part unchanged. Go to that directory. Is the print file there? Is it larger a few K?

    download this free utility or a similar one: http://www.compuphase.com/software_spool.htm

    This will make it more user friendly to send the print file to the network printer. Try doing this from you computer. Does the job print? Take a copy of the print file and the Spool software to another computer and try it there.
Let us know the results.
 
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3 computers - only one doing it.
3 users on that computer Admin, me, wife.
If I copy file from wife to admin it will print when logged onto admin.
It won't print from wife even if wife is an admin user.
prints from other computers
prints if I chg font in document.
sometimes i get a printer not connected error, other times it just makes believe it sent it to the spooler and shows no errors.
watching the print status window it never appears.
 
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The problem is limited to one computer; and on that computer there are three users sharing the same applications software, drivers, etc.; and the problems occur on just one of the user accounts? Do I understand that right?

If that's the case, it sounds like that user profile got hosed. The simplest solution may be to simply delete your wife's account (save all of the user files first), and then recreate the account from scratch. It can take a few hours but it is a one-time investment.
 
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I suspect that the real issue is how the printer has been installed on this system. If other systems are printing ok, and just this one fails?
I suggest checking the setup on a working system and clone it over to the failing system.
You also try and disable the spooling system and print to the printer in RAW mode, and see if this is different.
The facts of the different apps doing it slightly different is a red herring. It is just the way they handle the printing system. Remember all these apps use the vary same printing drivers etc to print, and they way they report a problem could be a little different.
Also check that you are using the correct version of the driver for that system that is acting up. Finally make use you do not need a firmware update on the printer so support Windows 7 x64 drivers.

Example:
My Kodak C315 was working mostly ok, but would occaisionally lose wifi comms (but only on the Win7 system) and not print. It required a firmware update to support my windows 7 system
 
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yeah, without a simple reg hack it appears the next thing is to recreate her acct.
Since the ptr works on the admin acct it must be installed properly on the computer (4X).
It is installed the same way on the other computers.
The issue is - clone what? -- I still have no idea where the problem is.
Why would a different font in the doc cause different programs to react differently while not printing?
Maybe I will try removing and reinstalling the font files.
 
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