Why can't I print a lot?

[kevs]

I still trying to get my head around this.

ON a previous thread, some people gave some good tips, but I still don't get
it.


I'm printing from Word a single page document to my Brother laser BW
printer.


I would often like to print 100+ copies.

But whenever I do anything even over 30. 40+ copies what happens is first
bunch come out ok, and then things freeze up, and the sheets start coming
out with bizarre symbols.

Thanks

Kevs






OS 10.4.11
Office 2004

 

[CyberTaz]

First point - it has nothing to do with Word, which simply calls OS X print
services & says "Here, print # copies of this - please." - from that point
on it is between OS X, your printer's software & the printer. Your USB
connection could also be a source of the problem.

Regards |:>)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

 

[John McGhie]

Hi Kevs:

Last time you asked this question, I suggested that perhaps the printer was
getting too hot. Small laser printers can suffer from over-heating if you
keep them running continuously.

However, the weird symbols suggest that the problem here is a "Buffer
Overrun".

You should discuss this with Brother. Ask them if they have a facility in
their printer driver to "Clear memory per page". That resets the printer
memory at the beginning of making up each page of the image.

If that switch is available, it might ‹ no guarantees ‹ cure the problem.
It will also make the printer run a lot slower, because it has to stop to
make up each page from scratch each time, instead of being able to re-use
common content such as fonts.

Other than that: Bob's suggestion is worth investigating. It could be that
your USB cable can't pump enough data to keep the printer's buffer full (a
"buffer underrun").

One of the little-known characteristics of USB is that it is a
bandwidth-sharing system. It has a fixed data speed, which it divides up
among all the devices plugged in at the time.

What they DON'T tell you is that there are four "standard" speeds for a USB
connection. As you plug each device in, the USB controller asks it what
speed it wants. It then ‹ and this is the important part ‹ slows down the
whole USB bus to the speed requested by the slowest device connected.

The other thing to realise is that a computer normally has only ONE USB
controller for each PAIR of USB ports. In my case, I have two USB
connections to this computer, so chances are there is only one USB
controller on the motherboard. This is significant because the thing that
slows down is the Controller, not the piece of wire.

So if I plug a device with low data demand (say, a mouse...) into one of my
USB ports, and a device with high data demand (say, a printer...) into the
other ‹ chances are the printer could have the exact same problem you are
seeing. Running at the slow USB speed, there is a chance that the printer
simply can't suck enough data out of the computer to keep up.

If you have a keyboard and mouse plugged in by USB, try unplugging
everything except the printer when you are running these jobs.

Hope this helps

I still trying to get my head around this.

ON a previous thread, some people gave some good tips, but I still don't get
it.


I'm printing from Word a single page document to my Brother laser BW
printer.


I would often like to print 100+ copies.

But whenever I do anything even over 30. 40+ copies what happens is first
bunch come out ok, and then things freeze up, and the sheets start coming
out with bizarre symbols.

Thanks

Kevs






OS 10.4.11
Office 2004

--
Don't wait for your answer, click here: http://www.word.mvps.org/

Please reply in the group. Please do NOT email me unless I ask you to.

John McGhie, Consultant Technical Writer
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd
http://jgmcghie.fastmail.com.au/
Nhulunbuy, Northern Territory, Australia
+61 4 1209 1410, mailto:[email protected]

 

[kevs]

Hi Kevs:

Last time you asked this question, I suggested that perhaps the printer was
getting too hot. Small laser printers can suffer from over-heating if you
keep them running continuously.

However, the weird symbols suggest that the problem here is a "Buffer
Overrun".

You should discuss this with Brother. Ask them if they have a facility in
their printer driver to "Clear memory per page". That resets the printer
memory at the beginning of making up each page of the image.

If that switch is available, it might ‹ no guarantees ‹ cure the problem.
It will also make the printer run a lot slower, because it has to stop to
make up each page from scratch each time, instead of being able to re-use
common content such as fonts.

Other than that: Bob's suggestion is worth investigating. It could be that
your USB cable can't pump enough data to keep the printer's buffer full (a
"buffer underrun").

One of the little-known characteristics of USB is that it is a
bandwidth-sharing system. It has a fixed data speed, which it divides up
among all the devices plugged in at the time.

What they DON'T tell you is that there are four "standard" speeds for a USB
connection. As you plug each device in, the USB controller asks it what
speed it wants. It then ‹ and this is the important part ‹ slows down the
whole USB bus to the speed requested by the slowest device connected.

The other thing to realise is that a computer normally has only ONE USB
controller for each PAIR of USB ports. In my case, I have two USB
connections to this computer, so chances are there is only one USB
controller on the motherboard. This is significant because the thing that
slows down is the Controller, not the piece of wire.

So if I plug a device with low data demand (say, a mouse...) into one of my
USB ports, and a device with high data demand (say, a printer...) into the
other ‹ chances are the printer could have the exact same problem you are
seeing. Running at the slow USB speed, there is a chance that the printer
simply can't suck enough data out of the computer to keep up.

If you have a keyboard and mouse plugged in by USB, try unplugging
everything except the printer when you are running these jobs.

Hope this helps

Thanks so much Bob and JE, thanks JE for the thorough reply.

Ok, I'll write Brother, but they are difficult to contact these days. --

The cable, I don't think it's issue, but who knows.

The printer is not hot, not running so much.

Unplugging mouse etc , inconvenient. But good tip.

Beyond all that. Is best short term solution, a quick solution, just to
print 20 at a time? That's what I'm thinking until I can isolate the
culprit.




OS 10.4.11
Office 2004

 

[kevs]

Thanks so much Bob and JE, thanks JE for the thorough reply.

Ok, I'll write Brother, but they are difficult to contact these days. --

The cable, I don't think it's issue, but who knows.

The printer is not hot, not running so much.

Unplugging mouse etc , inconvenient. But good tip.

Beyond all that. Is best short term solution, a quick solution, just to
print 20 at a time? That's what I'm thinking until I can isolate the
culprit.




OS 10.4.11
Office 2004

Just went on the Brother website. I USED to have an e mail address and send
questions in. But now they have it set up for web based only questions, and
you go through a fifteen step process, so it's rigged to not work.



OS 10.4.11
Office 2004

 

[John McGhie]

Hi Kevs:

Yeah. Well, see if they offer an updated DRIVER for your printer.

This has got to be a buffer over- or under-run problem, and they should have
a solution.

I won't fill in those insufferable web forms either. But as you say, the
companies know that, that's why they use them. The purpose of a "Customer
Service" department is to AVOID serving customers

Cheers

Just went on the Brother website. I USED to have an e mail address and send
questions in. But now they have it set up for web based only questions, and
you go through a fifteen step process, so it's rigged to not work.



OS 10.4.11
Office 2004

--
Don't wait for your answer, click here: http://www.word.mvps.org/

Please reply in the group. Please do NOT email me unless I ask you to.

John McGhie, Consultant Technical Writer
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd
http://jgmcghie.fastmail.com.au/
Nhulunbuy, Northern Territory, Australia
+61 4 1209 1410, mailto:[email protected]

 

[kevs]

Hi Kevs:

Yeah. Well, see if they offer an updated DRIVER for your printer.

This has got to be a buffer over- or under-run problem, and they should have
a solution.

I won't fill in those insufferable web forms either. But as you say, the
companies know that, that's why they use them. The purpose of a "Customer
Service" department is to AVOID serving customers

Cheers

Thanks JE! Appreciate (can't even get to the form)
OS 10.4.11
Office 2004

 

[kevs]

Hi Kevs:

Yeah. Well, see if they offer an updated DRIVER for your printer.

This has got to be a buffer over- or under-run problem, and they should have
a solution.

I won't fill in those insufferable web forms either. But as you say, the
companies know that, that's why they use them. The purpose of a "Customer
Service" department is to AVOID serving customers

Cheers

John:
I noticed something:

The problem seems to occur more if I'm printing a short letter on blank
letterhead (200 copies), as opposed to if I'm printing like a long 200 page
document from the web. I don't know if that makes sense.



OS 10.4.11
Office 2004

 

[John McGhie]

Hi Kevs:

Makes perfect sense to me.

Early on in this thread, I said " You should discuss this with Brother. Ask
them if they have a facility in their printer driver to "Clear memory per
page". "

If they have, that would fix it.

When you send 200 "different" pages to the printer, effectively it DOES
clear the printer memory and make up a new print image for each page.

When you send a single page, effectively you are sending a command that says
"Compile this image only once, hold it in memory, then roll the drum 200
times".

Something is corrupting the memory in the time the printer takes to roll
through 200 sheets.

Sorry: This one is between you and Brother, unless you can tell me that if
you paste the page as an Image into Adobe Illustrator, you get 200 clean
copies

Cheers

John:
I noticed something:

The problem seems to occur more if I'm printing a short letter on blank
letterhead (200 copies), as opposed to if I'm printing like a long 200 page
document from the web. I don't know if that makes sense.



OS 10.4.11
Office 2004

--
Don't wait for your answer, click here: http://www.word.mvps.org/

Please reply in the group. Please do NOT email me unless I ask you to.

John McGhie, Consultant Technical Writer
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd
http://jgmcghie.fastmail.com.au/
Sydney, Australia. S33°53'34.20 E151°14'54.50
+61 4 1209 1410, mailto:[email protected]