Problem: You bought a wireless printer or multifunction device that promises to let you print and scan to your Mac without any cables. Life should be good, but you can’t get your Mac and your printer to see eye-to-eye.
Solution: Therapy. Both are talking, but neither can hear what the other is saying. You’ve got to get them to make two promises: that they will be part of the same wireless network and that your Mac will promise to have the right software to interface with the printer. Each relationship will be difrerent, so here are some general rules to follow when setting up the printers:
- If your Mac already connects to a wireless network, you will need to configure your printer to connect to the same network. Some printers allow you to select the wireless network directly from the printer’s LCD panel (you select the network and put in the password). This is the preferred way to set up the printer because the Print & Scan (or Print & Fax) system preference is likely to find the printer on your network.
- Other printers (especially older ones) create their own wireless networks, and you need to connect your Mac to your printer’s wireless network (which will show up in your Mac’s AirPort menu) before you can tell the printer that you want it to connect to a different network. You typically need to install the printer’s software before you can change this configuration, but be sure to read your printer’s manual (or the manufacturer’s website) for specific instructions.
- If you’re running Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard or earlier, it is fair to say there is no universal standard for wireless printing, it is highly likely you must use the install CD that comes with your wireless device (or download the newest version from the manufacturer’s website) to both install the device’s drivers and configure the device. After all, your wireless printer is not going to instinctively know your wireless network’s name and password.
- If, however, you are running Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard or 10.7 Lion, Apple bundles the wireless printer drivers for all recent printer models from major manufacturers. It is the printer’s manufacturer’s responsibility to create these drivers and send them to Apple. Ultimately, the manufacturer controls what kind of functionality the printer has (for example, can you print *and* scan wirelessly, or only print wirelessly?). One problem you run into is that if the printer driver is not already on your Mac, your Mac won’t know that it should download the driver from Apple unless it can already see your printer on the network. This is why the preferred method for connecting a wireless printer to your Mac is to tell the printer, from the printer’s LCD console, how to connect to your exisitng wireless network. If you can’t do this, you may want to directly connect the printer to your Mac via USB first. Your Mac will see the printer, download the appropriate driver from Software Update, and that may help you configure the printer from the software that gets installed.
- You must install the drivers and software on each machine you that must use the wireless device. Because you should only have to configure the device when you change your wireless network name or password, you do not need to install this configuration software on each machine. What this means is that if you have three Macs, and you use an HP OfficeJet 6500 (as I do), you need to install the HP driver set on each of your three Macs and add the printer from System Preferences on each Mac.
- Many people run into problems with old wireless printers (say, from 5 years ago or older). These printers create their own wireless networks right out of the box. Your Mac can see the printer’s wireless network from the AirPort menu. With these printers, you must connect to the printer’s wireless network, then use the printer’s setup software to tell the printer to instead connect to your wireless network. The printer setup software will only see the printer if your Mac is connected to the same wireless network as your printer.
Did any of these tips work for you? When you can’t get your Mac to see your wireless printer, what do you do to solve the problem? Let others know in the comments.
Problem: You plugged your printer into your AirPort Base Station or Time Capsule, turned it on, and tried to print. Sadly, your Mac doesn’t see the printer, so you’re left wondering whatever happened to the Mac’s promise of plug-and-play.
Solution: You use Apple’s “Bonjour” technology when you print from a device connected to a Base Station or Time Capsule. This technology really is plug-and-play (or “zeroconf” for “zero configuration”). The only software you could possibly have to install is a printer driver, and even that is unlikely. So, there’s little for you to get wrong with the software configuration. Instead, you need to make sure your AirPort/Time Capsule can see the printer, that your Mac is networked to the Base Station, and that you know how to add the printer. Here’s how:
- Think of the USB port on the AirPort Express/Extreme and Time Capsule as a USB port on your computer: you can plug in nearly any USB printer and use it wirelessly, provided your version of Mac OS X includes the driver or you have installed the current driver.
- Printers connected to AirPort base stations appear in the “Default” tab in the “Add Printer” window, just as a USB printer would. If you need to select a driver (because your Mac isn’t sure which printer it is), you select the same driver as if you had plugged it into your Mac. There isn’t a special driver just for wirelessly connected printers.
- Mac OS X Lion ships with a huge number of printer drivers, so it’s unlikely you’ll need to add your printer’s own driver, so long as you keep updating your system software. If Lion does not ship with your printer’s driver, then you do need to install it, regardless of whether the printer is connected to your Mac or an AirPort/Time Capsule.
- To see and add your printer, your Mac must be able to talk to the Base Station. This means you need to connect to that device with an Ethernet cable or wireless AirPort connection. If you use multiple Base Stations in your network, or if you have several wireless networks you can connect to, you should verify that your Mac can see the Base Station your printer is connected to. Open AirPort Utility in /Applications/Utilities. If the Base Station your printer is connected to appears in the AirPort Utility window, the Print & Scan system preference should be able to add the printer. If AirPort Utility cannot see the Base Station, you will either need to add the Base Station to your existing network or connect to the network that the Base Station is a part of.
- Optionally, if you have a second Mac, you can use these steps to try to print to the USB-connected printer. If you have success, then you can eliminate the printer and the Base Station as the problem (meaning your first Mac’s software or network connection is at fault).
A Note About Multifunction Devices and Scanners:
More and more printers today are also copiers, scanners, and fax machines. Many of these multifunction devices can connect to your Mac wirelessly (through a built-in WiFi card), allowing you to print and scan without a USB cable. When you connect a printer or multifunction device to your AirPort Base Station or Time Capsule, the only thing you can do wirelessly is print. The scanning function will not work wirelessly, which also means connecting a scanner via USB to the AirPort/Time Capsule will not work. If you want to scan wirelessly, you need a scanner or multifunction device that has a WiFi card and is Mac compatible.
Did this guide work for you? What other problems have you run into when connecting printers to your AirPort Extremes and Time Capsules? Let others know in the comments.
Problem: Your Mac can’t see your printed connected by a USB cable. You know this because you’ve already plugged the USB cable into your Mac and printer, turned your printer on, and tried to add the printer via the Print & Scan system preference. When you press the “Plus” button in the system preference, your printer does appear in the “Default” tab of the “Add Printer” window. What can you do?
Solution: Step #1 is to make sure your printer is turned on. There’s no way to print if there’s no juice flowing through that plastic box next to your Mac. Once on, here are a few steps you can take to make sure your Mac can see your printer.
Click the plus button in the Print & Scan system preference to open the “Add Printer” window. (If necessary, select “Add Other Printer or Scanner.”)
Connect the printer directly to your Mac rather than a USB hub and turn the printer on.
Open System Information from your /Applications/Utilities folder. Click on “USB” in the Hardware section of the Contents pane. Check each USB bus to see if the printer is listed as a connected device.
If your printer does not appear on any USB bus, you can try plugging the printer into another USB port, changing the USB cable, or turning the printer off and on. If System Information still cannot see your printer, you may have a defective printer (one way to test this is to see if another computer can recognize the printer).
Did this tip work for you? What else have you done to make sure your Mac can see your printer connected via USB?
Problem: You can’t get your printer to print from your Mac, or if it can, the ink is smeared, the page has lines running through it, or the page is crooked.
Solution: Most printers offer a host of troubleshooting tests that are built-into the printer. These tests usually print a page with some diagnostic information. Because the options vary from printer to printer, you may need to consult your printer’s manual to see how you can actually perform these tests. A good starting point is a menu system or button labeled “Setup,” “Tools,” or “Settings,” etc. Some of the tests you may be able to run include:
- A print alignment test (sometimes called a print head test or simply self test). This test prints a page with a series of lines and other shapes, which shows you whether the printer can print objects parallel to each other without overlapping. A failed test means that when you go to print a document, you’ll likely end up with lines of text running into each other.
- Print head cleaning. While not a test per se, this tool is useful when you have lines or splotches running through your printed pages. The cleaning dislodges gunk that has built up on the print head and tries to ensure an even distribution of ink across all of the head.
- A diagnostic test (self test, print report, etc.). These are generic terms, and your printer may call it something else, but this is a test the printer runs to check its internal hardware, and it then prints the results for you. It’s everything you ever wanted your six-month-old baby to be able to tell you instead of crying, but don’t be surprised if the English your printer spits out is equally unrecognizable. You may be able to glean some useful troubleshooting information from the document, but it’s more likely helpful if you have to call the manufacturer for technical support.
- A networking status test. If you have your printer connected to a network, this test prints out all the information your printer knows about your network. You probably only care to see whether the printer is connected to your network and what its IP address is. Note that addresses that start with 169 are fake addresses and indicate the printer isn’t actually connected to your network (if it’s a WiFi network, try retyping your password).
Did this tip work for you? What else have you used your printer’s self test for? Let others know in the comments.
Problem: Your Bluetooth device has worked in the past (maybe even minutes ago), but now it won’t respond. Alternatively, your Mac keeps telling you the device is connected, then disconnected, then connected, and so on.
Solution: While software bugs can prevent your Mac from communicating with a Bluetooth device, more often than not, there’s something wrong with the device when it becomes unresponsive. The common exception is that some WiFi network signals can interfere with Bluetooth reception, so you might try turning off your AirPort connection just to be sure. Otherwise, here are some troubleshooting steps you can take to get your device back up and running:
- If your device uses batteries, try a new set. The batteries often die without warning.
- Make sure your Mac and your device have Bluetooth turned on, and that your device is discoverable. (If you’re not sure how to make your device discoverable, you’ll probably have to read the device’s manual, as this feature varies from device to device.)
- Restart your Mac and turn your device off and then back on (remembering to turn on Bluetooth if necessary).
- Open the Bluetooth system preference and select your troubled device from the device list. At the bottom of the window, click on the Gear button, which may show an option called “Connect.” If it does, choose this to see if Mac OS X can force a connection to your device. (You know the device is connected if the status below the device’s name is “Connected.”).
- If you can connect to your device, you may feel Mac OS X does not recognize all the services the device offers. To attempt to remedy this, select your device from the list in the Bluetooth system preference, select the Gear button, and then choose to “Update Services.” You may need to select “Show More Info” from the Gear icon’s list before you can choose to “Update Device Services.”
- If you cannot find any way to resolve your problem, you might try deleting your device from the devices list in the Bluetooth system preference (by selecting the device and pressing the minus button) and then adding the device again. (You can follow the steps outlined in the previous section if you have trouble pairing the device). Try restarting your computer between deleting the devices and re-pairing it. If all else fails, you can delete the files listed in the previous section on “Setting up a Bluetooth Device,” restart, and re-pair the device with your computer. This allows Mac OS X to create a fresh settings file for your device.
To ensure that your Bluetooth device reconnects to your Mac whenever you restart your Mac or have it come out of sleep, you should add the device to your favorites list. To do this, open the Bluetooth system preference and select your device from the list. Click the Gear button and select “Add to Favorites.” This tells Mac OS X you want to connect to the device whenever possible.
Did this tip work for you? How else have you been able to get your unresponsive Bluetooth devices working in OS X? Let others know in the comments.
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