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View Full Version : two computers, same printer

hobey19
08-25-2004, 08:06 PM
i have an officejet g55 which has both a parallel and usb port. can i have one parallel port going to one computer and the usb port going to the other. is there anything i have to configure? i have xp on both computers. thanks

craig
Mesaeus
08-25-2004, 08:16 PM
I don't think that'll work. Unless the printer manual explicitly mentions this, it won't work since using two connections simultaneously is hard to implement for the printer manufacturer. The best idea would be to make a small network and connect the printer to the pc that's on the most.
hobey19
08-25-2004, 08:26 PM
yea, that is what i figured. i just moved in with my roomate and he doesn't have a printer. its going to be kind of hard to network here in the dorm, so i guess thats out. i ask this because i remember one of the other computers having this capability

craig
yellohut
08-25-2004, 08:28 PM
I'm not sure if it will work. It's worth a shot.. as long as you make backupo points before you try it, any damage can be undone.

the best way to do this would be to network the computers and have one of them hooked up to the printer, or to hook hte printer into hte network via a print server.
hobey19
08-25-2004, 08:35 PM
yea, like i said, networking is not an option, as we cannot have a router or switch of any kind here. i suppose i could run a crossover, but i don't really want to put in another nic in each comp

guess he will just have to get used to sending me the file, or buy a pen drive

craig
glc
08-25-2004, 11:36 PM
There's a decent chance that this *will* work - why don't you e-mail HP and ask them?

How about a switch?

http://sewelldirect.com/UsbSwitch.asp?kid=-1190517324
hobey19
08-26-2004, 12:03 AM
well, i went ahead and tried it, and it didn't work. the one with the parallel prints fine, and the other does not. it just hangs there. thats not a bad price for the switch, but quite frankly i could care less if this works. i have a printer, if he wants to print he can pay for it. do you have any idea why one would work and one wouldn't? thanks for the help guys

craig
amigo
08-28-2004, 08:11 AM
You can use a printer data transfer switch.