win95 parallel printer replacement

[HipHoper]

Hi all,

I wonder is there a way to connect a new usb printer to an old win95 (pre sp 2.1) computer ?
It's epson c43sx is not working well, And the client don't want to invest in color laser printer.

Thanks

[CCT]

While a device(s) exists ( http://www.epapersign.com/parallel2usb/ ), there is a cost.

The client, hardware permitting, could buy Win98SE for that and then get a PCI card.

[HipHoper]

Thanks CCT. I've decided to get the epson to the repair lab. Although I'm not a big fan of old printers repair, It seems the cheapest solution for this issue.
Next time I'll be smarter and tell the client to replace the computer. It doesn't worth the effort I'm putting into this, But it's a good client

[Draggar]

Nowadays repairing a printer is more expensive than buying a new one most of the time. I've seen color lasers under $500 now (Samsung and an HP). Some inkjets are cheaper than the cartridges today, too.

[HipHoper]

yes Draggar,There are even 120$ color laser printers but the one's with parallel and DOS support costs around 350$, And repairing of the inkjet will cost no more than 50$ in my opinion

[CeeBee]

If the PC is networked then maybe a print server can do the trick. Some have USB and parallel ports.

[HipHoper]

Thanks for this great idea CB. I thought about that already, And since this computer is a part of a corporate network with high security settings, i've decided not to go that way, Because I didn't wanted to get into the mess of adding another NIC and messing with the novell client

[slgrieb]

If the PC is networked then maybe a print server can do the trick. Some have USB and parallel ports.

I'd expect that driver's might be a deal breaker for Win95 and a new printer, though you might get it going by installing it as an older printer.

[CeeBee]

What puzzles me is why someone is using a local printer and not a queue on a server.

[HipHoper]

Yes Slg - I guess win95 and driver issue are the "main event" in this case, Since it's not even OSR 2.1 (The hebrew enables version never had 2.1).

And CB - it's not server quened, Because it need to print the data locally, And it's a big hospital, Where the server is in far far away land....

[slgrieb]

I realize that I spend lots of word complaining about some of the, let us say, less than state of the art hardware and software I deal with, but, Hip I'm amazed at some of the stuff you work with and keep running.

[HipHoper]

It's a matter of your view of the world.
If I can fix things and it'll be cheaper for the client and it won't waste too much energy on my part - i preffer to do it this way.
There are red lines, If the computer is very old and there's no special need for it, But generally I'm interested in preserving what is, Because it usually less work/cost than configuring a new system to do the same job faster...
You can call me a cheap conservative :O)

[NooNoo]

Surely a copy of 2k is going to be cheaper than fixing a printer

[HipHoper]

It's HER !!! Hey Noo :O)

If you've got a PCI card that samples data via rs232 cable on win95 system with a specific program - That might be a problem.....

In general, Maybe a new computer with vmware/virtual pc would work in that case....

[slgrieb]

I realize that I spend lots of word complaining about some of the, let us say, less than state of the art hardware and software I deal with, but, Hip I'm amazed at some of the stuff you work with and keep running.

Well, that was unclear! I meant I'm amazed at some of the stuff you're able to keep running. OK, maybe a little dismayed too, sometimes. I feel for you. I have some clients who won't make any changes to their hardware and software until, one day, they're forced to do it. Then, of course, they faint at the cost. Ah.