Installing Hardware - Don't Follow Directions!
In January my Epson EPL-8000 printer refused to power up after only 14 years of flawless service. The 1-yr old Epson CX5400 was low on ink. And MCM had not yet sprung for a 2nd monitor for the sound booth and is still reading from paper scripts.
The professionals don't fix laser printers any more. Burns my grits, since it probably just needs a power supply. The printer is now sitting on the "Hundred-Year Bench" where things go to get fixed around here. So I got a new cheap little HP 1020. The installation CD tells you how to do all the stuff you already know how to do, like remove the shipping tape and put in the paper and plug it in, but not the less easy stuff like getting it actually to work. The installer got into a loop and I finally had to X out, but not before being told that installation wasn't complete and did I really want to do that. The HP website was no help at all. I went to the Control Panel to install the printer that way. I did manage to get it "installed", at least to the point that when I tried to print something I could choose the new printer. But it didn’t actually print. So I finally just re-ran the set-up CD and this time it worked. Sure, after I did the work on my own of adding the printer through the control panel, NOW it gets off its lazy butt and installs it. Grumble. Or, to use the technical term, Bwah. By the way the new printer is wicked fast. I guess there has been some progress in 14 years.
Fast forward to May 2006.I've had to install this same HP 1020 printer several times lately, what with the Great System Crash of Easter 2006. I moved the printer to the general computer first. At the time I couldn't locate the installation disk, so when I was prompted to put it in "if this hardware came with an installation CD", I decided to interpret "if" to mean, if you can't find the durn thing, then don't put it in. The installation went flawlessly. So now it's becoming a little old, using sneakernet to get things printed so I decided I finally needed to move the printer back to my area and install it in my non-DAW computer. Since I now know where all my CDs are I thoughtlessly bunged the installation disk into the CD drive when prompted to do so. MISTAKE!! ERROR!! THE BIG E LIGHTS UP ON THE SCHAEFER SCORE BOARD!! "Installation did not complete. Your new hardware may not work properly". I then reached back into the 2-week old recesses of my memory to the previous flawless installation. Turn off printer. Disconnect. Remove CD from CD drive. Look for stuff to uninstall in list of Add/Remove. Not found. Perform system restore. Start over. Stare at ceiling when prompted for CD. Click on "Next". Installation proceeds flawlessly. "Your installation is complete. Your new hardware is ready to use." WTF, you know? Just plain, unmitigated ruddy WTF.
Grumble.
In January my Epson EPL-8000 printer refused to power up after only 14 years of flawless service. The 1-yr old Epson CX5400 was low on ink. And MCM had not yet sprung for a 2nd monitor for the sound booth and is still reading from paper scripts.
The professionals don't fix laser printers any more. Burns my grits, since it probably just needs a power supply. The printer is now sitting on the "Hundred-Year Bench" where things go to get fixed around here. So I got a new cheap little HP 1020. The installation CD tells you how to do all the stuff you already know how to do, like remove the shipping tape and put in the paper and plug it in, but not the less easy stuff like getting it actually to work. The installer got into a loop and I finally had to X out, but not before being told that installation wasn't complete and did I really want to do that. The HP website was no help at all. I went to the Control Panel to install the printer that way. I did manage to get it "installed", at least to the point that when I tried to print something I could choose the new printer. But it didn’t actually print. So I finally just re-ran the set-up CD and this time it worked. Sure, after I did the work on my own of adding the printer through the control panel, NOW it gets off its lazy butt and installs it. Grumble. Or, to use the technical term, Bwah. By the way the new printer is wicked fast. I guess there has been some progress in 14 years.
Fast forward to May 2006.I've had to install this same HP 1020 printer several times lately, what with the Great System Crash of Easter 2006. I moved the printer to the general computer first. At the time I couldn't locate the installation disk, so when I was prompted to put it in "if this hardware came with an installation CD", I decided to interpret "if" to mean, if you can't find the durn thing, then don't put it in. The installation went flawlessly. So now it's becoming a little old, using sneakernet to get things printed so I decided I finally needed to move the printer back to my area and install it in my non-DAW computer. Since I now know where all my CDs are I thoughtlessly bunged the installation disk into the CD drive when prompted to do so. MISTAKE!! ERROR!! THE BIG E LIGHTS UP ON THE SCHAEFER SCORE BOARD!! "Installation did not complete. Your new hardware may not work properly". I then reached back into the 2-week old recesses of my memory to the previous flawless installation. Turn off printer. Disconnect. Remove CD from CD drive. Look for stuff to uninstall in list of Add/Remove. Not found. Perform system restore. Start over. Stare at ceiling when prompted for CD. Click on "Next". Installation proceeds flawlessly. "Your installation is complete. Your new hardware is ready to use." WTF, you know? Just plain, unmitigated ruddy WTF.
Grumble.
posted by MCM Voices at
5/02/2006
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