User profile for user: apark2005
apark2005 Author
User level: Level 1
16 points

Printer Troubles

I recently got my first Mac (M1 MacBook Air), and I've mostly been able to figure things out...but the printer situation has got me completely stumped. I have an older Dell laser printer shared on my network via my Windows 10 desktop PC. I had a ton of trouble getting to this point, but in a nutshell, I had to create a user account on my PC after it kept asking for a username and password when I was trying to install the printer. I did that, and the printer seemed to install. I tried both of the generic drivers listed, but documents will not print. It appears to send the document to the printer just fine, but the printer itself doesn't respond. I *think* I've narrowed it down to it being a driver problem. I looked for an updated driver on the Dell website, and the latest Mac driver is from 2014, and that one failed to install.

My question is this: Is there a way around this problem, am I missing something, or is it likely that I'd just have to get a newer printer to get it to work with my wonderful new device?

MacBook Air 13″, macOS 11.2

Posted on Apr 7, 2021 10:51 PM

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User profile for user: Jan Hedlund
Jan Hedlund
User level: Level 7
24,235 points

Posted on Apr 13, 2021 2:16 AM

Since the Dell 2350d supports PCL5e, PCL6, and PostScript 3, it should be possible to find some kind of solution.


I guess that you are using the USB port to connect the Mac to the Windows computer responsible for the sharing. An alternative approach could be to connect a small external print server to either the USB or parallel port of the printer. The print server could have an Ethernet port for a wired connection to one of the LAN ports of a Wi-Fi router, or it could be a print server model with Wi-Fi capabilities. This should allow a wireless network connection from the Mac, without involving a Windows computer.


However, you will need a suitable printer driver on the new MacBook Air. This may be problematic, as you have discovered. The 2350d appears to be one of the Dell printers made by Lexmark. If a generic PCL or PostScript driver available in macOS cannot be used for some reason, you may want to investigate whether, for example, a Lexmark universal print driver mono package for Mac (https://www.lexmark.com/en_us/support/universal-print-driver.html) possibly could be used in some way (by selecting a similar printer). As with all experiments, a software or hardware problem cannot be ruled out. Data may be lost. You may have to erase and reinstall everything on the computer. So, do not proceed unless you know what you are doing. Always keep at least three backup copies of important files.


Add a printer on Mac - Apple Support

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User profile for user: Jan Hedlund
Jan Hedlund
User level: Level 7
24,235 points

Apr 13, 2021 2:16 AM in response to apark2005

Since the Dell 2350d supports PCL5e, PCL6, and PostScript 3, it should be possible to find some kind of solution.


I guess that you are using the USB port to connect the Mac to the Windows computer responsible for the sharing. An alternative approach could be to connect a small external print server to either the USB or parallel port of the printer. The print server could have an Ethernet port for a wired connection to one of the LAN ports of a Wi-Fi router, or it could be a print server model with Wi-Fi capabilities. This should allow a wireless network connection from the Mac, without involving a Windows computer.


However, you will need a suitable printer driver on the new MacBook Air. This may be problematic, as you have discovered. The 2350d appears to be one of the Dell printers made by Lexmark. If a generic PCL or PostScript driver available in macOS cannot be used for some reason, you may want to investigate whether, for example, a Lexmark universal print driver mono package for Mac (https://www.lexmark.com/en_us/support/universal-print-driver.html) possibly could be used in some way (by selecting a similar printer). As with all experiments, a software or hardware problem cannot be ruled out. Data may be lost. You may have to erase and reinstall everything on the computer. So, do not proceed unless you know what you are doing. Always keep at least three backup copies of important files.


Add a printer on Mac - Apple Support

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Printer Troubles

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