usb printer not detected

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Level 1

105 points

usb printer not detected

I just bought a HP deskjet 2050 and its recognized when plugged into my 10.5 macbook pro or into my time capsule, but not when plugged into any of the usb ports on my 2011 iMac running Lion. Getting it to actually print something is another problem which i've not solved yet, but getting the imac to actually report that it has something plugged into it is the first step. Other devices like a mouse and an external hard drive work fine, and the usb cable seems to work when plugged into the macbook pro and timecapsule.

Thanks for any help that can be offered.

Posted on Jan 22, 2012 12:37 PM

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Answer 1

Paul_31

Level 6

14,172 points

Jan 22, 2012 12:57 PM in response to nick aliwell

Make sure you have the latest drivers from Apple: HP Printer Drivers v.2.8 OS X

If still no luck, try resetting the printing system: System Preferences>Print & Scan, Control+Click or right click on a printer on the left (or the white space where printers would normally be listed) and select 'Reset printing system'. All printers will be deleted and added again.

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Answer 2

nick aliwell Author

Level 1

105 points

Jan 22, 2012 2:03 PM in response to Paul_31

You wont believe this but i had a really old usb apple keyboard with some usb ports itself, so i plugged the keyboard into the mac, and the printer into that, and the printer shows right up, and prints! ive only spent 4 days on and off trying to solve this problem. Not that i have the perfect solution though, as i now have a dirty old 2nd keyboard stashed behind my imac, just so i can use my printer..

Thanks for the help though, and incidentally i had already tried the drivers from HP too, and the imac could see and add the printer when it was connected to either my 10.5 macbook pro or the timecapsule over the wireless network, though couldn't print.

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Answer 3

nick aliwell Author

Level 1

105 points

Jan 22, 2012 1:31 PM in response to Paul_31

Thanks, tried both of these with no luck, and also read somewhere about booting Lion into 32 bit mode so tried to do that but i don't seem able.

Even the system report doesnt show it as connected to the usb port.

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Answer 4

Paul_31

Level 6

14,172 points

Jan 22, 2012 1:41 PM in response to nick aliwell

Mmmm, I'm stuck for ideas. If the Apple drivers didn't work have you tried the drivers from the HP site (I'm sure you have, just clutching at straws):

http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bizsupport/TechSupport/ProductList.jsp?lang=en&cc=us&t askId=135&prodSeriesId=4027463&prodTypeId=18972

When it's connected to the Time Capsule, can the Mac see it on the network?

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Answer 5

Paul_31

Level 6

14,172 points

Jan 22, 2012 2:11 PM in response to nick aliwell

Great - glad you've got a solution.

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