Guide Installing a Printer in Windows XP

Installing a printer with Add Printer Wizard, we choose between adding a local printer (directly cabled to computer through one of ports) or a network printer (connected to network with Ethernet card, as computer is connected to LAN).

Install local printer with Add Printer Wizard, follow these steps:

1. Click Start button on Start menu task bar and click Control Panel on right side of Start menu.

2. Click Printers & Other Hardware hyperlink if Control Panel is in Category View. Or double-click Printers &Faxes icon if Control Panel is in Classic View.

3. Click Add a Printer hyperlink in Printers and Other Hardware window to start Add Printer Wizard and then click Next button, or press Enter to advance to Local Printer or Printer Connection dialog box.

4. Make sure that Add Printer Wizard selects Local Printer radio button, and Automatically Detect and Install the Plug and Play Printer check box beneath the radio button before we click Next button.

5. If wizard is unable to detect printer in New Printer Detection dialog box, click Next to install printer manually.

6. Select port for printer to use in Use Following Port drop-down list box in Select a Printer Port dialog box and then click Next button.

7. Click manufacturer and model of printer in Manufacturers and Printers list boxes, respectively, of Install Printer Software dialog box.

If we have a disk with software for printer, put it into floppy or CD-ROM drive and then click Have Disk button: Select drive that contains the disk in Copy Manufacturer's Files drop-down list box and then click OK.

8. Click Next button to advance to Name Your Printer dialog box.

If we want, edit name for printer in Printer Name text box. If we want to make printer that we're installing default printer that is automatically used whenever we print from Windows or from within a Windows program, leave Yes radio button selected beneath heading, Do we want Windows-based programs to use the printer as default printer?

9. Click Next button to advance to Printer Sharing dialog box.

If we want to share the printer with other users on network, click Share Name radio button and then, if we want, edit share name (this is name that other users on network see when they go to select the printer for printing their documents) that wizard gives printer in Share Name text box.

10. To print a test page from newly installed printer, click Yes radio button selected beneath heading, Would we like to print a test page? in Print Test Page dialog box.

11. Click Next button to advance to Completing Add Printer Wizard dialog box, where we can review settings for new printer before we click Finish button or press Enter to finish installing new printer.

To use Add Printer Wizard to install a printer that's available through Local Area Network, we follow just slightly different steps:

1. Click Start button on Windows taskbar and then click Control Panel on right side of Start menu.

2. Click Printers and Other Hardware hyperlink if Control Panel window is in Category View. Otherwise, double-click Printers and Faxes icon if Control Panel window is in Classic View.

3. Click Add a Printer hyperlink in Printers and Other Hardware window to start Add Printer Wizard and then click Next button or press Enter to advance to Local or Network Printer dialog box.

4. Click A Network Printer or a Printer Attached to Another Computer radio button in Local or Network Printer dialog box and then click Next button or press Enter to Specify a Printer dialog box.

5. If we know name of network printer, click Connect to This Printer (or to Browse for a Printer, Select this Option and click Next) radio button and then enter network path in Name text box.

If network printer is on a network that uses an Internet address and we know the URL address, click Connect to a Printer on Internet or on a Home or Office Network radio button and then enter address in URL text box. If we know neither of these pieces of information, leave Browse for a Printer radio button selected and then click Next to advance to Browse for Printer dialog box.

6. In Browse for Printer dialog box, locate printer in Shared Printers list box by clicking network icons until we expand outline sufficiently to display printer icon.

When we click printer icon in the outline, wizard adds path to Printer text box above.

7. Click Next button to advance Default Printer dialog box.

If we want to make printer that we're installing default printer that is automatically used whenever we print from Windows or from within a Windows program, leave Yes radio button selected beneath heading, Do we want Windows-based programs to use the printer as default printer?

8. Click Next button to advance to Completing Add Printer Wizard dialog box, where we can review settings for new printer before we click Finish button or press Enter to finish installing new printer.

After we add a printer to computer, we can start using it when printing with programs such as Word 2002 and Excel 2002, or when printing from Windows itself.

To switch to a new printer that we haven't designated as default printer in programs such as Word and Excel, we need to open Print dialog box (choose File-->Print) and then select printer name in Name drop-down list box.