setting up a network printer

[Xylob the Destroyer]

hi all!

my printer has died
c'est la vie, it was a cheap one anyway....

my girlfriend has a fancy all-in-one scanner/printer/copier at her desk that I have been using after setting it up as shared on her PC.
but she doesn't use her PC all that often and it usually isn't turned on, which means I have to go turn her PC on before I can print something on my PC
also, it's all the way on the other side of the house.

I want to move it to a more central location in the house and not have to have her PC turned on in order to print from mine.


the printer is an HP "psc 2110 all-in-one"
it only has a USB on the back
Can it be done, and what other equipment would I need to buy?

TIA!!

[rallynavvie]

Something like this will work in most network environments:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16833124042

That'll cover both wireless or wired networks depending on what you've got available where you want to put the printer. You can also find similar ones for either wired or wireless networks for cheaper, but most of the good ones are more than $50. I recommended this one to a friend and it's been working well for him for a few months.

[redwudz]

You need a print server with USB output. I do this with my hardware internet router, a D-Link DI-704UP(UP for USB Print server). I have the router connected to my cable modem and my printer to the 704.

I can use the printer from my laptop, my main computer and a Mac G4. Everything is hooked together with Cat 5 lan cables, but there are wireless versions. If you don't have cable internet, there are stand alone print servers that work off a lan setup.

Mine was easy to set up, only took a few minutes for each computer. Mine doesn't tell me when a print job is done, but will let me know if it can't print. If your printer works shared, it should work with a print server, but check the print server website to be sure.

[Xylob the Destroyer]

hmmmm....
I have a Motorola cable modem with 1 ethernet output and 1 USB output
and I have a Linksys BESFR41 router with 4 ethernet outputs (but no USB...)
i really don't wanna buy a new router or modem
that print server looks pretty slick

[Jayhawk]

You might shop around a little also. I know CompUSA was selling name brand USB print servers (wired) last week for $29 after rebates. Regardless, rallynavvie is correct. A print server is your cheapest and easiest solution.

[Xylob the Destroyer]

yeah, been shopping around since all the kind input on this thread.
definitely looking at a wired one, as the only PC i have with wireless capability is one I would never print from anyway

[rallynavvie]

If you've got a wired hub/router then you should be getting a wired print server. The one I posted has both wired and wireless so it'll work with most any network, or if you upgrade to wireless in the future you'd be able to use that same print server. As I said though you can get cheaper ones that use only one network source.