network printer

[mkbclr]

i have a wireless lan. my laptop has win xp, my desktop has win98. the printer on my desktop works fine, bt when i try to print from the laptop i get an error. i can browse the network and see the printer, and the rest of the network is working fine. lexmark tech told me that it would not work unless i hooked the printer up to the laptop (kinda defeats the whole wireless thing) because 98 could print thru xp, but xp could not print through 98. that kinda sounds like a load of crap to me. can anybody help????? please?????

[muno]

Your post is missing one vital detail, the error message.

[mkbclr]

yeah --that's good thinkin'


here goes-

windows cannot print due to a problem with the current printer setup try one or more of the following:

*check the printer by printing a test page from windows
*make sure that your printer is turned on and online
*reinstall the printer driver


-- i did all that stuff
the printer works perfectly on the host -- but not the laptop

[muno]

Ok. I assume your printer is shared, and the xp has mapped the printer to a correct port.

The first thing I'd try is hook up the printer to the laptop and alter the port to a correct one, and see if it prints.

I'm guessing it's driver problem, the w98 cannot supply the correct printer driver to the wxp computer, and wxp does not have the driver integrated

//edit: Oh, when you say 'I did all that', do you mean you succesfully printed a test page from the laptop?

[mkbclr]

i have never printed anything from the laptop over the network. i did install the printer directly to the laptop and that worked fine, then changed the port to the proper network path --- got the same error.

thnaks for helping,,,, i hope you are better at this stuff than me!


oh yeah --- yes xp can see the printer over the network --

[muno]

Is the w98 running a firewall that could possibly block an incoming print job?

[mkbclr]

hmmm...
i doubt it... could you tell me how to check?

[muno]

Have you installed a firewall on the w98? Like zonealarm, sygate, norton internet security, kerio or something. If you have not, then it probably isn't running one

I don't remember, but does w98 support rights management on shares? I know it doesn't on physical drives, but on shares? If it does, make sure everyone has the right to print to that printer.

[mkbclr]

nope -- none of that stuff---

i was just checking my sharing properties for the printer -- in w98 it gives the option for a password for sharing. i know that xp is very strickt on security stuff, do you think that could be the problem?

that was really all i saw that looked like rights management --- i am new at all this network stuff and kinda a dork i guess???

[muno]

Yeah, xp is strict on security, but w98 isn't. And when the w98 does the sharing, xp doesn't really care for much.

This might help, I was trying to find a guide to setup shared printer for w98 and wxp.
http://www.freelists.org/archives/ms.../msg00010.html