Plugging an inkjet into 2 computers

JonathanRyan

JonathanRyan

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I have a Canon inkjet printer. It is USB only (no wifi). It works great with my Mac. I want to plug it into a PC as well so that I can print on the same printer from either machine. I know I could do this by sharing from the Mac but then I'd have to leave the Mac on all the time.

Is there a gizmo that lets me do this? Kind of a reverse USB hub. Alternatively is there and (cheap + reliable) way to connect it to the network?
 
lol
 
Oooooo :)

Anybody know what the word "manual" means in this context? Would I have to press a button every time I wanted to switch computer? Reviews say it's something to do with "priority".
 
Take a look at network print servers, these are available to connect to wireless or wired networks.

If you have something like a BT Home hub it will have a number of RJ45 ports, you can plug a wired print server into the hub and connect the printer to the print server via a USB cable.
 
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What is the model of the printer?

Thanks
 
sep9001 said:
What is the model of the printer?

Thanks
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iP4700

andy1868 said:
By the looks of it, i would hazard a guess at it being the button on top to change which computer you want to print from :)

If you've got network nearby you could just install one of these. USB in one end, network out of the other.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/TP-LINK-TL-...8&qid=1456847382&sr=8-1&keywords=print+server
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That looks handy - any experience of these and how reliable they are? There's Cat5 pretty much all over the house ;)
 
I plugged my printer into my DSL router that has a USB port for printers and memory sticks. Now we can print from any PC and mobile devices too. And cost me nowt.

If the router doesn't support printers, a USB print server plugged into a spare Ethernet port on the router would do the same thing.
Just £21.99 for up to 4 printers.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B015GXBORI/ref=cm_sw_r_other_awd_ptD1wbBY07N45
 
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I have a HP BT300 bluetooth dongle in the USB port on my Canon printer, so laptops, Ipads, Iphones etc can print from anywhere in the house. I have one desktop that is connected via an old Belkin BT dongle
 
As above, most/loads of broadband routers have a USB port just for this. Also, if you have a Timecapsule (as you are a Mac user) you can connect the printer to the USB port on that.
 
Ploddles said:
As above, most/loads of broadband routers have a USB port just for this. Also, if you have a Timecapsule (as you are a Mac user) you can connect the printer to the USB port on that.
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Oh - I'd forgotten that the Timecapsule had a USB port on it :)

Unfortunately, it's secured in a cupboard a long way away from where I want to print :(

Interestingly my BT Hub has a USB socket on it I had never noticed. I'll investigate.....
 
I used to print to my old printer with a Bluetooth USB dongle, would that work for yours? I'm sure I've still got it somewhere, you'd be welcome to it.
 
If it is the BT HomeHub then you can ONLY use a printer on it. The USB port is designed exactly for that, ie it won't take a hard disk or anything else, just a printer.
 
JonathanRyan said:
Oooooo :)

Anybody know what the word "manual" means in this context? Would I have to press a button every time I wanted to switch computer? Reviews say it's something to do with "priority".
Click to expand...

Yes. It's something carried forwards from the old days of when you used to have a box with a knob, which you have to switch to A or B, when you want to print to Printer A or print to Printer B.

It would be like this http://dxg49ziwjgkgt.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/SingleDevice.jpg
 
An Airport Express will allow you to plug a printer in - I just picked up a first generation model on eBay for less than £20. This will work wired or wireless.
 
Ploddles said:
If it is the BT HomeHub then you can ONLY use a printer on it. The USB port is designed exactly for that, ie it won't take a hard disk or anything else, just a printer.
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Just when it was looking promising....

I plugged the printer into the BT Hub and it didn't magically appear on my Mac :( So I asked Google how to install it. Here's what BT say on the matter.

None of the versions of the BT Home Hub are designed to act as a print server. Connecting a printer to the USB socket won't work, and we don't support this.

Some people claim that they've managed to share printers in this way. But the success might be specific to their printer and the Hub just doesn't support this feature.
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It looks like they are saying it's a myth and there's no particular reason for a USB socket being on there........
 
jwsmith said:
Lindy have a few options across both simple switches and IP servers - I've used the cheapest for sharing a printer and it seems to do the job simply and reliably. I think the simple switches are either manual push button or keyboard hotkey (though Mac is apparently not supported for the hotkey).

http://www.lindy.co.uk/usb-firewire-c4/usb-switches-sharers-c226
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I like Lindy stuff so I asked them if their USB over IP box would work with Macs. Sadly not :(
 
JonathanRyan said:
Just when it was looking promising....

I plugged the printer into the BT Hub and it didn't magically appear on my Mac :( So I asked Google how to install it. Here's what BT say on the matter.

It looks like they are saying it's a myth and there's no particular reason for a USB socket being on there........
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Never mind. For £20 you can buy a print server and plug it in and you are away.
 
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My Homehub used to work fine as a print server. The printer doesn't magically appear on the Mac, I had to select to add a printer and then IP printer (you type in the IP address of the Homehub - usually 192.168.1.254, or whatever you have changed it to). Worked both as Airprint and LPD.

This was about 18 months ago that I last used it this way (I've since moved the hub into the loft after rewiring the sockets to send the broadband up there (infinity)). There has been a firmware update on it since so maybe that broke it but I'd be tempted to just test it if I was you, only takes 2 mins to try.
 
Ploddles said:
My Homehub used to work fine as a print server. The printer doesn't magically appear on the Mac, I had to select to add a printer and then IP printer (you type in the IP address of the Homehub - usually 192.168.1.254, or whatever you have changed it to). Worked both as Airprint and LPD.

This was about 18 months ago that I last used it this way (I've since moved the hub into the loft after rewiring the sockets to send the broadband up there (infinity)). There has been a firmware update on it since so maybe that broke it but I'd be tempted to just test it if I was you, only takes 2 mins to try.
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Thanks - it's coming up as "unsupported device type" on the hub. Mac won't connect to it via IP :(

I bet they broke it in a firmware update and then said it had never worked :D
 
Why not use printer sharing. OK you have to have the main printer up and running but you can then use it as a host and allow the second computer to print via it. On a mac you simply enable sharing via system prefs, Printers. You can even print via WiFi
 
Chappers said:
Why not use printer sharing. OK you have to have the main printer up and running but you can then use it as a host and allow the second computer to print via it. On a mac you simply enable sharing via system prefs, Printers. You can even print via WiFi
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JonathanRyan said:
I know I could do this by sharing from the Mac but then I'd have to leave the Mac on all the time.
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;)

In practise I do leave the Mac on most of the time but it seems like a lot of moving parts if I need to print something urgently. As it is, that's a sure way to make the cyan ink run out....
 
Just wait until your ink runs out and buy a new printer that is wifi capable. The cost of the ink and any little box inbetween will be nearly that of a new printer anyway

I don't like throwing away perfectly good equipment, but hey sometimes it's cheaper and less cumbersome.
 
Or make this, or any printer Wifi capable for the price of a set of ink cartridges, with a print server.
 
ianp5a said:
Or make this, or any printer Wifi capable for the price of a set of ink cartridges, with a print server.
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Hence I said, wait until you need new ink, as the ink comes with a printer, and get the wifi print server for "free" and neatly build in.
 
I can see some people are still buying "genuine" ink. Full pack of cartridges costs me like 12 quid ;)
 
Lol I've been there and don't like the quality differences I see. Nor the print heads on my canon that I had to wash out.
 
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It seems to be lasting annoyingly well. I'd love to replace it with something more modern but it just refuses to break or give me bad output :(
 
Update: Good thing I'm so lazy.....We needed to print something from my wife's PC and still hadn't set the printer up for it. Rather than copying it to the Mac, I plugged the inkjet into the PC and.....it died. Just completely broke. Google told me it was terminal.

A trip to Currys and £49.99 later and I have a brand new Canon MG5650 which works perfectly over wifi to both computers :) It will also replace my Epson scanner for day to day stuff.
 
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Glad you're sorted, Jonathan, even if it did involve an unexpected expense!

FWIW, I'm with JP on compatible inks. Only used one and that was enough to put me off ever doing so again for a photo printer. Colour looked wrong from the off, despite the seller assuring me that it was "the same ink, just cheaper". Adjusted the output via the printer's menu to get the same results as from real Canon ink but then noticed that after just a week, the colour was fading. Got a genuine cart ordered up and installed, reset the colour and never had a problem since (with assorted Canon printers). Didn't give the cheap one a chance to block my nozzle.
 
Interesting. I've had good luck running a Pixma on ink from StinkInk for several years.

I should probably say that this is only for documents and throwaway prints. Anything that needs to be photo quality goes out to the lab.
 
For short lived graphic stuff, the cheap inks may be good enough (as long as you use it often enough to stop the nozzles getting blocked) but for photo use and stuff that needs to last, I would recommend sticking to genuines. I've got 10 year old prints both behind glass and in the open air and none of them seem to have faded or lost colour fidelity. Most on Ilford Galerie but some on Canon and some on super cheapo Lidl/Aldi papers.
 
The paper is every bit as important as the ink. When I started printing my own digital photos, I bought cheap paper from a supermarket. One print was left for a week partially covered by something. When I uncovered it there was a distinct difference in colour between the covered and uncovered parts - not a massive difference but clearly there.
 
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