How to (properly) stop a print job
Question: I selected to print something by mistake and I didn’t know how to stop it once it started. It was 10 pages long so I was worried about using up ink. I didn’t know what to do so I just turned off my printer. When I turned it back on later, it continued to print. Please help.
- R. Singh from Toronto
Question: I selected to print something by mistake and I didn’t know how to stop it once it started. It was 20 pages long so I was worried about using up ink. I didn’t know what to do so I just turned off my printer. When I turned it back on later, it continued to print. Please help!
- R. Singh from Toronto
Answer: You’re not alone! I think we’ve all done that at one time or another – quickly turn off the printer or power down the computer when we want to cancel a print job, but when we turn them back on it continues to print as the task is still queued up.
Some people have even tried to rip the paper out of the printer in a panic – which can do serious harm to the rollers and other parts of the printer.
There is a much easier – and safer — way to stop a print job once it has started.
When you start to print, Windows XP or Vista users will see a small picture of a printer in the lower right-hand side of your computer (near the clock). If you accidentally print something you want to stop, simply double-click the picture of the printer and a small window will pop up with the name of your printer at the top.
Select Printer from the menu and then choose Cancel all Documents. It may take a second or two but the print should stop and eject the paper.
that's great – except if your pc is not the server for the printer, then the little icon will not appear in the system tray. :)
Hmm, not sure about that Cj, I print in a networked environment here at the office and I see the icon in my taskbar when I print. It's possible that yours is "hidden". That sometimes happens with the taskbar. Anyone else have this problem?
When I clicked "Cancel all documents",it cancelled all entries except the one I wanted to cancel. When I started the printer again, away it went printing all remaining copies. I contacted HP and they said to "turn off the spooler" which I did and it now does what I want. When I say stop, it does so and clears the deck.
What the heck is a spooler?
I want to know what the heck a spooler is too.
Accoding to Webopedia (link below) a Spooler is:
A program that controls spooling — putting jobs on a queue and taking them off one at a time. Most operating systems come with one or more spoolers, such as a print spooler for spooling documents. In addition, some applications include spoolers. Many word processors, for example, include their own print spooler.
A good print spooler should allow you to change the order of documents in the queue and to cancel specific print jobs.
http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/S/spooler.html
If your PC is fast, then you won't have a chance to stop the print job in time. On my 32 ppm laser, the job is 1/2 done before any quick cancel in the queue has any effect. (At best, it still flushes 3-4 pages even after the cancel job is done). My ink-jet printer on the other hand, which is an older HP Photosmart 1100, actually has a cancel button it – and this works well. You may find that in your printer manual there is a way to press the printer buttons to cancel the current print job. If you do "pull the plug" on the printer, you have to open the Printer control dialog box and cancel the job before you plug the printer back in.(Start, Settings, Printers & Faxes- then Open the printer in question).
This used to happen to me too until I learned to turn off the printer first, allow the PC to finish the deleting process, before turning on the printer again. Hope it works for you.
just let it finish printing and recycle
I don't have to print too often but then I don't have this problem then. If you can take the 10 seconds to walk across the room to pick up the papers why can't you take another 10 to turn it on. Think of all the time you'll be saving not having to take out the crap you accidently printed.
In Windows XP, click the Start button and choose Printers and Faxes. (In earlier versions or XP Classic View, you can find printers by choosing Start|Settings|Printers.) Find your printer, and a window appears that shows your print job. Alternatively, while a job is printing, you generally see an icon in your Quick Launch toolbar. Right-click it to open the window. In the dialog box, right-click your job and cancel it or choose Printer|Cancel All Documents.BR, Linda Coleman, Medical Assistant Phlebotomist Jobs from phlebotomy jobs