If you are thinking of buying a printer for your small business, there are a few things to consider before making the purchase. 

Most printers today fit into one of three categories: Inkjet, Laser, or Multifunction machines.  Each type of printer is better suited for different needs.  This post will examine the strengths of each type of printer to give you a better understanding of which one is best for you.

Inkjet Printers

Basic inkjet printers are great for printing text and the occasional photo. Most mix cyan, magenta, and yellow ink in order to reproduce the whole color spectrum. The colored ink can come from one ink cartridge or from separate cartridges for each color. Separate cartridges are convenient because printers don't use all colors at the same rate, so when you run out of one you don't have to replace all the others as you would with an all-in-one color cartridge. Inkjets usually have a separate black ink cartridge for text and grayscale printing. Portable inkjet printers that you can take along with your laptop are also available.

Photographers will probably want an inkjet photo printer, which usually adds light cyan and light magenta to the color mix for deeper, brighter hues. A built-in camera dock or flash memory card reader make these printers especially handy for printing photos directly from your digital camera. Many photo printers also have small LCD screens for previewing the picture before printing. Most photographers would probably want to make sure the printer is capable of borderless printing, so the picture goes all the way to the edge of the photo paper.

Laser Printers 

Laser printers save time and money when printing large volumes. They print faster than inkjet printers, and laser toner usually costs less per page compared to ink cartridges. Color laser printers produce sharp, vivid colors. They are typically more expensive than black and white laser printers though. Personal laser printers have a smaller capacity than large professional printers. However, they still print quickly and are perfect for a home office or small business. If you need a printer for a large office, a network laser printer would be ideal, with a large paper capacity and fast printing. Many network laser printers have a built-in print server. They also have a connector port for connecting to a local area network. Most models offer expandable memory and optional extra storage trays. Higher-end printers offer several output trays with a collator and stapler.    

Multifunction Printer 

Printers that not only print by also fax, copy, and scan are known as multifunction printers.  These printers can be very handy since they can do the job of a number of separate machines. These all in one printers probably won't do a single task as well as a machine dedicated to that task would, but saving space is more important than optimum performance for many people. Multifunction printers can be either laser or inkjet.

Conclusion 

No matter what model, price range, and type of printmaking technology you purchase, it is important to make sure you know what you want to do with it first. You will naturally choose a different printer for high-volume document printing than if you are trying to print out just your digital pictures for a family photo album. Likewise, you wouldn't choose the same printer to create brochures as you would to make forge-proof I.D. cards for your small business employees. Whether you would like to stick with ink or are tamper-proof toner, make sure that you've got the right printer (and printer paper!) for the job.

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How Do I Put A Printer On My Network?

Starting up an office for a small business means doing a lot of things yourself. If you have networked computers together, then you can set up a printer on the network for everybody to use.

Sometimes manufacturers will package a setup disk with the printer. Simply run the setup disk and follow the instructions. After the printer has been configured, you can add to your PC via your "Add Printers" program.

If your printer didn’t come with a setup disk, you can manually add it to your network. Network printers have a LAN (RJ-45) port, which looks like a phone jack but larger.

Here's a photo of a LAN port:

1. Simply plug the LAN cable from your printer into your network hub. After you connect the printer into the hub, turn the printer on. The printer will need a few minutes to boot and perform self tests.

2. Once it has warmed up, print out a configuration page. You should be able to do this by pressing a sequence of buttons on the printer (Check your manual for directions).

3. The printer should be set to automatically get an IP address from your network. The configuration page that you printed out will show you the IP address that was assigned. The IP address will be a series of numbers.  It is a unique set of numbers that has been assigned to your network by your internet service provider.

4. Once you have the IP address, you can enter it into the address bar of a web browser.  You will be taken to a screen that will allow you to setup the specifics of your network for sharing the printer.

By either setting it up manually or following the setup disk, you should be able to hook up your printer to the network without any trouble.

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My Printer Jams Paper All the Time - What Do I Need to Look For Now?

When working with any printer it is inevitable that you will encounter a paper jam. While this may indicate a larger hardware issue, most likely it is a simple fix. Below are the steps you'll want to follow when your printer jams:

1. Turn off your printer.
2. Inspect the location or tray the printed paper ejects to.*
3. Remove all paper trays and any paper that may be stuck between the tray and the printer.*
4. Open the printer door that allows you access to the printer ink cartridges or toner and look for any stuck paper.*
5. Turn the printer back on. If you continue to receive a printer jam error, try repeating the above steps. If an issue still persists (and you do not see any paper that is stuck in the printer), it is likely your printer is experiencing another hardware issue. At that time, you should contact the printer manufacturer for additional assistance and/or repair.

*At this point, it is OK to manually remove the paper. In order to remove any paper, you will need to pull on it with both hands. Be careful not to tear the paper at the same time. If you’re unable to get to an edge of the paper that allows you to pull it, you may need to manually rotate the gears that feed the paper through the printer.

Below are some ways to prevent paper jams:

1. If your printer has a paper tray, do not fill the tray to capacity. If you’re encountering frequent paper jams, reduce the amount of paper you place in the tray each time it is filled.
2. Make sure the tray feeding the paper into the printer is aligned properly. Also check to see that the slider used to hold the paper in place in the tray fits snug with the paper.
3. Many printers have sliders that allow different types and sizes of paper to be fed into the printer. If the slider is not properly positioned it can cause paper jams.
4. Use standard office paper. Folded paper, paper with labels, and specialty paper such as hard bound paper can often cause paper jams.
5. If you’re uncertain what type of paper you should use with your printer, check your printer documentation. It will list the types of paper compatible with your printer.
6. Do not mix the types of paper you’re feeding into the printer at one time. If you need to change the type of paper or the size of paper being used, you need to remove any other paper currently in the printer before inserting new paper.
7. Examine the printer for any previous stuck paper in the printer. Previous paper jams, torn paper, printing labels, or other foreign objects in the printer can cause reoccurring printer jams.

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How Do I Get My Laptop to Work With My Printer When it is Connected to My Desktop?

Sometimes you bring your laptop from the office to work on a presentation or a document at home. If you need to print the file, you can use your home printer. If you are running Windows 2000, 2003, XP, or Vista, follow these instructions to connect and share your printer with your laptop.

First, you need to set up your desktop.

Desktop Instructions

You need to make sure the desktop PC is powered “on” and also that it is allowing the printer to be shared.

To share your printer:

 1. Click on the Start Menu

2. Click on Settings

3. Click on Control Panel

4. Click on Printers

5. Right click on your Printer’s icon

6. Click on the menu option called “Sharing”

7. Enable sharing by selecting the radio button and give the shared printer a name

Then, you need to set up your laptop.

Laptop Instructions

You will need to add the printer to your network.

To add the printer:

1. Click on the Start Menu

2. Click on Settings

3. Click on Control Panel

4. Click on Printers

5. Click on the “Add A Printer” icon (If you are using Vista, go to network settings and then click on the “Add A Printer” button.)

You can then select network printer. At this point you can browse for the printer or enter the network location manually (i.e. \\desktop name\printer sharename\.) Click next and follow the prompts in the window.

Once you complete these steps, you should be able to print from your laptop.

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