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Yesterday, @glennPattonWork is talking about fixing a printer: http://www.codeproject.com/Messages/5309442/Cue-Evil-Laugh.aspx[^]
I just had to say
Quote: The problem I have with my inkjet is that I use it so infrequently that every time I try the cartridges have dried out...
So an hour ago, Herself asks me to knock up a form for her: 5 minutes and LibreOffice Calc later and it's ready to go...only the ink cartridges have dried out... 
And it took me an hour to get the stupid print heads printing all lines again. 
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
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I found it easier to soak the heads in 99% rubbing alcohol for a few minutes first then wipe them off. May need a couple of applications of this but takes about 10 minutes.
But, since I'm lazy, I'll probably replace the inkjet with a color laser next time. 
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Lots of really cheap color laser printers are out there now, but their toners cost as much or even twice the cost of the printer - and I am not kidding.
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Yeah, they figured out a long time ago that you only buy the printer once and the ink/toner lots. Guess where all the profit is coming from?
But, toner doesn't evoprate on contact with air, so...
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Quote: But, toner doesn't evoprate on contact with air, so...
No, but it does flocculate with age which is just as bad.
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
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Keep it kid-sister safe!
#SupportHeForShe
Government can give you nothing but what it takes from somebody else. A government big enough to give you everything you want is big enough to take everything you've got, including your freedom.-Ezra Taft Benson
You must accept 1 of 2 basic premises: Either we are alone in the universe or we are not alone. Either way, the implications are staggering!-Wernher von Braun
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Didn't you know that little girls have always flocculated? 
They don't stop doing it either: watch them at a club or pub and they always flocculate to the loo...
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
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lmao
#SupportHeForShe
Government can give you nothing but what it takes from somebody else. A government big enough to give you everything you want is big enough to take everything you've got, including your freedom.-Ezra Taft Benson
You must accept 1 of 2 basic premises: Either we are alone in the universe or we are not alone. Either way, the implications are staggering!-Wernher von Braun
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I know a guy who bought 3 such color laser printers in one go (for home use), just for the included cartridges. Out of toner? Move to the next printer...
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Yeah, that's more economical, although the new printers come with starter cartridges that are often 30-40% capacity of a normal one.
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Even then, purely from a cost perspective, it still makes more sense to buy a whole new printer.
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and they wonder why we're heading for an environmental crisis. Sheesh.
"If you don't fail at least 90 percent of the time, you're not aiming high enough."
Alan Kay.
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You can place that blame squarely on the printer manufacturers.
Still that doesn't mean the printer is headed for the scrap heap. You can still sell it (and make back a few bucks in the process), or give it away.
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Did that at home, but buy an extra set of cartridges as the ones you get with the darn things tend to be sample size only!
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Rubbing alcohol? What the hell is that, I want some!
Regards,
Rob Philpott.
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Allow me to rephrase, isopropyl alcohol.
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Oh my goodness the timing. I'm keeping an eye out for a printer this week because this same thing happens to me over and over.
I have some super cheap HP printer where the heads are permanently affixed to the gantry inside and cannot be accessed without ripping the printer apart.
Anyone know about these 'LaserJet' printers? Like this one? [^]
Is LaserJet just a fancy copyrighted name for Laser?
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Quote: Is LaserJet just a fancy copyrighted name for Laser?
In this case, yes - the link starts talking about toner so it's not an inkjet.
I prefer the Epson inkjets: the heads aren't part of the cartridge in the same way HP ones are so the cartridges are cheaper.
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
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Yes, but be careful with the Epson printers. I purchased one of those All-In-One Epson inkjet printers and the cartridge dried out and damaged the print head. The printer was useless at that point. Epson stated that the print head had to be replaced and it was gong to be more than the initial cost of the printer.
When you are dead, you won't even know that you are dead. It's a pain only felt by others.
Same thing when you are stupid.
modified 19-Nov-21 21:01pm.
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Yeah, they use a piezo head technology: http://www.therecycler.com/posts/epson-reveals-secrets-behind-development-of-micro-piezo-technology/[^] which is similar in many ways to the shared wall piezo from Xaar I used to use. And if you gum them up good and proper you can't clean them properly without damage - the droplet volume is controllable between 30 and 80 picolitres which means that the holes and tubes are really narrow and easy to damage. Very, very reliable in normal use though.
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
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I agree. I think the Epson printer with JSOP's solution will make a good combo. I'm thinking about modifying his solution into a Windows multi-threaded service to schedule maintenance for several printers at one time. I have several inkjets at home that can benefit from it. Maybe I'll try to add the test print functionality to it as well and have that as an option for scheduling.
When you are dead, you won't even know that you are dead. It's a pain only felt by others.
Same thing when you are stupid.
modified 19-Nov-21 21:01pm.
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I wrote a program that exercises an inkjet. All you gotta do is set up a scheduled task, and let it go. It even uses the same sheet of paper over and over (as long as you put it back in the paper tray until the sheet is full).
Here's the CodeProject article:
Keep Your InkJet Print Head Clean[^]
BTW, someone posted in the article's comments about a better way to clean your print heads than even running this program.
".45 ACP - because shooting twice is just silly" - JSOP, 2010
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You can never have too much ammo - unless you're swimming, or on fire. - JSOP, 2010
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When you pry the gun from my cold dead hands, be careful - the barrel will be very hot. - JSOP, 2013
modified 6-Oct-16 14:14pm.
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JSOP to the rescue!  
When you are dead, you won't even know that you are dead. It's a pain only felt by others.
Same thing when you are stupid.
modified 19-Nov-21 21:01pm.
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And downloaded!
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
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Look at the comment about physically cleaning. I think it's better than periodically running ink through the heads.
".45 ACP - because shooting twice is just silly" - JSOP, 2010
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You can never have too much ammo - unless you're swimming, or on fire. - JSOP, 2010
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When you pry the gun from my cold dead hands, be careful - the barrel will be very hot. - JSOP, 2013
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