Ralph Corderoy wrote: > Hi Sean, > > >> Finally I will add that the printer stopped working a few days after I >> replaced the black cartridge, having successfully printed several >> documents. I doubt very much that the cartridge was responsible given >> that the printer has been hobbling along for some time now, but you >> might want to bear that in mind if your 680 is precious to you! >> > > Has the vacuum pump tube come disconnected? That happened to my second, > and final, Epson ink jet as some of them have a design flaw. > > http://inkjetprinterhelp.us/duraink.html > > A blank output problem is usually caused by a simple print head > clog. On printers that use Dura Brite inks the problem can be much > more complex than just a simple clog. The problem is the ink purge > tube on the cap assembly has become disconnected. This usually > happens after the ink cartridge/cartridges have been replaced. > > There's lots of pages on the problem once you start Googling.
Hi Ralph, Thanks for that. It simply stopped working after a print run, and when I next came to use it was displaying an error message (via blinking LEDs) that informed me I should call the manufacturer. To be honest I doubt that would yield any positive outcome given the age of the unit. Powering it off and on again takes you straight to the same state, with the in cartridge carriage stuck firmly out of reach and no combination of available button presses tempting it out for tinkering. Brute force seems to be out of the question unless I want to break it irreparably. Given its age and mileage it seems its time has come - it wasn't expensive to start with (relatively speaking) - and provides no special functionality that even the cheapest printers available now don't also provide. The final nail in its coffin was 4 kids asking me when it was going to be fixed so they could print their first batches of homework for the new term. Amazon had a half-price offer on an HP C4580 all-in-one wireless effort, so I took them up on it. It was here a day later and I have to say that I am pretty impressed with the functionality provided by the HPLIP drivers with regard to printing. X-sane sees it on the network too, and scanning seems to be fully functional, as does the copier, which is of course OS independent. So, if anyone want the ink and/or the printer its here for the taking. Sean -- www.funkygibbins.me.uk -- Next meeting: Bournemouth, Wednesday 2009-10-07 20:00 Dorset LUG: http://dorset.lug.org.uk/ Chat: http://www.mibbit.com/?server=irc.blitzed.org&channel=%23dorset List info: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/dorset
