If someone will remind me where bug reports are meant to go, I promise the 
next one will go to the right place.  But not this one.

As of my last email, the printer, a deskjet 895Cxi was churning out multiple 
1st pages from any app.  I hadn't attributed this to MC previously.  The 
system  is Win 95.  I do as little development as possible on Windows, so MC 
is on a zip disk (not present throughout what follows).   However, I had made 
a windows standalone to show a colleague how clever MC is, and that was on 
the HD.  I think it is the only thing that I have printed from, and the 
script simply tidies up a card (hiding buttons etc) prints this card, then 
shows all the buttons again.  I am sure this worked at least a couple of 
times with this printer before, although as I said in my previous email, the 
results were pretty gruesome.  Mostly though, it didn't work.

I fixed the original problem by removing all drivers and reinstalling the 
deskjet driver.  To keep things simple i didn't reinstall the HP laser driver.
  However, I know that has continued to work when printing on the dekskjet 
went haywire.

I printed from few MS apps with no problems.  I launched the standalone, 
tried to print, but it failed.  It made as if to print, but then stopped 
before loading the paper.  I quit the standalone and tried to print from Word 
etc.  Nothing worked.  No jobs were listed in the queue and no error messages 
were generated.

I used the HP tools to print a test page.  It refused, advising me that "the 
printer is printing".  I tried again, and it worked.  I tried a DOS program 
and it worked OK (4 pages).  I tried the MS apps again, and got an LPT1 error 
that advised me the print file would be deleted.  Immediately following that 
rather tacky looking advice, I got an altogether better looking (but equally 
irritating message) saying that 2 way communication could not be established. 
 Really?

I used HP tools to test the printer communication, but was advised that the 
computer has lost communication with the printer.  I tried again, and the 
progress bar did its thing and reported a passed communication test.  Again, 
the test page printed fine.  Tried the test page again, and it failed to 
print.  I noticed a button on the HP tools, that you can click if the test 
page doesn't work.  I was informed that the tools couldn't sort out the 
problem and it was "probably something to do with the printer or the computer 
system".

Just for a change in scenery, I loaded Corel WordPerfect 8, and lo! Multiple 
first pages.  Tried MS apps and got the same.  Then I ran out of time.  I 
closed all apps myself, then chose shutdown.  I struggle with Windows error 
messages, but it invited me to wait until something happend or force 
something to happen.  I waited until I gote too bored and then forced (a 
quit?) and the system hung completely....just the desktop background and no 
icons or menus at all.

If anyone can make any sense out of the above, they deserve a medal.  Let me 
know if you want me to do anything else or need any further information.  
Don't leave it too long, or the thought police in the hospital IT department 
might find out what I've been doing.  They don't like mere clinicians messing 
under the hood.  To tell the truth, I don't much like being there myself.

Best wishes to all


David Glasgow

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