[hospitaldoctor]

Hi I have a HP PSC 500 Printer/Scanner/Copier that I bought about 5 years ago. I just bought a brand new Dell Studio Desktop and the cable that that came with the printer does not connect to the new CPU... what should I do? What is the best way of connecting the two? What kind of cable should I buy? Or should I just get a new printer?
Thank you

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You need to determine what type of cable your computer can use and what the printer uses. At a guess, the printer might use a parallel connection and the newer computers tend to have USB. You might be able to get a network box for the printer (HP JetDirect, for example), which would then be connected to your router (which makes it easier for other computers in your house to use). There are also adapters for parallel to USB, but I have not used them.

[Kemasa]

You need to determine what type of cable your computer can use and what the printer uses. At a guess, the printer might use a parallel connection and the newer computers tend to have USB. You might be able to get a network box for the printer (HP JetDirect, for example), which would then be connected to your router (which makes it easier for other computers in your house to use). There are also adapters for parallel to USB, but I have not used them.

[hospitaldoctor]

how can i find out? where can i find these cables? how much are they?

[Kemasa]

Many places have them, for example:

http://www.newegg.co.......amp;x=0&y=0

[123Runner]

Your printer uses a Bi-directional parallel IEEE 1284C cable.

Another location is http://www.cablesnmor.com/usb_parallel.html

[hospitaldoctor]

am i better off buying a new printer?
I like how laser printers have sharp clear text and that you can print many copies and almost never run out of ink
but i like how with ink jet printers you can buy cheap all-in ones with copier and scanner, not to mention you can print in color
thoughts?

[Kemasa]

Only you can answer that. If the cartridges for the old printer is expensive and/or hard to find, that is a reason to get a new printer. With a cheap network box, you can keep using this printer (assuming that there are still drivers for it). Does the old printer work well still?

I personally would like to get a color laser printer, but that the cartridges are expensive. I don't care for the all-in-one since if one part breaks you have to replace everything and I think that is wasteful. Ink jets are a pain because if you don't use them, the ink drys out and it can be a problem to get it working again, which is why I use the ink jet instead of the laser printer as I want to keep it working.

There are no easy answers.

[hospitaldoctor]

can i buy this?
thanks


http://cgi.ebay.com/...id=p3286.c0.m14

[Kemasa]

The ebay item should work with the printer, at least in part:

One aspect to the cable is:

http://catalog.belki...roduct_Id=20651

Note: When using a HP Officejet or other multifunction product, this cable will only allow access of the printer capability. It will not work with the faxing and scanning capabilities of the multifunction product.

You could also get a parallel card, but you need to know what type of card your computer uses PCI, etc.

http://www.newegg.co.......amp;x=0&y=0

[hospitaldoctor]

where can i find a cheaper cord on ebay in which i can use the scanning and copying as well?

[Kemasa]

You would most likely need to to with a parallel card. I am not sure if a jetdirect box would allow access for all functions (you could ask HP about that).

Do a search for "parallel card" on ebay. You can also check on craigslist. You will need to know what type of card is needed for your computer, such as PCI, etc. You might find one on freecycle, freesharing, reuseit, etc.