About old machines...
I've had most of my little NOC (Network Operations Center) unplugged for awhile. (8 computers that I use for various A.I. runs I do from time to time.)
One of these machines has been our print server for a long time. Maybe, 2003 or so.
On Monday that faithful old soldier, CIGAR, finally died of "popped capacitors." Basically, needs a new motherboard.
No big deal. I've got plenty of those machines. I grabbed with FRANKEL, plugged it in, powered it up and... SNAP!!! Blown capacitors!
In succession... MAXWELL (named after the horse that seemed to run forever), SECRETARIAT, and ALYDAR... plugged them in and they failed instantly.
Just be aware that old machines simply die and are just not worth bringing back to life.
The solution was to connect the HP ink jet printer wirelessly. This was amazingly easy.
- Hook up a laptop that connects wirelessly to the network, directly to the printer (via USB).
- Configure the printer with newest drivers via the laptop.
- Disconnect the laptop's USB.
The printer is now available wirelessly to every machine in the network, even the ones that are not wireless!
BTW, the reason we had a print server to begin with is that we have an old HP MP6 laser printer (now 21 years old) that we still used for the occasional big print job.
That laser printer is now a boat anchor to be donated.
