Page 1 of WHAT DO I NEED TO SHARE A PRINTER?

2 pcs both have xp home on them what do i need to share a lexmark laser printer and where from?? any advice pls

I take it the printer has a USB port?

The easiest way might be to use a USB hub where you plug USB cables from both PCs and the printer into the hub. The hub automatically detects which PC is signalling the printer and switches accordingly. These work well enough and don`t cost much. Here`s an example of a Belkin hub at Dabs. It costs around £20, but I`m sure If you hunt around you can find one a little cheaper. Just add 2xUSB from PCs to hub, and 1xUSB from hub to printer.

HTH

Anil
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Anil K, the original rock hard Ninja, Vampire Hunter AND Karaoke Terrorist
DVD Reviewer
My YMDB Top 20

With xp the easiest (and cheapest) way would be to set up a network and share ithe printer. All you need are 2 network cards (can get them for about £5) and a crossover network lead (about £2) then connect them together and follow the excellent instructions in `windows help` for setting up a network. Just connect the printer to one computer as normal then.

k i think ill go 4 usb hub route as i have 1 of those

Quote:
With xp the easiest (and cheapest) way would be to set up a network and share the printer.

The only issue with this is that the host PC has to be powered on to be able to share the printer connected to it. :-)

Anil
_____________________________________________________________
Anil K, the original rock hard Ninja, Vampire Hunter AND Karaoke Terrorist
DVD Reviewer
My YMDB Top 20

Get USB hubs off eBay for about a fiver!

Hmmm you need to be careful here, a standard USB hub (ie the el cheapo ones from ebuyer etc) wont do what you need to do. There are usb printer sharing hubs out there where you can connect 2 pcs and 1 printer to it, but the standard ones wont.I have had a quick look, and cant see the one you need, but i would strongly recomend going the other route, network the two computers, then you can not only share the printer, you can share disk space and any other devices, including internet access! It is really easy to setup, particually as you running windows xp. The best bet would be two PCI network cards and a cross over cable as mentioned above, but if you are worried about opening the pc, you can get usb network adapters, but they wont run as quickly.
If you are happy putting a card inside the pc, you should look at something like:
Ebuyer 10/100 Network Card with w/wake on Lan - Retail Box
Or if you prefer a named brand (some do..)
D-Link 10/100 Mbps PCI Ethernet Adapter

You will need one of those for each pc, then if you are going to connect them to each other, you need a cross over cable (same idea as a null modem cable). Something like:
RJ45 Cat 5e Crossover Cable Grey 2MTR
But you may need a longer one.


With standard shipping from ebuyer, and picking the cheap network cards, you are all in for under £11! And if you get it from a computer fair, you can have it for even less! Defo the way forward!

Any problems just ask here. Tom

Tom`s absolutely correct, a standard usb hub won`t do. What you need is a usb switch. Belkin are a popular make of such devices.