(2.3) Printer Support

Will OS/2 Warp work with my printer?

OS/2 Warp includes support for the following printers (partial list; see below):

The above list is abbreviated; certain models are not listed. If your printer is not listed, consult both the OS/2 Warp printed manual and your printer's manual to see if your printer emulates one of the above models. For example, the Canon BubbleJet Model BJ-10e printer works well with the IBM 4070 IJ driver.

IBM, NEC, Canon, and other printer manufacturers have OS/2 Warp drivers for their printers available for download from BBSes. Contact your printer's manufacturer for assistance. These downloadable drivers include older IBM models (such as the IBM 5152 Graphics Printer and 5201 Quietwriter I), NEC dot matrix printers, and Canon laser and BubbleJet printers. The IBM/Lexmark BBS can be reached at 606-232-5653.

DOS and Windows printer drivers continue to work for DOS and Windows applications. Use the Win-OS/2 Control Panel to install Windows printer drivers for use with OS/2 Warp.

Printer Troubleshooting for OS/2 Warp

If you are experiencing trouble printing, be sure to consult the "Printing in OS/2" online document (located in your Information folder) and the OS/2 Warp printed manual for assistance. Common problems are usually solved using one of the following methods:

  1. If you are using a Postscript printer, and you are having difficulty printing with Windows applications, particularly over a network, try adding the following line to the Postscript section of your WIN.INI file:

    CtrlD=0

  2. If you experience slow printing, or if you see a long series of repeated characters (or garbage) appearing in your printed documents, try editing your CONFIG.SYS file using any text editor (such as the OS/2 System Editor or Enhanced Editor). Locate the line BASEDEV=PRINT01.SYS and add the parameter /IRQ so that the line reads BASEDEV=PRINT01.SYS /IRQ. Shutdown and restart your system for the change to take effect. This change will not affect printing over a network and it does not apply to Microchannel systems.
  3. Make sure that your printer port is properly configured, at the correct port address for LPT1 (or LPT2, if used), and that your printer port is generating the correct interrupt (IRQ), and that no other adapter in your PC is using the same port address or interrupt. See (4.1) Installation for details.
  4. Make sure that the cable to your printer is properly shielded, grounded, has all 25 pins wired, and that it does not extend more than 15 feet or 5 meters. Ideally the cable should be no more than 6 feet or 2 meters in length.
  5. To improve performance when printing from DOS or Windows applications, configure your application to print to LPT1.OS2 (or LPT2.OS2 for printer port 2). (WordPerfect for DOS benefits greatly after making this change.) Use the application's "print to file" feature, if necessary. For Windows applications, use the Win-OS/2 Control Panel to route printer output to LPT1.OS2.

Related information: 

(3.2) Shareware and Freeware Sources
(4.1) Installation

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