Win 95 Printer Driver

[Dare2]

I have snagged an old pentium II running win '95. The intention is to use it for small stuff, like testing PB progs developed on win2k to see if they run on '95.

The comp was part of a network. Printing was done on a central shared printer.

A snag is that the printer port (LPT1:) is a comms port (it was used for the network). Installed a printer but cannot print ( using any software) via this or any port, only to file.

Not sure how to fix this.

There is a driver (called lpt.vxd) which I think is for the port, but I cannot associate this with the port. The OS keeps asking for "disk 4" when I try to change drivers. I don't have those (floppy?) disks, or the CD.

Any ideas or clues to get things moving?

[LarsG]

I know.. install another OS.. Win95 is dead!

[fweil]

Dare2,

Usually any computer uses the parallel port, or more recently USB I/O as the default printer port. So LPT1: should correspond to the parallel port on the PC you have got, but not COMx:

When asking Google using http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&q=lpt.vxd gives some answers that may interest you to understand what it is.

Rgrds

[Dare2]

I know.. install another OS.. Win95 is dead!

I heard/read somewhere that nearly half of all windows PCs are still '95. 8O - must be lots of them tucked away in dusty offices or working hard as stations on a LAN. Or something.

(Only XP missing from my collection of win boxes now. One lonely box is earmarked for a linux - not sure which flavour yet.)

Hi fweil, thanks for the link. Will hunt through those pages. I had been attacking this from every angle I could think of and the ruddy thing just wont print. Grrrr.

Thanks again.

[edit] Hmmm. Some other approaches there. Will try them tomorrow. Thanks again! [/edit]

[Karbon]

I've not seen a Windows 95 machine used in production for anything in quite a few years now. I think everyone was more than ready to get rid of 95 with 98 came out.. About %75 of the office machine I work on now still run Windows 98, though...