HP Deskjet 9800 Printer series - Manual (Page 110)

Check the type of media loaded in the printer
■ Make sure the tray supports the type of media you have loaded. See Understanding
specifications for supported media .
■ Make sure you have selected the tray in the printer driver that contains the media you want to
use. See
Changing print settings .
Check rollers in the printer
The rollers in the printer might be dirty, causing lines or smudges to appear on your printout. Turn off
the printer, disconnect the power cord, clean the rollers in the printer with isopropyl alcohol on a lint-
free cloth, and try to print again.
Check the printer location and length of USB cable
High electromagnetic fields (such as those generated by USB cables) can sometimes slightly distort
printouts. Move the printer away from the source of the electromagnetic fields. Also, it is
recommended that you use a USB cable that is less than 3 meters (9.8 feet) long to minimize the
effects of these electromagnetic fields.
Meaningless characters print
If an interruption occurs to a job that is printing, the printer might not recognize the rest of the job.
Cancel the print job and wait for the printer to return to the ready state. If the printer does not return
to the ready state, cancel all jobs, and wait again. When the printer is ready, resend the job. If
prompted by the computer to retry the job, click Cancel.
Check the cable connections
If the printer and computer are connected with a USB or parallel cable, the problem may be due to a
poor cable connection.
Make sure the cable connections at both ends are secure. If the problem persists, turn off the printer,
disconnect the cable from the printer, turn on the printer without connecting the cable, and delete any
remaining jobs from the print spooler. When the Power light is on and not flashing, reconnect the
cable.
Check the document file
The document file may be damaged. If you can print other documents from the same application, try
printing a backup copy of your document, if available.
100 6 Troubleshooting