Article ID: 123485
Article Last Modified on 8/9/2007
APPLIES TO
- Microsoft Windows 3.1 Standard Edition
- Microsoft Windows 3.11 Standard Edition
- Microsoft Windows 95
This article was previously published under Q123485
SYMPTOMS
When you print from a Windows-based application to a Hewlett-Packard (HP)
LaserJet printer, you may receive a print "overrun" or "overflow" error.
LaserJet printers display either error 20 or error 21, both of which are
defined as "Printer out of memory." This error is most likely to occur when
you print certain BorderArt images from Publisher 2.0 that contain circles,
such as the Hearts or Hypnotic BorderArt images to a Hewlett-Packard (HP)
LaserJet 4 printer using printer driver versions 3.1.18 and earlier.
CAUSE
These errors occur when information sent to the printer exceeds the amount
of installed printer memory.
MORE INFORMATION
The HP-GL/2 printer language is strictly vector based. It defines a curve
using a recursive algorithm creating a series of very short lines. Some
basic objects such as a circle in BorderArt are printed by defining
thousands of lines. This may overflow the printer's memory. Adding memory
to the printer does not necessarily resolve the error message.
In raster mode, images are interpreted as bitmaps, so the printer memory
does not become overloaded with a large number of line descriptions.
RESOLUTION
Several options that can help prevent these errors are listed below.
NOTE: These workarounds assume you are using Microsoft Publisher; however,
they apply to many other Windows-based programs. The exact steps for
adjusting printer options may vary in your application.
Windows 3.1x
Workaround 1:
Turn on page protection. To do this:
- Run Windows Control Panel.
- Double-click the Printers icon.
- Select the entry for the LaserJet under Installed Printers, then choose
Setup.
- In the Page Protection box, select either Letter or On.
NOTE: In Publisher, after turning on page protection in Control Panel, you
must choose Specific Printer and then choose Default Printer for the page-
protection change to affect the current document.
Workaround 2:
Switch from HP-GL/2 mode to raster mode.
NOTE: Only LaserJet 4 printers have this option.
- Run Windows Control Panel.
- Double-click the Printers icon.
- Select the entry for the LaserJet under Installed Printers, then choose
Setup.
- Choose the Options button.
- In the Graphics Mode box, change HP-GL/2 to Raster.
Workaround 3:
Lower the print resolution.
NOTE: Try this change for both types of printing on the LaserJet 4 (raster
and HP-GL/2).
- Run Windows Control Panel.
- Double-click the Printers icon.
- Select the entry for the LaserJet under Installed Printers, then choose
Setup.
- Do one of the following:
- Change the value for Printer Resolution to a lower value.
-or-
- Choose the Options button. In the Graphics Quality box, change the
value from High to either Medium or Low.
Workaround 4:
Use a LaserJet III printer driver. To do this:
- Run Windows Control Panel.
- Double-click the Printers icon.
- Select the LaserJet III, then click the Set As Default Printer button.
If a LaserJet III is not available, do the following:
- Choose the Add button.
- Select HP LaserJet III from the list.
- Choose Install and follow the prompts.
- Set the LaserJet III as your default printer.
Workaround 5:
Print to the LaserJet using an add-on PostScript option.
NOTE: This workaround can be used only if the printer came with a
PostScript option installed.
- Run Windows Control Panel.
- Double-click the Printers icon.
- Select the appropriate HP PostScript model.
- Click the Set As Default Printer button.
If the appropriate model with PostScript is not available, do the
following:
- Run Windows Control Panel.
- Double-click the Printers icon.
- Choose the Add button.
- Select the appropriate HP LaserJet model with PostScript from the list.
- Choose Install, and follow the prompts.
- Select the printer, and set it as your default printer.
Windows 95
- Click the Start button, point to Settings, and then click Printers.
- Use the right mouse button to click the HP LaserJet 4 printer, and
then click Properties on the menu that appears.
- Click the Paper tab, and then verify that the paper size and
orientation settings match the document you are trying to print.
- Click the Device Options tab, and then enable the Page Protection
option.
- Verify that the Printer Memory setting matches your printer's
configuration.
- Click OK.
Additional query words: tshoot 2.00 2.0a mspub error 21 20 HP4 print printing rastor
Keywords: KB123485