Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!husc6!bloom-beacon!bu-cs!purdue!i.cc.purdue.edu!j.cc.purdue.edu!pur-ee!uiucdcs!uxc.cso.uiuc.edu!uxe.cso.uiuc.edu!jacobson
From: jacobson@uxe.cso.uiuc.edu
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: 2000 printer problems
Message-ID: <45600042@uxe.cso.uiuc.edu>
Date: 11 Jun 88 14:58:00 GMT
Lines: 63
Nf-ID: #N:uxe.cso.uiuc.edu:45600042:000:3724
Nf-From: uxe.cso.uiuc.edu!jacobson    Jun 11 09:58:00 1988


Last night (Friday June 10th) my 2000 suddenly would not send data to my
printer (I just get the "printer trouble" requestor"). I have tested the
printer and cable on another 2000 and so I know they are OK. The power lines
of the paralell port work still (the printer resets when I do a ctrl-amiga
amiga) and the parallel port still works with Digiview and lets me digitize
but it plain won't work with my printer. The printer was fine the previous
night (Thursday June 9th) and I printed things out with no trouble.
 
I have a 2000 with bridgeboard installed, and a external 3.5 on the bridge
two internal 3.5 floppies for the Amiga. The digiview and printer are
attached to the parallel port via a data switch (A-B, and yes I tested the
printer on the port without the switch so i know it is not the switch). I
have a 1200 baud modem. Has anyone else out there had such a problem?????
 
What happened last night was I had dearced a text file from a local BBS I
had just downloaded. I had just typed it in ram to look at the text and then
typed the text to the device PRT:. I got a total system lockup, and had to
reboot. I go no GURU error message at all. I rebooted, dearced the text in
ram again, and tried once more to type to prt:. This time I got the printer
trouble requestor, and I proceeded to test the printer, cable, digiview,
tried it on another 2000 (and found the printer and cable to work just fine).
 
Could my 8520 chip have partially flaked out on how it controls data sending
to my printer, or is there several possible sources of trouble. I could swap
the 8520 from the other 2000 (which is not going to be used with a printer)
if that definately is the source of my trouble, but I don't want to mess 
with the work involved if that may not be my trouble. I suspect the trouble
occured first when I tried to type the file to the printer and got a system
lockup. Could this be the new virus I have vaguely remembered hearing about,
or was it just my 8520 failing that locked things up?? I hate to have to
pay for as yet unkown repairs, especially if it is more than my 8520 chip
which could mean mucho $ that I frankly cannot afford for some time (heck I
am still paying my loan off for the two 2000's-and I don't want to use the
other 2000 instead full time---its a 4.1 with the fuzzy output I never bother
ed to get fixed--it was tolerable for what it was used for in my office---
now my kids use and don't notice it for what they use it for).
 
Anyway I have emailed a letter to Dave Haynie and George Robbins about this
problem, but wanted to put up a general note to the NET to see if anyone
else ever had this problem, so that I am well armed with the potential
sources for the problem before I give my machine to the dealer. Perhaps it
is a real simple problem, but I would like to know before I let anyone
try to repair. If it is an expensive problem then I will just have to live
with using the second "fuzzy older 4.1 B2000" for printer output somehow 
(I never got it repaired for those curious because I frankly at the time did
not trust the reliability of the local dealer--they did not do good work and
have a bad rep--but they are learning--but I am still cautious and if I can
fix I would just as soon do it myself someday).
 
Any concrete suggestions as to what failed in my parallel port would be most
appreciated. I will let you know if I find out the source of the trouble,
for those curious (and future reference).

Russ Jacobson
Illinois Geological Survey
615 E. Peabody Drive
Champaign, IL 61820
217-244-2425
(Home 217-384-3128 or 384-6983)
USENET:  [ihnp4,pur-ee,convex]!uiucdcs!uiucuxc!uiucuxe!jacobson
ARPANET: jacobsonuiucuxe@a.cs.uiuc.edu
CSNET:   jacobsonuiucuxe@uiuc.csnet