non-wireless printer question

[CharlesR]

is this a silly question I'm asking? My iMac is connected to a non-wireless hp 3-in-one photo-smart printer. Is there any possible way to print from my ipad with that printer?

Please do not roll your eyes at me... I'm almost 50. I'm not a teenager who was born to automatically understand all of this tech-stuff.

 

[autumnbaby]

I think there may be apps that let you do this but I am not 100% sure.

I just email whatever document I want to print to myself and then print it from my main computer.

 

[saguaro]

Here's a link to a page with AirPrint Activator for Macs:

http://netputing.com/

Since I use windows I can't vouch for this, but it looks like what you want. You have to have a network set up for this to work.

No idea who this guy is, so use at your own risk.

I can tell you that I have AirPrint for windows set up and I can print to my Canon printer from any ipad app that has the print option.

 

[Martlet]

I use an airport express.

 

[CharlesR]

Oh wow, this works great! Someone told me about this app... it works flawlessly with ANY printer. There is a 7 day demo with it.

.Printopia - AirPrint to Any Printer - Print from iPad - Print from iPhone - Ecamm Network

 

[Tim SPRACKLEN]

As the previous poster suggested, Apple have their own proprietary printing protocol called 'AirPrint'. Only a few printers support it at present - HP is one of those that do and you can see those that do at the Apple web site

Apple - iPad - Print right from your iPad with AirPrint.

If it is there, then you can print directly under iOS 4.2 and 4.3 from apps that support in-app printing, such as Apple's iPad iWorks suite ('Pages', 'Numbers' and 'Keynote'). Not all apps support in-app printing, so you need to check out whether the app you're interested in does. For example, Apple's native iPad 'Calendar' app does not support in-app printing.

If your printer is not on the list then there are third-party apps that can help. Some printer manufacturers have released apps for PCs with their printers connected (i.e. Lexmark). On these models, an app on your PC or Mac 'pretends' to be an AirPrint printer and the app translates the AirPrint printing protocol into a form that the printer understands.

However, there are standalone apps for the iPad and 'Print N Share' is one of the best known. It can print directly from the iPad to a WiFi printer without any PC being involved. It does this by cleverly inserting itself into the printing menu of apps that support in-app printing and 'pretends' to be an AirPrint printer. It then, similar to the previous case, translates the AirPrint printing protocol to a form that your printer understands.

Most all WiFi equipped printers are supported by 'Print N Share' but even those few that are not are able to print via a PC using, again, a small (free) app that's available from the developers of 'Print N Share'. Once again, this app sits on your PC or Mac and links your iPad to the printer via your PC - meaning, too, that the printer can be WiFi, USB or even Bluetooth. The downside is that the PC has to be switched on.

One 'issue' that sometimes confounds users of 'Print N Share' is that this only works under iOS 4.2 or 4.3 - the iPad's 'multi-tasking' operating system (OS). 'Print N Share' needs to be loaded and running before you can print!! So, if you're going to be doing some printing, you need to first of all fire up 'Print N Share' and leave it running in the background. You can check whether it is running by double tapping the iPad's 'Home' button, to see the tasks that are 'loaded' in the 'Multi-task' menu bar. For various reasons, it's helpful if 'Print N Share' was loaded quite recently. If you haven't printed for a while, use the multi-task bar to 're-activate' it.

Hope this helps, but don't hesitate to post any more detailed questions that you might have.

Tim
Scotland