Red X
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Thread: Red X

  1. #1
    Join Date
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    Red X

    Hi to all: Tuttle was helping me on this one, but I'm at another conmputer and don't have his ID. Son-in-law, daughter have two Toshiba wireless laptops and a DSL connection. No problem there. I just installed a LinkSys wireless card in the main, tower computer in order to allow them to print from their laptops, high end, via the tower which has an HP all-in-one printer attached. I a newbie at this, nervous and don't want to mess it up. Did the card install, booted and did the driver install. The wireless icon came up in the sys tray with a red x. I checked the printer status, and it looks as though the CompUSa tech set the shared defaults for the selected printer, a shared documents file, etc. I have not gone beyond the installation of the driver for the tower computer, nor have I turned on any of the laptops. you can see I'm stumbling in the dark here. Is there another step (s) I have to take in order to get rid of the red x and assure that they can print from their laptop computers via the tower to the all-in-one printer? Thought I'd send this ahead, and check my home email tonight or tomorrow and try to get this thing on track. I'm not a wireless man, and confuse easily by the various ways of setting up a wireless system. Suggestions, as always, are always appreciated. Regards, Jim S.
    Jim S.

  2. #2
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    Oooooooooooooops: Forgot to mention the LinkSys also, in same setup manual gives instructions for doing Win XP wireless zero configuration. Should I tinker with this, or leave well enough alone? j
    Jim S.

  3. #3
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    Hi Jim,

    The red x just means that you are not connected to another device. That could be either another computer, router, or a access point. Do you have a router?

    You are either going to be using the LinkSys software to manage the connection, or the stuff that's built into XP using the Wireless Zero Configuration service. I personally would use the Wireless Zero Configuration.
    Eric

  4. #4
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    Many things

    Thanks for your note. I'm about a level above idiot when it comes to networking so be patient, and step me when you can. The tower computer, after getting onsite, is connected via the RJ45 port to router. This computer also is connected via the parallel port to the HP 700 series all-in-one printer. The couple each have their own laptops, a Toshibas satellite and a newly purchased HP with all the bells and whistles. All three machines are on DSL and that system is working fine. Had no idea the tower was connected to the router until I did an inspection. No kowing, I installed the LinkSys PCI card, installed their software, booted and got the red x. Since the tower is already connected to the router, is the wireless PCI card necessary. The couple would like to print to their 700 series printer from their laptops. Again, all seems to be working fine, so I don't want to mess it up for them. I tried installing the 700 driver on one of the laptops and it seemed to balked. I was not signed on as administrator, and tried to install the software using my daughter's user sign-on that came up on boot. Her husband is the other user on the desktop. Haven't seen his machine to see how he's setup. Indications were that the software appeared in the programs file, not in the system tray, nor did it appear in the printer file folder. When I click on the programs file, a remnant of it shows, and when I click, it asks what do I want to do. When I click, am told printer is not connected. An AOL ports icon appears in the system tray, and I have no idea what that's about, so I stay away from clicking. Am I attempting to install the 700 driver on the laptops incorrectly, since it ought to appear in the printer folder via the control panel, and doesn't. Should I remove the PCI wireless card from the tower since it is already connected tot he router, or does it need the wireless card in order to accommodate the couple's desire to print to the 700 from their laptops. Maybe it's best to break the problem down, and go from their. You can see I'm a nervous sort and don';t want to muck up their system. Regards, Jim S.
    Jim S.

  5. #5
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    Well, since the computer is already connected to the router's LAN port it isn't necessary to have another network card. Your computers will still communicate without the wireless card if you decide to remove it. It sure doesn't hurt to have two network cards though. That's what I have and when I want to switch I disable one network card and use the other.

    Since the printer is connected to the tower computer (computer A), go to the Printers folder and right-click the printer and choose Sharing. Then on the other computers and use the Add Printer Wizard and tell it to add a Network Printer. Then browse for the printer on computer A.
    Eric

  6. #6
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    Think I got it

    Thanks for the assist. Is there a very basic, easy (pictoral) type tutorial available that steps one through the wireless setup process, including the windows, something maybe like Cliff's Notes? I think I understand your note. In other words: I don't have to install printer drivers on the two wireless laptop computers, but rather, just follow your notes, and rely on the Tower computer's drivers. All on the tower is set for share, the 700, and Epson, WinFax, you name it and it's set for shared. Much thanks, Regards, Jim S. I think I'll let the new PCI wireless LinkSys card in the tower as you suggest.
    Jim S.

  7. #7
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    You cannot go wrong running the Wireless Network Setup Wizard in Windows XP SP2 or any other software configuring and managing the wireless settings. The worst that can happen is you'll be unable to connect. If you think you made a mistake, then go ahead and rerun the wizard. If you running Windows XP, you can follow these steps:

    1. Start the Wireless Network Setup Wizard
    2. Click Next to skip past the Welcome screen.
    3. Tell it to setup a new wireless network. Click Next.
    4. Enter the Same SSID (network name). Then click Manually Assign a network key. Click Next.
    5. Enter the same network key in both the "Network Key" and "Confirmation Key" fields.
    6. Click Next.
    7. You should by now have reached the "How do you want to setup your network screen?" page. You'll be given a choice to save it to a flash drive or manually configure. It's really your choice whether you'll like to save the settings or configure them manually. Just continue to complete the network setup.

    Note: With 128 bit encryption, it uses 26 hex keys or letters from A-F and 0-9. Keep in mind that the passphrase isn't the same as a network key. You can copy and paste the network key into notepad instead of typing it yourself. Use Ctrl+c (copy) and Ctrl+v (paste).

    As for your printer, you may need drivers for it. On the computer shared printer (computer A), you can access the Printer properties and under the Sharing tab, click the Additional Drivers button. You can check the boxes so the following systems can automatically connect to the shared printer.
    Eric

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