Epson Stylus Photo 1200

Product Controls

Cleaning Cycle - Make sure the printer is turned on but not printing, and the black and color ink out lights are off. Press and hold the cleaning button for three seconds. Cleaning takes a little over a minute, during which the printer makes some noise and the power light flashes. When the cleaning cycle is complete, the power light will stop flashing.

Printer's Nozzle Check Pattern - Make sure the printer is turned off. Hold down the load/eject button and then press the power button. Release the load/eject button after the paper out, black, and color ink lights flash simultaneously. After it prints the page, turn off the printer.

How does Micro Piezo technology compare to thermal technology?

Epson's Micro Piezo (M.P.) technology outperforms thermal technologies in all areas: pressure method - electromechanical (M.P.) vs. boiling (thermal), print head life - permanent (M.P.) vs. disposable (thermal), ink flexibility range - wide (M.P.) vs. limited (thermal), potential for improvement - significant (M.P.) vs. limited (thermal). Micro Piezo technology provides the highest resolution, smallest dot size, precise dot volume, precise dot shape, precise dot placement, and fastest head firing times. Thermal technology creates satellites and misting which Micro Piezo technology eliminates.

Does the printer support USB technology?

Yes, the printer comes with a USB port.

What is the proper way to turn off the printer?

Make sure that whenever you turn off the printer, you are always using the printer's power button. Never use an external switch, such as a power strip, surge protector, or power protector, to turn off the printer. It can be harmful to your printer if you turn the printer off using an external switch.

Do the Stylus Photo EX and Stylus Photo 1200 use the same ink cartridges?

No, These printers use different black and color ink cartridges.

The Stylus Photo EX uses black ink cartridge part number S020093 and color ink cartridge part number S020110.

The Stylus Photo 1200 uses black ink cartridge part number S020187 and color ink cartridge part number T001011.

What do I need to do to print with my Stylus printer on a LocalTalk network?

The printer is not a LocalTalk printer.

Can I use the cleaning sheets that I may find included with any special media I purchase?

No. These sheets can damage the printer.

Can I use sheet labels with this printer?

Yes, EPSON makes Photo Quality Self Adhesive Sheets. To avoid paper jams, only load one Photo Quality Self Adhesive Sheet at a time. Also, set the Media Type in the printer driver to the "Photo Quality Ink Jet Paper" setting.

What is the correct way to load transparency paper?

Before loading the transparency, place the included support sheet or a sheet of plain paper beneath the transparency (or beneath the stack of transparencies if you are loading more than one). You can load up to 10 transparencies at a time, but if you have more than one transparency loaded, the minimum top margin you can use is 1.2 inches. Also, you may get better results by loading one sheet at a time. Insert the transparency sheet making sure that the notch is at the top right side of the sheet. Remember to choose the correct Media Type setting in the printer driver software. Please refer to your User's Guide for detailed information.

What are the system requirements for using this printer with a PC?

To use your printer and its software with a PC, your system should have:

• An IBM compatible PC with at least a 486/25 MHz (for Windows 95 or Windows NT 4.0), or 486/66 MHz (for Windows 98) processor
• Windows 95, Windows 98, or Windows NT 4.0
• For parallel connection, a high- speed, bidirectional, IEEE- 1284 compliant parallel cable (6 to 10 feet long). The cable must have a D-SUB, 25-pin, male connector for your computer and a 36-pin, Centronics compatible connector for the printer. (not included)
• For USB connection to a computer with Windows 98 and a Windows 98 compliant USB port, a shielded USB "AB" interface cable, from Series A (computer) to Series B (printer) up to 6.5 ft. (2 meters) long (not included)
• At least 16MB of RAM (32MB for Windows 95 or 98 or 64MB for Windows NT 4.0 recommended)
• VGA, Super VGA, or better display adapter and monitor
• At least 50MB of free hard disk space (100MB recommended)
• CD-ROM drive - quad-speed (4 x) or faster recommended - for installing the printer software

What are the system requirements for using this printer on a Macintosh?

One of the following Macintosh models:

• LC475, LC575, LC630
• Quadra series
• Centris series
• PowerBook series (190, 520, 540, 550 or later)
• PowerBook Duo 280, 2300c/ 100
• Performa 475, 575, 588, 630, 5210 or later
• Power Macintosh series
• iMac Series (for USB connection only)

• For serial connection: System 7.5.1 or later (7.6 or later recommended)
• For USB connection: iMac Series computer with System 8.1 or later, PowerMac G3 with System 8.5.1 or later.
• At least 16MB of available RAM
• At least 50MB of free hard disk space (100MB recommended)
• RGB display or better
• CD-ROM drive - quad-speed (4 x) or faster recommended - for installing the printer software
• For serial connection, an ImageWriter II serial cable or equivalent (8-pin mini DIN male/ male, Belkin F2V024-06 recommended)
• For USB connection to an iMac/G3 computer, a shielded USB "AB" interface cable, from Series A (computer) to Series B (printer) up to 6.5 ft. (2 meters) long.

What do I do if I see a "New Hardware Found" window before I install my printer software?

Cancel the window by clicking on "Do not install a driver" and then "OK". You cannot install the printer driver software by using the "New Hardware Found" window.

How do I install the driver from the EPSON Stylus Photo 1200 CD-ROM in Windows 95/98/NT 4.0 with a parallel connection?

• Insert the EPSON printer software CD in your CD-ROM Drive
• Click "Start", Select "Run", and type "D:\Epson.exe" (Where D is your CD-ROM drive letter)
• Then click "OK"
• You will see the License Agreement window. Read the agreement and click "Agree"
• At the last screen, click "Continue" to install your printer driver and Status Monitor 2
• Follow the on-screen instructions to finish the installation
• At the last screen, select "Yes, I want to restart my computer now" and click "Finish". Your system restarts.
• When the installation is complete, you see the EPSON Digital PhotoLab main menu, where you can install your bonus software

Your printer software icons will appear in the EPSON folder, your shortcuts will appear on your desktop and the EPSON Stylus Photo 1200 will be set as your default Windows printer.

How do I remove the printer driver from Windows 95/98/NT 4.0?

If the Status Monitor 2 is running, disable it by right-clicking on its icon in the task bar and selecting "Stop Monitoring Now". Click on the Windows 95/98 "Start" button, select "Settings", select "Control Panel", and then double-click on "Add/Remove Programs". Using the "Add/Remove Programs Properties" window, remove "EPSON Printer Software", Epson Stylus Photo shortcuts, and "Status Monitor 2". Then, delete the EPSONEPIIFE3T.INF and EPSONEPXLPTET.INF files from your "Windows" directory. Once these two files are deleted, restart Windows (Windows NT 4.0 does not require the removal of these two files).

How do I install a printer driver from the EPSON Stylus Photo 1200 CD-ROM on a Macintosh with serial or USB connection?

• Turn off your printer
• Turn on your computer with all Extensions OFF except the "Apple CD-ROM" extension and wait until you see the Macintosh desktop icons.
• Turn on your printer. If your printer is connected via your USB port, you see a message telling you to install software. Click 'OK' to continue.
• Insert your printer software CD into your CD-ROM drive
• Double-click the 'Printer Software Installer' icon in the EPSON CD-ROM folder. Click 'Continue' at the first screen.
• At the installer screen, click 'Install' and follow the on-screen instructions to install your printer software, select your default paper size, and restart your system.
• After restarting, double-click the EPSON Digital PhotoLab Install icon in the EPSON CD-ROM folder. Follow the on-screen instructions to install the Digital PhotoLab.
• The Digital PhotoLab will then launch automatically. There you can install your bonus software.
• After exiting the EPSON Digital PhotoLab, you need to select your printer in the Chooser.
• Open the Apple menu and click 'Chooser'.
• If you're connected to the Macintosh printer port or to a PowerBook with one port, turn off AppleTalk.
• Click the SP 1200 icon, then click the icon for the port you're using.
• Turn on background printing, if you wan to use it. Then close the Chooser.

How do I remove the printer driver from my Macintosh?

Drag the "SP 1200", "EPSON Monitor3", and "EPSON Folder" extensions from your "Extensions" folder (the "Extensions" folder is located in your "System Folder" folder in your hard drive) to the trash. Empty Trash then restart your Macintosh. If you have printer drivers of other EPSON printers installed on your system, you may need to reinstall them after removing the Stylus Photo 1200 driver.

How do I install my ink cartridge for the first time?

First Ink Cartridge Installation (takes approximately two minutes). Turn the printer on. The power light will flash, the ink out lights will come on, and the ink cartridge holders will automatically move left to the installation position. Remove the yellow tape seals from the black and color ink cartridges. Do not remove the blue label from the top of either ink cartridge. The ink in a cartridge missing the blue label will be exposed to air and will thicken such that print head clogging and possible print head failure can occur. If the blue label has been removed from an ink cartridge, the cartridge will not function correctly. To avoid potential damage to the printer, do not install a cartridge from which the blue label has been removed.

Install the cartridges into the printer. Make sure the labels on the ink cartridges are facing up and that the arrows on the labels point toward the back of the printer. The black ink cartridge goes on the left and the color ink cartridge goes on the right. Once the ink cartridges have been inserted into their holders, push down the ink cartridge clamps until they lock in place, and then press the cleaning button to begin charging the ink delivery system. Charging can take up to two minutes and is complete when the power light stops flashing.

Caution: If the blue label has been removed from the ink cartridge, do not install the cartridge. If you have already installed it, even if the printer is printing correctly, change the cartridge immediately. If you have already installed the cartridge and now the nozzle check will not print completely even after running a few cleaning cycles, the printer may need a service.

How do I replace an ink cartridge?

Install Replacement Ink Cartridge when an ink low or out condition occurs - Remove the yellow tape seal from the ink cartridge. Do not remove the blue label from the top of the ink cartridge (The ink in a cartridge missing the blue label will be exposed to air and will thicken such that print head clogging and possible print head failure can occur). Then make sure the printer is on but not printing. Raise the printer cover, then press down the cleaning button until the print heads move to the left. Install the ink cartridge and press the cleaning button to begin charging the ink delivery system. Charging takes about two minutes and is complete when the power light stops flashing.

Caution: If the blue label has been removed from the ink cartridge, do not install the cartridge. If you have already installed it, even if the printer is printing correctly, change the cartridge immediately. If you have already installed the cartridge and now the nozzle check will not print completely even after running a few cleaning cycles, the printer may need a service.

I installed new ink cartridges and the printer is now doing continuous cleaning cycles. Is there something wrong with my printer?

When an ink cartridge is installed into the printer, it will take approximately 2 minutes to charge the ink system and initialize the printer. While the ink is charging the power light will flash. Never turn off the printer while the power light is flashing (unless the power light is flashing AND the printer has not moved or made noise for over 5 minutes). This initialization is a normal and necessary process.

The colors of my image on my monitor do not match the output from my printer. What is wrong?

First you must have an understanding of how color is produced. A monitor displays color by transmitting Red, Green and Blue (RGB) light into your eyes. A printer uses existing light to reflect Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and blacK (CYMK) light into your eyes. It is virtually impossible to have these two different color types (transmissive and reflective) to match perfectly. Also, due to its transmissive nature, the monitor is able to display a much wider range of colors than a reflective product, such as a piece of paper with ink on it.

Second, most monitors are not calibrated for correct color display out of the box, they have to be calibrated to produce accurate colors. Adobe PhotoShop includes a basic monitor calibrator to do this; it is the Adobe Gamma utility. This utility is contained in the Control Panel in Windows and on the Macintosh. Some of the higher-end monitor calibrators use a suction cup device that sticks on the monitor and reads a range of colors displayed on the monitor. These hardware/software combination devices create much more accurate color profiles than the strictly software solutions.

Also, what type of color matching system (CMS) are you using when printing your image? The color matching system can greatly affect the output color of your image. For information on how to use the various color management system available, please check the CMS user documentation or the website of the manufacturer.

To ensure that the images your Epson Color printer produces are as close as possible to the images displayed on your monitor you should do the following:

• Calibrate your monitor
• Experiment with various Color Management Systems
• Try using the ICM (Windows 95 or 98) or ColorSync (Macintosh) setting

The quality of my printed output is unacceptable. What can I do to improve this?

First verify that you are using the correct printer driver for your printer model. Make sure that the printer's paper thickness lever is set to 0 for regular paper and + for envelopes or thicker media. If MicroWeave is off, turn this feature on. If High Speed is on, turn it off. Make sure the Media Type setting matches the paper or media loaded. Also, the Halftoning and Color Adjustment Mode options may be set incorrectly for your document type. Let the printer driver automatically select the settings for the best quality.

Second, verify that the printable side of the paper is face up, and check the type of paper being used. EPSON brand paper, which is specifically designed for the Stylus ink jet series of printers, delivers the best-printed output. If your output is faint, check the printer driver to make sure you have selected a print resolution other than Economy. The resolution of your image may also be set too low. Increase the image resolution using your image-editing software, or decrease the size of the image.

Also, try testing the printer to another computer. This will eliminate the possibility of a defective printer cable, parallel port, or software issue. If you're still experiencing a problem, try replacing the ink cartridge and make sure you are using a genuine EPSON ink cartridge. If the blue label has been removed from the ink cartridge, do not install the cartridge.

Caution: If the blue label has been removed from the ink cartridge, do not install the cartridge. If you have already installed it and the printer is printing correctly, change the cartridge immediately. If you have already installed the cartridge and now the nozzle check will not print completely even after running cleaning cycles, your printer may need a service.

Only garbled text is printing with my PC or Mac. Why?

The interface cable may not be securely connected. Turn off the printer and computer. Disconnect and reconnect the cable on both the printer and computer. Make sure the printer is directly connected to the computer and not through a pass through device such as a switchbox. Make sure the printer cable is fully-shielded and meets the printer's specifications (a Belkin F2V024-06 cable is recommended when you are using a Macintosh computer or a Belkin cable with a length of 6 feet or less if you are using a PC).

If you are using a PC, try printing a screen from a DOS prompt. If the DOS print screen is garbled, try using a different printer cable. If you are only experiencing the issue when trying to print from Windows (but the DOS print screen prints OK), make sure you are using the correct driver. Select the Stylus Photo 1200 as your default printer driver. Check for and delete any stalled print jobs. If you are using a Macintosh, make sure AppleTalk is turned off in the Chooser and make sure you always leave the printer turned off until the Macintosh is fully booted.

Vertical lines are not aligned or vertical banding appears. How can I correct this?

First make sure you are using the most current version of the printer driver, which is available on the EPSON web site. Align the print head (as described in your User's Guide) making sure to save the alignment settings by turning off the power with the printer's power button. If you have already tried to align the print head and did not have any success, try turning high speed off in the printer driver settings. Also, the print head nozzles may be clogged. From the head cleaning section found in the EPSON printer driver, clean the print heads by performing a head cleaning followed by printing a nozzle check pattern. A head cleaning and nozzle check pattern must be performed as a cycle. After printing a nozzle check pattern, examine the printed dot pattern. Each staggered horizontal and straight vertical line should be complete, with no gaps in the dot pattern. If there are gaps in the dot pattern, continue with another cycle. Perform up to 3 cycles if necessary.

How can I increase the print speed on my Macintosh?

The Macintosh serial port will tend to be slower due to the fact that a PC transmits data through a parallel connection (8 bits at a time) while the Macintosh transmits serially (1 bit at a time). Verify that your system meets the minimum system requirements. The print speed is dependent upon the amount of RAM in your system, the type and speed of your computer's processor, and the amount of free hard drive space and degree of fragmentation of hard drive space in your computer. If you are using Background printing, try turning it off. If you must use Background printing, allocate more memory to the EPSON Monitor3. Close any background applications that are running. Lower the printing resolution and make sure high speed is turned on and MicroWeave is turned off in the printer driver settings. If your document does not contain color, make sure you have selected "Black" as the "Ink" setting in the printer driver. If you are printing black text, also set the "Halftoning" option in the printer driver settings to "No Halftoning".

I'm having problems printing from an iMac OS 8.1 system. What is wrong?

Make sure you have the latest iMac ROM update installed from Apple. From the iMac's desktop, select File, Fine and type Mac OS ROM and click on Find. Highlight the Mac OS ROM and select File and click on Get Info. The Created date should be August 28, 1998 or later. If it is not, you will need to download and install the iMac Update 1.0 from Apple's website.

I installed the printer driver on my Macintosh, but it isn't showing up in the Chooser. What should I check?

Make sure the QuickDraw GX extension is disabled, and make sure the "SP 1200" and "EPSON Monitor3" extensions are enabled. Then, restart your Macintosh.

I am getting the message "Sorry SP 1200 cannot be used" when I try to select the "SP 1200" icon in the Chooser. What should I do?

This message indicates that there is something wrong with the driver or the way it was installed, and you will need to remove and reinstall the driver. To remove the driver, trash the "SP 1200", "EPSON Monitor3", and "EPSON Folder" extensions from your "Extensions" folder (the "Extensions" folder is located in your "System Folder" folder in your hard drive). Then, restart your Macintosh and reinstall the driver. If you have printer drivers of other EPSON printers installed on your system, you may need to reinstall them after removing the Stylus Photo 1200 driver.

Whenever I try to print from my Macintosh, I get a type 11 error, my system locks up or a portion of my image doesn't print. What's wrong?

These issues are typically memory related errors. Check the available memory and its allocation. You may need to increase the memory allocation for your application, the EPSON Monitor, or both. Insure that the needed system resources are available. If you have background printing enabled, you may want to try disabling it. Some printing issues can also be caused by conflicts with Extensions and Control Panels. Turn off all third party Extensions and Control Panels that have been added to the system and restart.

Whenever I power up my Macintosh the printer switches from the printer port to the modem port. How can I correct this?

Turn off the printer and make sure AppleTalk is inactive in the Chooser. Go to the Extensions Manager and disable the "AppleShare", "File Sharing Extension", and "Printer Share" extensions. Open Preferences and drag the AppleTalk, Finder, and PrinterShare preferences to the trash. Restart the Macintosh and go to the Chooser. In the Chooser, set any Apple serial printers (ImageWriter's and StyleWriters, for example) to the printer port, then set the Stylus Photo 1200 (represented by the "SP 1200" icon in the Chooser) to the printer port. Restart the Macintosh again, turn the printer on once the Macintosh is fully booted, and check to see if the Stylus Photo 1200 stays on the printer port.

Why am I getting a memory error message when I try to print from my Macintosh?

You may need to increase the memory allocation for your application, EPSON Monitor3, or both. If you have background printing enabled, you may want to try disabling it.

A portion of my image doesn't print when I'm printing from my Macintosh.

Your system may not have enough available memory. Close any other applications you are running and turn off background printing. You may need to increase the memory allocation for your application, the EPSON Monitor3, or both.

How can I increase my print speed from my PC?

Verify that your system meets the system requirements. The print speed is dependent upon the amount of RAM in your system, the type and speed of your computer's processor, and the amount of free hard drive space and degree of fragmentation of hard drive space in your computer.

Verify that you are using the EPSON Stylus Photo 1200 driver. Increasing or maximizing physical RAM, lowering the print resolution, and if you are printing multiple copies of the same document, activate the "High Speed Copies" option in the printer driver settings. If you're using single plain paper to print, check that the printer's blue paper thickness lever is set to the (Ø) position and not to the (+) position for envelopes. Close any background applications that are running. On a PC creating a unique spool directory improves printing performance by eliminating spooling conflicts within Windows. If your computer supports ECP mode and/or DMA transfers, try turning them on (see your computer documentation for details).

Why can't I print from a particular Windows application in color?

Make sure the correct driver is selected and the Color option is enabled in the printer driver. Try printing again. If the image comes out monochrome, print from a resident program within Windows, such as Paintbrush. If the results are successful from Paintbrush, contact the software manufacturer of the application for assistance. If the results are not successful, troubleshoot the pertinent areas within Windows, such as the video driver.

I am getting an IF4 error after installing the USB printer driver. The EPSON USB Printers icon in the Device Manager shows up as a Diamond and I get an error stating that there is a problem with the printer.

What has happened is that for some reason the USB installation has gotten corrupted. To correct the issues try the following:

• Turn printer Off
• Go to Device Manager and Remove the EPSON USB Printer Device (EPUSB1:)
• Go to Printers and remove the SP1200 driver
• Go to Start/Find and type EPUSB and click Find
• The following files should be listed:
  • Epsonepusbien.inf
  • Epusbci.dll
  • Epusbin.dll
  • Epusbmn.dll
  • Epusbun.exe
  • Epusb.sys
• Highlight and delete all 6 files.
• Go back to Start/Find and type EPSON and click Find.
• The files listed should be: EPSONEPIIFE3T.INF (for SP1200)
• Highlight INF file and delete it.
• Restart the Computer
• Once back to the Desktop, Power the printer on and it should Plug and Play USB correctly.

When I try to print in Windows 95 or 98, the message "The printer is out of paper" or "The printer is off-line" appears in the despooler. What do I do?

Examine the printer's control panel to make sure the printer does not show a paper out error. Also, the interface cable may not be securely connected. Turn off the printer and computer. Disconnect and reconnect the cable on both the printer and computer. Make sure the printer cable is fully-shielded and meets the printer's specifications. Try printing a screen from a DOS prompt. If the DOS print screen does not print or is garbled, try using a different printer cable (a Belkin cable with a length of 6 feet or less is recommended).

After I installed my printer software in Windows 95 or 98, I cannot run ScanDisk. What happened?

You must disable Status Monitor 2 when you want to run ScanDisk. To disable Status Monitor 2, right-click on the Status Monitor 2 icon in the taskbar and select "Stop monitoring now".

The printer won't feed paper. What should I do?

Power the printer on and press the Load/Eject button to see if paper will load. If no paper loads, make sure the paper isn't curled or creased, isn't too old, isn't loaded above the arrow on the left edge guide, and that the paper isn't jammed in the printer. If the Paper Out light is on solid, reload the paper, making sure the paper edge guide is adjusted to fit the paper's width, and then press the Load/Eject button again to see if the paper will now load. If the Paper Out light is flashing, turn the printer off, reload the paper, turn the printer back on, and try pressing Load/Eject again to see if the printer will now successfully load the paper. If the printer still will not load paper, power the printer off, remove the printer cable, and make sure all of the packing materials are removed. If the problem persists, the printer may need to be sent in for a service.

The power light is on, but nothing prints. What should I do?

Turn off the printer and computer. Make sure the printer cable is securely connected to the printer and computer ports. Turn on the printer and computer and try printing again. If the cable was not the issue, turn off the printer and computer, disconnect the interface cable and run a nozzle check. If the nozzle check works, try checking for and deleting any stalled print jobs.

The printer sounds like it is printing, but no ink is on the paper. What's wrong?

The print head nozzles may be clogged. From the Utility section found in the EPSON printer driver, clean the print heads by performing a head cleaning followed by printing a nozzle check pattern. A head cleaning and nozzle check must be performed as a cycle. After printing a nozzle check, examine the printed dot pattern. Each staggered horizontal and straight vertical line should be complete, with no gaps in the dot pattern. If there are gaps in the dot pattern, continue with another cycle. Perform up to 3 cycles if necessary. If the nozzle check is not printing completely, and if the head cleanings do not help the nozzle check pattern to print completely, try replacing the ink cartridge. Any ink cartridge installed into the printer must have a blue label on top of it. If the blue label has been removed from the ink cartridge, do not install the cartridge. Using an ink cartridge, which does not have the blue label on it, may damage the printer.

Caution: If you have already installed a cartridge which is missing the blue label, or if a previously installed ink cartridge was missing its blue label at the time it was installed, and now head cleanings do not help the nozzle check pattern to print completely, your printer may require a service.

My printouts are missing color and/or black print. How can I resolve this issue?

If the printer is printing blank pages, make sure you are using the correct printer driver and make sure the paper size is correctly selected in the driver. If the printer is printing black only, the "Ink" option in the printer driver may be set to "Black" instead of "Color" or a setting in the software may be set to print black only. Also, the print head nozzles may be clogged. From the Utility section found in the EPSON printer driver, clean the print heads by performing a head cleaning followed by printing a nozzle check pattern. A head cleaning and nozzle check must be performed as a cycle. After printing a nozzle check, examine the printed dot pattern. Each staggered horizontal and straight vertical line should be complete, with no gaps in the dot pattern. If there are gaps in the dot pattern, continue with another cycle. Perform up to 3 cycles if necessary. If the nozzle check is not printing completely, and if the head cleanings do not help the nozzle check pattern to print completely, try replacing the ink cartridge. Also, make sure you are using a genuine EPSON ink cartridge, which has a blue label on top of it. If the blue label has been removed from the ink cartridge, do not install the cartridge. Using an ink cartridge, which does not have the blue label on it, may damage the printer. If you have already installed a cartridge which is missing the blue label, or if a previously installed ink cartridge was missing its blue label at the time it was installed, and now head cleanings do not help the nozzle check pattern to print completely, your printer may require a service.

How do I align the print head on my printer?

To align the print head, make sure that paper is loaded and the printer has power. Access the "Utility" tab (if you are using Windows) or click the "Utility" button (if you are using a Macintosh) located in your printer driver settings. Click the Print Head Alignment icon and follow the instructions on the screen. Make sure to use the printer's power switch to turn off the printer, otherwise the settings will not be saved.

How can I stop the printer from feeding multiple pages at the same time?

Make sure the paper you are using is not too thin (see paper specifications in the Appendix of your User's Guide). Remove the stack of paper and fan the edges to separate the sheets. Reload the paper, making sure the edge guides are snug against both sides of the paper, then press the Load/Eject button to see if it feeds the paper correctly.

Sometimes the paper doesn't eject all the way or is wrinkled. What should I do?

Make sure the correct paper size is selected in your application and/or printer software. If the paper doesn't eject fully, it may be too long for the printer. If the paper is wrinkled, the paper may be damp or too thin. Check the paper specifications in the Appendix of your Printer Basics Guide for ranges of paper size and thickness you can print with, as well as environmental requirements for storage.

Why are my margins incorrect?

The paper may be loaded incorrectly. Make sure that the left and right edge guides are flush against both sides of the paper. Make sure the margins are set correctly in your software application (margins are not adjustable via the printer driver), and make sure you are not trying to print outside of the printable area of the page for your paper size (printable area of the page specifications are available in the Printer Basics Manual). Make sure the correct paper size is selected in the printer driver settings.

The printer does not have a Data light. How do I know when the printer is receiving information?

The Power light functions as the Data light. When the Power light flashes, the printer is receiving information from the computer. When the Power light remains solid, the printer has completed the print job and is ready to receive another.

If I want to clear the printer's memory, what should I do?

Make sure that you cancel the print job from the computer before you try to clear the printer's memory. Also, make sure the printer is no longer printing. After canceling the print job from the computer, turn the printer off, wait 10 seconds, and then turn on the printer again.

Why does the image look inverted, as if viewed in a mirror?

You may have accidentally used the "Flip Horizontal" option in the printer driver or a similar feature in your application. Turn off the setting in the printer driver and/or software application and try printing again.

The paper out light is flashing. What's wrong?

This indicates a paper jam. Remove all paper from the printer, and then reload the paper. Make sure the paper is pushed against the right edge guide, and slide the left edge guide against the other side of the paper. Then, press the load/eject button. If the unit still gives an error, please contact the EPSON Connection for assistance.

Why are all the lights on the printer flashing?

When all the lights flash, your printer may have an internal error. Verify that all packing material has been removed. Instructions for removing the packing material will be found on a notice in the box. If the printer has not made any noises for more than five minutes, turn off the printer. Open the cover and check for any obstructions. Power on the printer to see if the error still occurs.

All lights are off. Why won't the printer initialize?

The printer may not be receiving any power. Turn the printer off. Remove the interface cable from the back of the printer, unplug the power cord, plug it back into the outlet, and try turning the power on again. If you still do not get power to the printer, try another outlet. Make sure the outlets you are connecting to are not controlled by a switch or timer and are able to operate other equipment.

The black or color Ink Out light is flashing or on solid.

If the light is flashing, the ink supply is getting low and you will need to replace the cartridge soon. If the light is on solid, the ink cartridge is completely empty and will need to be replaced in order to continue printing. Make sure you only remove the yellow tape seal from the top of any ink cartridge you install into the printer.

Caution: If the blue label has been removed from the ink cartridge, the cartridge will not function correctly and it needs to be replaced. More importantly, to avoid potential damage to the printer, do not install the cartridge if the blue label has been removed.

When I print from Appleworks 5.0.3 / 5.0.4 or Word 98 from my Macintosh (PowerMac / G3 / G4 / iMac / DV iMac) to my EPSON Stylus Color/Photo inkjet printer, some of the text is cut off on the right edge. What can I do to correct this?

Follow the steps below to correct the issue of characters clipping from Appleworks and Word 98.

Appleworks:

1) Open document.
2) Click on Edit, then Preferences.
3) Topic should be set to Text.
4) Under the Options, enable "Fractional Character Widths".
5) Click OK and print the document.
6) When the file is saved, it will save the setting along with it.

Word 98:

1) Open document.
2) Click on Tools, then Preferences.
3) Click on the Print tab.
4) Under the options for current document only, select "Fractional Widths".
5) Click OK and print the document.
6) When the file is saved, it will save the setting along with it.