Windows Xp Driver Updates are Easier Than You Think!
Obtaining the most recent Windows XP driver updates can have an extremely beneficial effect on the performance of your personal computer. Many people don’t realize that outdated drivers are often the culprits behind errors, slowdowns, and overall poor performance. As a matter of fact, many people do not even realize what drivers are!
Windows drivers are code interfaces that allow your computer to communicate with external hardware devices. This includes your mouse, keyboard, video card, sound card, printer, monitor, and more. All these things utilize device drivers in order to properly run with your Windows computer.
Finding the proper Windows XP driver updates for your hardware and operating system can be a big hassle. First you have to figure out which hardware needs new drivers (which is not always clear), and then you have to go on a hunt over the internet to find the appropriate driver for your operating system and hardware version.
There is an easy way to update drivers, however, and it’s in the form of automatic driver update software. One excellent program is called Driver Detective, and it draws on a database of over 2.2 million different device drivers, including special drivers for computers manufactured by Dell, Toshiba, Compaq, and other brands.
Another excellent program you can check out is Driver Genius. It’s very similar to Driver Detective. Basically these programs scan your computer for all installed drivers and then compares that data with their company’s databases of the latest drivers. If yours are out of date all it takes is a few simple clicks, and the software will download the latest driver updates automatically.
Keeping your Windows XP drivers up to date is important if you want to ensure that your computer is running at peak performance. It’s a basic part of computer maintenance, as well as a first step in troubleshooting any sort of computer error or problem.
Cynthia Blake
http://www.articlesbase.com/hardware-articles/windows-xp-driver-updates-are-easier-than-you-think-740657.html
April 29th, 2010 at 11:47 am
i need a way to share a printer other than through a network. basically need to hook a printer to 2 computers.?
The printer is attached to a desktop. A laptop needs to also be able to use it without unplugging it everytime. The laptop is wirelessly connected to the same network as the desktop, and can "see" the desktop and vice versa. The laptop has vista, the desktop has xp. It is not possible for this printer to work shared through the network. When i connected to it over the network, it sees it and even says the printer name correctly, but says it needs drivers for the printer to work with vista. a *.inf file to be exact. problem is, epson only provides this driver through windows update, and it is not a *.inf file. that is the only format the wizard will accept. i have hooked the printer up directly through usb and let it install the needed drivers, and it works. Problem is, i don’t want to have to unhook it from the desktop every time i need to print. i don’t think there is anything to "split" the usb, and don’t think a usb hub would work either. When i shared the printer from the desktop, i selected to have drivers for other operating systems available, but i don’t think vista was an option. i contacted epson, and got a few different responses, the most frustrating is that they don’t support wireless printing. i finally got an answer that they may provide a driver for download in the future, but that it still may not be an inf file.
now the most frustrating part- this is my dad’s computer (and little sister"s laptop) and i have the exact same setup at my house with the same model of printer and cannot remember how i go it to work, i just remember it took hours. my epson rx620 was connected to a pc with xp, and my toshiba laptop with vista was able to print to it. i cannot look and see how i did this, as my vista laptop is a little older, and i attached it right after i got it, which was oct of 2007. i have it connected now through a printserver (because i was given a printserver free) so i cannot see what driver it was using before.
I am a computer tech with a programming degree, so any help you can give would be appreciated, and i should understand anything you tell me to try.
I don’t know if i am just getting rusty with it since i don’t really work on them much anymore, or if vista has been getting worse with comptibility instead of better…
good thing is, my sister’s laptop will be getting windows 7 soon, but she is a senior in high school and has to print stuff a lot, and is getting tired of climbing behind the computer to get the usb cable everytime. if you have a suggestion of something to buy that is fine, but don’t suggest a new printer or computer or os. (because the printer is new, the laptop is 2 months old and she is getting 7 soon anyway)
I have determined the easiest solution is to buy another usb printer cable to keep on the desk to that they only have to unplug the cord from the back of the printer when they have to switch them.
Please help!!!
The problem with a print server is that it is a multi-function photo printer, and the scanning and other features are not supported with print servers. I found this out with mine, and they do a lot of photo printing and scanning, so don’t want to go the printserver route.
April 29th, 2010 at 4:49 pm
If you dont want to share it through a network why not get a wireless print server?
That way the printer will always be shared and accessible by the laptop
without having to go through the actual share of a network, in this case the desktop, to access the printer. Thats the easiest way and more economical than buying another printer.
Good Luck.
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April 29th, 2010 at 4:51 pm
I use Corel Print House 6 and very happy!
http://discount-oem-soft.com/corel-print-house-6.php
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