Problem: You have your printer listed twice for some reason, only one of them works, and you can never remember which one
Solution: Delete both and re-add the printer
Results: You have three copies of your printer listed
Nov 16, 2025, 11:07 PM@ricci "Now you have three problems...."
@ricci one printer always speaks the truth
the other always jams
(this is a lie both printers are Jammed Offline)
@ricci hey Rob I bet if you sat down with a few smart people you could Fix Printers
@ricci you can rename them and give distinctive names. The one with the most insulting name wins.
@bonkers @jawnsy has the winning name https://mastodon.social/@jawnsy/115561952784427332
@ricci
been there
@ricci
Real solution:
@KuramaSuben @ricci Interfacing it with the computer seems tricky. I'm not sure robots are advanced enough yet to type on typewriters ;-)
@KuramaSuben
Yeah, like that never jammed on me... Worst jam I ever had was three character arms jammed up against the page, and I was almost done with the page. Ended up was warping the "J" arm trying to un-jam it. From then on, the "J" would print in a subscript.
@ricci There’s no doubt anymore: We ARE related!
@kiwiWolle howdy, sibling!
@ricci Bro! *bear hug*
Is your printer manufactured by Fibonacci Printers Inc?
@pewnack I am NOT going to add it again to see if I get 5
@ricci have you tried swearing, putting it in storage and buying a new one? That usually quells my printer problems for a while
@pmonson this IS the new printer
(actually it's a pretty good printer, it's one of the ink tank ones where you actually *pay for* the printer and the ink is cheap. I blame cups)
@ricci that is neither common nor unix I expect, I wouldn't expect it to work
Nov 17, 2025, 2:02 AM@ricci
You have 2 printers, you look again. You have always had 3 printers. - Printer Gothic
@ricci Printer connections are Hydras. Regular deletion just makes them grow back in greater numbers. The only solution is to burn each severed connection with a lighted torch as soon as you delete it. Make sure you have thorough backups before going this route.
@ricci I propose a corollary for scanners. The struggle is real.
@ricci How many of the three work? You either increased or decreased your odds of getting the right one.
@ricci thanks for that handy tip, but what about what's in the queue?
@ricci
On linux Mint they added a stupid autodiscovery service that needs removed. Madness in somewhere large.
@ricci Don't buy a HP. All printers are awful, but HP has found new depths beneath bedrock.
@ricci It's fascinating that you don't need to specify the operating system. Printers are one of those universally unsolved problems.
@fluchtkapsel absolutely
Three is better than zero
@ricci My printer only prints if I restart Windows. Not by relaunching the printing. The exact moment when the computer turns off and on, the printer wakes up and prints. No idea why.
@ricci if two of them work though, that's an improvement.
@ricci An unexpected XKCD “how standards proliferate" variation.
Nov 20, 2025, 6:13 PM@ricci
Somehow the running gag from the "IT Crowd" comes to mind here... "Did you try turning it off and back on again?"
@ricci I have two copies of the printer listed, I think one works for printing and the other one for scanning.
I can never remember which one is which and if I try to change the labels to reflect their use, suddenly the printer will use the one labelled "scanner" and the scanning tool will not be able to find a scanner at all.
@ricci I know why I have it listed twice: one via USB, one via LAN.
None of them works.
@ricci Verified as true.
@ricci This is more or less what led to the situation I'm in where I ask my phone to call my wife and it replies "Which one?"
