Starting a home network/printer sharing?

[Swany420]

i have a linksys wired router .... routed to 2 computers and i was not informed that i would need a printer router when i bought it....(one of those, ripping people off type things), so i would like to know how would i be able to get my printer working on both computers?

would i need another router-printer router to hook into my regular internet router or what?

i am a newb when it comes to this networking type things so i would like some help please!

 

[blue68f100]

The easiest way is to use MS file and printer sharing. Then share the printer. This works most every time, the only hold back is that the PC must be ON to print.

The other option is to buy a print server, these are a hit an miss depending on your Printer. HP has there own print servers and work well, but expensive. The best way is to see if a nic or wireless card is available to network yours. Or buy a network printer, they can be had for around $150.

 

[Iceblue]

Is it a printer, or a multifunction device? Most printer servers do not support the scanning, etc., functions.

How close together are your two computers? If they are fairly close, you could cosider a USB switch; it'd be a lot cheaper than a network printer server, and it would support all the functions of the device.

 

[Swany420]

yes these computers are about 5 feet away from one anotehr so i think this usb idea would be good.... i just dont know how to do this..............

how would i hook my pronter up to both of them using a usb cord

 

[Iceblue]

Use a USB switch like this.