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by Thomas Wailgum

Why People Love to Hate Their Office Printers

News
Jul 12, 2010
Computers and Peripherals Data Center

Who hasn't wanted to take a bat to their office printer? From confusing error messages to unfixable paper jams, today's office printer is a source of frustration and angst. This is why we hate you, office printer. And yet we can't quit you, either.

Three Words: “PC Load Letter”

Yes, Michael Bolton, we feel your pain, and we still haven’t figured out WTF that error message actually means. That Initech printer had it coming.

And the Rockets Red Glare…

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“Um, yeah….I didn’t do it.” And just think, that toner probably cost more than the person who spilled it earns in a month.

That Should Do the Trick

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And you know when that printer eventually shuts down and someone has to finally call the service technician to come fix it, absolutely NO ONE will have any clue as to what could have possibly happened to the printer. (Except the service tech, of course.)

Now What You Gonna Do?

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If this printer could talk: “Sure, you can open those side doors, extricate the crinkled up paper and pull out some toner cartridges…but what are you going to do next, smartypants?” Game, Set, Match to the Printer.

Hey, Doc, Take It Easy!

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This is what I call an invasive procedure. Don’t you need some type of medical degree to administer this type of an exam? Just saying.

Notes on a Printer Scandal

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You just have to love those “passive-aggressive” sticky notes left on printers — especially those that refer to the “Printing Rules & Regulations” for a paperless office. Yeah, right. Maybe next century.

A Better Mouse Trap

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That would certainly explain the bite marks on everyone’s printouts. (Note: No animals were harmed during the printing of the next document.)

Stupid Printer Tricks

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The office dweller who snapped this photo notes that when printing big jobs with many pages, the machine invariably pushes the previous documents out of the tray, which go flying everywhere. “This is annoying,” he opines. We totally agree. However, the falling pages have a tendency to do “a loop-de-loop and get caught in the lower trays of the printer,” he writes. “This is, in a word, awesome.” Well, yeah.

An Autobot or Decepticon?

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“OH MY GOD!! IT’S JUST LIKE WHAT HAPPENED IN TRANSFORMERS!! EVERYBODY GET THE HELL OUT OF THE OFFICE, NOW!!”

That’s More Like It

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Now that’s a printer message that is totally understandable!

Between the Sheets

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Don’t be such a prude: How did you think printers were made?!

Free Falling

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The person who snapped this photo says: “Walking back from lunch took me past a funny view — someone apparently didn’t like their printer.” Wouldn’t that be so much fun to do?