Search

Printer Tutorials

7 step-by-step tutorials

Printers cause more everyday frustration than almost any other device, usually because of the connection between the printer and the computer rather than the printer itself. These tutorials walk you through every stage: unboxing and setup, connecting to Wi-Fi or USB, installing the right driver, printing with the settings you want, and scanning.

If a printer is already set up but misbehaving, jump to the tutorials on a printer that is offline or not printing, and on paper jams, blank pages and faded prints. The steps work for most home and small-office inkjet and laser printers; where brands differ, we point you to the maker’s own instructions.

Lessons in this subject

  1. Printer Setup for Beginners: From Box to First Print

    A complete printer setup tutorial: unpack, load ink or toner and paper, choose a connection, add the printer to Windows or a Mac and print a test page.

    Beginner30–45 minutes

  2. How to Connect a Printer to Wi-Fi and Your Laptop

    Learn how to connect a printer to Wi-Fi with its screen, a WPS button or the maker's app, then connect the printer to your laptop or computer.

    Beginner20–40 minutes

  3. How to Install and Update Printer Drivers Safely

    How to install printer drivers the safe way: let Windows or macOS add them, download official printer drivers from the maker, and update or reinstall them.

    Intermediate15–30 minutes

  4. Printer Offline or Not Printing? Step-by-Step Fixes

    Fix a printer offline or not printing problem step by step: check the connection, clear a stuck print queue, reset the printer status and reconnect.

    Beginner10–30 minutes

  5. How to Print From a Laptop: Print Settings and Double-Sided Printing

    Learn how to print from a laptop or computer, choose print settings such as page range and quality, use double-sided printing and set a default printer.

    Beginner15 minutes

  6. Paper Jams, Blank Pages and Faded Prints: Print Quality Help

    Print quality help for beginners: clear a paper jam safely, fix blank pages, faded printing and streaks, and understand ink, toner and printer messages.

    Beginner15–30 minutes

  7. How to Scan Documents to Your Computer and to PDF

    How to scan documents to a computer on Windows or a Mac, save them as PDF or JPG, scan several pages into one file and fix common scanner problems.

    Beginner15 minutes