Connect Legacy Parallel Printer to Laptop w/USB Port

[BrooklynDodger]

Anyone with a legacy parallel port HP printer and a newer PC will have a challenge connecting the printer to the PC. The question is -- can it be done and, if so, how?

I have an old, relaiable OfficeJet - an R40xi. It just has one interface - a parallel cable. Now I have two PCs with no parallel port -- an HP laptop and an HP desktop. Both run XP home OS.

Question is -- is there any hope to using a parallel to serial cable on the laptop or a parallel to USB cable on either?

I suspect that Windowz XP and the HP driver will not "see" the printer on the serial or USB ports. Before I go out and buy cables and spend the TIME trying to get the system to work, I thought I would ask the opinion of EXPERTS. Anyone out there know?

One option that I still have is to install a parallel card in the desktop PC. I don't know if there is a parallel PCI card for the laptop available but I can look using GMBMG.com .

TIA.

kb 

[erico · Accepted solution]

here ya go for starters. Google may be a  spy, but sometimes he is your friend

[BrooklynDodger]

Ooops, I made an error in my message about laptop interfaces. Laptop computers do not accept a PCI card. They accept small PCMCIA cards. The Solution offered by my friend, erico, provides several products, through Google that would do the job. The advantage, in this case, of Google over GMBMG.com is that Google provides ads in the right side panel that might offer still more options while GMBMG filters them out.

BD