PC and iMac suddenly will not talk to HP Deskjetpro 8600 printers

[Actxiom]

This is my second message and relates to the strange and sudden loss of ability to get two (wife's and mine) HP DeskjetPro 8600 computers to print. We use wireless connectivity, or did, she has a Dell PC with Windows 10 and I have an iMac OSX 10.11 which has the latest update El Capitan operating system.

We suddenly lost connectivity with our wireless printer. Our Internet connection is okay. Our WiFi is on. We have disconnected and restarted our router. The entire system is the latest upgrade from Comcast.net. 

So we are at a loss to know what to do.

Would sure like some helpful suggestions on what to try next.

Dave

[8lives]

Can you print a network config page. (link)

What is the network status? Wireless?

Is the Wireless icon on?

[Actxiom]

Magically, without doing anything to the PC and my iMac , we both received messages from somewhere to reprint. The problem all along appears to have been a combination of our provider Comcast.net and it relationship to all printer owners. 

I have literally spent a dozen hours trying to find the combination. I have bought into the HP Connect stuff, have changed passwords or made attempts to. My wife on the other hand has done nothing different and she has been able to get connected again wirelessly. She began printing a few minutes ago and I am still becoming enmeshed in the HP Connected system. 

I am absolutely not happy about these occurences. I do appreciate your volunteering to help but this is a case where we both have lost "valuable" spare time because of the errors or miscalculations of others. I am probably double your age and value each minute.

By the way, we took a 10 day trip last Sept to Banff and north to Jasper. (my first).  What incredible beauty.

[Actxiom]

I spoke too soon. I am still unable to hear the sound of the printer humming along and pumping out the charts and data I need to provide others.

I am barraged with commendations for signing up, even though I have been using this printer for years. I am have repeated sending in password information and now the latest is that I am being asked to add a PIN number to the configuration file. This stuff is really getting old. 

To answer the quetions of 8Lives, 

Can you print a network configuration page?  Well, I just clicked on the symbol of my computer and received a printed message saying Congratulations - Your printer is now web-enabled and has its own email address.

Below that I was given a printer's claim code. And I was asked to enter that later on, which I did.

What is the network status? Wireless? It has been for years.

Is the wireless icon on? Yes and it says I am connected but when I go to the scan button, I get a message that the Not connected. When I go back to the set of Wireless questions, Wireless is on, Wirless Direct is Off, At the bottom is Wireless Security protected. This tell me to enter a pin in the configuration.

This **bleep** thing is driving me berserk. All I want to do is print?

[8lives · Accepted solution]

If your computer is close enough to the printer you can always use the USB option.

You mentioned connecting use the ethernet port, I would suggest using that always.

[Actxiom]

To: 8Lives and all others, I finally found the problem for part of the issues of not having wireless connectivity. The numerous conversations were very important. It helped me eliiminate what makes no sense and what is worth pursuing.

In the end, though, it happens to me very often, that I had created my own dilemna. At one point I had eliminated a printer from the list of devices to send the print command to. At 4:00 PM today, I concluded that had to be my problem and finally I found and designated which printer to use. 

At 4:05, my printer began humming away.

So many thanks to you, 8Lives and the others. I still wonder why both of our computers quit and experienced the "no computer connected" for about 12 hours. Something else is going on and I would guess it is more global in nature.

Anyway, I'm on the trail again.

Dave