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I just got my 6500 and thought, after I read everyone's problems I'd have a similar one, but I just go to file/print/properties.....fast economical, print black only. Maybe this will help someone. 🙂 I print greyscale because it cuts down on black ink use, too.

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It's nowhere near that simple losttherace. You might think you are printing in black only because that's the option you've chosen, but HP, being more intelligent than you and knowing what's better for your printer than you do, has configured the printer driver to continue to use multiple color cartridges even when you tell it not to. You can't tell under normal operation, but let your black ink cartridge get low, and your black and white printouts will start having a green hue to them. That's how I discovered this "feature".

 

Aaron

 

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Thank you, thank you for the suggestions, conveniently unknown to HP 1st and 2nd level support, for how to use black ink only  when I ask for it!!! The suggestion to specify the specific printer using "page setup" worked perfectly - up until this time I had been lately printing black as green, as I have refused to purchase color cartidges to print black only. The power of the internet community can still at times override the big foot of corporations.

 

The design of this driver can only have been done for revenue increase. After all, what foolish person would ask for blank ink only printing and then wish to use shades of cyan, etc. to print reams of black ink text?

 

I have finally, after 30 years as a consumer and technical person in the software industry, become "Mad as &#^@ and not going to take it any more" on this issue. Not only did technical support not solve this problem, but my "case manager", ha, named "Amie" (with an i-e), was the most uncooperative, immature, unknowledgeable, abrupt individual whose job is purportedly is to help the customer I have dealt with in my memory.  People like her and design such as this are indicative of how abysmal consumer interest has become in this industry. I am going to take the time to complain about this in appropriate forums, and encourage others to do so also.

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Is anyone at HP paying attention???!!!  We want to use black ink ONLY and no amount of excuses from tech support is going to change that.  I was just told that the black ink needs a color primer, and the black is used only as a "top coat" to make it look "blacker".  WHAT????  Evidently HP expects it's customers to buy this sort of reasoning instead of SOLVING THE PROBLEM.  Are we supposed to go buy color cartridges because we have already made the initial investment and now we have no choice?!  That is what they are telling us.  Tsk tsk HP, it is indeed a sad day.

 

 

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For Mac users: The Gutenprint option mentioned above is working for me on the Officejet 6000 wireless.

 

System Prefs > Print & Fax

Click [+] to add a new printer

Select your printer via Bonjour or Network

There is a "Print Using" drop down that lets you choose the driver

"Select a driver to use"

I picked "Officejet 6110 - Gutenprint v5.1.3"

 

Works great for me.

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HELP PLEASE!

 

Gr-r-r.  I am running two Macs - wireless with OS 10.5.8, and USB connected with OS 10.4.11. I thought I had the problem resolved for printing with black cartridges only as follows:

(WITHIN EACH APPLICATION (note, didn't get that the first time) using the PAGE SETUP option to select FORMAT FOR OfficeJet 6500 E709n) AND

(selecting black only and grayscale) when printing.

 

However, this am the OS 10.4.11 machine started printing in green, then yellow, then nothing as the remaining color ink ran out. Interestingly, I do  not have this problem on the wireless 10.5 machine.

 

I would like to find a real solution to this problem. HP tech support insists it is because I don't have a functional color cartridge, even in the face of the evidence that it works with one system and not the other.  Certainly calling HP "Customer Care"  doesn't work - they said it was my fault because I didn't research this printer to see if it would print black only since the machine is operating as designed!!!!

 

I have seen some suggestions to define a different printer driver - does this mean I can just download other printer drivers for printers I don't have and try using them???  Is this the best suggestion anyone has found on a Mac?  I would be so grateful....

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Thanks, that worked for me too... all my ink was out so I bought a XL black (not knowing HP was retarded and create black from every color but a black cartridge). :Wink:

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Wow, thanks this worked for me. 

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Tried this trick using Excel on my IMac and HP C4280 printer.  Prior to this fix, grayscale would only print in faint color ("faint" mostly due to my color cartridge was mostly empty).  With your fix I got great black and white!  Thanks.:smileyvery-happy:

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just had the same issue with not print  in black only re PC /  windows 7 and office 2007 and i cant get anything to work as a fix.

 

black ink is brand new and full and now  colours all empty. colours continued to print until fully drained but no black at all as black ran out coincidentaly around the same time.  now that colour is empty nothing will print even though replaced the black and black is 100% full.

 

HP online chat was next to useless but confirmed their dirty little secret policy of nothing will print out unless all colour cartridges are full... here is somne of HP's chat comments ... "I would like to inform you that HP Officejet 6500 All-in-One model which uses the latest technology called K-Fortification.

What is K-Fortification?

To get the best quality printing, the All-in-One prints a yellow coloured layer before printing any text. So every line of the text printed form this printer has a yellow color layer printed in the background which is not visibe to our naked eye. This enhances the quality of the printed text.

This technicque is called K-Fortification.

Every time we print or copy any page or document, the yellow Ink will be sprayed on the Page first and the Black will be sprayed on it for better quality of the Print. "

 

also ... "Please replace all the empty cartridges and try to print and get back to us with the observations."

 

and my comment  ..." i have no doubt it will work after replacing colours. the point is i do NOT want to WASTE colour ink to produce black only which is all i print out in."

 

[Saturday, February 12, 2011 11:54 AM] -- HP says: "In order to print we need to have all the cartridges in the cartridge Slot. If any cartridge is emptied, then the printer does not prints. In our day to day work, we have many documents to be printed in Black only. "

 

and my comment  ... "i dont have colour replacement on hand. Please just answer my question directly ..." Is the printer designed to use colour first, even when printing "black" and if it cannot becuase it detects colours are empty, then it will not even attempt to spray out any black ink.???

 

HP says:
Yes.  

 

HP says:
I would like to explain that the printer is designed in such a way that all the cartridges in the All-in-One should have proper amount of ink in them to print. If the one cartridge is also empty the printer will not print.

 

HP says:
That is the reason. I request you to replace the empty cartridges and try to print and get back to us with the observations to assist you further regarding the issue.

 

My comment..."thats odd because it was still printing colours while the colour ink lasted , but now that colours are gone black is now not printed also even though black is full. so it seems to like to use the expensive colours up first and will print with them"

 

thats about all the help i got from them.

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